The Crystal Skull [Paperback]

Manda Scott (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 24, 2009

12.21.12.
The date is set. Time is running out.

In a spellbinding blend of history, myth, and science, bestselling novelist Manda Scott unleashes a thriller that sweeps from the secrets of the Mayans to the court of a sixteenth-century queen to a shattering end-times prophecy.

Ancient lore predicts the end of the world with chilling precision: 21 December 2012. But the prophecies provide the key to stopping Armageddon: a flawless sapphire carved into the perfect likeness of a human skull.

One woman has inherited the skull’s legacy of deadly secrets, intrigue, and murder. Can she crack the only code that could save the world?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Edgar nominee Scott (No Good Deed) mixes adventure, supernatural phenomena and cryptography to create a fast-paced supernatural thriller. Mayan apocalyptic astronomical documents chillingly predict that the world will end on December 21, 2012, unless 13 crystal skulls are reunited. Cedric Owen, a 16th-century scholar and physician whose family has safeguarded one of the skulls from time unknown, struggles to unlock the jewel's secrets and arrange for its safety. Nearly five centuries later, newlyweds Stella Cody and Kit O'Connor unlock Owen's cipher and track the skull to its hiding place, only to find themselves caught up in a global struggle between the keepers of the skulls and those who are determined to destroy them and bring about the end of the world. Stella and Kit's race to prevent the apocalypse turns into a life-threatening, heart-pounding battle between good and evil. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

“One of the boldest recent adventures in historical fiction.”–Independent

“A nail-biting tour de force.” —Guardian

“Original, imaginative, scary, rooted in the past but as current as tomorrow’s nightmare.” —Lee Child

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Bantam; Reprint edition (February 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440243211
• ISBN-13: 978-0440243212
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,543,999 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars James Rollins' Fans: AVOID AVOID AVOID, September 1, 2008

By 

N. Bilmes "bookaholic" (Vernon, CT United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Crystal Skull (Hardcover)

Like James Rollins and some of the earlier Preston/Child books, Miss Scott's "Crystal Skull" stars scientists who discover an artifact from the past that has the power to radically alter our modern-day lives. Unlike those other authors' books, this book doesn't posess taut pacing, riveting action, or interesting characters. Everything is done without a whiff of tension. The languid pacing of this archaeological-thriller totally mutes the otherwise rich possibilities that the subject could acheive.

I don't recommend this book.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A Blend of Fantasy and Mystery, May 14, 2008

By 

SciFiChick "The SciFiChick" (Fishers, IN USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Crystal Skull (Hardcover)

As a wedding gift, Kitt brings his new wife Stella to a cave where he believes Cedric Owen's legendary crystal skull is located. But when they find the skull, their lives are endangered. Someone is willing to kill to get his hands on it. And supposedly the skull has a curse on it. Can Stella uncover the truth behind the skull and get the skull to its resting place before time runs out?

The narrative jumps back and forth in time from Cedric Owen's time and destiny involving the crystal skull to Stella and her search for the truth and her own destiny. While some of the adventure surrounding the mystery of the skull was exciting and fun; unfortunately, this book didn't live up to the hype. The characters were all one-dimensional. And we are expected to believe that the pull of the crystal skull, though extremely valuable, evokes an emotional response in everyone who sees it. There is little to no explanation of how the skulls came to be, what they are really for, and how they are supposed to affect the supposed end of the world. This story had great promise for an archeological thriller. Instead, it was dull and disappointing.

I usually don't post negative reviews, as I don't usually finish books that I don't enjoy. But I actually finished this one, hoping there would be some resolution. I'm sorry to say that even the ending was an anti-climactic whimper.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nothing special, October 19, 2008

By 

R. Murphy (Jamaica Plain, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Crystal Skull (Hardcover)

A rather average book. The author's reach exceeded her grasp in choosing a subject matter and the whole thing read like a made-for-scifi-channel film treatment that takes itself seriously but just doesn't have the budget to see the vision through.

The book would have been better if the plot and characters were completely made up. Basing it around the Mayan 2012 "end of the world" legends and the inclusion of a cameo role for Nostradamus only made it feel cheap. Also, it is stressed several times through the book how accurate the Mayan calendar was and how it foretells the end times being a cataclysm on the winter Solstice 2012. And yet, the action of the "modern times" sections of the book is placed in 2007 at a different time of the year. The reasoning behind the 5 1/2 year discrepancy is never said.