The Alarmist by Don Hoesel

I received The Alarmist from Bethany House for free for my honest review of this book.

About the Author
Don Hoesel, bestselling author of Hunter's Moon and Elisha's Bones, lives in Spring Hill, Tennessee, with his wife and two children. He has also published short fiction in Relief: A Quarterly Christian Expression. Don holds a bachelor's degree in mass communication from Taylor University. When not writing novels, he spends his days working in the communications department of a large company.

Product Description
The 2012 phenomenon that's going viral around the globe has led sociology professor Jameson Richards to study the impact on society when, like the Y2K scare, 12/21/12 comes and goes with hardly a wrinkle. This is the date that, according to the Mayan calendar, the doomsayers predict the world will end. Richards teams up with General Michaels, a scientist stationed at the Pentagon whose job it is to monitor the world's fanatics, keeping an eye out for potential terrorists. Together they uncover something sinister going on beneath the surface, linked to billionaire and media mogul Jeremy Maxwell, who also happens to be a huge manufacturer of weapons systems. The 2012 date has captured Maxwell's attention too, and he's looking to cash in on the public's fear and paranoia. And what he instigates--along with his corrupt partners--nearly starts another war in the Middle East, while also bringing the world to its knees economically. It's up to the professor/general team to blow the whistle on Maxwell, hopefully in time to avert a major catastrophe

This is the first novel by Don Hoesel I have read and I am very glad I did. The Alarmist is based on the theory of the end of the world coming in conjunction with the end of the Mayan Calendar in December 2012. For me the beginning was a little slow but once the story picked up it kept me engaged to the end. This book has suspense, fear and faith all rolled into. The characters were real and the storyline was also. A lot of research must have gone into this, details are vivid and realistic. I am very glad that I read this book. I look forward to reading more Don Hoesel novels in the future.