Review| 12:21, by Dustin Thomason

Full Title: 12.21
Author: Dustin Thomas
Genre: Fiction/Thriller
Publisher: The Dial Press (Random House)
Publication Date: August 2012 (expected)
My Copy: Advance reader copy via Goodreads First Reads

— Two weeks before December 21, 2012, a man speaking a strange language is brought into East L.A. Presbyterian Hospital with what appears to be a prion disease. Dr. Gabriel Stanton, a prion disease researcher for the CDC, is called in. When it is realised that the patient is speaking a Mayan language, Chel Manu, an expert in Mayan Studies, aides as a translator. She is rocked by what she learns from this patient, though. Chel has recently acquired an incredible artifact from a shady source: a previously undiscovered Mayan codex, dating back farther than any other. What could this man have to do with the artifact? How does his terrifying disease factor in?

If you haven’t already heard, December 21, 2012, marks the beginning of the end of the world. Well, at least to those who misinterpret the Mayan long count calendar, anyway. This 2012 doomsday phenomenon has completely taken over. It’s everywhere, and as December 21st approaches, I imagine things will reach a fever pitch. 12.21, then, is a very timely novel. But if you’re thinking this novel bends actual Mayan fact to fits its plot, think again. Instantly, Thomason shows that he has done his homework. A simple change of the calendar isn’t what’s bringing on the end in this one. In fact, the novel’s fictional terror feels entirely to possible. Prions are well explained, also. And so is the meatpacking industry. Made me glad to be a vegetarian (well... not counting that salmon I had for dinner... I’ll stop eating fish really soon, I swear!).

Stanton is your classic workaholic. He has an ex-wife to prove it. Chel is quite dedicated to her work as well. She is passionate about her Mayan heritage. Both are driven people and very easy to like. The two are really good together. Here is a relationship thats takes some time to grow. The trust is not instant. As they work toward a common goal, they learn to rely on one another’s expertise and judgement. The character development is great in this one.

Also instantly likeable is Paktul and his ancient codex. As Chel and her team translate his secret writings, the reader gets a glimpse into the world of the ancient Mayans. His telling of events is lively and engaging. I found myself looking forward to his story, wondering what happened to cause it all. You see, what Paktul describes holds both the clues to great past of the Mayans and the terrible fate that may await the modern world.

12.21 is filled with plot twists, and it’s interesting to see how things eventually connect and fall into place. The writing is writing is solid as well. This book is definitely a page turner. I’d recommend it to anyone, doomsdayer or otherwise.

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Review| Flight From Berlin, by David John

Full Title: Flight From Berlin
Author: David John
Genre: Historical Fiction/Thriller
Publisher: Harper
Publication Date: July 10, 2012 (expected)
My Copy: Advance reader copy via Goodreads First Reads

—

Berlin, 1936. The Olympics are underway and all eyes are on Hitler’s Germany. The Nazi propaganda machine has hidden its brutality from view, but there are those who still recognise the veiled terror. Eleanor Emerson, expelled from the US swim team, meets up with Richard Denham, a British journalist. Together, they learn that Berlin is center stage for more than just the Olympics. They find themselves in the middle of a very different kind of game, this one between the Gestapo and The British Secret Intelligence Service. There is a secret document that threatens to bring down the Third Reich, and Hitler's men want to get it before it is handed over to the SIS... by any means necessary.

Eleanor is a feisty young woman with a rebellious streak. Being quite the socialite, she gets herself kicked off the Olympic team en route to Berlin for partying a bit too hard. Her lines are fantastic and full of wit. She is a strong, likeable character. The same can be said for Denham, the cynical journalist determined to report the truth. He, too, is very well drawn. We get a great sense of how he values both his profession and his fellow man. All of the good guys stand out in their own way, in fact. For that bad guys, though, I was more likely to get them confused. They get a bit muddled, but I got them straightened out in the end.

The historical backdrop is phenomenal! So many real people and events are wonderfully woven into the story. The Olympics is the obvious, but the Hindenburg is also written in. Even the Wallis Simpson scandal gets a mention. Berlin itself comes to life. It’s easy to imagine what things were like back then, with the city being cleaned up to show a “nice” face to the world.

My main criticism, and the thing that really knocked the rating down a star, is the ending. I saw it coming pretty early on and spent the rest of the book hoping I was wrong. It’s just pretty predictable and...safe. It wraps the story up neatly and reconciles the book with actual events, but after such an exciting story I found myself wanting something radically different. Something that rewrote history entirely. Still, Flight From Berlin is a well written historical thriller. A must-read for anyone interested in this time in history, and great for fans of thrillers as well!

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Review| The Uninvited Guests: A Novel by Sadie Jones

I wanted to read The Uninvited Guests from the moment I heard about the book. Imagine my joy, then, when I won an advance reader copy on Goodreads!

Sadie Jones’ The Uninvited Guests introduces us to the eccentric, dysfunctional Torrington-Swift family. There is the self-centered Charlotte Torrington-Swift, her doting second husband Edward Swift, and the three children of her previous marriage: Clovis, Emerald, and Imogen (aka Smudge). They live at Stern, a stately manor in the English countryside, but financial issues could mean them losing it. Edward is off to secure funds to save the home while those left behind celebrate Emeralds twentieth birthday. Then, disaster. A train accident sends some restless uninvited guests their way, including one Charles Traversham-Beechers. He claims to know of Charlotte's past, and he may just be wicked enough to reveal it.

Of all the characters, the most likeable may be Emerald, the capable yet resigned-to-her-fate birthday girl, followed closely by her odd and neglected sister Smudge. Clovis is quite the snob, and Charlotte an absent and vain mother. We also meet the Swift-Torrington housekeepers Myrtle and Florence, and the guests invited to Emeralds soiree: John Buchanan, Ernest and Patience Sutton, and, of course, Charles Traversham-Beechers. They range from the bland to the vicious, though some change their tune by the books end.

The story itself is very entertaining and well written. Told in third-persons, the narration is funny, witty, and just a bit quirky. I found myself laughing on quite a few occassions. Many that books that claim to be humorous satire rarely hit their mark for me, but this book had its true laugh-out-loud moments. Though a satire, a comedy of manners, the bigger message of the novel is not lost. We see the worst brought out in these society folk, both in how they treat each other and how they treat those they believe are beneath them. But we also see them grow and learn. Some, as I’ve mentioned, mature greatly through the novel and are changed for the better by the experience.

This book is clever, funny, and thoroughly entertaining. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys satirical novels, and anyone who wants a good look at human nature at its best and worst. Or just anyone looking for a wildly adventurous and truly bizarre tale.

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