Book Riot Podcast: Book Club – The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown

Hosts: Jeff O’Neal, Rebecca Schinsky, Vanessa Diaz
Date: September 17, 2025

Episode Overview

In this lively book club episode, Book Riot’s Jeff O’Neal, Rebecca Schinsky, and Vanessa Diaz dive into Dan Brown’s latest Robert Langdon adventure, The Secret of Secrets. The trio delivers a spoiler-filled, humorous, and affectionate critique, examining Brown's signature tropes, brand sponsorship, and the book’s merits as both a thriller and a pop culture event. They break down the “Dan Brown GPA” for this installment—grading its setting, big idea, villains, love interest, factoids, and classic Langdon-isms—and reflect on the enduring appeal (and quirks) of Brown’s work.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Initial Impressions & Purchasing Experiences

Timestamps: 05:41–07:49

• None of the hosts discussed the book in depth prior to recording, preserving fresh reactions.
• Rebecca was the first customer at her local Barnes & Noble for the release:
  "Not so many doorbusters happening for Dan Brown these days." (07:06 – Rebecca)
• Vanessa bought the book in all formats:
  "I actually pre-ordered it in like all the ways you can pre-order, which I didn't know I had done." (06:01 – Vanessa)
• Jeff read the ebook on a plane, unexpectedly embracing the digital format.

2. Plot Setup & General Vibe

Timestamps: 08:07–10:44

• Rebecca lays out the premise:
  • The novel opens with a scientist’s near-death/out-of-body experience.
  • Robert Langdon wakes up in Prague with new love interest Katherine Solomon, a noetic scientist.
  • A potential world-shaking scientific book becomes the center of a chase through Prague’s historic sites.
  • The Penguin Random House security apparatus plays a central plot role:
    "The giant security apparatus of Penguin Random House gets involved." (09:47 – Rebecca)

3. Brand Placement & Product Mentions

Timestamps: 10:38–12:26

• Hosts have fun calling out excessive product placement:
  • Starbucks is credited with "the creamiest flat white on the island of Manhattan."
  • Fashion, luggage, and electronics brands are name-dropped conspicuously.
• Rebecca jokes:
  "The biggest lie in this entire book... is that a Starbucks is responsible for the creamiest flat white on the island of Manhattan." (10:50 – Rebecca)
• Everyone wonders how much of this is genuine spawncon (sponsored content).

4. Is this a Good Dan Brown Novel?

Timestamps: 12:47–15:41

• Vanessa and Rebecca both enthusiastically declare it as a classic Dan Brown ride, noting the “hater-free zone” for this episode.
• The book delivers all the Dan Brown hallmarks (red herrings, info-dumps, famous watches).
• The formula is intact, which is a feature for fans and a bug for non-fans:
  "If you like Dan Brown, you'll probably like this... If you don't, you're not." (15:22 – Jeff)

5. Setting: Prague as Character

Timestamps: 16:03–24:44

• The book is notable for being set almost entirely in Prague, providing an atmospheric backdrop.
• All hosts award the setting a “B” or “B+”—Prague is intriguing, but less iconic than Paris or Rome.
• Jeff, having recently visited Prague, notes its specificity but says:
  "Can you picture any of these places?... It's not like the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre..." (22:05 – Jeff)
• Vanessa:
  "I wanted to go to Prague because I wanted to go... but you didn't make me want to run off and jet over there." (24:01 – Vanessa)
• Rebecca appreciated learning about Prague’s avant-garde art scene.

6. Love Interest: Katherine Solomon

Timestamps: 24:51–29:42

• The first age-appropriate and recurring love interest for Langdon.
• Katherine is “smarter than he is,” and “he’s into it”—refreshing for the series.
• Their relationship features mature, playful banter, including a “sex joke on page seven.”
• Discussion of their plausible (and implausible) dynamic:
  "I'm never gonna get tired of a story where, like, they're crime-solving together and the girlfriend is smarter." (25:58 – Rebecca)
• Some implausible details: Langdon hasn’t read Katherine’s manuscript; they email because he doesn’t like texting.

