47North, March 21, 2017.
Two Stars
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.
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