The End of the Ocean
by Maja Lunde
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Pub Date Nov 01 2019 | Archive Date Jul 31 2019
Simon & Schuster (Australia) | Scribner UK
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Description
In 2019, seventy-year-old Signe sets out on a hazardous voyage to cross an entire ocean in only a sailboat. She is haunted by the loss of the love of her life, and is driven by a singular and all-consuming mission to make it back to him.
In 2041, David flees with his young daughter, Lou, from a war-torn Southern Europe plagued by drought. They have been separated from their rest of their family and are on a desperate search to reunite with them once again, when they find Signe’s abandoned sailboat in a parched French garden, miles away from the nearest shore.
As David and Lou discover personal effects from Signe’s travels, their journey of survival and hope weaves together with Signe’s, forming a heartbreaking, inspiring story about the power of nature and the human spirit in this second novel from the author of the “spectacular and deeply moving” (New York Times bestselling author Lisa See) The History of Bees.
Praise for The History of Bees:
‘Fans of Cloud Atlas and Never Let Me Go will love The History of Bees’ Good Housekeeping
‘Dystopian and electric, this book is set to blow minds everywhere' Stylist
'Haunting and poignant ... an important and wonderful book' Dave Goulson, bestselling author of Bee Quest
‘Spectacular and deeply moving. Lunde has elegantly woven together a tale of science and science fiction, dystopia and hope, and the trials of the individual and the strengths of family’ Lisa See, New York Times bestselling author
‘Such is the genius of debut novelist Maja Lunde that her tale of three eras—the long past, the tenuous present and the biologically damned future—is strung on the fragile hope of the survival of bees’ Jacquelyn Mitchard, New York Times bestselling author
‘As a lover of honeybees and a fan of speculative fiction, I was doubly smitten by The History of Bees. Maja Lunde’s novel is an urgent reminder of how much our survival depends on those remarkable insects. It is also a gripping account of how—despite the cruelest losses—humanity may abide and individual families can heal’ Jean Hegland, author of Into the Forest
‘By turns devastating and hopeful, The History of Beesresonates powerfully with our most pressing environmental concerns. Following three separate but interconnected timelines, Lunde shows us the past, the present, and a terrifying future in a riveting story as complex as a honeycomb’ Bryn Greenwood, New York Times bestselling author
‘Here is a story that is sweeping in scope but intimate in detail’ Laura McBride, author of We Are Called to Rise
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781471175527 |
| PRICE | £12.99 (GBP) |
Links
Featured Reviews
Helen H, Reviewer
I was intrigued to read this book as the underlying message is just so relevant and important in today’s world. I was hoping that it would force me and other readers to spend serious thought on the ramifications of our present actions for the future of the planet. Water - something we take for granted, yet still from where I sit in Australia, droughts are all to frequent, in fact, neverending in some parts of the country. What does the future hold?
‘My whole world was water. The ground, the mountains, the pastures were just teeny tiny islands in that which actually was the world and I called my world Earth, but thought that is should actually be named Water.’
So whilst there is a good premise to base a story around, I sadly found the plot was not as strong as the theme. The link between the two timelines is fragile and only loosely drawn towards the end of the book - stronger threads were needed. Likewise actions of the characters from both timelines were questionable and at times, frustrating.
‘They don’t want to hear, don’t want to see, they are like him, all of them, his entire generation, my generation, they just want better wines, larger vacation cottages, faster Internet connections.’
This book held a great deal of potential but sadly fell a little flat for me. More needed to be made of this strong and important topic - the future of the planet. I wanted to learn more about the fires and displacement camps, for example. Similarly, no ultimate solution is offered and the reader is left wondering if indeed there is anything we can do to prevent the seemingly inevitable. Still, a worthwhile read if only to draw attention to our current global situation and the collective movement concerning climate change.
‘I have been fighting for my entire life, but I have been mostly alone; there are so few of us, it was futile, everything we talked about, everything we said would happen has happened, the heat has already arrived, nobody listened.’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
Leah R, Reviewer
A story for today’s times - one that tackles climate change and the effects and toll this is taking on the planet. This narrative focuses on a 70 year old lady whom returns to her hometown in Norway with her sailboat blue to avenge the glacier, the waterfall and the fjord where she grew up. Thanks so much to the publisher and netgalley for the arc.
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