As a thank-you from Merlin and Morgan, Jack and Annie are sent on what should be a vacation at a luxurious resort in Cozumel, Mexico, but is, by mistake, an adventure with ancient Mayans, instead.

With the end of the Mayan calendar fast approaching, fourteen-year-old Max Murphy and his friend Lola, the Maya girl who saved his life in the perilous jungle, race against time to outwit the twelve villainous Lords of Death, following the trail of the conquistadors into a forgotten land steeped in legend and superstition.

When a Mayan girl in ninth-century Guatemala suspects that the High Priest sacrifices anyone who stands in the way of his power, she proves herself a hero.

Ixchel, a young Mayan girl who is not allowed to use her mother's thread to weave, exercises her ingenuity and repurposes plastic bags to create colorful weavings. Includes glossary and author's note.

In a traditional New Year's Day celebration, a young Mayan boy leads a procession over the mountainous trail to the cathedral below, where he is rewarded by the village elders for his fortitude.