For a while, was resisting the temptation to read the latest Dan Brown Novel. His last one, Inferno, was a disappointment and me in my Locked In Mode, felt I am better off reading non-fiction, and AI related stuff.
Last Saturday night, woke up in the middle of the night and I really needed a break to take my mind off of things and thought, what the hell, let me give it a shot. Though it was a usual Dan Brown, it didn’t disappoint and it was unputdownable and there in lies his genius.
More than 2 decades back, I read Da Vinci Code in a single sitting and was so amazed for few days. In fact for a while until i read the secret of the success by the Author Sujatha. He said, the success is due to the factor, he mixes the fiction and non-fiction in the right proportions and you as a reader at the moment of reading, cannot discern which is fiction and non-fiction. After reading this it was like, lifting of the veil/disappearance of the fog.
Later, the more I read, I could realize and appreciate, how they have written the book, how they place the red herrings, how the chapter ends, how the characterization is done and so on. [Until recently, I didn’t realize or know on how to articulate this phenomenon /habit. Apparently it is called reading for form, most of us read for content, we don’t read for form or structure, not with the intent of oh, this is what the author is trying to do, basically, you don’t dissect the anatomy] [In fact, hated the Inferno, mostly cause, second chapter and I was able to figure out the antagonist and it was such a bummer to read]
[Oh, I thought, I figured out the plot twist at two places even here but he did pull a fast one or should I say Sidney Sheldon but it was a good sleight of hand]
However, when I read this latest one, though I could see what was happening, and how it could happen, it was intriguing and kept me on the hook. Though I didn’t finish the book in one sitting (Hello Old age, and other responsibilities of an adult) the book was indeed a good one and would recommend reading
But wait where is the Anatomy??
1. Robert Langdon should do swim in the first few chapters
2. City as a character. More it is mystic and historical better. [I really do want to know, does he holidays in such places and comes up with the inspiration or does he decide, well, i want to holiday in the city so let me make it a center piece of my novel]
3. Pick up an organization that we all think we know but has more layers to it. Vatican, NSA, and CIA
4. Through out the novel, have few central themes that are focus of interest to public but are little obscure and controversial in nature. The old vs new, the new is not that new, but actually old. Fringe research, interesting anecdotes, trivia that nerds would know but make it mainstream. (For e.g did we really land in the moon, does moon exist, you get the drift]
5. Add conspiracy. Take science fiction and make it look it is plausible.
In other words, I think the inner prompt he gives himself is, take equal proportions of Michael Crichton, Sidney Sheldon and Jeffrey Archer and dumb it down and take that would appeal/correlate to a large audience.
After this out of curiosity did as the ChatGPT, “ What are the common themes across all dan brown novels” It is also a good read!! (I also think it is not trained on his latest book)
https://chatgpt.com/share/69076371-8838-8000-a4ad-5107e6e6fa9f
To buy the book: https://amzn.to/43NUxTw
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