Getting ready for The Lost Symbol

Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon returns in Dan Brown's sequel to The Da Vinci Code. But the writer is fiercely guarding against story leaks. The book's website has little information about the novel beyond the enigmatic phrase "All Will Be Revealed" along with a clock counting down the seconds until The Lost Symbol is published next Tuesday. A massive 6.5 million copies have been ordered for the first printing.

Because The Da Vinci Code sold 81 million copies, the book business is hoping that The Lost Symbol will turn what has been a dismal year so far into something a little bit more positive. And Dan Brown's new book is generating excitement. MSNBC's Today show has started a week-long countdown to the release of the novel. As the show's website states: "Today's search for The Lost Symbol begins Tuesday, September 8, and culminates with a rare sit-down interview with Brown and Matt Lauer on Today Tuesday, September 15, the day the book hits stores."

Each day until then, the show will visit a different place and reveal a clue about the mystery of The Lost Symbol. The book's most important scenes are said to occur in these locations. Viewers are being asked to visit the Today show website all week to try to solve the puzzle behind the title of Dan Brown's latest thriller.