His first attempt was a pseudonymously written self-help book for women co-written with his future wife Blythe Newlon. There and then, he determined to try his hand at writing. By the time he finished the book, he had decided he could do as well. Then, on vacation in Tahiti, he stumbled on a paperback copy of Sheldon's novel The Doomsday Conspiracy. Up until 1994, his reading tastes were focused sharply on the classics.
After college he supported himself through teaching and enjoyed moderate success as a musician and songwriter.īrown credits Sidney Sheldon with jump-starting his literary career. Novelist Dan Brown may not have invented the literary thriller, but his groundbreaking tour de force The Da Vinci Code-with its irresistible mix of religion, history, art, and science-is the gold standard for a flourishing genre.īorn in Exeter, New Hampshire in 1964, Brown attended Phillips Exeter Academy (where his father taught), and graduated from Amherst with a double major in Spanish and English. Education-B.A., Amherst College University.Unless Langdon and Neveu can deipher the labyrinthine puzzle in time, the Priory's ancient secret-and an explosive historical truth-will be lost forever. In a breathless race through Paris, London, and beyond, Langdon and Neveu match wits with a faceless powerbroker who seems to anticipate their every move. Langdon joins forces with a gifted French cryptologist, Sophie Neveu, and learns the late curator was involved in the Priory of Sion-an actual secret society whose members included Sir Isaac Newton, Botticelli, Victor Hugo, and Da Vinci, among others. While working to solve the enigmatic riddle, Langdon is stunned to discover it leads to a trail of clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci-clues visible for all to see-yet ingeniously disguised by the painter. Near the body, police have found a baffling cipher. While in Paris on business, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon receives an urgent late-night phone call: the elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum.