Raymund Eich

Science fiction and fantasy - from Middle America to the ends of the Universe

Hi ,

The end of the year already? I hope your 2023 was a good one. At minimum, it was better than being trapped in the movie Soylent Green.

(BTW, a quick check of Wikipedia says 2024 is the setting of Harlan Ellison's "A Boy and his Dog" and Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower. Will the world be better than the settings of those works? I think it can).

Odds are, 2023 presented you some ups and downs. I mentioned one of my ups a few months ago, when my short story "Aalund's Final Mission" was recommended by Locus, with reviewer Karen Burnham calling it "solid" with an ending that was "well-done."

Turns out she wasn't the only one. Tangent called it an "engaging story."

Did you miss "Aalund's Final Mission" in the March/April 2023 issue of Analog? No problem. It's now available for preorder!

New Short Story

Aalund's Final Mission

A captain, a commissar, and the ultimate crisis at 0.99c:

If your propulsion system goes off-line, how can you slow down?

After decades of service, Captain Aalund has one final mission: tow a wormhole to an enemy star system, then retire on a tropical beach.

Until enemy action knocks out the tractor beam generator back home.

Now, his ship can’t slow down.

Can he find a way to save his ship and crew from dying of old age in the depths of interstellar space?

What will he do if one of his officers refuses?

Aalund's Final Mission is now available for pre-order at most ebook stores. Just $0.99! It goes live on December 28, 2023. Just in time to load on that new e-reader. Follow the link and find your store below:

Aalund's Final Mission (ebook preorder)

Prefer print? It will be available as a print single, $7.99. At Amazon, or ask your local bookseller to order. ISBN 9798871077245.

What will 2024 hold? I can't wait to find out!

Till next month,

Happy reading!

Raymund