‘The Da Vinci Code’ author Dan Brown has announced that his next novel will be set in the heart of Italy.
Scheduled for release in North America on 14 May, Brown’s latest thriller features another outing for the protagonist of some of his previous best sellers, academic Robert Langdon. Titled 
Brown issued a statement saying: “Although I studied Dante’s ‘Inferno’ as a student, it wasn’t until recently, while researching in Florence, that I came to appreciate the enduring influence of Dante’s work on the modern world.
“With this new novel, I am excited to take readers on a journey deep into this mysterious realm... a landscape of codes, symbols, and more than a few secret passageways.”
Publicity to promote the novel says: “In the heart of Italy, Harvard professor of symbology, Robert Langdon, is drawn into a harrowing world centered on one of history’s most enduring and mysterious literary masterpieces... Dante’s ‘Inferno’.
“Against this backdrop, Langdon battles a chilling adversary and grapples with an ingenious riddle that pulls him into a landscape of classic art, secret passageways, and futuristic science. Drawing from Dante’s dark epic poem, Langdon races to find answers and decide whom to trust... before the world is irrevocably altered.”
The book cover shows an image of Florence and the title was announced via reader social media posts wed to an online digital mosaic. Suzanne Herz, senior vice president of publishing for the novel’s publisher, Doubleday, said: “Dan Brown’s enthusiasm for puzzles, codes and symbols is a passion shared by his readers. Our aim is to harness that passion and use it as a catalyst to reveal the new title.”
Brown is the author of numerous blockbusters, including 
