Robert Langdon Series - Origin

[Margo]

I'll start tonight. I will read it in tandem with the group read. One great thing about quarantine - it gives me plenty of lisening time!

Anyone else doing the audio?

[Jannene]

Margo wrote: "I'll start tonight. I will read it in tandem with the group read. One great thing about quarantine - it gives me plenty of lisening time!

Anyone else doing the audio?"

I’m doing audio for this book. Actually, I have been doing quite a bit of audiobooks lately.

[Jannene]

Chapter 1-4 (view spoiler)[Having some kind of contraption to my face to guide me through a museum with some person in real time talking about the art pieces unnerves me. Does it anyone else?

The scene with the soldier was funny. Those men deserved to be messed with.

No mention of the watch yet? (hide spoiler)]

[Katrisa]

I am downloading it right now!

[Lucy]

Margo wrote: "I'll start tonight. I will read it in tandem with the group read. One great thing about quarantine - it gives me plenty of lisening time!

Anyone else doing the audio?"

I am. Much to my surprise I have it at 1.75x speed (I usually listen 1.25x-1.5x) and it is still very easy to listen to. So, might go by quickly for me.

[Janice, Moderator]

I'm also doing the audiobook. I had it at 1.5x speed but it might be fine at 1.75. I'll give it a try.

Jannenne, I agree with you about (view spoiler)[ the "guided tour". I had to think about what Robert said out loud that his guide overhead. Did he hear him wonder if he was Hugh Grant? LOL! (hide spoiler)]

To the end of Chapter 7 - (view spoiler)[ The tension is high. Something significant is going to happen! Was Robert led to that secret room to remove him from what was going to go down? (hide spoiler)]

[Katrisa]

Chapter 9 (view spoiler)[What a twist that Winston was an AI! I think I wouldn't mind the personal headset docent. Though I am actually a bit terrified of AI after reading Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence last year! One thing I love about the Robert Langdon books is how they always make me look up art that I didn't know existed. Tonight I am going to have to look up some of that modern art for sure. It's funny to me how people justify murder in the name of God. (hide spoiler)]

Also, I agree that this book is fine on 1.75x. I turned mine up to that while I was out weeding our mini-farm. The narrator does a good job and I think the pace of the book makes a speedier narration work.

[Katrisa]

And wow! I just looked up the Guggenheim Bilbao. What a cool building! The spider sculpture is creepy though.

[Jannene]

Katrisa wrote: "And wow! I just looked up the Guggenheim Bilbao. What a cool building! The spider sculpture is creepy though."

I had to look it up since you mentioned that you did. That building is very cool. The spider is creepy and then you see the puppy and that was amazing.

[Lucy]

Katrisa wrote: "And wow! I just looked up the Guggenheim Bilbao. What a cool building! The spider sculpture is creepy though."

Yes, that thing is disturbing, but also quite cool, I must say.

[Katrisa]

yes Jannene! The puppy is amazing! And I don't think I would have appreciated the fog sculpture as much without the book discussion of it beforehand - ditto with "The Matter of Time"

[Janice, Moderator]

I'm underwhelmed by the fog sculpture. I find it more creepy than the spider. Maybe I'd feel differently about it if I was to see it live. I've driven through the mountains where the fog and mist can make for some spectacular scenery.

[Margo]

Lucy wrote: "Margo wrote: "I'll start tonight. I will read it in tandem with the group read. One great thing about quarantine - it gives me plenty of lisening time!

Anyone else doing the audio?"

I am. Much to..."

Wow that's fast! I'm listening at 1.25x, I usually don't speed it up but the narration is quite slow.

[Margo]

The Guggenheim is surely impressive. I agree with Katrisa, Brown does bring the architecture to life. I was very impressed with The Spider, less so with The Puppy but sometimes you need to be there! Fog is a part of life for me as I live in a boggy area but it does have a strange beauty.

I am up to chapter 10 (view spoiler)[ I think I would enjoy the personal guided tour but I would like to know in advance that I was talking to an AI.

As for Kirsh (I am probably miles off with the spelling!), I would not imaging he has very long to live - you don't want to mess with those religious types :-O

Yes Jannene, I too am very disappointed that the watch hasn't made an appearance, I felt sure he'd replace it :( At least he is still doing the lengths though ;-)

(hide spoiler)]

[Lucy]

Yes, I really like how Brown does scenery, he can describe it thoroughly it without going into overload.

