MAYAN SECRETS - Ciar Cullen

Samhain Publishing  www.samhainpublising.com

ISBN: 1-59998-178-5

April 2008

Erotic Contemporary Romance

Yucatan, Mexico - Present Day

Professor Troya Twamley is eager to finish her lecture on Mayan culture so that she can begin her year long sabbatical in Greece. Having just gotten out of another bad relationship, Troya hopes the vacation will cleanse her spirit, and give her time to finish her manuscript. Her plans are drastically changed when the bad boy of the archeological world shows up at her lecture: Tyre Rasmussen. Though sexy as sin, his methods are unorthodox, and border on controversial, which is evident in the appalling question he asks about Mayan sex rituals. Troya ignores him, only to find him waiting for her when she arrives home. Tyre's got a proposition for her, and her intellectual mind is piqued enough to listen. Apparently Tyre's come across the lost journals of explorer Frederick Catherwood, which maps the entrance to Xibalba, the Underworld, and is in desperate need of Troya's expertise. Dare she say no?

Aware of his reputation, Tyre is not above using it to his advantage, especially when it comes to the uptight, but delectable Professor Twamley. Although she puts up a fight, bemoaning the need for rules and such, he can tell she's just as excited about the find as he is. Which is why Tyre's not surprised when she arrives to help out. And as the two of them put their heads together, Tyre's seriously wanting to put together much more. But his seduction will have to be put on hold as the terrors that Catherwood spoke about in his journals begin to appear on the site. Does that mean Tyre and Troya are close to Xibalba?

I was intrigued by the premise of MAYAN SECRETS because Frederick Catherwood was in fact a real person, and the author certainly did her research. That isn't to say there aren't a few bumps along the way, which mainly involved the cliched characteristics of Tyre and Troya. She's the stuffy professor whose wire rim glasses and severe bun hide her sensual beauty, and he's the gruff and dangerous man who can bring out her inner wild side. If you can get past those well-used traits, MAYAN SECRETS is actually an interesting book, full of history and adventure. There's plenty of secondary characters, and throughout the story are passages from Catherwood's journal, which adds to the suspense and allure of Xibalba.

Courtney Michelle