USA TODAY International Edition
Langdon goes on the hunt again in ‘Origin’
You may come away feeling smarter, but wonder what in God’s name is going on
Here’s a disappointing revelation: Dan Brown’s latest novel, Origin (Doubleday, 480 pages, eegE), is only a fitfully entertaining religious rehash of his greatest hits.
Loyal fans of his globetrotting symbologist Robert Langdon will no doubt be thrilled with the fifth book in the series.
But despite exploring some seriously big concepts about creation and destiny in its Spanish-set central mystery, Origin spawns a dizzying parade of scientific jargon, non-stop travelogues and familiar tropes that all lead to a fumbled ending.
After tussling with the Illuminati, hunting for the Holy Grail and almost falling victim to a deadly plague, you’d think Langdon (The Da Vinci Code, etc.) would just stay home and not tempt fate. Instead the heroic Harvard professor doesn’t think twice about jetting off to Bilbao when his old student, Edmond Kirsch, invites him to a potentially Internet-breaking presentation at the Guggenheim Museum.
A 40-year-old iconoclastic futurist, Kirsch already has created a dust-up with global spiritual leaders after a sneak peek of a new discovery that may answer the questions, “Where did we come from?” and “Where are we going?” He has invited his old teacher to the worldwide unveiling, which is not unlike an overthe-top iPhone announcement. “The age of religion is drawing to a close,” the enigmatic Kirsch says, “and the age of science is dawning.”
Huge if true, right?
Well, just before he’s about to get to the good part, Kirsch is assassinated. His death kicks off Langdon’s new mission to find out who killed him and to crack the late genius’ computer password (a 47-character line of poetry) so the world can hear this controversial news.
Origin follows the Brown template to a fault. Shady murderer with mysterious associations? Check. Female partner playing an integral part in saving the day? Check. (Museum director Ambra Vidal also happens to be the fiancée of Spain’s crown prince.) Exposition-filled plane rides and plenty of chapter-ending cliffhangers? Check and check.
To his credit, Brown throws in some contemporary touches. A WikiLeaks-like conspiracy website is used as a plot device, and one of the main characters is a helpful artificial intelligence named Winston. Designed by Kirsch, he’s a combo of Siri and Batman’s butler, Alfred, who robo-splains Darwin and other scientific know-how to Langdon and Ambra on their journey, which involves visits to cathedrals and super-computing centers.
As with Brown’s other Langdon books, you do come away feeling a little smarter as his cast stops by such famed Barcelona sites as the Sagrada Família and the Casa Milà, digs into the art style of Joan Miró and studies the literary nuances of William Blake and Friedrich Nietzsche. But Origin eschews the usual rousing ending for an overlong denouement and a finale that’s just puzzling — and not in a fun Da Vinci Code way.
Tackling the scientific and philosophical underpinnings of God’s role (or lack thereof, depending on your beliefs) in our existence within an actionadventure is an idea full of fascinating potential.
Unfortunately with Origin, Brown’s theory needs more evolution.