Where do we come from?
What are we?
Where are we going?

Dan Brown's monumental new novel, ORIGIN, is built on the premise of those three simple questions. The problem lies in the answers and if mankind is prepared to hear them. Be forewarned: Whoever you are and whatever you believe, everything is about to change.

This warning is made initially to Robert Langdon, Harvard professor of symbology and religious iconology, by one of his former students, Edmond Kirsch. The book’s opening section is one of the most intense and suspenseful I have read in quite a while. This is purely due to the fact that the impact of the purported truth that is about to be revealed will change all of mankind forever.

"ORIGIN opens with the disclaimer that all the art, architecture and religious organizations included within are real. It is Brown’s amazingly fertile imagination that fills in the gaps to fashion a story so remarkable it will have readers shaking in their boots while they are deeply absorbed in the text."

ORIGIN opens with a clandestine meeting between Kirsch and three leaders of the largest religions on the planet. In the years since he was Langdon's student, Kirsch has become a multi-billionaire who, among other things, has become world-renowned as a futurist whose predictions have almost always come true. It is this fact alone that allows him the privilege of meeting with Bishop Valdespino, Rabbi Köves and Syed al-Fadl. They represent a sort of three wise men, or holy trinity, and the announcement Kirsch is about to make will rock the very basis of everything on which they have set their lives and spiritual beliefs.

Kirsch claims to be giving them a preview before he goes public with his biggest prediction ever --- one that will shatter their foundations from beneath them. Following this meeting is the event of the century. Langdon is among a modest gathering of people invited to the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao to witness live what is going to be broadcast around the world --- Kirsch's grand announcement that will threaten to displace all of the world's religions.

Kirsch has a private meeting with Langdon prior to his big announcement and reveals some of his latest creations, the most impressive being the synthetic personality that communicates through a special set of headphones. This artificial intelligence is given the name Winston, and the communication between Langdon and Winston are some of the most original and exciting passages you will read this year. When the time for the big reveal is upon us, we witness Kirsch being introduced by Guggenheim director Ambra Vidal, who also happens to be the Prince of Spain’s fiancée.

Shortly after Kirsch's event kicks off, he is silenced by an assassin's bullet. Admiral Luis Ávila, a former war hero who has turned to a life of addiction to hide his private pain, is the man behind the weapon that ends Kirsch's life. The problem is that he was added to the guest list at the last minute by Vidal. Feeling enormous guilt from this, Vidal confesses to Langdon, and the two head off on a deadly mission that the entire world will have their eyes on. They need to decipher some of the secret messages left by Kirsch and communicated through Winston that will allow them to unlock the rest of his message to the world and see that it is released.

Meanwhile, Langdon and Vidal are pursued by Ávila and members of Spain's Guardia Real, as well as the King and Prince of Spain and numerous spiritual world leaders. When Rabbi Köves and Syed al-Fadl meet with tragic ends, it leaves only Bishop Valdespino to defend against the message Kirsch shared with them. The question remains: Is Valdespino working on his own, or is he somehow behind the events that claimed Kirsch's life?

These books typically find Langdon in the presence of an elegant and mysterious lady with whom he traverses the globe on an earth-shattering mission. In the case of ORIGIN, it may be the most important and critical mission he has ever been a part of. What Langdon does not realize is the price that must be paid if he succeeds in getting the final word of Kirsch out to the public. Throughout the novel, we see updates from a website called conspiracy.net that always seems to be one step ahead of Langdon and Vidal as they race towards the answers to the most critical questions of their lives.

ORIGIN opens with the disclaimer that all the art, architecture and religious organizations included within are real. It is Brown’s amazingly fertile imagination that fills in the gaps to fashion a story so remarkable it will have readers shaking in their boots while they are deeply absorbed in the text. Along the way, we are regaled with stories of the Palmarian religious sect and the work of the great poet/philosopher William Blake, among others. I guarantee that the final reveal will shock some readers and have many others left with much to think about in regards to the future of mankind. Let's hope that ORIGIN is really just a work of fiction.