I’m obsessed with pandemics. Since the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan came to light in early January 2020, I have closely followed every development and followed many official daily reports, feeling like I was watching a movie of one of my books play out in real life.

In February I decided to share my unique perspective as a microbiologist, educator, journalist and novelist. In this concise ebook on SARS-CoV-2, I help you understand how a virus could just appear like this, and I’ll discuss the conspiracy theories that ascribe a non-natural origin to the COVID-19 disease, including one that is pulled straight from The Han Agent. Using my knowledge about emerging infections, virus evolution, and history of influenza, I’ll put this pandemic in perspective and try to predict what’s going to happen next. I summarize approaches to developing a coronavirus vaccine. And of course I share practical tips about what you can do—including a microbiology-based one that you probably won’t find anywhere else.

Intelligent, calm, and lucid, The Coming Pandemic by Amy Rogers is the one piece of scientific background you should read to understand the new coronavirus.