After Earth is decimated, the entire remaining human population is marooned on an unfamiliar beach. The enigmatic winged Orangemen leave the survivors with instructions to remake their society, basic tools and weapons, and a few thousand books, including Bibles in many languages. As two generations are born and raised, conflicting theories as to the nature of the apocalypse continue to simmer.
Fifty years later, the arrival of a new family that shouldn’t exist threatens the delicate peace holding humanity together. Two young soldiers, John Giordano and Kendra McQueen, venture into the unexplored wilderness beyond the city walls in search of answers. But their disquieting discoveries only raise more questions, forcing mankind to reconsider what it means to be human.
In this reflective, provocative postapocalyptic novel, John, Kendra, and the remnants of humanity must find the strength to love and the will to forgive—or they will all perish.
Christopher Mari is the author of TEN WORLDS AWAY, a short story collection, and THE BEACHHEAD, an Amazon Book of the Month selection. He is also the coauthor of OCEAN OF STORMS, a bestselling sci-fi thriller he wrote with Jeremy K. Brown.
He has edited biographies and history books for students, as well as three volumes on space exploration. His nonfiction has appeared in America, Boing Boing, Current Biography, Dappled Things, The Horn Book and the New York Daily News, among other publications.
For more about his work, visit him at christophermari.com.
I’ve always been a sucker for a good old-fashioned apocalypse. There are very few that are more old- fashioned than the Book of Revelation. Christopher Mari has gone with his own interpretation of the aftermath, as told by John. All right, I’m on board, let’s go!
Mari set his story fifty years after The Apocalypse; humanity has moved on, re-growing and re-building. He has created a unique world which firmly plants itself within the dystopian genre. I got something that I didn’t quite expect. I’m all for exploring the aftermath of Revelation, but put it out there. I want to see that, but let me know what it is that I am getting. I felt that the synopsis hid the true content of the story.
For whatever reason I just didn’t connect with Mari’s characters. They felt like two-dimensional cut-outs thrust into what should have been a captivating story. It goes to show how important your characters are; without a connection, I tend to drift off as a reader, without a connection to the characters, I am not tethered to the story.
In the end, The Beachhead was a great concept, however, it lacked the extra finer points that make a book great. Would I give Mari a second chance? With all of the great books out there, I’m not so sure. You only get one chance to make a first impression.
*I received a copy of the book from the publisher (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review.
A post-apocalyptic novel set after the earth has been completely destroyed. Orangemen that some of the remaining population consider as angels set new rules in order to preserve the human race. Then after fifty years, a new family arrives from nowhere that raise all the suspicions. Two young soldiers, John and Kendra are sent to search for answers.
I chose this book because I wanted to read a science fiction novel. This is a science fiction but the religion dosage in it I have to say is over the top. There are many references to the book of revelations here. And I feel the author is trying to represent his own interpretation of the same which is fine by me but as I said it felt for me way overdone than needed. If you are a fan of such kind of books this one might be ideal for you, but if you are thinking of a no-brainer science fiction story for pure entertainment then you should look somewhere else.
I will have to go with 3.0 stars out of 5.0. I won this book in a GoodReads giveaway and this is my honest unbiased opinion.
Fifty years after the residents of earth were decimated by a war between powerful winged creatures, the remains of humanity have been relocated to a walled community on the beach of an unfamiliar planet that resembles our own. One group of alien creatures attacked humanity, while another powerful group known as the Orangemen saved these “remnants” of the human race and brought them to the city of New Philadelphia. They were left there with some basic tools and whatever knowledge they had to rebuild civilization, and told to “be good.” They also received several thousand books – most of these were bibles and other Christian-themed texts.
Now, two generations later, most of New Philadelphia believes that the Orangemen are angels sent by God to protect them, while the other group that attacked humanity were Hell’s fallen angels. In contrast, others believe that the celestial battle was more secular, and that the now-captive humans are an experiment that the alien Orangemen are simply observing. Whatever their beliefs, the people on the beach generally get along – until a new family arrives for the first time in fifty years, calling into question everything they knew about the fall of humanity.
