Sun 5 Feb 2006
Is Yale the key to new Brown blockbuster?
YOU can criticise his prose style and question his devotion to historical fact. But there is no doubt the author of the Da Vinci Code is fast becoming the biggest publishing sensation on the planet.
Dan Brown's new work, The Solomon Key, is as much as a year away but it has created an industry of its own with no fewer than three books already published which promise to reveal the secrets of the novel. Another two will come out before The Solomon Key itself.
Without Brown or his publishers even officially confirming the title of the novel, numerous claims have been made about its contents, including the suggestion that President George Bush and a Yale University society will feature.
The books speculate that having dealt with the Catholic Church and The Pope in The Da Vinci Code, Brown has now turned his attention to the heart of American power.
They point to the "clues" Brown left on the dust jacket of The Da Vinci Code, which include longitude and latitude coordinates which lead to the CIA headquarters in Virginia.
In Secrets of the Widow's Son, £10.99, Connecticut-based Da Vinci codologist David Shugarts offers the reader an explorer's guide to understanding the most important themes, ideas, symbols and historical events that Brown will use in The Solomon Key.
Greg Taylor's The Solomon Key, £11.99, argues that the novel will be based around the Masonic views prevalent among the founding fathers of the United States. He claims the treasure hunt aspect of the book will involve the Kryptos statue at CIA headquarters.
Frederick Zimmerman's The Solomon Key and Beyond - Unauthorised Dan Brown Update, £5.95, is believed to explore the supposed link between Washington, the CIA and hidden treasure buried in the capital in an area called Rosslyn. A further two books, Unlocking the Solomon Key by British author Simon Cox, and Beyond the Solomon Key by Shelley Klein, will be published later this year. Unlocking the Solomon Key promises an A to Z guide to the new novel and explaining Dan Brown's sources.
The Da Vinci Code, for the few people who haven't read it, follows Professor Robert Langdon as he investigates the murder of an elderly member of an ancient society that guards dark secrets about the quest for the Holy Grail and the story of Christ.
Its mix of code-breaking, art history, religion and mystical lore has helped it sell more than 40 million copies worldwide, four million of them in the UK. Despite a number of high profile publishing phenomena in recent years, not least Harry Potter, publishers say the hype generated by the new Dan Brown novel has never been seen before.
Morris Paton, managing director of the Scottish Literary Trust, said: "It's unprecedented. Sure we have had spin-offs in the past but for books to come out before the original is unheard of. It's crazy."
Mathew Perrin of Ottakars said that retailers had not yet decided on their launch plans for the new Brown book but midnight openings, as were seen for Harry Potter, have not been ruled out.
"It is quite frankly astonishing," he said. "It's one thing to stand on the shoulders of giants but this is hanging off the coat tails of giants. Undoubtedly it will be huge. Will we open at midnight? We might do."
According to Brown scholars, the plot of The Solomon Key will involve the deaths of politicians in Washington, the CIA, the Founding Fathers of America and the Masonic-like "Skull and Bones" society at Yale University of which both George Bush and John Kerry were members.
Cox said that his contacts in America tell him there is a broad consensus on its content. He added: "It is going to be huge. The publishers are looking for as big a hit, if not bigger, than The Da Vinci Code."
American writer Taylor added: "Based on Brown's modus operandi in previous novels it seems likely that a Masonic group will be framed for the murder of politicians in Washington."
But last night some publishers warned that the rise in blockbuster books is indicative of the insecurity of the publishing industry, the retraction of titles and the reliance on a few best sellers.
One prominent Edinburgh publisher who asked not to be named said: "This whole thing makes me sick. It's a piece of commercial nonsense. Is it reader led or publisher led? If you take Harry Potter that was reader led. In the first instance that book became a success not because of marketing but because of word of mouth amongst children in the playgrounds."
THIS ONE WILL RUN AND RUN
AMERICA is planning one of its largest print runs in publishing history in anticipation of the Da Vinci Code film. Random House has confirmed that it will print more than five million copies of the novel in three paperback versions beginning in March.
The paperback editions of the book will hit the shelves in the US in March seven weeks before the movie, starring Tom Hanks and Audrey Tatou, premieres in May. The same day, two versions of an illustrated screenplay including the film's full shooting script and still photographs from its production will be published.
The book, by Dan Brown, follows Robert Langdon, a Harvard specialist in religious symbols, as he unravels the mystery behind the murder of a curator at the Louvre. Along with the curator's granddaughter, Sophie, Langdon uncovers a trail of clues that leads through the works of Leonardo da Vinci and into the catacombs of early Christian history.
Related topic
The Da Vinci Code cover (U.K.)
 and , who jointly wrote together with a third author, a 1982 Non-Fiction book '''' have taken '''' publisher , to court claiming that The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail storyline has been stolen by .

The third author of ''The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail'' , is not involved in the case.

Random House is the of publisher of both ''The Da Vinci Code'' and ''The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail''.

The central theme of the two books is that the bloodline from a marriage between  and  survives today. 

Random House has denied the claim and, Random House chief executive Gail Rebuck says in a statement that she believed the lawsuit was without merit.

"As publisher of both ''The Da Vinci Code'' and ''The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail'', we are genuinely saddened that two of the three authors of HBHG have chosen to bring this litigation against us...Random House takes no pleasure in defending a legal action that it believes is without merit and we are confident that we will prevail."

If this case is successful it could threaten the film; starring  and  from opening. 

''The Da Vinci Code'' is a fiction book and has over 36 million copies in print worldwide.  The dust jacket for the novel apparently includes longitude and latitude coordinates which lead to the  headquarters near , . 

Brown's next book, ''The Solomon Key'', is rumoured to be about the Yale  society.  Notable alumni of the society include current United States President George W. Bush, former President George H.W. Bush, and Massachusettes Senator John Kerry.