When humanity ventures off earth, they assumed they were the galaxy’s only colonizers. The farthest outposts would soon discover they were wrong. After moving from the mountains of Idaho to the depths of space, Mike Crider finds himself in the center of the action. From guerrilla battles through the wilderness of Forest, to the struggle to establish an intergalactic government, to the First Galactic War, the Crider family paves the way for a new galaxy. 2005 Preditors & Editors Reader's Choice Award for Top Ten Science Fiction Novel Anderson Gentry grew up in the hills and trout streams of northeast Iowa's wooded uplands, gaining a keen interest in wildlife, camping, hunting, fishing, and the outdoors. Gentry served in the U.S. Army in the last years of the Cold War, including service in the Persian Gulf War. Captain Gentry concluded his military career by serving on the staff of the Command Surgeon, U.S. Army, Europe. Along the way, he obtained a bachelor's degree in Biology.Anderson Gentry's first major novel, The Crider Chronicles received a 2005 Preditors & Editors Reader's Choice Award for Top Ten Science Fiction Novel. The Galactic Confederacy series has continued with the 2008 release of Sky of Diamonds. A spin off work, Barrett's Privateers was released in 2008. His fast-paced, hard-hitting style combines a unique blend of outdoor savvy, real-world military experience, and realistic character development. Hanna Al-Shaer was born and raised in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. She has moved and lived all over Colorado and has seen many of the wonderful things around the state that have influenced her as a person and as an artist. Hanna loves traveling and going to new places and seeing culture, architecture, and of course food! All of this influences her art and storytelling. She loves stories in every form, and probably spends too much money on books and comics but it is all for the sake of research and inspiration!Hanna earned a BFA in Digital Media and Illustration with a focus in concept and visual development art from Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Her goal is simply to tell a great story through art.