An Independent, Financial Times, and Irish Times Book of the Year!

A couple's search for a rural paradise on the Caribbean coast takes a sinister turn in this darkly ironic modern classic.

When J. and Elena swap the parties and culture of the city for a simpler life on Colombia's remote Caribbean coast, they expect to find an Eden to call their own. Their plan is to lead the good life, self-sufficient and close to nature. But from the very start, each day brings small defeats and imperceptible dramas, which gradually turn paradise into hell...

A satire of hippyism, ecological fantasies, and of the very idea that man can control fate, In the Beginning Was the Sea is a searingly ironic account of man's confrontation with nature and with himself. In amongst the mango groves, the young couple's surroundings inexorably claim back every inch of the 'civilisation' they brought with them, leaving them to question how they will survive in this new environment when they themselves remain unchanged. And, as their relationship breaks down--and the horror unfolds--who can they count on if not each other?

Based on a true story, In the Beginning Was the Sea is a menacing, darkly funny tale of human weakness, the terrifying power of nature, and what happens when our dreams meet their fateful reality.