I like the idea, but what I found really intriguing was this particular phrase:
If they have done anything wrong (and I am unconvinced they did), they have been punished well beyond their desert.
(Emphasis mine.)
I understood what he meant immediately, but I thought I couldn’t remember ever seeing the word “desert” used in quite that way before. So I jumped over to the OED and found, among others, this definition:
That which is deserved; a due reward or recompense, whether good or evil.
All my life I’ve heard about people getting “their just desserts”. I’ve even seen it spelled that way. So not only has Mr. Swanwick set a good example as a writer–he’s set a good example grammatically too. Now I really want to read something else by him.
