The #1 New York Times Bestseller (October 2017) from the author of The Da Vinci Code. Robert Langdon, Harvard professor of symbology, arrives at the ultramodern Guggenheim Museum Bilbao to attend the unveiling of a discovery that “will change the face of science forever.” The evening’s host is Edmond Kirsch, a forty-year-old billionaire and futurist, and one of Langdon’s first students. But the … Langdon’s first students.
But the meticulously orchestrated evening suddenly erupts into chaos, and Kirsch’s precious discovery teeters on the brink of being lost forever. Facing an imminent threat, Langdon is forced to flee. With him is Ambra Vidal, the elegant museum director who worked with Kirsch. They travel to Barcelona on a perilous quest to locate a cryptic password that will unlock Kirsch’s secret.
Navigating the dark corridors of hidden history and extreme religion, Langdon and Vidal must evade an enemy whose all-knowing power seems to emanate from Spain’s Royal Palace. They uncover clues that ultimately bring them face-to-face with Kirsch’s shocking discovery…and the breathtaking truth that has long eluded us.
more
Excellent book!
I bought this book the day it was released and then forgot about it for 9 months. Then I read it in one sitting. It appealed to me on many levels. Like Inferno it dealt with humanities immortality. There was a lot of art references in the book all of which are based on factual pieces.
Our favorite symbologist and college professor has been summoned to the Guggenheim by a former student, Edmond Kirsch. Kirsch is claiming to have found the origin of mankind and that his findings will bring religion to it’s knees. The world sits in anticipation of Kirsch’s announcement while religious leaders struggle with how they will handle the news. Someone does not want Kirsch’s groundbreaking discovery to be released. What measures will they take to stop him? Can Langdon save his friend and discover what mankind has in store?
Grammar – 5
On point.
Plot – 4.5
I think that society is very technological and this makes one wonder what role technology will play in the future. Think about stories like Stephen King’s Maximum Overdrive, which was written before IPads, IPhone and laptop computers, where technology develops it’s own conscience and tries to take over humans. How depended will we as humans become on technology?
Believability – 3.0
As mentioned in my rating of the Plot I can easily see humanity becoming to reliant on technology. The scientific part of my mind has issues with how the Edmond Kirsch character came to understand the origins of humanity and what our future holds. I like that Brown brought in to the story line Miller-Urey’s actual attempt to recreate the point that life began. I also agree with the introduction of the new research involving Miller-Urey’s experiment. If you do a search on this research you can better learn what scientist are discovering.
Ending – 4.5
No surprise, Robert Langdon lives to star in another Dan Brown story. The ending is a sad commentary on where we are socially as a society. We spend too much time on the internet, with our faces buried in our phones, and developing relationships over social media.
Price Value – 4
I think that you get a very good reading experience for the cost of this book.
Overall – 4.5
As I have said, I love this book, but ultimately I still struggle with the means in which Kirsch made his discovery. Without this I would have given the story a perfect 5. I would say that I would really give this book a 4.75 (if that type of thing existed).
Not his best work because it was a little slow to me but still entertaining.
mystery set in interesting places with great unusual architecture
Enjoyed the adventure and the dilemmas the characters faced. Many twists and turns kept me from figuring out how the book would end.
Did NOT want to put it down! The art, history, architecture, and insight on science and religion so interesting!
I enjoyed this book, but not near as much as the first four books in the series. It just didn’t engage me like the other books did. I had the ‘been there, done that’ feeling. The beginning was good, but somewhere along the line it lost my interest so much that I put it down for about three weeks.
I finally finished it tonight, and I enjoyed the ending, however, it was a long road getting here.
This is my LEAST favorite book by Dan Brown. It seemed to drag on and on before finally coming to a surprising yet unbelievable conclusion. I do not recommend it.
Exciting to see what happens next.
An exciting, action-packed book of things to come….
Fascinating read! I really enjoyed it.
Harder to get started than other Dan Brown books, but once started, the story moved faster with the typical Dan Brown twists and learning segments. Love it.
I loved this book. Dan Brown’s stories are so interesting because they take place in real locations around the world. Besides this book being entertaining and thought provoking, it made me want to visit Spain which has now made it to my bucket list. His books are well written.
It was hard to put this book down. Great story and character development. Informative and learned a lot. Highly recommend!
Had a surprise ending, Brown is a terrific writer, read a lot of his books and he does not disappoint.
As always Dan Brown has managed to merge facts and fiction seamlessly. His books always make you think about challenges the world is facing on a larger scale. Fantastic read!
I loved Origin: A Novel by Dan Brown! It’s thought provoking, a real page turner! Somehow he engages your imagination. While reading this book, you feel you are right there! I find myself racing to turn the page and sad when I finish the book. Now I wait for his next project!
Twists and turns always with a believable background. You learn a lot reading Dan Brown novels, much like Michael Crichton.
This book has intrigue, philosophical questions, great descriptions of famous places in Spain, science vs religion, personal relationships, plot twists and it is not difficult to read.
Another wonderful page turner by Dan Brown! He just has a wonderful way of developing characters and a sense of urgency in his stories. I did think the ending could have been edited a tad bit more but overall I didn’t mind that it seemed to drag there a bit. I read a lot of books and this one was an enjoyable page turner. Apologies to my toddlers for so happily putting them to bed at night so that I could get back to the book! 🙂
Not so good as Brown’s previous books. Same premise, solving a puzzle based on symbols.