The Mayan Glyph by Larry Baxter ... Atlantic Coast Media

THE
MAYAN GLYPH

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"Archaeologists opening a king’s grave in the Yucatan unwittingly resurrect a deadly virus, which has been dormant for 1200 years. The archaeology team, the occupants of the plane on which they returned to Austin, Texas, and then Austin itself: the numbers of the dead are growing fast. This could easily be the end of the human race.

The story’s focus settles quickly on the problem-solvers. Gary Spender, at first trying only to protect his own family from the increasing outbreaks, is just as dedicated when his assigned "family" becomes the whole quarantined population of Texas. Edward Teppin, compensating for his severe crippling with his quick understanding of the latest high tech equipment, coordinates the search for a cure from Boston University. Teppin recruits his departmental Renaissance man, Robert Asher, whose many restless ideas keep him from staying with one project for long. Dr. Asher invented the microscope which gives the most useful picture of the virus to date. To everyone’s amazement, the newly revealed image of the virus matches a Mayan picture with Mayan writing glyphs next to it, offering hope that the Maya knew a cure.

While the virus spreads unchecked through Texas, Asher and Theresa Welles, expert in the Mayan language, jet to the Yucatan, home of the Maya. There they find themselves blocked by a drug lord who sees the Yucatan virus as a business opportunity. How can they unravel the puzzle when they are busy exchanging bullets with Ernesto?

THE MAYAN GLYPH works on two levels. It is a lively, exciting adventure story with a nice romance between Robert and Theresa; and it is a knowledgeable, inventive scientific puzzler. It is arranged so readers can skip over the technical details if they like without hurting the story, or they can enjoy the reasoning and mental leaps that lead to a solution. When I visited the author’s website I was not at all surprised to learn that he is an inventor. Also, the planning that goes into the handling of the outbreak seems completely authentic, as if the author used ideas he got from participating in a think tank on the subject.

THE MAYAN GLYPH compares favorably with another disaster novel I read recently. That one was by a civil engineer, written like a planning paper, and makes the colorful humanity of THE MAYAN GLYPH look even better from the comparison. Author Larry Baxter’s multiple talents clearly extend beyond the realm of science. I found it a pleasure to watch Robert Asher, the author’s alter ego, in action. His outside-the-box thinking and unexpected approaches to problems kept me agreeably surprised.

I started THE MAYAN GLYPH with a set conviction: I hate thrillers about epidemics. A tongue-in-cheek comment on the first page made me realize I had better think again. There isn’t a lot of room for humor in a book on this subject, but when there is, Baxter uses it. To my great relief THE MAYAN GLYPH does not revel in panic and anguish, it does not focus on the degradation of humanity expecting the end of days, and it is not out to terrorize readers for the fun of it. That kind of writing is for people who have not experienced real disaster. When the chips are down, individuals pull together to beat the threat, and recognizing this is what gives THE MAYAN GLYPH its quality."
Joy Calderwood
http://www.reviewers-choice.com/the_mayan_glyph.htm

Reviewer: Anne K. Edwards
An excellent read! Get your bug repellent and hiking boot s ready for a trek through the jungle as you join Drs. Robert Asher and Teresa Welles in a search for a lost cure for a ancient killer that makes a reappearance. Modern technology keeps them in communication with the outside world, but it cannot protect them from unexpected dangers they encounter once they reach their destination, a lost city of the Mayan civilization.

Author Larry Baxter has used his considerable writing talent and vivid imagination to give us an enthralling tale that kept me reading late into the night. The pace never slackens, the characters are varied and believable and the underlying sense of urgency pushes the story along.This tale gives us a new look at the old mystery of why the Mayans abandoned their cities while Robert and Teresa seek answers in the writings they left behind.

The author makes history come alive and his theory is believable in the face of the building panic as the disease widens its circle around Austin, Texas. Highly recommended by this reader.
http://www.murderandmayhembookclub.com/mayan.html

"What would happen if an ancient virus were accidentally released in today's society? It would wipe out life as we know it, changing the world. This book tells the story of "What if?"

