An eclectic undercover government team must work together to stop a pair of mad renegade scientist hell-bent on destroying the Union
BUFFALO, N.Y., Oct. 27, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- "I enjoy reading but many of the books in Steam Punk were hardly worth the effort, poor story telling or lazy plot devices. I was inspired by Gail Carriger with her fantastic but coherent stories and Tom Clancy's techno thrillers. So I thought, can I do better? I felt I had no right to criticized others till I tried to write myself," David A. Hornung states. In "The Ratten Expedition" (published by iUniverse in October 2015), he tells an alternate reality steampunk adventure about an eclectic undercover government team — a Civil War veteran, a priest, an assassin, a tinker, and an orphaned girl — work to save the Union.
In an alternate-reality world where the American Civil War lasted 10 years, technology has advanced rapidly. A decade after the guns of the South were silenced, the embers of war still burn white hot. English Canada and French Mexico still snarl at the Union, but a new terror faces the country. Former army major John Morton, now a museum professor, is recruited by his old army comrade, now a Catholic priest, to find missing parishioners. As they will learn, the solution to the riddle is only the start of a cross-county adventure. Recruited to join an eclectic undercover government team, Civil War veteran Morton joins a priest, a beautiful female assassin, a black tinker, and an orphaned girl in the race to find a way to preserve the Union. Can Morton survive long enough to stop a pair of mad renegade scientists hell-bent on the destruction of the Union?
"This is a solid adventure story, with characters who are not perfect but give their all. These are relatable people, not super heroes. It deals people who in various ways are damaged and the reader gets to watch them heal. It is what I like to call 'techno steam punk,' the SP elements are not over the moon but at least feasible, they are not the story but support it. The story is coherent without as I phase it resorting to pulling magic out of my ass to get the characters out of a corner," Hornung says.
When asked what he wants readers to take away from the book, Hornung answers, "They feel they got a good yarn for their money, roller coaster ride of danger and adventure. They get to meet a group of people they can relate to and care about. Later on, when they are starting to dose off at night, they think about some of the morality that is woven into the book." For more details about the book, please visit https://www.iuniverse.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/703593-the-ratten-expedition
"The Ratten Expedition"
By David A. Hornung
Hardcover | 6 x 9in | 332 pages | ISBN 9781491776575
Softcover | 6 x 9in | 332 pages | ISBN 9781491774762
E-Book | 332 pages | ISBN 9781491774755
Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
About the Author
David A. Hornung holds a master's degree in mechanical engineering, a doctorate degree in environmental engineering, several other degrees in the social and physical sciences. He also holds a MA in pastoral ministry. He enjoys ham radio, historical miniature wargaming and participating in Civil War reenactments. He is a widower who lives in Buffalo, New York, with his cats.
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SOURCE David A. Hornung
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