2012 The Crystal Skull

Perhaps this would have been more interesting if I had read it before 21 December 2012, when, according to the author and several other people, the world was supposed to end. It's set in two different periods, the 16th century and the 21st century. In the earlier period the possessor of a crystal skull hides it in a cave, and in the later one someone discovers it in the cave, and has the task of taking it to its proper place in preparation for 21 December 2012, when it will combine forces with 12 similar skulls in different parts of the world to create a magical dragon or worm, the Ouroboros, which will either save or destroy the world.

The theme of legendary artefacts playing a part in a current adventure is quite common, and this particular one, of the crystal skulls, also featured in one of the Indiana Jones films. The notion that crystal skulls were ancient Mayan artefacts has been refuted, but that should not get in the way of a good story. As a McGuffin a crystal skull is as good as any. but the problem with this book does not lie in the choice of McGuffin, but rather in the characters and plot.

The 21st-century characters are followed to the cave where the skull lies hidden by someone sinister whose who attacks them, but whose identity and motives are only revealed at the end. But the behaviour is unexplained and the motives ring hollow. Much is made of the injuries and medical treatment of the victims of the mysterious attacker, but the role of this villain seems to be tacked on as an afterthought. In an Indiana Jones-type scenario, there must be villains, so the villains pop up at intervals, but just when they have done their worst the scene jumps to the other century, and by the time one gets back to the aftermath of the attack, the details have been forgotten. What was it that happened that this character ended up in hospital? Oh, a fire? Or was it a fall in a cave?

The 16th-century characters are even more confusing. They fear being arrested and charged with "heresy", but just what that heresy might have been is not clear. They are given hospitality by a Jesuit missionary who is portrayed as both welcoming and a threat, and this ambiguity is never resolved. They are pursued by Francis Walsingham, Queen Elizabeth I's spymaster, for clear reasons that are irrelevant to the plot, and the relevant reasons are unclear.

So one is left with the impression that the crystal skull is the protagonist, and the human characters are mere props. But at least that fits with the title of the book.