In response to these new arrivals, two young soldiers are sent out to the unexplored territory beyond the city walls to find answers – but their exploration only leads to more questions about the nature of humanity. John and Kendra find much more than they thought they would, including a possible explanation for the evolution of their planet. When they bring new information back to their formerly peaceful city, the community descends into chaos.
The Beachhead leans heavily on the bible’s Book of Revelation, although I thought it would eventually stand on its own – but it did not. I was uncomfortable with the implication that questioning the bible can only lead to chaos and war. From the start, I kept thinking that the religious undertones would be subverted by a more exciting and scientific plot, but it never happened. The author seems to be reinforcing his characters’ unquestioning beliefs, and the entire plot became completely predictable. I found the first half entertaining, but the ending and its conclusions about humanity were disappointing.
I received this book from 47North and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Beachhead is a unique and strange look at what happens after the fall of humans. 50 years ago, the entire human population is left on an unfamiliar beach by winged Orangemen who give basic tools, some books and weapons and a biannual visit. Many of those books are bibles. The people created a walled city, New Philadelphia, and a peaceful life. But people are beginning to question the stories of how they got there and why when a new family suddenly arrives.
Beachhead is a well written and thoughtful story. I really enjoyed the world he created and found myself invested in the outcomes for the main characters.
Full disclosure- I received a copy of the book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Faith a hard word to realize for some. Faith in humanity in these times is hard-pressed to come by. This book helped me greatly to reembrace the faith I lost. I found hope in the words. It is the first time I have seen religion given a sci-fi spin, but the message is clear. It is the message that matters.
Extremely weird Christian book with heavy focus on pseudo-deep interpretation of Revelations which is badly disguised as "SciFi / Fantasy". Held out for the ending hoping for some actual plot, but nope.
Definitely not what it was marketed it as. Unless Christian fiction is your vibe, don't bother.
The Beachhead, a novel set during the apocalypse, is an ambitious work by Christopher Mari portraying the human search for truth and faith—in both a divinity and in one’s self—and how they propel people into action. Protagonists Kendra McQueen and John Giordano bravely venture beyond the protective confines of the walled city of New Philadelphia to investigate the true identities of a family that suddenly appears in their midst some 50 years after the only surviving “remnants” of the human race were supposed to have been deposited on the beach of an earth-like planet by seemingly benevolent beings. Are those beings angels or aliens? Kendra and John search for the truth despite their fears that everything they have grown to believe may turn out to be false. Our heroes are highly flawed yet likable and recognizable, thanks in part to realistic dialogue and language that feels natural and unforced. They embark on their quest with an intelligence, courage, and resourcefulness that make them easy to root for. This imaginative work of elegant, lyrical prose is an excellent debut solo effort by Mr. Mari.
The plot was intriguing, the characters were fully-formed and believable, and the pace was page-turning. There were so many mysteries the different characters were either desperate to unravel or afraid to figure out. All aspects of human nature were on full display too, with no one painted as a clear "bad guy" or "good guy." And the ending ... satisfying yet unexpected. A suspenseful, thought-provoking read that will stay with you and leave you thinking about your own life; the choices you make, and how you choose to live.
I enjoyed this book and the world of mystery it created. Without giving spoilers, there were echoes for me of Planet of the Apes and Lost (as the characters struggled to make sense of their world and their predicament) and I felt that the author created a real sense of suspense as he explored the Orangemen and their origin. I agree that this book explores aspects of Christianity but I found it to be an interesting examination of the morals and ethics that hold a society together. I am looking forward to more titles from this author.
I'm surprised by the reviews calling this Christian fiction since Christ himself is never mentioned. This is more like a non-Christian's take on what they think a Christian apocalypse would be but without any real understanding of what a Christian really believes. I just don't know how else to describe this book. I was disappointed.