Chapters 1-10 (view spoiler)[ I have no issue with the AI/personal guided tour, but like Margo said, I would have wanted to know that it wasn't a prerecorded message from the start. I'm a sucker for AI characters (like Data and J.A.R.V.I.S.) so I hope Winston sticks around. (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 11-22 (view spoiler)[ As suspected, Kirsch was not long for this world. Kind of wish I could have seen that presentation he put on, but as a reader/listener, I'm irritated (but unsurprised) that we didnt get the big reveal.

But Kirsch is not the only one to die, the Islamic scholar "commited suicide" after the meeting? That seems a bit suspicious! (hide spoiler)]

[Dominique]

Lucy wrote: "Yes, I really like how Brown does scenery, he can describe it thoroughly it without going into overload.

Chapters 1-10 [spoilers removed]

Chapters 22-27

I agree (view spoiler)[ for sure Kirsch's death was coming, I expected for him to make the presentation and then die. What could the revelation be. Ambra's fiance is involved with the admiral. Can't wait to see what they will find in Edmund's home. I wouldn't mind having a Winston at my house (hide spoiler)]

[Lucy]

Chapters 22-36 (view spoiler)[ uh oh, I feel like the Rabbi is making himself a target now, by wanting to deal with all of this openly. As for the Prince and Ambra, it seemed really blatant that the prince may have had something to do with it, which immediately made me suspicious. The bow was tying neatly too quickly! I think he's been set up as well, by the Bishop, maybe his father? I'd like to think a father wouldn't do that to his son, but family betrays family often enough in the real world it wouldn't be too far off.

I'm happy to see Winston is sticking around, he is very useful!

And I got a good laugh from the officer/detective being surprised by Ambra taking of with Robert.
Clearly he hasnt read any Dan Brown novels! 😆😆 (hide spoiler)]

I'm flying through this pretty quickly, I think I'll start listening to another book while I'm working or I'll zip through this and forget half of what I wanted to mention!

[Katrisa]

Ch 35 (view spoiler)[Yay! Winston's back! I will say though that as a sidekick, Ambra isn't as impressive as Langdon's previous sidekick ladies. (hide spoiler)]

[Lucy]

Agreed Katrisa!

[Katrisa]

Ch 44 (view spoiler)[Oh man! I was really rooting for the rabbi. (hide spoiler)]

[Janice, Moderator]

I finished to the end of Chapter 24

(view spoiler)[ I was surprised that Winston was AI. It seemed like Robert assumed he was AI at the beginning, but with the high level of interaction, he thought Winston was a real person. The technology is very impressive. The presentation seemed to be as well! I would have loved to have been in the audience. I wonder if we'll ever learn what he intended to reveal.

So, Kirsh's death was orchestrated from the very top. Ambra was shocked when she learned that Avila was the shooter, and she had added him to the guest list at the very end. Why did she refuse to speak to her fiancé? Was it because she'd put two and two together?

The rabbi needs to be very careful. I don't trust the Bishop, and I wouldn't put it past him to arrange for his death. All in the name of religion. (hide spoiler)]

[Katrisa]

So, this is a bit of a tangent post. I am assuming that you guys have read the other Langdon books so this would be a place where I can express my outrage :) I never watched any of the movies until I read the books in the last couple months. I just watched the Inferno movie and I CANNOT believe how they changed then end!!!! The end of the book was BRILLIANT! The way they ended the movie changed the whole thing!

[Margo]

Inferno is the only one I haven't read/watched.

I'm way behind you guys, I didn't get much reading done yesterday.

Up to chapter 13 (view spoiler)[ I like the idea of the A.I. creating art. Who is the artist? I say the A.I. but does that make the programer god? Does it mean the A.I. has a soul? Big questions!

We to chapter 13 without a corpse! (hide spoiler)]

[Jayme, Moderator]

I'm just popping my head in this thread to say that I love this series. I read Origin a couple of years ago and will always read the next book in the series.
FYI: I was checking out his official website and he is coming out with another book in September, but it is a children's musical picture book. It looks really cute and I am planning on picking it up for my niece for Christmas. Wild Symphony

[Lucy]

Katrisa wrote: "So, this is a bit of a tangent post. I am assuming that you guys have read the other Langdon books so this would be a place where I can express my outrage :) I never watched any of the movies until..."

The end of (movie) Inferno made me mad, too! And, I know the Langdon books tend to be self contained stories, but I am a little surprised that what happened in Inferno isn't mentioned in Origin so far. It seems to have consequences that reach farther than a typical Langdon book. But I suppose that's done on purpose.

[Janice, Moderator]

I've read Inferno, but I don't remember much about it.