7. The “Big Idea”: Consciousness, Science, and Espionage

Timestamps: 29:54–40:09

• Core concept: “Non-local consciousness”—the idea that awareness exists beyond the physical brain, touching on Buddhism and science fiction.
• Vanesa jokes:
  "Did Dan Brown do shrooms and come up with this book?" (30:34)
• Katherine’s findings spark CIA and publishing intrigue.
• Major themes: weaponization of ideas, merging of science and mysticism, and remote viewing as a government tool.
• Hosts agree the “big idea” is creatively fun but less revolutionary than The Da Vinci Code:
  "At some point I kind of checked out on the plausibility scale." (37:01 – Jeff)

8. Villains & Conspiracies

Timestamps: 40:09–42:47

• The web of antagonists is sprawling: government, CIA, shadowy groups, and initially a culty figure called “the Golem.”
• The Golem’s reveal (as an alternate personality of another character) is praised as a clever, surprising twist.
• Recurrent Brown theme:
  "Is it the church or is it the government? It's both. It's always both, baby." (41:38 – Rebecca)
• The complexity of the conspiracy and multiple red herrings sometimes make the plot hard to track.

9. Factoids, Info Drops & Publishing Satire

Timestamps: 44:15–49:49

• The book is “rife with factoids”—from the real history of Prague to the security protocols at Penguin Random House.
• Amusingly detailed inside baseball about New York publishing life.
• Strong marks for the entertainment value of the info-dumps:
  "If you want to like model your lifestyle on Robert Langdon and Katherine Solomon, you can Google your way to it." (28:03 – Rebecca)
• Info drop about the trick to beating a maze provided by Jeff as “dinner table trivia.”

10. Langdonalia: Classic Langdon Tropes

Timestamps: 49:49–54:23

• Rebecca tracks hallmark Langdon moments:
  • Mickey Mouse watch: 7 mentions
  • Claustrophobia: 5 mentions
  • Swimming/jogging/hot bod: Multiple references
  • Hair and height: Enthusiastic attention
• Vanessa observes:
  "Easy A is great to me." (54:49 – Vanessa)
• Hosts joke about the middle-aged wish fulfillment qualities and their fondness for the formula:
  "Very Dan Brown. Yeah. I'm giving it an A on Langdonalia." (54:41 – Jeff)

11. Future of the Series & Adaptation Prospects

Timestamps: 56:10–60:15

• Speculation on more Langdon books: All hope for another, perhaps at the rate of one per decade.
• Will Katherine Solomon return? Possibly, which would break the series tradition.
• On a movie adaptation: the consensus is “yes”, with a recasting needed to fit Langdon’s fifty-ish age.
• Jeff:
  "I really need one like Harvard. I need an academic one where, like, we're getting into some skull and bones..." (56:58)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Rebecca: "I want to live in the world that Dan Brown seems to inhabit where a book actually could rock the foundations of society." (44:47)
• Jeff: "It scratches the itch that I think a lot of people have that the world is other than it seems... and how many of these veins can he mine?" (36:48)
• Vanessa (on brand mentions): "Dan Brown wants us to know that he bangs." (26:23)
• Rebecca: "This is as fun of a love interest as we've had. It's not all the tropes, which is fine. We've moved on a little bit." (29:42)
• On Langdon's description:
  • "Seven mentions of the Mickey Mouse watch... at least five claustrophobia moments... his hot bod gets mentioned at least twice." (50:47–51:34 – Rebecca)

Grading the Dan Brown “GPA”

| Category | Grade | Rationale | |---------------------------|--------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Settings & Locations | B/B+ | Prague is fun, specific, but less iconic/romanticized than previous locations. | | Love Interest | A/A- | Katherine is age-appropriate, smart, proactive; best love interest in the series. | | Big Idea | B- | Imaginative, but credibility stretches thin; less world-shaking than earlier entries. | | Villains | B- | Web of antagonists is busy and somewhat confusing; the Golem twist is a highlight. | | Factoids & Info Drops | A- | Entertaining, well-researched tidbits, and fun insider publishing detail. | | Langdonalia (Tropes) | A | All the hallmarks are here—watches, hair, claustrophobia, workouts—fan service delivered. |

Final Thoughts

• The Secret of Secrets is a highly enjoyable Dan Brown novel, deeply self-aware, shamelessly product-placed, and packed with all the familiar motifs loyal readers expect.
• For fans, it's a delight; for critics, the formula remains unchanged.
• Even if the era of The Da Vinci Code seismic controversy has passed, Brown’s blend of speculative science, historical mystery, and thriller tropes is alive and well.
• The episode is both affectionate tribute and affectionate roast—a must-listen for Brown devotees and those curious about the enduring brand of Robert Langdon.

Recommended for:

• Fans who loved previous Langdon books.
• Anyone who enjoys well-paced, clue-driven thrillers mixed with pop culture and publishing in-jokes.
• Those looking for book club fodder that’s easy to both poke fun at and celebrate.