Wave

It’s a beautiful spring morning on Long Beach Island, one of New Jersey’s most famous and beloved summer destinations. Thousands are beginning their day oblivious to the horror that is about to rise from the sea.

High overhead, aboard a 747 bound for Washington DC, a terrorist’s plot has gone awry. The plane nosedives into the Atlantic, and a smuggled nuclear device detonates, creating a massive undersea landslide. Within minutes, a tsunami of unprecedented force is born, and the waves begin moving toward the Jersey Shore. By the time they make landfall, the largest will reach a height of nearly thirty feet and pack enough power to erase everything in its path. With only one bridge to the mainland and less than three hours to evacuate, what are the odds that all the people of LBI will survive this day?”

Wave was released in May of 2005 and became an instant summer hit—so much so that its publisher, Plexus, had to order a second printing within 90 days. Articles praising the book’s fast pace, well-drawn characters, and accurate scientific detail appeared in numerous newspapers and magazines. Wil made countless appearances at bookstores, libraries, and discussion groups, including an interview with the incomparable Joan Hamburg, on WOR 710 AM, in late August.

Reviews
“Wil Mara’s new book, Wave (Plexus Publishing), delivers its punch with such force that the tension will be palpable as you quickly turn each page of this thriller. This is a fast-paced, nail-biting treat for the reader, especially those of you who are familiar with the New Jersey vacation spot [where the story is set]. Mara uses real locales as backdrops for his action and sustains the suspense by following specific colorful characters who live in this summer haven. The panic generated by a total evacuation of the island highlights the inadequacies of our alleged “preparedness” for catastrophes of this sort. Wave is an exciting but frightening glimpse of an all-too-plausible scenario. Read it at your own risk.”

—Mara Zukowski, Home News Tribune

”Wave has emerged as a summer hit among the throngs of Jersey shore residents and beach-goers. As buzz continues to grow about this new thriller set on Long Beach Island (L.B.I.), New Jersey, the book is steadily climbing Amazon.com’s sales rankings. L.B.I. vacationers and inhabitants in particular are so enthralled with Wave that local booksellers have had difficulty keeping the book in stock. The surprisingly strong demand from booksellers required Plexus to go back on press months earlier than is typical for the small regional publisher.”

—Bloomberg Newswire

”Wave is a thriller that really is too compelling to put down before you finish reading it. The moral conflicts, unlikely heroics, and emergency responses of everyday people are played out against a tsunami disaster that is all too likely. It opens your eyes to disturbing possibilities. Best of all, besides the fact that it is extraordinarily well written, is that the science is believable. That counts a lot for this geology major!”

—Karenne Snow, Barnes and Noble

Winner of the 2005 New Jersey Notable Book Award
Wave was selected as one of twenty “New Jersey Notable Books” (and one of only two novels) by the New Jersey Center for the Book. To qualify, each nominated book had to be published between 1995 and 2005 and had to bear a New Jersey theme, flavoring, subject matter, and so on.

From Wil’s acceptance speech at the Governor’s Mansion, April 2006: “I am stunned by the receipt of this tremendous honor. As I have said many times, New Jersey is a fertile place for the imagination—there are hundreds of novels just waiting to be written here. I am so grateful to the people of the Center for their kindness and consideration in choosing Wave as one of twenty titles to represent the Garden State’s literary heritage. As a lifetime Jersey resident, I am very proud of, and equally humbled by, this venerable tribute.”

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