Description

The galaxy’s two multi-species superpowers stand on the brink of yet another pointless war. Soldiers, draft-dodgers, smugglers and spies from both sides are rushing towards Cedar Commons, an uninhabited forest planet near the border. Everyone has some plan for fighting, avoiding, or profiting from the conflict.

None of these plans are going to work out: war destroys plans as efficiently as it does lives. But as the visitors to this once-quiet planet discover each other, they’ll make new friends, new enemies, and new plans that have a chance to end the war before it causes the collapse of several civilizations.

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Praise for Situation Normal:

A triumph: madcap and trenchant, dancing on the precise meridian between funny and weird, with a wild, imaginative boldness that reinvents space-opera from the gravity well up. — Cory Doctorow, author of Little Brother, co-editor of Boing Boing, IP activist

A fast-paced romp reminiscent of Kurt Vonnegut channeled through the wild inventiveness of Charles Stross and the irreverent political attitude of Cory Doctorow. — Don Vicha, Booklist (starred review)

Situation Normal is an entertaining look at the question of what war is for, as well as a clever demonstration of the supreme power of chaos. — Don Sakers, Analog SF

Seamlessly blending serious subject matter with humor, [Situation Normal] shines a light on today’s issues in a way that will have readers laughing one minute and wanting to cry the next. — Elisabeth Clark, Library Journal

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Situation Normal
by Leonard Richardson
Published by Candlemark & Gleam, December 2020
498 pages
ISBN: 978-1-936460-99-1
eISBN: 978-1-936460-98-4
Cover artist: Britanny Hague