Arctic Rising is a near-future Techno-Thriller by Tobias Buckell.
Anika Duncan monitors the Northwest Passage for illegal dumping on behalf of the UN. When she and her partner get radiation readings off of a tramp steamer that was cleared by the Greenland authorities, they go to investigate. The ship shoots them down, her partner dies, and Anika finds herself pursued by mysterious figures who want her data and her life.
The ship was carrying a nuclear warhead, smuggled by a secretive group who wants the arctic to stay warm. Meanwhile, the energy juggernaut Gaia Inc reveals a massive project to terraform the Earth, which doubles as a terrifying weapon.
This work contains examples of:
- City on the Water: Thule is a collection of micropolities built on a network of oil platforms and the artificially preserved remnants of the Arctic icecap.
- Flooded Future World: The story takes place in a warming near future where the Arctic Circle is melting, the Northwest Passage is a major shipping corridor, and Caribbean islands like Anegada sink beneath the waves forever.
- Global Warming: The Arctic Circle is melting, the Northwest Passage is a major shipping corridor and there are farms on Baffin Island.
- Leave No Witnesses: An attempt at this kicks off the plot. Anika and her partner get a radiation signature off a tramp freighter and approach, assuming it's illegal waste dumping. Then the crew shoots them down with an RPG, killing her partner, and assassins are crawling out of the woodwork to try to kill her.
- Naval Blockade: Imposed on Thule by a multinational fleet when Gaia launches their terraforming project.
- N.G.O. Superpower: Gaia Inc. goes toe to toe with a multinational blockading fleet.
