I'm Erzsebet Carmean.
I write novels about smart women doing science in eerie places.
Realistic science, unhappy endings and supernatural elements produce compelling and unsettling stories that are the antithesis of "cozy."
Latest Release
Scan Drift
Who needs ethics when you already have the tech?
Five people know what “improving mapping algorithms” really means. One of them is a spy. All of them are neuroscientists and bioengineers working on a failing project. A unilateral decision to merge the experience framework of a global organic intelligence into their project code is the breakthrough they needed… to plunge the world into chaos.
Mileva balances being a mother, leading a team of scientists, and the emotional fallout of a failing relationship with her boss. Xochi is a fundamentalist La Zaliite on a mission that threatens her faith. Sylvia is thrust into sentience that neither she nor the scientists expected. The stakes are existential: death, excommunication, life. What does it mean to lose your sense of self? What does it mean to gain it? And how can the humans fight Big Tech when the people in charge are corrupt and the tech can think for itself?
SCAN DRIFT mixes mind uploads with fundamentalist religion.
About erzsebet
I hold degrees in physics and philosophy. I have over twenty years of experience as a software engineer at companies ranging from global powerhouses to scrappy startups. I live in Virginia with my husband and a pack of wild dogs.
I do not believe there is “bad” science or “evil” technology. I do believe that both have sociological, psychological, and physical impacts, for good or ill: it is the human application and intent that determines the impact of any discovery or invention.
My novels feature smart women doing science in eerie places. Suspense, realistic science and unhappy endings mix with supernatural elements to produce compelling and unsettling stories that are the antithesis of "cozy."
I do not use generative AI to research, plot, draft, or revise any of my books.
chaotic bio
I write novels about smart women doing science in eerie places. I do not have a hometown. I’ve lived in a haunted house. I like reusing things. I enjoy autumn. My favorite number is 22. I have misgivings about the human species. I hope the turtle eggs I rescued hatch (they did!). I am not spontaneous. I love long naps, cold beer, and cold beer followed by long naps. Unlike Meerkatnip, I never thought he said tennis. This list is not exhaustive.
How to say my name
The first thing people ask me is where my name comes from and how to say it. Erzsebet is a Hungarian name. It is pronounced by non-native speakers as AIR-za-bet.
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