Mayan Shadows: The Crystals of Ahrum

The Maxwell Barnes Adventure Thriller Series, Book 1

By: Craig A. Hart, S.J. Varengo

Narrated by: Phil Thron

Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

Maxwell Barnes is an archeologist and the son of an archeologist. He and his companion, friend, and brother since youth, Axel Morales, have been treasure hunting for their benefactor Myron Crabtree, in the jungles of Guatemala.

This area, not coincidentally, is also rumored to be the location of the last great city of the Maya, the legendary Ahrum. When Max meets a man who appears to be a young Mayan skateboard punk, his entire world is turned upside down as he hears the true story of the city’s demise, and of the Crystal of Ahrum, lost then but supposedly capable of restoring the ancient Mayan empire.

Along the way, he also meets Isabel García, a Spanish beauty who is far more than meets the eye, and a man named Estrada—who could be the evilest person on the planet.

Adventure, romance, and more than a little excitement all await you in book one of The Crystal of Ahrum: Mayan Shadows!

©2022 Craig A. Hart (P)2022 Craig A. Hart

Action Packed & Fun Adventure!

Great action packed adventure!
Treasue hunters, Maxwell and friend Axel, have found themselves unwittingly in the middle of a Myan legend. Well written with vivid details, I really enjoyed this story. Maxwell's inner dialog with himself had me cracking up. Terrific job on the audio narration as well!! Looking forward to more!

Fun adventure with excellent narration

I received a free copy of this audio book, at my request, and am voluntarily leaving this unbiased review.

This was a fun story. It's relatively short, to the point and flows well. The story never feels like it bogs down and no parts of it feel like they are going on too long. It was a pleasure.

The plot is very Indiana Jones-ish. An archeologist who does the results thing, instead of the book thing, stumbles into a mystery. He gets himself into trouble and has to rely on the secondary characters to get him through. There is plenty of sarcasm and punchy dialog. There is a sense of chemistry between the characters and overall it is a pleasant listen.

The main character is on a physical journey, more so than an emotional one. So character growth isn't really strongly emphasized. However, the characters felt real enough to be believable, if a little outrageous at times.

The main character is well developed, with complex emotions and drives. The secondary characters have back stories, but are definitely not as well rounded.

The settings are mostly jungle or small village on the edge of the jungle. Even the brief Mayan Ruins are in low light and not well explored. There is little new or exciting about the settings themselves, however this does make for a tense backdrop, at times.

The plot is predictable. However, it's the "I bet this..." and "ha, I knew that" kind of predictable. Rather than the "uggg, it's so obvious that...." and "well that took forever to be what I knew". The book is fast paced and fun, so while the twists and turns are definitely not shocking, they don't slow the story down and allow for a good time. The feel is very much like an adventure movie, you know where it's going, the fun is how you get there.

The voice narration, by Phil Thron, is first class as always. He has a range of male and females voices and his accents are excellent. Where Phil truly shines is his comedic timing. When reading a funny or humorous story (like this), he is able to bring out the comedic elements and make them hit home, more than any other narrator I've listened to.

All in all, this was a great book. Predictable but fun, with some great characters and an interesting plot. It's fairly safe, in terms of twists and turns, but it is a fun ride. The narration is amazing and brings the characters to life, and I can't wait for the next one.

Fantastic adventure!💜

Fresh and unique is how I would describe this book. I love these characters so much. The camaraderie and banter between them is hilarious. Oh and don’t forget surfer dude “Bra”. A well written story that brings the past & the present together seamlessly, and even adding some time in between.
The narration was wonderful. The voice acting talents of Phil Tron are highlighted in this story, with the accents and emotions of each character. Sometimes I forget there’s only one narrator. I believe this is my first book by this narrator but I’m sure it won’t be the last. Well done everyone. 👏👏
This is book 1 in this series and I’m looking forward to the next book.
I highly recommend this book.

Sisters Spotlight 💜

Solid start to a new series.

Mayan Shadows is a fast paced and fun adventure in the tradition of Indiana Jones. Join archeologist Max Barnes and his buddy Axel as they treasure hunt in the jungles of Guatemala. As I said, Mayan Shadows has the excitement of an Indiana Jones movies (well, thankfully not Crystal Skull) with a healthy dose of humor. There is interesting lore, plenty of action, a snarky love interest or sorts, and like the Indy flicks also a touch of the supernatural. I was already a fan of Craig Hart from his excellent Serenity series, so I wasn't surprised by how much I enjoyed the story. Add in Phil Thron's always fantastic narration and you got a wonderfully entertaining way to pass 8 hours.

Phil Thron is amazing

I decided to listen to this book because I live the narrator. I hadn’t heard of the authors prior, so I had no expectations at all.

I have to say, I got so entangled in the book that I ignored my coworker a few times! This story truly has every emotion, and definitely made me laugh out loud once.

I can’t wait for book 2!

Adventure

I really liked the story, I'm a fan of stories of this type, so this one was right for me. The narrator did his part perfectly, I love his voice too.
Can't wait to get the next instalment of the series.

Interesting story, so-so execution

I found this one a bit hard to get through. Story was interesting and well paced. Narration was decent if a bit dry. Had a bit of trouble telling the characters apart during the story. Not just who was speaking but actually who was who. An interesting story that was worth the struggle. I can still recommend this story and I will likely be looking for the next in the series.

I received this free review copy audiobook and I am voluntarily leaving this unbiased review.

I just could not get into this one

I tried several times to become engaged in this story but could not. The story is not terrible, but never quite grabbed me.