The Secret of Secrets: A Novel (Robert Langdon Book 6) - 139
First and foremost, to Jason Kaufman—the finest editor a writer could ever have—for his narrative instincts, sense of humor, and tireless hours in the trenches with me. To my incomparable agent, Heide Lange, for her decades of dedication and friendship, and for so expertly guiding all aspects of my ...
First and foremost, to Jason Kaufman—the finest editor a writer could ever have—for his narrative instincts, sense of humor, and tireless hours in the trenches with me.
To my incomparable agent, Heide Lange, for her decades of dedication and friendship, and for so expertly guiding all aspects of my career with unparalleled enthusiasm.
A very special thanks to my stalwart publishers Maya Mavjee and Bill Thomas for their unwavering support and patience while I wrote this book…and, above all, for their commitment, creativity, and excitement during its publication.
To the world-class team at Doubleday and Penguin Random House, with special notes of thanks to publicity guru Todd Doughty; the innovative marketing crew of Heather Fain, Judy Jacoby, Erinn McGrath, and Abby Endler; wonderful assistant editor Lily Dondoshansky for her careful work and good cheer; the meticulous Nora Reichard in production editorial, along with Vimi Santokhi, Barbara Richard, Kirsten Eggart, and Casey Hampton; the creative art directors and jacket designers, Oliver Munday and Will Staehle; the world’s finest sales team, with extra thanks to Beth Meister, Chris Dufault, David Weller, and Lynn Kovach; legal expert Claire Leonard; the IT and security team of Chris Hart, Tom Saal, Mike DeMasi, and Zafar Nasir; Amanda D’Acierno in audiobooks; Beth Lamb in paperbacks; my dear friend Suzanne Herz; and, of course, in the corporate offices, the steady hands of Nihar Malaviya, Jaci Updike, and Jeff Weber. Thank you all.
A debt of gratitude to my fifty-seven international publishers, who have moved mountains to make these books a global success and who have become my extended family away from home. A big thank-you as well to the talented team of translators who bring these books to life around the world.
A very special thanks to my Czech editor and friend, Petr Onufer, for his invaluable research and guidance on all aspects of Prague, Czech culture, and Czech language…and also for helping me see the spectacular city of Prague in a truly mystical light. My thanks also to the directors of Argo Publishing in Prague, Milan Gelnar and Hana Gelnarova.
To my brilliant UK publisher Bill Scott-Kerr for being such a great friend since day one with my very first novel.
My sincere admiration and gratitude to the remarkable minds who make up the Institute of Noetic Sciences. Thank you for the important and illuminating work you do.
A very special thanks to Norm Eisen, former ambassador to the Czech Republic, for his generous hospitality while I was in Prague, and for his fascinating stories over dinner in the spectacular Petschek Villa.
Over the past six years, a wide array of scientists, historians, curators, religious scholars, government officials, and private organizations have generously offered assistance in the research of this novel. Words cannot begin to express my appreciation to all of them for their generosity and openness in sharing their expertise and insight.
To my trusted personal assistant Susan Morehouse for her steadfast friendship and dedication through the years and for all she does behind the scenes to keep this train on the rails.
To my tech-savvy digital guru Alex Canon for handling all aspects of my online world (and also for tracking down manuscript hackers).
To the dream team at William Morris Endeavor—with special thanks to Ari, Sylvie, Conor, Ryan, Michael, and CJ—for forging such exciting synergies.
To the distinguished legal mind of Karl Austen for his expertise and also for being an NSA cryptologist in my first novel.
To everyone at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates, with heartfelt gratitude to Iwalani Kim and Madeline Wallace for handling endless details with elegance and precision, and also to the skills of Charles Loffredo for handling all things numerical.
To Peter Fahey, Philip McCaull, Jennifer Rouleau, Ginny McGrody, Glenn Greenfader, and associates for deftly managing the Fructus laborum.
Thank you as well to Dr. Mona Laifi, Dr. Elizabeth Klodas, Dr. Bob Helm, Dr. Chad Prusmack, Dennis G. Whyte at the MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center, Georgie Venci and Charlie Venci for their aquatic acumen, Carl Schwartz for his culinary skills, my trainer Evan Schaller for pulling me away from my desk and keeping me mobile, the Four Seasons Hotel Prague for their hospitality, the Prague Tourism Bureau, Charles University, the Klementinum, U.S. Ambassador’s security detail Carlton Cuse, the indomitable Emanuel Swedenborg, the Global Consciousness Project, the Center for Consciousness Science, to Rose Schwartz, Eric Brown, Neil Rosini, and the memory of my dear friend Michael Rudell for being such a role model of grace and kindness.
To the late great literary agent George Wieser for taking me to lunch in 1994 and strongly suggesting I take a sabbatical from music…and write a novel.
Mi agradecimiento al distinguido caballero Roberto Batalla por haberme servido de guía en el paisaje costarricense.
To my first-draft readers—Gregory Brown, Heide Lange, John Chaffee, Iwalani Kim, Madeline Wallace, Lily Dondoshansky, and others. Thank you for your early input on a very long manuscript. And continued appreciation to Rebecca, Caleb, Hannah, and Sophie Kaufman, plus Olivia and Jerry Kaufman, for years of support…and for kindly sharing my editor.
A lifetime of gratitude to my parents—Connie and Dick Brown—for teaching me to be eternally curious and to embrace the difficult questions.
And finally, to my fiancée, Judith Pietersen, for her patience, love, and astonishing good humor while I was buried in this book.