Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is summoned to Switzerland when the dead body of a physicist turns up bearing the distinguishing mark of the ancient brotherhood of the "Illuminati." Soon, Langdon suspects this mysterious cult is determined to destroy Catholicism with an unimaginably powerful new weapon.

"Author Megan Stine charts the beginning of Christianity and its hold on members of the faith as well as the countless struggles for power (one pope was poisoned by his own men!), the building of the Vatican and creation of the Sistine Chapel, and the Secret Archives that hold papers the church has accumulated over the centuries"--

"From a bold new historian comes a vibrant history of Rome as seen through its most influential persona throughout the centuries: the pope. Rome is a city of echoes, where the voice of the people has chimed and clashed with the words of princes, emperors, and insurgents across the centuries. In this authoritative new history, Jessica Wärnberg tells the story of Rome's longest standing figurehead and interlocutor--the pope--revealing how his presence...