The adventures of Harvard Professor Robert Langdon
continue in this one. Having read the previous four of the Langdon series, the
plot was more or less predictable. Once again Langdon finds himself getting in
the wrong books with the authorities, albeit momentarily. Once again he has a
beautiful woman as his accomplice. Once again, there’s an accomplished killer
after him. And knowing how fond Dan Brown is of his almost autobiographical
creation, we know that no deathly harm can befall Professor Langdon.
With every book he writes, Brown brings together
scientific advances and the historical significance of religion. This time, one
of the central characters, Edmond Kirsch, leads an all out war against
organized religion and its many dangers. Having read The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins quite recently, I found it
easier to agree with the viewpoints on Edmond Kirsch. Indeed, one can find
Brown quoting Dawkins several times in the book.
The book starts off with Langdon visiting a conference
in Barcelona, where his former student Edmond Kirsch, has promised to reveal a discovery
so profound that it would put all religious faiths in the world in jeopardy. And
as was expected, Langdon finds himself at the centre of a cat and mouse chase,
in an attempt to reveal some knowledge that the whole world is waiting to know.
Tech genius Edmond Kirsch and his discovery become an overnight trend on the
internet, hashtags and all. The tech trends have been well captured with
mentions of leading apps such as Uber as well as the dark depths of the Deep
Web. I think conspiracy theorists will have a gala time reading the book, or
watching the movie that will inevitably come. Among the characters in the book,
the one I liked best was the AI developed by Edmond, Winston.
In spite of the plot, I believe the story and the
varied perspectives of the characters will help readers who have not read
discourses on atheism to put together some of the principles behind the
philosophy, and then think for themselves what they would like to believe.
Religion vs. Atheism is a debate that goes way back. And while this book doesn’t
add anything new to either of the sides, it does show us that Langdon, and by
extension Brown, are both inclined to favour religion over atheism.
‘Where do we come from?’ and ‘Where are we going?’ are
the primary questions that Edmond Kirsch was going after. The former of the two
questions is summarised in the word ‘Origin’, while the latter in ‘Destiny.’ So
if this were a two-part tale, the second would probably be called ‘Destiny’. But
with the big reveal at the end (which wasn’t that big of a deal, by the way), I
believe the story ends here. And knowing Brown, this novel won’t have any
bearing on his subsequent works.
That is another thing that bothers me and fellow
readers about the Langdon books. They don’t seem to have much of a continuum.
Not in the sense that it has to be like other series where one book leads up to
the next. But the discoveries and findings should at least be referred to in
the next book, in however small a manner. There must be certain consequences to
Langdon’s earth-shattering experiences (such as half the population becoming
sterile after Inferno) considering
they’re all happening in the same universe. But Brown’s disregard to these
happenings deems them as not-so-important after all.
Long story short, not a bad book. Would recommend to
thrill-seeking readers.
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