Title:	The Lost Symbol
	Author:	Dan Brown
	Published:	2009, Anchor Books
	No. of Pages:	639
	Cover Price:	$9.99 US

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Robert Langdon is back in Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol. The novel begins as a mysterious man takes the final and most solemn Masonic oath in the Temple Room; however, his thoughts are exposed to the reader and as he goes through the ritual, it is evident he is lying.

Langdon receives a message from his wealthy friend, mentor, and surrogate father, Peter Solomon, asking him to come to Washington, D.C. to fill in at a gala dinner where the keynote speaker has cancelled due to illness at the last minute. Langdon, a well-known symbologist and college professor, flies in and makes it to the National Statutory Hall just in time to find there is no gala. He calls Solomon’s office and learns he has been duped. The man on the phone says, “I’m afraid Peter Solomon has no idea you’re in Washington today…You are here, Mr. Langdon, because I want you here.” The voice belongs to Mal’akh, a huge sinister man, tattooed with symbols “which were used in the rituals of dark ceremonial magic.”

After the phone call, Langdon hears a scream in the rotunda and finds that a small boy with a group of tourists has discovered a severed human hand. He recognizes a ring on the hand and knows that the hand belongs to Peter Solomon. Mal’akh has kidnapped Peter and brought Langdon to Washington to solve the ancient secret of The Masonic Pyramid.

In a sub-plot, Peter Solomon’s sister, Katherine, who is a Noetic Scientist, is waiting for Peter to arrive at her laboratory in which she has been conducting research and experiments for years; her laboratory is located in one of the Smithsonian buildings and the location has been kept secret. Katherine’s research has uncovered several things that could change the world, and Mal’akh plans to murder Katherine and destroy her laboratory.

As is Dan Brown’s style, this book is well-researched. He weaves his fictional story through factual settings, i.e., the buildings in Washington, D.C., where they are searching for clues to uncover the secret, as well as facts relating to religion, rituals, and symbols. The book is absolutely fascinating, and although it is not a fast-read, it is intriguing enough to keep the interest of anyone who loves a good thriller with plenty of cutting-edge suspense. After finishing this book, most readers will have gained as much new knowledge as if he took a semester-long course in college. Once Again, Dan Brown has proven himself to be a leader in his genre, and entertains as well as educates.

This book was purchased with personal funds and no promotion of the book was solicited by the author or publisher.

This book may be purchased at Amazon: The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon)