Jan is the most famous eco-warrior in the world--not only is she beautful and smart and daring, she also happens to be the First Lady of the United States. Her husband, Casten Everett, is the first independent to ever be elected to the highest office and nearing the end of his term, his re-election numbers aren't looking so hot. The couple are soon put at odds with one another when Jan discovers that Carsten has made a quiet deal with the Japanese that allows the country to harvest a huge, stranded herd of blue whales. Determined to save the whales herself, Jan sets off on an impossible mission--to drive the whales across the globe and protest them from the Japanese hunters. From the East Coast to the West, Alaska to Norway to Japan and back again, we see the story play out in politics and conservatism. The war between the two is unimaginable.
I thought this book was absolutely great. I've always liked whales and been against the hunting of the endangered species (yeah, I've never bought that "scientific research" bit, either). But it wasn't until I read the grisly descriptions of the whales being peeled apart (a few of the passages made my stomach turn a bit) that I really found my opposition. Some of the story is a bit over-the-top and you definitely have to suspend all notion of reality in regards to most of Jan's activities (the First Lady would NEVER have the kind of freedom that she enjoyed--and no matter what her marital problems, the Secret Service wouldn't stop surveillance of her). But the book reads like a movie (understandably, since the authors have a history in screenwriting)--the short chapters immerse one in the book, and the fast pace keeps you hooked. A good read with a great message at the core of it.
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