Orbis

by Scott Mackay, Patrick Picciarelli, Aamna Qureshi

For a millennia they seduced us with their visions of hope, and a mythology that became our religion. Now, the Benefactors are about to be unmasked for what they really are-and mankind may not have a... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451458745
• ISBN13: 9780451458742
• Release Date: April 2002
• Publisher: Roc
• Length: 408 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 4.2" x 7.1"

Customer Reviews

Are you in Orbit?

You may be after reading Orbis by Scott MacKay. Other authors get much praise for their genre-hopping/blending and yet one that has I think been overlooked is MacKay. He started out know as a science fiction writer, and this book was classified as sci-fi, however Orbis is as much alternative history as anything. The Benefactors are "Angels" or "Guardians" in the author's America. Representations of the great theocratic government. But a Eucheistical(or something like that darn already forgot how to spell it. Minister anyhow) begins having doubts. A once loyal friend/follower of the Benefactors he is even more curious about the truth after being framed for owning contraband. In the Benefactor's St. Lucius Latin is prohibited due to its association with the Romans (a still thriving though exiled society in the book) and radios for the same reason. A cardinal is appointed to St.Lucius and soon recruits the minister for his quest to uncover and destroy the Benefactors before their plan dooms everyone. My apologies that was not as articulate a summation as I would have liked to provide but honestly you have to really read this novel to understand the plot. Also I encourage patience as the first half of the book seems to set the stage for the action that is to come. In fact throughout half the book I planned to give it a three star review as it was interesting in concept, but a little mediocre in execution, it took half the book for me to really realize what was going on. Not exactly a glowing recommendation, but I found the latter half as the plot thickened so to speak redeemed the story. This novel is not Excellent but it is really really good. It contains alternate history as I said, but also has an almost underlying element to myth and legend to it as well and in addition has ode to the western within its pages:P. Not to repudiate my fellow(ess) reviewers, but some make this tome out to be much more controversial than I found it. The portrayal of the Indian savages remarked upon by one is no worse than anything you would find in many a Western and tamer than some. Another person seemed to feel this book bordered on Heretical. I did not find it so, my interpretation was that MacKay wasn't denying God or even encouraging the reader to doubt. Rather his message seemed aimed against blind faith especially when that faith fell into an institution as opposed to a Deity. Enough answering other reviewers that is not what this review is about. its purpose is to merely state that I really enjoyed Orbis and in writing this review hope I point other potential readers to the books charms. Lestat

Not for the religious hearted

Wow!! Wow!! Wow!! This book is not for the religious they would consider this blasphemeous. As a son of a preacher if I'd read this book ten years ago I would of burned it. When I first started reading this book I wasn't sure what the heck was going on. I feel that this is a mind opening book. It had a great message. Faith should be based on spirtually and not on religious aspects of trying to be a perfect christian. Any way, this story starts out when a secret organization try to uncover the truth of the religious faith of christianity & catholicism. Realizing the Benefactors aren't what they seem to be, the characters notice loopholes in religion. A group of characters go on a forbidden quest to find thier salvation from the Benefactors. Little did they know that thier salvation had also became a threat. I don't like to give too much away, all I have to say this is a sensational book.

Fast Moving Fantasy, Great Imagination!

St. Louis, 1947. Only, in this alternate reality, it is called St. Lucius and there is no United States of America. The Romans had a high tech civilization 2000 years ago but were banished to outer space. The Holy Catholic Church (not Roman) is a vast and ruthless bureacracy (well, yeah) which runs most of the world on behalf of the Benefactors, who claim to be "the Heavenly Host" but are actually shape-changing aliens from a different part of the galaxy. Studying Latin is a capital crime and ten cents is a large sum of money. And there's more, much more. The author's imagination is fertile indeed. Still, at heart, this is a rip-roaring cosmic adventure story in which one beleaguered man (and a few faithful cohorts) must save the world. The characters are interesting and they grow during the course of the story. The action moves right along. The conflicts are gripping. And our guys still have that American can-do spirit and ingenuity.Sometimes the plot doesn't totally hang together, the science is pretty thin (it's really fantasy with gadgets more than science fiction) and the Latin grammar is a little weak at times (Well, hey, the Romans are still speaking Latin!). All in all, a great read, hard to put down.

Entertaining Weirdness

This is my first Scott Mackay book, and I didn't quite know what to expect. Orbis is a very entertaining alternate history, set on an Earth in which the Roman Empire attained space travel (in spite of never splitting the atom, or even understanding its basic nature) but was eventually banished from the planet by shapeshifting aliens. I don't want to give away too much of the plot, because the plot IS the book (characterizations, etc. are nothing special), and readers of these reviews will want to proceed into other reviews with caution, if it isn't already too late. But Mackay tosses in more and more weirdness, and manages to do so fairly plausibly. Very devout Christians may be offended by his portrayal of the Catholic Church and Christianity itself, but keep in mind it's only fiction. And in spite of having a book with two races of aliens, Romans from outer space, Missouri Catholics, and Kiowa Indians all together, the work isn't a farce. What exactly it is isn't quite certain--I did find myself wondering what was the relevance of it all several times. Perhaps the most significant theme is that "The enemy of my enemy is my friend" is a very dangerous slogan to live by; and this is certainly worth remembering in these trying times. But ultimately Orbis is mostly and simply an entertaining read.

creative engaging SF

At the height of Rome's power, the Benefactors landed on an alternate Earth and went to War with Julius Caesar's legions. Unable to defeat the Benefactors, the Romans stole their spaceships and flew to a place where they could live. After two millennia, the Romans forget where earth is located, but both the Romans and the humans remain determined to defeat the Benefactors. The Benefactors took the teachings of Christianity and used it to spread their own message. An underground resistance in North America is giving hope to the people who want to cast off the Benefactor's rule. In Europe, the Prussian Empire is openly at war with the Benefactors and is slowly clearing the land of them. There will come a time of reckoning when the Romans and its conquered people as well as the humans must meet, defy the Benefactors, and reach some kind of accommodation with each other. Scott Mackay can always be counted on to create a work that is original in design, yet absorbing and populated with a cast of characters that unite for a common goal. The ethics of the Benefactors is also fascinating because while their plans and battles are malfeasance, their morality is not. They do what they must to survive which is the natural order of a sentient species. If they were not on Earth, would humans be so quick to condemn them.Harriet Klausner