Dread Nation

Two days before the dead started to wander the battlefields of Gettysburg and Chancellorsville, delaying the War Between the States and irrevocably altering America, Jane McKeene was born. Because of laws like the Native and Negro Reeducation Act, which mandate that some youngsters attend battle schools to learn how to put down the dead, everyone's protection in this new country is dependent on the efforts of a select few. However, there are other chances, and Jane is pursuing her studies to become an Attendant, who will be armed and well-mannered to safeguard the wealthy. For African American girls like Jane, it's an opportunity for a better life. After all, she couldn't escape the expectations of society even if she was the daughter of a rich white Southern lady.

But Jane doesn't want that kind of life. Jane is determined to return to her Kentucky home after almost completing her studies at Miss Preston's School of Combat in Baltimore. She is uninterested in the politics of the eastern cities, which speak of restoring America to the splendour of its pre-death era. However, when families in the Baltimore County area start going missing, Jane becomes sucked into a conspiracy and must battle some formidable foes in a last-ditch effort to survive. It seems that the agitated deceased are not the least of her concerns.