VENTURE

About the Book

Interstellar, formerly interplanetary, spacecraft Venture 1 has been contacted by an alien intelligence. The contact is first discovered by a fifteen-year-old high school student while he is doing research for his senior project. Not fully understanding what he has stumbled upon, he enlists the aid of a family friend. The friend, a decorated marine (ret.), Jesuit priest, and systems engineer, guides the young man and his family on a nonstop, action-filled race through a maze of global politics and the streets of Philadelphia in an effort to remain one step ahead of those who want to suppress what may turn out to be the greatest discovery of all time.

About the Author

Peter J. Lamana was born in 1967, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to Doris E. (Hallowell) and Peter A. Lamana. He grew up in the small country village of Springtown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, along with two older brothers and an older sister. Peter’s father is the son of Italian immigrants, while his mother is the daughter of Pennsylvania Dutch (German) farmers. Peter graduated with honors in 1991,from East Stroudsburg University, East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, earning a bachelor’s of science degree in education, with a specialty in mathematics. In 1993 he married Nicole S. Matuella, and the couple welcomed two beautiful daughters into the world: Sara (2000) and Emily (2001). Later in 2001, while teaching full time, Peter earned a master’s of science degree from Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, life’s turns and difficulties were eventually too much for the couple to endure, and they divorced in 2007. Peter returned to the village of his childhood and along with his father, coauthored Mystic: A Small Town from Baseball’s Yesterday, published in November 2014. He continues to reside in Springtown, where he enjoys both his close and distant family. Peter’s many interests and hobbies include cooking, gardening, and family. He is a die-hard Philadelphia Phillies baseball “phan” and enjoys the colorful history of the national pastime. Peter is a former member of the Lehigh Valley Amateur Astronomical Society and continues to pursue a greater-than-casual interest in amateur astronomy. Venture is his first solo project.