Customer Reviews

A Tourist In The Yucatan

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

[...] I read "A Tourist in the Yucatan" based on Amazon's rave 5-star reviews. I could hardly have been more disappointed. I'll give credit for an interesting setting and a premise that may have worked, had Brumfield researched the ancient Mayan culture in more depth, and tied the mysteries of the Mayans into a modern day thriller. Unfortunately, "Tourist" augured into a typical - though more poorly conceived - government conspiracy fantasy featuring a plastic cast of characters and numbingly banal plot. Jack Phillips, around whom the story revolves, is insufferably whiny and as uninspiring a protagonist as I've encountered. This plot depends upon the reader's belief that a team from the US DEA has gone undercover in Mexico as drug dealers. It must never have occurred to the author that the DEA may consider using Latinos in these roles; the southern Cal frat-boy agents assigned south-of-the-border were about as inconspicuous in Mexico as Shaquille O'Neal at a Ku Klux Klan rally. The dialogue was consistently lame ("What had happened was not fair, but life was not fair.") But much of the awkward prose and flat dialogue could have been overlooked were it not exacerbated by the most atrocious editing I have ever seen in a published work. [...]

At one point, one of the James Bond-type undercover guys, while en route to the final encounter with the bad guys, says to Phillips, "I'm just making this up as I go along." That pretty much sums up "A Tourist in the Yucatan". [...]

This book is a first for me. I've read quite a few books, and this is the absolute first one that has simple spelling and grammar errors. It's as if the publisher/editor/author never bothered to read this over before deciding to mass-produce it. I'm not a grammar snob by any means, but if your job is to write, you shouldn't be making "your/you're" mistakes. It's not as if it occurs just once either. I noticed five errors in the first 30 pages. It's distracting and really prevented me from enjoying it.

For example, the first sentence of chapter 5 is "The Jack, Jo and Steve Potter departed the bus at Chichen Itza's main entrance and grabbed one of the many taxis competing for their pesos.". Jack, Jo, and Steve Potter are people! Why is there a "the" in the beginning of the sentence??

This author makes money off writing. He clearly is failing and needs to rethink his career. Nobody pays for a driving instructor that doesn't know how to park, right?

WASTE OF TIME.

A man is on a boat in Mexico waiting for a drug deal to go down. The drug deal goes bad and he goes on the lam. Is he a bad guy or working undercover?

A husband and wife are on a vacation in Mexico rekindling their marriage. They hope to connect with their friend who is an archeologist but they find themselves in the middle of a misunderstanding about drugs and ancient Mayan artifacts. Will they kill or be killed?

Basically, this plot has been done a million times and is not original. But even worse, the writing is bland and does not keep the story moving. It took me FOREVER to plod through this thin paperback novel. It's fine for a beach read, but there are other books out there in this genre that are much, much better.

Author James M. Brumfield has a handle on the history of the Mayans in the Yucatan and he uses this knowledge to weave a trashy, suspensful, B-movie, novel. The book reads like Raiders of the Lost Arc on paper: Smart academics caught up in a much larger (and evil) plot. There is also a whiff of John Grisham here with the myriad of characters and interconnected plot-lines; but Brumfield's novel isn't squeaky clean like Grisham's. A Tourist in the Yucatan has all the requisite elements of a good adventure; sex, intrigue, male-buddies-in-the-struggle-against-evil-doers, and archeological discoveries (with long walks in dark scary caves). Although the adventure takes too long to get going, once it does, it has a surreal old-school comic book style to it, making it a light summer read. I can almost see the KABOOM!s and POW!s in my head.

It was OK, a flash back to the old fashioned thrillers. Something always going on with a few twists and turns. I enjoyed the splash of history along with the story. A good beach read.

