Acceptable Losses

By Dayle A. Dermatis

Biologist Juana Salazar, PhD, believes seaweed the cure to world hunger, and gets the funding to build on-land tanks in Western Africa.

But when her research takes a terrifying turn, she faces heartbreak…and a choice she never thought she'd have to make.

Tangent Online included "Acceptable Losses" in their 2019 Recommended Reading list, saying,

Fully developed characters make the tragedy at the heart of this story seem very real. The moral crisis facing the protagonist is an important one. … [T]he author forces us to contemplate vital ethical issues concerning the welfare of the many and the sacrifice of the few.

"Acceptable Losses" originally appeared in Pulphouse Fiction Magazine, Issue 7, Summer 2019.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Soul's Road Press
• Release date: Jan 20, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393309628

Dayle A. Dermatis

Dayle A. Dermatis is the author or coauthor of many novels (including snarky urban fantasies Ghosted and the forthcoming Shaded and Spectered) and more than a hundred short stories in multiple genres, appearing in such venues as Fiction River, Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, and DAW Books.Called the mastermind behind the Uncollected Anthology project, she also guest edits anthologies for Fiction River, and her own short fiction has been lauded in many year's best anthologies in erotica, mystery, and horror.She lives in a book- and cat-filled historic English-style cottage in the wild greenscapes of the Pacific Northwest. In her spare time she follows Styx around the country and travels the world, which inspires her writing.To find out where she’s wandered off to (and to get free fiction!), check out DayleDermatis.com and sign up for her newsletter or support her on Patreon.* * *I value honest feedback, and would love to hear your opinion in a review, if you’re so inclined, on your favorite book retailer’s site.* * *For more information:www.dayledermatis.com

Book preview

Acceptable Losses

Acceptable Losses

Dayle A. Dermatis

Soul’s Road Press

Contents

About This Book

Acceptable Losses

About the Author

Also by Dayle A. Dermatis

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Written on the Coast

About This Book

Biologist Juana Salazar, PhD, believes seaweed the cure to world hunger, and gets the funding to build on-land tanks in Western Africa.

But when her research takes a terrifying turn, she faces heartbreak…and a choice she never thought she’d have to make.

Tangent Online included Acceptable Losses in their 2019 Recommended Reading list, saying,

Fully developed characters make the tragedy at the heart of this story seem very real. The moral crisis facing the protagonist is an important one. … [T]he author forces us to contemplate vital ethical issues concerning the welfare of the many and the sacrifice of the few.

Acceptable Losses originally appeared in Pulphouse Fiction Magazine, Issue 7, Summer 2019.

Acceptable Losses

Her answer to the interview question would haunt Juana to the end of her days.

Dr. Salazar, the reporter had said, how did you come up with the idea?

My partner was vegan and trying to convert me, she’d said. She’d even laughed a little as she said it. "She made miso soup and sushi with brown rice and vegetables, and over dinner kept telling me about all