12.21.12 by Killian McRae Review and Giveaway!!

 Archaeologist Sheppard Smyth has staked his career and the honorable memory of his deceased wife and partner on proving his widely-panned theory: Cleopatra VII, last ruler of Ancient Egypt, was murdered. When a statue of the doomed Queen is discovered in an Olmec excavation site in Mexico, Shep rushes to investigate and, hopefully, find the proof that has evaded him for so long. Soon, he finds himself in the middle of the rivalry between the sexy, enigmatic international thief, Victoria Kent, and infamous rumored Russian mobster, Dmitri Kronastia. Both hold pieces to the puzzle that will finally shed light on Cleopatras death, as they vie for Shep's trust and assistance. As he is drawn further into their world of ancient gods, supernatural powers, and alternative history, little does Shep know that the fate of all humanity may hinge on his ability to discover the truth in between Victoria and Dmitris' fragmented claims and hidden identities. Working to decode the ancient past while attempting to save the future, Shep becomes a common pawn played by forces working to see out a quest older than the pyramids themselves and cloaked by the Mayan prophecy of 12.21.12. (picture and summary from www.goodreads.com)

MY REVIEW

Holy adventure story, Batman!  This book was a non-stop roller coaster ride from beginning to end!  Take a bit of The DaVinci Code, mix in some Indiana Jones, a good dose of Egyptian mythology, a pinch of Mayan mythology, a bit of history and a lot of mystery and you’ve got this book….and you also have a fun, rollicking, can’t-tear-yourself-away-from-it read!

I liked being able to get bits and pieces of the story from the different perspectives of all the characters.  It was fun because I would start getting some pieces of information and think that I was onto something when, BAM!  The perspective would change and something would blow my theory to bits!  I love a good mystery that keeps me hopping and this book definitely made that happen.  The best part though is that each piece of the puzzle that was revealed made perfect sense within the story.  There was nothing that came from left field and blindsided me.  That’s what makes a good mystery really great and I think it must be one of the most difficult things that a writer can do.

I loved Shep.  I kept imagining him like a young Harrison Ford in the first Indiana Jones movie….::swoons::  He’s a great guy and he’s sort of rugged yet extremely intelligent.  That sort of scruffy, unkempt sort of guy but it doesn’t matter because he’s still super sexy type.  I also really liked the character of Alex and I’d love to know what happened to him.  I’m not really sure that I liked Victoria.  She was really important to the story but I didn’t really think she was a very nice person.

I normally review YA books here and this is classified adult, so anyone looking for something for younger readers should keep that in mind.  This book had a few references to sex and some bad language, but I’ve honestly read YA stuff that had more actual sex in it.  The worst that happened in this book was a scene with some almost sex.  After seeing many of my high school students walk in carrying the latest Lynsay Sands novel, this one would seem really, really tame!

If I were giving this book a grade, it would be a solid A.  At a certain point in time, this book became difficult to put down and the action never stopped until the last few pages.  I would recommend this book to people who like mystery, paranormal or historical fiction.

This book is available through Omnific and their website, www.omnific.com.  Much thanks to Micha and all the lovely girls at Omnific for allowing me to read and review this book.  You girls rock!

Killian McRae can be found on goodreads on her author page and also on her personal webpage at www.killianmcrae.com.

You can check out the rest of the blog tour and find all sorts of cool stuff like character interviews, author interviews and more giveaways!  Of course, I'm giving away a copy also, so check out that info below the tour schedule!

This is the entire blog tour schedule (I'm number 20!)

1. Julie @ A Tale of Many Reviews - Review - March 1st 2011
2. Yelania @ The Itzel Library - Interview - March 2nd 2011
3. Damaris @ Good Choice Reading - Top Ten/Giveaway - March 3rd 2011
4. Mandy @ Twimom101's book blog - Interview - March 4th 2011
5. Casey @ Dark Readers Blog - Interview - March 5th 2011
6. Alisha @ My need to Read - Character post - March 6th 2011
7. Jules @ One Book Shy of a Full Shelf - Interview/Giveaway - March 7th 2011
8. Lisa K. @ Baffled Books - review - March 8th 2011
9. Sarah @ The Book Bee - Character Interview - March 9th 2011
10. Page @ One Book at a time - Guest post/Interview - March 10th 2011
11. Michelle @ Hooked To Books - Giveaway/Review - March 11th 2011
12. Kristin @ My Bookish Ways - review - March 12th 2011
13. Celine @ Nyx Book Reviews - Top Ten - March 13th 2011
14. Sherri @ Urban Girl Reader - review/Q&A/giveaway - March 14th 2011
15. Cherry @ Cherry Mischievous - Guest post - March 15th 2011
16. Bianca @ Sweet Nothings xo - review/giveaway - March 16th 2011
17. Rebecca @ My Life with Boys and Books - review - March 17th 2011
18. Megan @ A Trail of Books Left Behind - review/character interview - March 18th 2011
19. Jennifer @ Ponytails Book Reviews - review - March 19th 2011
20. Tammy @ Into The Mystic -  - March 20th 2011
21. Lisa @ Bookworm Lisa - Top Ten/Giveaway - March 21st 2011
22. Tara @ Taming the Bookshelf -  - March 22nd 2011
23. Rachel @ Parajunkee's View -  - March 23rd 2011
24. Melissa @ I Swim for Oceans - review/interview - March 24th 2011
25. Kathy @ I Am A Reader, Not A Writer - giveaway/interview - March 25th 2011
26. Christin @ Between the Covers - review - March 26th 2011
27. Stacy @ Girls in the Stacks - review - March 27th 2011
28. Ash @ Smash Attack Reads - character interview - March 28th 2011
29. Aleetha @ bacaan-ally blog - review - March 29th 2011
30. Ashlie @ Bookish Novelties - review/interview - March 30th 2011
31. Yara @ Once Upon a Twilight - Review/Giveaway - March 31st 2011
32. Once Upon a Twilight Author Live chat - March 31st 2011 @ 9pm CT

MY GIVEAWAY!!!!

And now for the best part:  the giveaway!  If you would like to be entered in the giveaway, all you need to do is leave me a comment with the following information:  1.  Tell me the one thing that sounds most interesting to you about this book either from the publisher’s synopsis or my review.  2.  your email address so that I can contact you if you win!  3.  If you'd like to, you can add which 30-something actor do you think would make a great Indiana Jones type character. That’s it!  I won’t require that you be a follower, although it would be really cool if you become one!  I will accept entries until March 31^st. (U.S. and Canada addresses only.)