A right whale is beached on the Basque coastline on the eve of the G7 Summit held in Biarritz in August of 2019. An environmental journalist is knocked down by the whale’s final fin thrash while she is covering the news story. The event is politically suspicious because various clues point to a sabotage operation orchestrated by anti-system groups gathered in Hendaya to protest the summit. The whale’s cadaver becomes the awkward guest at political meeting, adding tension to an already fraught social situation marked by the crisis and the continuing protested by the Yellow Vests.
In parallel, in the Spain of King Philip II, a group of Basque whalers prepare for the great transatlantic expedition in search of whale oil, the essential fuel for the development of the civilized world. Men die at sea and women confront the human drama with their own weapons while the city of Bayonne is decorated for the celebration of the meeting between the two great European monarchies.
The very same ocean that served as the hatchery for budding empires, today is agonizing in full view of the Group of Seven. The gazes of Elizabeth of Valois, Catherine de Medici, and their courts blend into the gazes of Macron, Trump, and the other world leaders. Outside, the streets are filled with screaming protestors. The whales advance toward them, special guests to the powerful party. Five centuries separate the two great political meetings: the Biarritz G7 Summit focused on inequality and climate change, and the 1565 Bayonne meeting for peace between the peoples of the Spanish and French crowns.
Using elements from the ecothriller, historical fic3on, and poli3cal sa3re, the novel Oceanic blends different 3me periods and narra3ve voices, making nature a leading character.
