Former Navy Officer Brings the American Revolution’s Overlooked Southern Campaign to Life in New Book
Author and former U.S. Naval Officer Ray Deptula
Author Ray Deptula uses actual Revolutionary War events to follow British deserter Jack Halliday and his friend Custis, an enslaved man, as they struggle to survive the violent chaos of South Carolina after the disastrous Battle of Camden.
Most Americans know Lexington and Yorktown, but few know the brutal Southern campaign that ultimately won the American Revolution.
MERRITT ISLAND, FL, UNITED STATES, July 22, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The American Revolution may have begun in New England, but it was in the violent southern provinces where its outcome was ultimately decided. Former U.S. Naval Officer Ray Deptula shines a light on that often-overlooked chapter of history in Can’t Find My Way Home, the second installment in Deptula’s Those Damned Yankees series.
Drawing on meticulous historical research and the actual sequence of Revolutionary War events, Deptula follows British deserter Jack Halliday and his companion, Custis, an enslaved man, as they become separated from the Continental Army after the devastating Battle of Camden and struggle to survive the lawless violence of South Carolina, where neighbor turned against neighbor and rival militias waged some of the ugliest fighting of the Revolution.
“Service in the military is enduring in that the motivation to withstand hardships comes not from political ideology but rather the love of your comrades,” Deptula said. “Can’t Find My Way Home deals primarily with the relationship between Jack and the slave, Custis, to whom Jack feels a moral obligation to protect for no other reason than he is Jack’s friend.”
Can’t Find My Way Home finds Jack Halliday and Custis serving with the Continental Army after enduring the harsh winter of 1780-81 at Washington’s army encampment in New Jersey. When spring arrives, they are swept into the Battle of Camden, where the Continental forces are decimated by the British, and along with it, the American hopes of ridding the southern provinces of Britain’s new and dangerous foothold.
Separated from their army and lost in the volatile South, the unlikely pair must survive together in a world where trust is scarce, and Custis’ value as property continually tests Jack’s moral compass. Their desperate struggle to find safety and return home inspired the title Can’t Find My Way Home.
With precision and perspective, Deptula taps into timeless concepts such as human nature and moral survival, offering a powerful reminder that yesterday’s conflicts continue to shape today’s world — and that history seems destined to repeat itself.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ray Deptula is a native of Wells, Maine, and a graduate of Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, Maine. He spent 24 years in the U.S. Navy as a Naval Aviator and a Political-Military Officer with service in Europe, the Mideast, Africa and the Caribbean. He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, with a Master of Arts degree in National Security and Strategic Studies. He lives in Merritt Island, Florida, with his wife, Julia.
For more information, please visit raydeptulaauthor.com.
Can’t Find My Way Home (Those Damned Yankees Book Two)
Publisher: Speaking Volumes
Release Date: June 30, 2026
ISBN-13: 979-8890224170
Available from https://www.amazon.com/Cant-Find-Those-Damned-Yankees/dp/B0H3RCNGLZ
Trish Stevens
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
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