In the wake of Whales

When Edward Clifford is gifted a two-week sailing holiday aboard a luxurious yacht in the Bahamas, he accepts it in the certain knowledge that it is just one of the perks commensurate with his illustrious career as a senior, city of London accountant. Edward's wife, Sarah, is dragged along to help carry the baggage and because Edward's boss gives him no option in the matter - and Sarah agrees because that's what Sarah does best. Agreeing with her husband has become part of her Primrose Hill reality. However, reality is an entirely subjective state of mind, and their version of it is about to bite them both in their overly comfortable backsides. Thrown together aboard a yacht that is certainly elegant and luxurious, Edward and Sarah are forced to contend with its captain. He is rude. He is arrogant. He seems to have a complete disregard for their comfort and pleasure - not to mention their status - and it proves to be a trial that might just bring the Cliffords closer to one another than they have been in many years. Or, like a chunk of rotten rope, it might simply force them to tear apart. Thank god for the captain's first mate, Jazz. For Sarah, Jazz is a taste of honey in an otherwise bitter cup of tea. He is a calming balm to be massaged upon the blisters of over-exposure to the harshness of the captain's conceited and judgmental demeanor. Sarah's world view is completely altered when she has a stunning encounter with a Humpback Whale she calls Nora. Somehow, Sarah and Nora manage to transcend the barriers that would otherwise separate them, to form a bond that is as deeply profound as the ocean itself. This trip will turn out to be nothing like Edward and Sarah Clifford could ever have anticipated. For him, it's going to be a serious wake-up call; one that will require him to look at himself in an entirely different light and, more importantly, demand that he sees his wife in a completely different way. And for Sarah it's going to be a voyage of self-discovery. For she will learn that not all men are like her husband. She will learn that reality is not the wisdom disgorged by her computer screen, or discussed with her girlfriends around a Primrose Hill coffee table. And most importantly - through her relationship with such an alien creature as Nora, tempered by the sometimes cruel wisdom of the captain, and nourished by the constant support of Jazz - she will come to understand a profound truth. One that will change the course of her life forever.