This brought a smile to my face

 NOT your average, everyday comic



Though buying milk is a fraught activity these days ...

If only ...

An idea whose time has come: "Nobody reads privacy policies. This senator wants lawmakers to stop pretending we do."

Déjà Doomed (and it's *not* gloom involving COVID-19)

With all that's been going on, I'm pleased to have a tidbit of *good* news to share with my friends and readers.

Only the doom is WAY worse than this ...

Which is to say, Phoenix Pick, publisher of several of my more recent books, lately sent over contracts for my newest novel. It's called -- you guessed it -- Déjà Doomed. Think: epic adventure for existential stakes.

I long ago lost my authorial amateur status, but as DD will be my 21st book, I guess I'm about to become an authorial pro adult :-)

More info (such as the release date) in due course ....

What's old is new again

Given the COVID-19 pandemic, shelter-in-place rules in ever more places, and the economy more or less stopped, realistically my news of the day hardly rates a mention. All that said ... it pleases me. In particular, I'm happy to announce that ReAnimus Press has just reissued my earliest two novels. With classy new cover art, I hasten to add ....

Kindle link for Probe

My debut novel was Probe -- and it's true what they say. You always remember your first time ;-)

And what, you ask, is the probe of the title? The hero's own robotic spacecraft, prowling the Asteroid Belt for mineral wealth? The alien derelict that Prospector had the (mis)fortune to come upon? Something the military does not want found? Or is it something really out of the ordinary? 

"With a scientist's background and a novelist's eye, Ed Lerner has written a fast-paced thriller sure to please techno-junkies, sci-fi lovers, and anyone who simply enjoys an exciting yarn."

-- Pete Earley,
   NYT bestselling author of Family of Spies: 
   Inside the John Walker Spy Ring

And second, a quite different tale, Moonstruck.

Einstein's Monsters

I ordinarily save up my reading recommendations for a year-end summary, but (a) these aren't ordinary times and (2) the book I finished last night was most noteworthy.

The book? Einstein's Monsters: The Life and Times of Black Holes (2018), by Brit astronomer and science popularizer Chris Impey. It integrates a wealth of fascinating material about general relativity, black holes large and small, cosmology, assorted multiverse theories, gravitational-wave observatories, and astronomy in general. And if your appetite ends up whetted, the book provides copious pointers to further reading.

So ...  you're in the market for distraction as you shelter in place from COVID-19 -- especially if physics, astronomy, or the Really Big Picture is your cup of tea -- you might want to check out (here's an Amazon link) Einstein's Monsters: The Life and Times of Black Holes. 

Sherlock #4: The Final Problem

Grantville Gazette readers ... did you enjoy January's "The Adventure of the Meat Interpreter"? (A rhetorical question, of course. That said, I'm always happy -- should anyone feel so inclined -- to get feedback.)

Presuming that you answered yes, you'll be interested to know that "Sherlock" returns in TGG's March issue in his most challenging case yet: "The Final Problem."

 It turns out that I posted eight years ago, in a very different context, about Conan Doyles's own "The Final Problem." Have a look at that mention -- if you're curious -- in "Tell, Don't Show?"

It's the End Times ...

of publisher February promotions on a goodly portion -- six of twenty -- Edward M. Lerner books.

This is a (blatantly) commercial post; you have been advised. But if you've been curious about my writing -- or if you are familiar, and might want to read more -- this ebook-only promotion is a fine opportunity. Your choices:

Muses and Musings: A Science Fiction Collection. It's exactly what the subtitle says. And you can name your price.

Technothrillers, Fools' Experiments and Small Miracles, for only $1.99 each. 

Near-future (Energized) and farther-future (Dark Secret) space adventures, likewise for a mere $1.99 each.

But wait! There's more! (And it's way better than a Veg-O-Matic.)

In the nonfiction category, Trope-ing the Light Fantastic: The Science Behind the Fiction is just $2.99.

Not as long as electrons last (but way longer than free neutrons do)! And only on the publisher's website.)

Better than Punxsutawney Phil not seeing his shadow

Over at Phoenix Pick, the featured ebook for February's promotion/deal/steal is Muses & Musings: A Science Fiction Collection by ... Yr. Humble Blogger. Said promo being accompanied by deep (and likewise temporary) ebook discounts on several other Lerner titles. Just sayin'

Check it out at https://www.publisherspick.com/

(And if Phil was mistaken, and you find yourself snowed in? All the more reason to want a good book or three on hand.)