The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown (Book 6 of the Robert Langdon Series) - Book Review

This book is a thriller! 

Other genres: Mystery, Fiction, Suspense, Adventure, Historical Fiction, Crime

Trigger Warning: Violence, Murder, Kidnapping, Psychological Torture, Bomb Threats, Corruption. 

"The right book at the right time can save your life."

Robert Langdon, academia's most eligible bachelor, has finally settled down. He and Katherine Solomon, a celebrated academic in her own right, are in Prague, where Katherine is giving a lecture about her latest developments in Noetic science. 

Prague is old and steeped in history, folklore and ancient mysteries. The exact backdrop in which Robert Langdon thrives. But little does Robert and Katherine know that this simple trip to Prague will turn into a battle for their lives and freedom. 

A cryptic dream wakes Katherine Solomon during the night. She is panting and frightened as she relays to Robert all the details of the nightmare she has just woken up from. Just as the weight of the dream disappears, strange occurrences begin to happen. 

After his morning swim, Robert is walking back to their hotel building when he sees her. A haunting figure walking the bridge, dressed in a crown and carrying a spear. Almost an exact replica of Katherine's dream. The scene wouldn't be odd at all against the Prague backdrop, except it is the early morning, and the woman seems to be in a trance. 

As the dream Katherine told him about replays in his head, Robert races to the hotel - he needs to get to Katherine, he needs to evacuate the hotel! But Katherine is not there, and once the dust settles, Robert has a lot of questions to answer. Where is Katherine? Is she safe? Is all this a coincidence? 

The Review

Katherine Solomon, you may recognise the name from The Lost Symbol. She is Peter Solomon's sister and the main female character. In passing it is stated that she is a noetic scientist and that she is working on experiments, but this book really explores her work. Robert has set her up with his publicist, and Katherine is writing a book. In her book, she plans on revealing a new conclusion that she has come to in noetics. But someone doesn't want that book to see the light of day.  

As things go down in Prague, Jonas Faukman, Robert's book editor, is having a night of his own. Working late in his New York office, Jonas is alerted to a security breach. The only thing the hackers were after and got was Katherine's manuscript for her new book. To say that Jonas is on edge is an understatement. This should not be able to happen on their secure servers. Who would want to steal a noetic science book! Thankfully, he has made a few hard copies, so he can edit them by hand. Little does he know that these people will stop at nothing, including abducting him off the street, to get their hands on every last copy. 

SPOILER ALERT

These Robert Langdon books are starting to get a little played out. As you can probably imagine, if someone dies, Robert needs to play hero; he is in trouble with the law, but at the end of the day, he saves the girl, his name is cleared, and they live happily ever after. In this case, Katherine is missing. She was supposed to meet Brigita Vesna. She is the woman who invited Katherine to Prague in the first place. Vesna has this new state-of-the-art lab, and she is excited to show Katherine the work she has been doing there. 

Slight problem. Vesna is found dead, the lab is broken into, and Katherine is nowhere to be found. This, of course, piques the interest of local police, especially since Katherine Solomon's companion, Robert Landon, has just pulled a fire alarm at their hotel, caused a mass evacuation and has jumped out of his hotel window into the waiting river below. 

It all seems like a lot of drama for nothing. We eventually do find Katherine; she has hidden herself in a little nook that Robert taught her about while they were touring a museum. They meet up, eventually, and then have to make a daring escape, which seemingly includes burning Katherine's manuscript in order to get out of their sticky situation and not get detained by the police. 

That seems like an underlying theme of most Robert Langdon books. Sticky situation, no way out, and then Robert Langdon finds a way. I do have to admit, the plot twist at the end, where Sasha is the Golem. I did not see that coming. It makes total sense, but still, it is a bit of a mind-blowing revelation. 

I originally read the physical book. 

Rating and Recommendation

It hurts my heart to give Dan Brown such a low rating. But unfortunately, this latest book just wasn't as good as his earlier work. The strengths of earlier Robert Langdon books are that they were filled with symbology, codes, cyphers and riddles. It was kind of like a game you could play along with and try to solve with Robert. Now there are fewer little things like that and more, just Robert Langdon knows these obscure facts and details. 

The story was perfectly enjoyable, and it was a cool little twist. But I don't think it is what most people come to expect from Dan Brown. My excitement for the latest book may have also led to my disappointment.  

I preordered this book months in advance. All I had to hear was Dan Brown and new book, and I was there. I don't regret it, but I definitely feel like it wouldn't have been life-changing to wait for it to come on sale.   

Conclusion

If you are a Dan Brown fan, you will pick up this book. It isn't bad. It is an enjoyable enough read. But I think most fans will be slightly disappointed. I know I am. And even now, I am having a hard time putting my finger on why. I love that Robert and Katherine have gotten together. I love that he is finally with someone steady and that she is a strong lead for his strong personality. But something just didn't feel classic Dan Brown to me. I think most fans of Dan Brown, or at least the Robert Langdon series, will be glad they got the book. (Even more glad if they get it at a discount.)

** If you like Robert Langdon and Katherine Solomon, and you haven't already, check out The Lost Symbol, the first time we are introduced to Katherine and her family. You can find my review for that book here.  

You can find The Secret of Secrets in its respective mediums below: 

Like The Lost Symbol, The Secret of Secrets is being adapted into a TV series for Netflix. The expected release date is September 9th, 2026. 

* Book cover image retrieved from the author's website. All rights belong to the author and/or publisher. 
* All the "stickers" in this blog were provided by Bookish (presented by NetGalley). 
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