[Dominique]

Katrisa wrote: "Ch 44 [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ I was rooting for him, I thought he was going to be able to get away by faking the heart attack. Anybody would think he died but not a professional (hide spoiler)]

[Lucy]

Chapters 36 to 45 (view spoiler)[ hmm, so its looking like the prince may have used/set up Ambra afterall, in order to get out of a hastey, very public engagement?

I, too, was cheering for the Rabbi. Bummer he didn't make it. As an aside, if anyone is wanting to fund their own dark web assassination, Bitcoin is not actually untraceable in the real world. 😉😉 Just looking out for ya'll. (hide spoiler)]

[Jannene]

Anyone interested in doing a Zoom meeting to discuss the book in completion? We are all becoming pros at it.

[Katrisa]

I'm down Jannene!

[Margo]

Dominique wrote: "Lucy wrote: "Yes, I really like how Brown does scenery, he can describe it thoroughly it without going into overload.

Chapters 1-10 [spoilers removed]

Chapters 22-27

I agree [spoilers removed]"

Up to chapter 22 (view spoiler)[ I want a Winston too! Unless of course he is evil 😵

Wow, that was a long drawn out death scene! It just kept going. I was thinking to myself will this guy ever get to the point! Yes it was an amazing presentation but if he had spat it out........

Brown did a great job in building up the tension. Who does the Admiral work for? What is the connection between him and the beautiful museum director who's name I can't remember? (hide spoiler)]

[Margo]

Jannene wrote: "Anyone interested in doing a Zoom meeting to discuss the book in completion? We are all becoming pros at it."

Jeepees, I've only just mastered Skye, not sure I can hangle Zoom Jannene!

[Janice, Moderator]

A Zoom meeting might be fun.

[Katrisa]

Ch 63 (view spoiler)[Good point Lucy about the events in Inferno not being addressed in this book. Especially in this chapter where they are talking with the NASA scientist about the future of humanity and would we be able to survive into the future. (hide spoiler)]

Ch 72 (view spoiler)[ FINALLY Julian!! It's been driving me nuts not to know anything about Julian. Is he trying to kill Ambra? Is he a hostage of the Bishop? (hide spoiler)]

[Renee]

I will catch up. I have had a headache and not felt like reading.

[Jannene]

Margo wrote: "Jannene wrote: "Anyone interested in doing a Zoom meeting to discuss the book in completion? We are all becoming pros at it."

Jeepees, I've only just mastered Skye, not sure I can hangle Zoom Jann..."

I’m sure it is very similar. I just don’t have that one.

[Dominique]

Jannene wrote: "Anyone interested in doing a Zoom meeting to discuss the book in completion? We are all becoming pros at it."

No makeup and hair a mess?

[Cherie]

Katrisa wrote: "And wow! I just looked up the Guggenheim Bilbao. What a cool building! The spider sculpture is creepy though."

I am not reading the book with all of you, but the comment about looking up the art and the places caught my eye. I remember spending quite a lot of time Googling in this book. That is one of my favorite things about Brown's books.

[Cherie]

Dominique wrote: "Jannene wrote: "Anyone interested in doing a Zoom meeting to discuss the book in completion? We are all becoming pros at it."

No makeup and hair a mess?"

LOL!!!!!

[Katrisa]

I finished the book while out weeding. I think weeding is perfect for audiobooks because I have something to do so I am not just sitting on the couch listening, but doesn't take any brain power. And my urban farmer husband gets rid of tons of weeds!
(view spoiler)[ I thought the relationship between the King and the Bishop was sweet. I really thought the Bishop was at least partly responsible for the assassinations. I was really hoping Winston didn't turn out to be evil, so that was good. I agree with his assessment of the situation and that Kirsch would have preferred that his death be in service to his message rather than not and help take down the church that he blames for his mother's death. I like the tone the book ends on. I still think Inferno was my favorite of the series, but I like all of them! (hide spoiler)]

[Janice, Moderator]

Wow, Katrisa! Finished already.

[Janice, Moderator]

I finished to the end of Chapter 44.


(view spoiler)[ Ambra has indicated that her finance requested that Avila's name be added to the guest list, but it appears that the request came from his office. I wonder if he even knew.

It appears that the Bishop is orchestrating all the murder and mayhem. But appearances can be deceiving. I wonder where he and the prince have disappeared to. Is the prince complicit, or a pawn?

I was sad that the rabbi was murdered. I was hoping that he'd escape but he was doomed whether he stayed put in his home or if he ran for it. And it was the bishop who told him to stay put.

