Robert Langdon, Harvard professor of symbology and religious iconology, arrives at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao to attend the unveiling of an astonishing scientific breakthrough. The evening`s host is billionaire Edmond Kirsch, a futurist whose dazzling high-tech inventions and audacious predictions have made him a controversial figure around the world. But Langdon and several hundred guests are left reeling when the meticulously orchestrated evening is suddenly blown apart. There is a real danger that Kirsch`s precious discovery may be lost in the ensuing chaos. With his life under threat, Langdon is forced into a desperate bid to escape Bilbao, taking with him the museum`s director, Ambra Vidal. Together they flee to Barcelona on a perilous quest to locate a cryptic password that will unlock Kirsch`s secret.