Nothing too serious here, but it is an entertaining fast read that kept me turning the pages. The basic story line has already been covered by others here, so I won't rehash the plot. I thought the author did a great job of taking the mystery of the ancient Mayans and developing a credible modern day thriller plot around it. I especially enjoyed the descriptions of the ancient ruin sites hidden in the jungle along with the historic colonial cities. The settings really add to the books mood. There are also a couple of great subplots that make for great reading. One negative is, that I thought there could have been more character development. My favorite character was the washed up, boozy state department hack, and I also think the Travis Horn Character would be great in a sequel. While I felt the story had a satisfying ending, not everything is tied up in a neat little bow at the end, and this may bother some - I FOUND IT REFRESHING! I also think this makes great threads for a future sequel! Overall if you like a good thriller adventure this might be the book for you!

I thought this was a well thought out, and intelligent mystery/thriller with a great setting. I maybe biased as I have traveled to Mexico many times over the years and the author knows what he is talking about--as far as the settings that is. It does have a high degree of violence, but not too gratuitous, and a little sex. It would be a good read to have while visiting the Yucatan. It also would make a great movie!

First time I have read one from this author - will definitely be looking for more of his books. Compelling characters and story line, fast paced and quick read. Even though this IS a novel, the reading felt like it was something that really happened, or could happen. I also enjoyed the info about all of the archeological details of this area.

I first read 'Yucatan' a few years ago, and was delighted to see it republished. It had me holding my breath even the second time around.

Jack and Jo Phillips are on vacation in Mexico, kicking back and visiting the sites of ancient ruins. They meet up with Stephen Potter, a man who seems quite familiar with the Mayan culture. The three travel to Chichen-Itza and run into Jack's old buddy, Gus Wise, an archeologist on a dig in Coba. Gus tells an intriguing tale of his dig, and explains why he can't meet them in Merida. Instead, Stephen Potter travels to Merida with Jack and Jo.

In Merida, Jack runs out for coffee and discovers that Stephen Potter is on the front pages of the newspapers as a wanted drug smuggler. Racing back to the hotel, he finds Stephen dead and his wife missing. Jack is taken to the police station and interrogated, but before he can be locked up there is an attempt on his life and a rescue by a stranger.

The stranger turns out to be Travis Horn, who says he wants to help Jack, but has mysteriously picked up Potter's red duffle bag. Jack knows he's in trouble, and knows that there is no one he can trust. Slipping through the fingers of both the law and Horn, he makes his way to Gus's dig site in Coba. It seems Gus is missing also, so Jack takes up with Hector Flores, the archeologist left in charge of the dig. Hector is the only one that Jack now trusts, and he is torn between attempting to flee Mexico and finding his still missing wife.

The action shifts from the tropics of Mexico to the political boardrooms of Washington DC's State Department and FBI offices. Here we meet Nelson Carlton, an alcoholic has-been waiting for retirement who has been assigned to investigate 'Operation Raven', a hush-hush project under the direction of Senator J.J. Hightower, an influential man about to be named a Vice Presidential nominee. Two men under Hightower have already mysteriously died, and a foiled attempt on Hightower's life has left the Senator in a highly public position.

Carlton is aware that he was chosen for this assignment as a scapegoat, and swears to discover the truth behind 'Operation Raven'. He senses a connection between the covert agents abandoned in the Yucatan and the assassinations in WA DC, but knows that he won't be taken seriously.

Jack's trials are far from over; he is still being hunted by the Mexican authorities and by the mysterious Travis Horn. Carlton's worries have just begun when the rat he uncovers begins to stink. The duel intrigue of a single battle being fought by very different men under very different circumstances lends itself to a story that moves so fast it is very difficult to put down.

'A Tourist In The Yucatan' is one of my favorite books. Brumfield writes of the Mayan culture and jungles with such descriptive precision that I could feel the humidity and smell the dirt and greenery. A subterranean scene left me as breathless as if I were exploring the dark passages myself.

There are unpredictable twists and turns, very humanized characters (some likeable and some not), a plot that never slows down, and a background of both green and concrete jungles. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Even the second time around, I was still holding my breath for the climax. Enjoy!

A must read for anyone traveling to the Yucatan or anywhere in Mexico for that matter. It will keep you on the edge of your seat for hours. Wonderful entertainment while suntanning on the beach...