A group of archeology students from the University of Texas are in Uxmal, Mexico, about to make the biggest find of the century. What they don't realize is that it will be the end of them as well. In the opening of the tomb of an ancient Maya king, they realize a deadly virus, the very one which killed the Maya culture over a millennia ago. The virus quickly wipes out the entire excavation party, and starts to spread; affecting everyone they came in contact with.

What the team unwittingly released is the deadliest disease to ever affect mankind. Now a team of experts comes in to try to find the cure for the virus, before it wipes out the entire state of Texas, and eventually the world. While one group is in Texas, trying to attack the disease at the place of its outbreak, another group is in Mexico. For they had found a Mayan glyph, which identifies what is presently called the "Austin virus." Therefore, if they identified the cause, maybe they found a cure as well.

This book is full of adventure, mystery, suspense, and even a little bit of romance mixed in. An eclectic cast of characters takes part in finding the cure. There is Dr. Gary Spender, is running the operation from Texas, where he is trying to get a handle on the outbreak. Then there are Dr. Robert Ashley and Dr. Teresa Welles, who are racing through Mexico, trying to find the Maya record of the "Black Tongue" disease, and hopefully their cure as well. But those are not the only players in the drama. One will also find drug smuggling, tax fraud, and dirty cops.

This is a story that packs a full punch, dragging the reader in, capturing them in the intricate plot. This reviewer started the book with doubts as to whether or not she'd enjoy this book. Surprisingly enough, 10 pages into it, one becomes engrossed, finding every spare minute available to see what will happen next. Mr. Baxter does a remarkable job of portraying the tension and the emotional roller coasters the characters are riding. One will gasp with dismay, scream at the irony of the characters finding what they have long searched, only to possibly lose it all if the cure is not found.

This is one book definitely worth the time to indulge in it. This reviewer was engrossed and impressed with the talent imbued in this book. One will be eagerly anticipating his next novel."
Reviewed by KELLEY
loveromances.com
November 2003

Excerpt

Chapter 8
Atlanta, Georgia, October 23, present day
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

The “War Room” at Atlanta’s Centers for Disease Control measured forty by seventy feet. Along one of the long walls were arrayed four large flat display screens. With a deep red carpet, a high ceiling, indirect lighting, and liberal use of dark wood paneling, the room had more the ambience of a plush hotel lobby than the venue for a hastily-assembled meeting of industry, academic, and government experts. The long walnut conference table stretched nearly the length of the room, and in a corner two technicians wearing headsets sat before computer screens.

The room buzzed with the conversations of the nearly one hundred invited experts, clad in a variety of dress ranging from dark blue pinstripe business suits to T-shirts. One woman wore green hospital scrubs as if she'd been interrupted in the middle of a surgical procedure. Each invitee wore a hand-lettered identification tag.

A thin man dressed informally in slacks and a wool sweater hurried in late, brushing his gray hair off his face and showing a three-day growth of beard below deep-set dark eyes. He fastened an identification tag to his sweater: “Dr. Gary Spender, Conover Mercy Hospital, Austin, TX, USA.” Then he found a chair, sat down, closed his eyes, and rested his head in his hands.

Spender felt like some kind of V.I.P.; CDC had arranged a military jet to fly him to Atlanta for the conference. But he hadn’t had time to fully complete quarantine before takeoff, so he made the flight in a very uncomfortable hazmat Racal suit and tested himself for the virus on arrival. Still negative; thank God for small favors.

Just outside in the corridor, several security guards were struggling to close the doors on a dozen camera operators, reporters, and sound technicians carrying video cameras and battery-powered lights.

The leftmost screen displayed an image of Edward Teppin with a superimposed graphic that announced, “Dr. Teppin, Boston, MA.” Spender saw the name with satisfaction. Edward Teppin was the one person who could maintain his perspective in a crisis. How was that new microscope coming along, he wondered. Probably should call Teppin right after he got airborne for the return trip.

