The Secret of Secrets

This latest (sixth) installement in Dan Brown's series featuring religious historian and symbology professor Robert Langdon is a wild ride. Not only is there a complicated plot but there are some big ideas being promoted here, namely nonlocal consciousness. At the close of their lengthy review, the New York Times says, "It may be best to read “The Secret of Secrets” as an artifact of a lost civilization, a misty evocation of vanished literary glory. It made me nostalgic for a golden age when a single written work could not only sell millions of copies, but also galvanize public opinion, spark furious debate and rotate history a few degrees on its axis." The Guardian effuses "Here’s a plot that starts thick and gets thicker. Every few pages brings a cliffhanger..." 

Kirkus opens their review with "...Robert Langdon explores the mysteries of human consciousness, the demonic projects of the CIA, and the city of Prague." And they continue, "But first—Langdon’s in love! Brown’s devoted readers first met brilliant noetic scientist Katherine Solomon in The Lost Symbol (2009)...It’s the night after Katherine has delivered the lecture quoted above, setting the theme for the novel, which features a plethora of real-life cases and anomalies that seem to support the notion that human consciousness is not localized inside the human skull. Brown’s talent for assembling research is also evident in this novel’s alter ego as a guidebook to Prague, whose history and attractions are described in great and glowing detail..." and they conclude, "There’s no shortage of action, derring-do, explosions, high-tech torture machines, attempted and successful murders, and opportunities for split-second, last-minute escapes; good thing Langdon, this aging symbology wonk, never misses swimming his morning laps. Readers who are not already dyed-in-the-wool Langdonites may find themselves echoing the prof’s own conclusion regarding the credibility of all this paranormal hoo-ha: At some point, skepticism itself becomes irrational. A standout in the series."