Think of the refugee crisis that's going on right now, imagine the human race, what's left of us taking refuge in another world. How will humanity survive, what are the values that will keep us all together and help create a new civilization...This book will grab your imagination
Well this is certainly not a premise I've ever encountered before.
Basically, the world has been destroyed, leaving only a handful of survivors who are convinced that they're living through the events of the Book of Revelation. After several generations have passed, however, new evidence comes to light that throws doubt on this interpretation of events, and the community starts to schism as faith and the will to do better than their ancestors clashes with fear of the unknown and the violence that often follows.
Now just to be clear, I am not the intended audience for this story. (Or maybe I am; who knows, when it comes to stories with religious overtones?) Mostly by coincidence I've ended up reading a lot of Christian literature lately; while some of it managed to get the message across without obnoxious moralizing, some of it's left a really bad taste in my mouth. This... I'll admit I wasn't entirely sure what to think of this, but it did at least make me think, and that's always to a book's credit as far as I'm concerned.
I spent a lot of time trying to figure out if this story was anti-intellectual. It is true that the people doing the most questioning were generally the most miserable, and the ones most likely to be sowing doubt and dischord among the general populace. On the other hand, the point was made near the end that maybe people just keep asking the wrong questions, and that "How did we get here?" or "Why did this happen?" or "Where are we really?" or "What do all of these weird coincidences mean?" simply do not matter in comparison to "What are we going to do with the second chance we've been given?"
If this is a Christian story, it seems to be Christian in the sense of emphasizing the value of love rather than fire and brimstone, and of self-improvement and forgiveness rather than judgement. When the community as a whole disapproves of a couple having premarital sex, one of the older members reminds herself and others that the Bible also has a thing or two to say on the topic of casting stones. In the end, the protagonists are doing their best to resolve the conflict without escalating the violence or reopening old wounds, and yeah, I can see the value in that.
3.5 out of 5 stars. Great premise, lots of thoughtful material, not too philosophical, mostly compelling characters... but it spun out of control at points, and sped toward an ending more heartfelt than sensical. The story didn't abandon its pretenses, thankfully, and much of the foreshadowing and exposition was brought to bear with varying success. However, I'm still left scratching my head over the whole point of what happened, even if I enjoyed most of the twists and turns employed to mesh biblical apocalypse with an old-fashioned SF adventure. Perhaps it just needed a bit MORE explanation in the end, which ironically would have only heightened the mystery the author clearly wanted to instill. It just needed more... development? motivation? something. However, the book's shortcomings were mercifully brief, and the obvious heavy-handed moral was presented with surprising deft and nuance, keeping this book squarely in the SF realm. Definitely worth the read if the summary intrigues you--and especially if you don't mind religious angst occasionally standing in for philosophical contemplation.
The author attempted to explore religion vs. science but just ended up falling back on the old assumption that if science can't prove something the supernatural explanation is correct. More irritating than this was the unbelievable premises he establishes in the earlier parts of the book to contrast with the later parts. A city of 144,000 people with free access to alcohol and guns has not had a murder in 50 years and a single suicide. The author also includes teleportation portals as a plot device but makes the mistake of tying them into the final confrontation in a way that doesn't make sense. Either hundreds of the portals were around one part of the city and were never noticed in 50 years. Or the attackers march from their camp, sneak into the area outside the city ealls to leave the portals, then march back to their camp, and then teleport to attack. Basically I found myself calling "bullshit" for the majority of the book. Aside from good grammar it doesn't have much to recommend it, except John and Kendra are likeable characters.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
While one could read Christopher Mari’s The Beachhead as post-apocalyptic science fiction, I’d argue it’s more a tale of moral philosophy.
