Da Vinci Code sequel ‘to smash records’

THE Lost Symbol, Dan Brown’s long-anticipated follow-up to The Da Vinci Code, is set to spark a buying frenzy, with stores tipping the new novel to smash sales records.

The thriller, which again features Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon, hit the bookshelves yesterday with a global English language first print run of 6.5 million copies, the largest first print in the history of publisher Random House worldwide.

The massive launch has been hailed by some as the biggest publishing event since JK Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows two years ago.