The next screen showed a video feed from the familiar oval office and a graphic, “President of the United States,” but the long desk was manned by the Chief of Staff. The other screens displayed a man sitting at an ornate desk, labeled “Giscard Corot, WHO,” and a matronly woman labeled “Phyllis Eisenberg, NIH.”

A big heavy-set black man wearing a rumpled white shirt and a loose tie strode energetically to one end of the table, adjusted his tie fractionally, picked up a cordless microphone and tapped it to quiet the room. “Take your seats, please. Forgive me if we neglect the usual formalities, but we are in a war. If there’s anyone here that doesn’t know me, I’m Robbins, CDC director. We are pleased to have, from B.U., Dr. Edward Teppin. The World Health Organization, and the National Institutes of Health are also linked by video. The President is being represented by his chief of staff.

“We also have representatives from USAMRIID, the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases; our own Special Pathogens Branch; CBIAC, the Chemical and Biological Defense Information Analysis Center from the President’s Executive Office; PHS/OEP; the World Health Organization; the Office of Emergency Preparedness from Health and Human Services; INCLEN, the International Clinical Epidemiology Network; and a few others I can’t translate. And we have new rules. I know the normal Washington procedure is to cover your assets and compartmentalize your knowledge. That won’t work. Before we leave here today, we must have formal but open lines of command and communication, unconditional cooperation, and clear lines of responsibility.

“Some of you are concerned that we have been attacked by biological terrorists. We have new evidence that suggests that terrorism is not the source, but the capabilities of organizations like USAMRIID that are designed to combat biological terrorism will also help us combat a natural virus outbreak. So we will work together.

“We’ll begin by taking you through what we know about the Austin virus and then enlist your help in planning, management, and resource allocation. Interrupt with pertinent questions only, please. We have Dr. Gary Spender here today. Gary was at the epicenter of the event, and he has been leading the field teams in Austin. Dr. Spender?”

A screen lit up with the message “Differential Diagnosis,” and Dr. Spender stood to lecture the group. “We haven’t found anything that can stop the virus, but we do have a few things that slow it down. Accurate diagnosis does not seem to be a critical element, but we do have a staining procedure that works well. Patients with the prodrome symptoms may be assumed to have the Austin virus and must be quickly isolated. Patients merely exposed to known carriers should also be isolated.

“Early symptoms are difficulty breathing and occasionally a violent coughing attack. Black tongue can be seen within forty-eight hours to confirm the diagnosis. Chest radiographs show bilateral interstitial infiltrates consistent with frank pulmonary edema.” His words were punctuated with bulleted text appearing on the screen.

A second screen lit up with the title, “Pathology.” Spender continued, “The pathology is distinctive. Dense, rubbery lungs, tongue shows vascular changes with pronounced swelling, generalized capillary dilation and edema.” The screen showed pictures of the autopsied organs. “Any questions?”

The woman dressed in green scrubs stood, “Dr. Spender, do you have any clues about the antecedents of the pathogen? It sounds similar to the symptoms of mustard gas.”

“We’ll have more on that later. We have been talking to experts on biological warfare substances. The black tongue is, of course, unknown as a viral disease symptom.”
“Treatment” scrolled across the screen.

“Not so much treatment as containment,” said Spender. “We have no successful treatment at this time, we have a fatality rate of over ninety-nine percent. Only one survivor, a fourteen-year old Native American girl of Maya ancestry. We’re checking on this, there could be some genetic immunity here. We estimate a minimum of a year to develop any kind of treatment with full resources deployed, but this is, of course, wildly conjectural.

“The field teams in Austin are using strict isolation techniques in depressurized rooms, full face mask respirators, enteric precautions, and body fluid and blood precautions.
“What treatment we have can prolong life by several days. We have tried mechanical ventilation, radical tracheotomy, oxygen, heat, cold, and naturally the full spectrum of drugs. That concludes my report, unless there are further questions.”

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