This book really feels like a remake of The Davinci Code. (hide spoiler)]

[Janice, Moderator]

One other thing (Chapter 44) - (view spoiler)[ I really dislike it when men propose marriage in a public way like the prince did. It's extremely manipulative. Ambra really had no choice but to say yes, or have him lose face. When she told him that she cannot have children, she realized that it was over between them. Perhaps that's why she insisted on keeping her job and kind of flaunting her independence, giving him an excuse to break it off, perhaps. (hide spoiler)]

[Margo]

Chapter 22 - 44
(view spoiler)[ Langdon is such a know it all! He even outsmarts Winston on the Infinity symbol thing. So, it looks like it's a Christian sect that did the deed.

Once again Langdon is on the run with a beautiful woman. I did feel him having to ditch his phone without being able to backup his data!

We dive into the Admirals past again. His Physio got him a meeting with the Pope . Really? It was funny, in a dark way, that the Admiral shot himself in the leg during a suicide attempt!

The Bishop met with Kirsch before his death. So it's possible that 4 people know the secret. Did the Bish tell the King or the Prince? I doubt that the monarchy would get involved but you never know. Anyone from the palace could have made that call to get the Admiral on the list.

Oh, the tattoo on the Admirals palm is the symbol of Franco. That's scary! If the palace is involved with facism it puts a new spin on the princes sudden engagement to Ambra. An act of rebellion? This conspiracy website sounds interesting.

The comment that Winston was like Siri on steroids made me laugh 😅

That proposal! *CRINGE* What a cheesey Prince Charming 😂😂😂 He is definitely up to something.


(hide spoiler)]
I

[Margo]

Janice wrote: "I finished to the end of Chapter 44.

..."

Janice, I agree (view spoiler)[ this is very similar to The DaVinci Code. On the run with a beautiful, but untouchable, woman. Looking for clues to solve a mystery. Hmm.....

(hide spoiler)]

[Margo]

Dominique wrote: "Katrisa wrote: "Ch 44 [spoilers removed]"

[spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ I know, I thought he'd got away with it I shout havs known better!

Two down, one to go - or is the last one the culprit?

(hide spoiler)]

Oh, and if I do manage to work out Zoom, definitely no make up. I'm not going out so I'm not making up! Your will see the unvarnished me - get ready *hehehe*

[Dominique]

Margo wrote: "Dominique wrote: "Katrisa wrote: "Ch 44 [spoilers removed]"

[spoilers removed]"

I know, I thought he'd got away with it I shout havs known better!

Two down, one to go - or is the last one the ..."

Lol!

[Margo]

CHAPTER 45 TO 51

(view spoiler)[

Good story about the computer in 2001: A space odessy being named HAL because the letters were before IBM.

The Palmarian church with it's "anti pope" sounds like a pretty weird sect and it is news to me! Sounds like an even scarier version of Opus Dei from the Davinchi Code. If they end up being the bad guys it will be a complete rip off!

So much talk about how life on earth began and evolution etc I'm wondering how the book will end. If it's going to pay off then Brown is going to have to come up with a brilliant and plausible idea. If he doesn't have one then the only way I can see out of it is for Langdon to be convinced to hand over the file unread. He couldn't be that to us…...could he???

Once again I had to Google, La Pedrera-Casa Milà is amazing! I would love to visit there. I did the virtual tour but I was a bit disappointed that I couldn't get to the rooftop

The Bish asked the palace to find out who placed the call - does this mean he's innocent or is it a bluff? Who deleted the call from the log and why? The commander is arrested by his own men - that must have been weird!

(hide spoiler)]

[Dominique]

Finished

(view spoiler)[ I enjoyed the book, had a bit of a Da Vinci Code vibe. kirsch's revelation was a bit too long and scientific for my taste. The big secret the king revealed to his son was not so shocking but his detah and the bishop's was sad and sweet. I felt that Ambra wanted to stay with Robert and he felt the same way but let her go back to her now ex-fiance. I had a feeling about Winston, was he evil or with all the time he spent talking to Edmund, he understood him more than anybody and his revelation had to come out no matter what (hide spoiler)]

[Janice, Moderator]

I wish I was finished. LOL! I finished Chapter 57.

Chapter 45 - 57 (view spoiler)[ I don't know what is going on with the Prince and the Bishop. Has the Prince been coerced, or is he a willing participant?

The sect that has broken from the Catholic Church seem to be the driving force behind Edmond's murder. I thought that Avila was being taken to meet the Pope, but he was taken to the fake Pope. Obviously the conspiracy theorists had the same impression that I did and I think it's confusing the involvement of both sects.

What is up with the press conference?

Edmond's house sounds pretty spectacular. Interesting that he had cancer and had only a short time to live. (hide spoiler)]