Two years ago, he was a relatively unknown author, with three novels in print that had sold a cumulative total of 20,000 copies in hardcover and paperback. Today, he is a mega-bestselling author, with more than 34 million copies of his fourth novel in print around the world.

This is an adrenaline-loaded story of a non-blockbuster writer in a race against time to write his breakout novel or face the prospect of being trapped by mediocrity. Revealing little-known details of Brown's unusual work habits – involving gravity boots, an antique hourglass and voice-recognition technology – Rogak charts Brown's struggles as a writer pre-'Da Vinci Code' and the windfall that occurred once published.

Why in the face of a public lawsuit for plagiarism did Brown refuse to sign an affidavit unambiguously affirming he is the sole author of 'The Da Vinci Code'? What links Brown's early career as a middle-of-the-road pop singer with his status as Random House's bestselling author to date?

Drawing on personal interviews with friends and former colleagues, newspaper articles and transcripts dating back to 1998, when his first novel, 'Digital Fortress', was published, Rogak's biography will be published shortly before the general release of Ron Howard's movie version of 'The Da Vinci Code', starring Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou and Ian McKellan.