Review & Giveaway: 12.21 by Dustin Thomason

Summary: For decades, December 21, 2012, has been a touchstone for doomsayers worldwide. It is the date, they claim, when the ancient Maya calendar predicts the world will end.

In Los Angeles, two weeks before, all is calm. Dr. Gabriel Stanton takes his usual morning bike ride, drops off the dog with his ex-wife, and heads to the lab where he studies incurable prion diseases for the CDC. His first phone call is from a hospital resident who has an urgent case she thinks he needs to see. Meanwhile, Chel Manu, a Guatemalan American researcher at the Getty Museum, is interrupted by a desperate, unwelcome visitor from the black market antiquities trade who thrusts a duffel bag into her hands.

By the end of the day, Stanton, the foremost expert on some of the rarest infections in the world, is grappling with a patient whose every symptom confounds and terrifies him. And Chel, the brightest young star in the field of Maya studies, has possession of an illegal artifact that has miraculously survived the centuries intact: a priceless codex from a lost city of her ancestors. This extraordinary record, written in secret by a royal scribe, seems to hold the answer to her life’s work and to one of history’s great riddles: why the Maya kingdoms vanished overnight. Suddenly it seems that our own civilization might suffer this same fate.
 
With only days remaining until December 21, 2012, Stanton and Chel must join forces before time runs out.

My Thoughts: Reminiscent of Michael Crichton’s The Andromeda Strain, 12.12 by Dustin Thomason is a fast-paced medical thriller. It had me interested from the very beginning, and got better and better as it went. I found it very hard to put the book down during the second half.

I found there to be little predictability in this book. Offhand I can only think of one thing that, upon its revelation, I was like, “Well, duh!” That’s pretty good! There are some betrayals, surprising twists, and shocking revelations. I even gasped aloud once or twice!

I liked Stanton probably the most of the characters. I couldn’t exactly tell you why. I would love to see more books with him, and hopefully learn a lot more about his background. It seems safe to say his story is likely an interesting one. Chel was quite interesting, too – and we have more of the backstory for her. Although, given the subject of this book and her expertise, it’s not in the least bit surprising.

12.12 is a book I’d highly recommend for lovers of medical mysteries, sci-fi, and Michael Crichton. Do I see myself reading it again? It’s quite possible – maybe even probable. Especially if there are more books about Stanton in the future!

Source: Received as part of a blog tour promotion on TLC Book Tours.

Read It: Get your own copy HERE. (This is a Book Depository link, and purchase through this link will result in my receiving a small commission at no cost to you. Your support is appreciated!)

About the Author: Dustin Thomason attended Harvard University, where he studied anthropology and medicine. He won the Hoopes Prize for undergraduate writing, and graduated in 1998. Thomason also received his M.D. and MBA from Columbia University in 2003.

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Tour Info: For the main page for this blog tour, including more reviews of this book on other blogs, visit TLC’s post.

Challenges: Counts for Free Reads 2012.

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GIVEAWAY TIME!

I am able to offer 1 lucky reader a copy of 12.21! I do not require anything in order for you to enter. Simply leave a comment to on this post. ONE ENTRY PER PERSON. Entries will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. (Central) Saturday, September 15, 2012. The winner will be chosen randomly with the help of the WordPress plugin And the Winner Is… I will send the lucky winner an e-mail notification. (It will come from proudbooknerd(at)gmail(dot)com, so make sure to add this address to your safe list or address book to ensure it doesn’t get lost in junk/bulk mail.) If I do not get a response within 48 hours, a new winner will be chosen. With apologies to those of you abroad, this giveaway is only open to readers in the U.S. and Canada.
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FTC Disclosure: All items reviewed were either obtained by me for my own enjoyment or sent (from the author, publisher, publicist, via tour sites, etc.) in exchange for an honest review. I receive no monetary compensation for my posts. All opinions expressed are my own. Any exceptions to this are clearly noted in the appropriate posts.

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