Yes it is SD.  Once you start this book, you have to keep reading it.  Have you noticed it is much easier to follow than, say, the DaVinci Code?  I maintain that Dan Brown is a better author now because he is not cramming so much stuff into his books.  I loved The Lost Symbol, it kept me interested all the way through.  You can read some books by so-called top authors and they bore you to tears.  Give me a good pacy book any day, with twists and turns aplenty, and I won't stack it away in a corner and never read it.  Dan Brown sells because he gives readers what they want, it's that simple. 

You may have finished it by this stage SD.  I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.  Let us know what you think xx

I have finished it at last ...

I did enjoy it ... as you say Twee, it is fast and pacy and keeps you intrigued enough to want to keep turning the pages ... Don't want to say too much and risk giving away the plot to anyone still reading it, but I did think it was well-constructed and very well researched and not as all over the place as The Da Vinci Code was ... Brown maintains that everything in the book is based on fact ... Although how you can establish fact from all the conspiracy theories about the Masons is a bit beyond me ... Still, that doesn't take away from the entertainment value ... and it was intriguing to have the book set in Washington D.C., with the references to famous landmarks and the suggestions of the various layers of secrecy and conspiracy that permeate to the very highest levels ... 

And I do believe Dan Brown's quality of writing may actually be improving ... I was actually quite impressed ... Did he really write it himself I wonder ...?   Conspiracies, conspiracies ....

Not quite finished yet, up to chapter 123. I can't put it down, not much housework or anything getting done here at the moment lol. Why does each chapter have to end leaving you wanting more aarrggghhh.
Will let you know when I've finished.

hi Shar.  I am glad you have now finished the book.  It seems we both agree that Dan Brown's writing style has improved.  I found this book much easier to follow than his other 2 books that I have read (DaVinci and Digital Fortress).  I just think that he has slowed down the pace somewhat, but has still maintained an exciting flow to the story.  I too loved the fact that he set the book in Washington with less frenetic running about on planes, etc., all over Europe.  He uses a work of art to explain the symbols, and this square is actually on the Durer engraving/painting, although I am not sure if DBs interpretation was the original intention of the artist  Equally, all the artefacts in Washington DC that he mentions are there, but he puts his own interpretation on what they mean.  I love that artistic licence that he uses to tell a story.  I particularly liked the Washington Monument reference, but I won't say more for fear of spoiling the story for others.  All in all, Dan Brown has excelled himself and his sales have gone off the scale.  This time it is deserved imo.

He has used a lot of hearsay with regard to the Masons but, again, DB uses unproven rumours to substantiate his story in a very clever way.  It is all rather intriguing as a subject and he makes us wonder as he relates little snippets that are already in the public domain but we may not be aware of them.  I know his wife Blythe does all the research for his books, but I'm sure he has written this book himself as the style is similar to DaVinci, just less frenetic.

I bet you have finished it by now SD.  What a read, eh?  It kept me interested all the way through.  Let us know what you think in your next post .....

I have lol.
I absolutely loved it, it was a lot easier to follow as like you said it was all in one place and not the usual running about everywhere. Although I did like that in the other books it just made them a bit harder to follow.
Asolutely brilliant stuff, I'm sad that I have finished it though.

hiya scooby   I know, it's a cracker of a book isn't it?  I'm glad you enjoyed it and seen the same things I did .. setting it in Washington was a masterstroke imo.  I loved the symbolism of the Washington Monument and the Durer engraving/painting interpretation - all in Dan Brown's unique interpretation of course.  These things do exist but he gives them all a fresh meaning/slant.  I think the inscription on the Washington Monument does exist though .. or am I being sucked into Dan Brown's imagination without realising it?    He also always seems to create a truly sinister character to pit against Robert Langdon, but he also somehow seems to manage to make them worthy of our sympathy and pity as well.  I absolutely loved this book and I found it easy to follow and keep up with, whereas DaVinci lost me in a few places and I had to backpedal to understand some of it and to remind me of some incidents.  With this book, I was kept on track most of the time. 

What are you reading now Scooby?

Hi Twee, I'm not reading anything at the moment. I'm not a big book reader but I will read any that are recomended to me and that I can get into straight away. But I will always read a Dan Brown book, when is he writing another .
Are you into reading books twee? if so what are you reading now.

hiya Scooby   I don't think Dan Brown writes a lot of books.  There was a fair space in between this new one and his last one.  I can't see another book from him any time soon.  I really enjoyed The Lost Symbol.  I do love reading Scooby.  I am in the Book Club here on Live Cloud and we are currently reading Prey by Michael Crichton.  Why don't you join?  We chose the book democratically from a list of about 10-12 books, and the majority choice was Prey.  I have actually read it now and we will be discussing it in the Book Club shortly.  Please come and join us.  I can send you a link if you cannot find it.  Today I went in our Library and got three books out.  One is about Henry VIIIs mistresses and illegitimate children, one about Oliver Cromwell's head (don't ask lol) and another by Kate Mosse called The Winter Ghosts (about WW1), so quite a selection all told   I love reading. 

I have also just finished Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel, the Booker Prize winner.  This is a brilliant book and it is probably one of the best books I have ever read.