After a decimating attack that left Earth's cities in flames and its seas turning red, 144,000 remnants of the human race find themselves brought to an untouched beach by the aloof and enigmatic Orangemen. The Orangemen charge the survivors to rebuild human civilization with only rudimentary tools and knowledge gleaned from a relatively limited number of preserved texts. These Remnants of humanity believe they are the 144,000 chosen people written about in the Book of Revelation. When the appearance of some new survivors shakes the foundational beliefs of the Remnants, two young soldiers set out on a quest for the truth, which they may or may not be able to handle once they find it.
If you want a popcorn read with explosions and spaceships, look elsewhere. The Beachhead is a more complex endeavor with conflicts both internal and external. It has a unique story that questions the mature themes of faith, death, life, and free will through a lens tinted by prophecy and religion.
While parts of the book were a bit repetitive and moved slowly, overall this was a good read. Please note: I am Jewish, not Christian.. which means I follow Old Testament, not new. Yes, there were many references to the book of revelations...yes I know what that is, but I've never read it. No, I don't go for religious reads... but this story could be understood and enjoyed, nonetheless. If you substitute 'predictions from the time before the event' for 'book of revelations', you would end up with a similar novel.. there would be only a few changes to make. This was an interesting combination of end-of-the-world, with aliens, with crafting a new society after everything collapses.
First I must say that I'm not a religious person at all but can enjoy a story based within a religious theme especially if it has a Science Fiction twist to it. With that being said I was at first taken back by the religious tone but then pleasantly surprised by the vague direction it took from them on. The story itself kept me pretty much at the edge of my seat wanted so badly to see it's conclusion yet unfortunately there really wasn't any, at least any clear one. The ending is simply terrible and makes no sense what so ever. Was the Revelations true who knows? Was it earth, who knows? Must say it was still worth the read yet very disappointing at it's end.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
If you're writing a post-apocalyptic novel, great; market it as such. If you're writing a Post Apocalyptic novel, also good, there are plenty of readers interested in that. But a word of advice: if you're writing a Post Apocalyptic novel, don't market it as a post-apocalyptic novel. That's two completely different camps of readers. I'm sure there are readers who are going to be into this. I'm not one of them, and now I'm mad that the author tried to swindle me. Boo.
This was a really interesting and creative concept for a book, set 50 years after the events in Revelations come true. Overall I enjoyed it, and I appreciated the new perspective of looking at a population who have to come to question their faith. But I ended up confused a lot of the time and had a hard time following who had doubts about their faith and who didn't.
Don’t be fooled. This book is a sci-fi Christian book. Somehow over 100,000 people land on a planet and 50 years later they all believe firmly in the Bible. Hmm... maybe from my years in Catholic school reading the Bible myself, the long-winded conversations about free will and faith really bored the hell out of me. Pardon the pun.
If you like Kirk Cameron post-Growing Pains, then you will like this book!
So I enjoyed this book. The orange men were interesting. The little nuggets of information and each characters opinions/thoughts/feelings and internal battles were realistic. I would definitely recommend this book to discuss. I could’ve used more but I feel enough was given to keep things inline with how the entire book was written. It leaves you with questions or allows you to reach conclusions.
... but give it a read! It went places totally unexpected, made me wonder about "meaning", made me question what I thought I knew. I Drempt about it, wondered what I would do in such a situation. Scifi? Religions? Not sure. But point made, that mankind only ever "knows" a thing a little, never completely. Give it a chance all the way to the end.
I'm actually mad about how awful this book was when the premise sounded so awesome and I was looking forward to reading it. Annoying. Overwhelmingly so. That's my description of this book. And when it wasn't annoying, it was just plain boring.
What the shizbat? Convoluted misinterpretations of Revelation and science influence some post-apocalyptic shenanigans. Author isn’t too sure on what he’s trying to say so offers multiple interpretations to the reader.
Excellent book I now have enjoyed the story well told
This story bringing a lot of world history and religion together. Much love in many ways told wonderfully. It is very believable. 😁 Love brings us all together.
I just didn’t like this book enough to rate it higher than 2 stars. I thought the characters were interesting and liked the premise but was very disappointed in the ending.