Da Vinci’s Code writer Dan Brown has announced that he will be returning with a new book this year.

One of the biggest selling authors of all-time, his critically divided but commercially massive books – which also include Digital Fortress, Angels & Demons, Deception Point and The Lost Symbol – have sold over 200 million copies between them, with Angels & Demons and The Da Vinci Code both getting adapted into feature length films. The Independent reports that the latest of Brown’s crime thrillers – his first since 2009’s The Lost Symbol – will be released on May 14, 2013. His publishers have not revealed the title of the book yet, instead offering up secret codes and messages on social networking for fans to uncover, but it will once again follow the adventures of Robert Langdon – a mainstay in the series since 2000’s Angels & Demons.

Currently a professor of iconology and symbology at Harvard, Brown’s book will apparently be based on "one of history's most enduring and mysterious literary masterpieces". Intriguing. Meanwhile, his last book The Lost Symbol could well become the third book to be turned into a film; the previous two featured Tom Hanks playing Langdon, but were not universally well-received by the critics.

Trailer for the film adaptation of The Da Vinci Code