In the near future, Berlinās real estate is being flipped in the name of āsustainability,ā only to make the city even more unaffordable; artists are employed by corporations as consultants, and the weather is acting strange. When Anja and Louis are offered a rent-free home on an artificial mountaināyet another eco-friendly initiative run by a corporationāthey seize the opportunity, but it isnāt long before the experimental house begins malfunctioning.
After Louisās mother dies, Anja is convinced he has changed. At work, Louis has become obsessed with a secret project: a pill called Oval that temporarily rewires the userās brain to be more generous. While Anja is horrified, Louis believes he has found the solution to Berlinās income inequality.
Oval is a fascinating portrait of the unbalanced relationships that shape our world, as well as a prescient warning of what the future may hold.