Crucible of a Species ~ Terrence Zavecz [BluA]epub

Summary
Our first interstellar expedition …
Should have been easy, after all, we had help.

THE GIFTS OF THE ASTERI SOLVED ENERGY, POLLUTION AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS. IN PARTING, THEY UNVEILED THE SECRET OF INTERSTELLAR TRAVEL DEMANDING ONLY ONE THING IN PAYMENT – A VISIT TO THEIR HOME PLANET

How does one classify a story such as this? It nicely fits Hard Sci-Fi, Military, Time Travel, Dinosaurs, First Contact and perhaps most of all, Adventure.
Crucible of a Species chronicles the adventures of a group of explorers who participated in the greatest undertaking of society since the Manhattan Project developed the atomic bomb. They called it the 'Argos Project'.
Humanity evolved for more than a million years, little realizing that forces from beyond the stars secretly isolate and shepherd our development.
In 2032, an extraterrestrial intelligence began transferring advanced technology to our planet while refusing any knowledge of themselves. Their intervention resolved energy and most social issues to usher in an age of prosperity. There was only one undeniable demand attached to the gifts of the Asteri - they required humanity's first interstellar voyage be to the Asteri home world aboard a vessel of their own design - the Argos.
A hard man, Colonel Daniel Drake, is chosen to build the ship and lead the expedition.
Tensions on Earth are growing, enflamed by factions who mistrust the strangely generous extraterrestrials. Colonel Drake and his team overcome vicious political opposition and the Argos launches. The ship responds flawlessly until a terrorist's bomb detonates and a cosmic maelstrom inhales the crippled Argos.
Survivors of the expedition manage to limp their badly damaged ship back to Earth - only to discover everything has changed. The anomaly they encountered has ripped the Argos and its crew ninety-nine million years into the past -- Earth dominated by dinosaurs.
Lost and alone in a strangely silent universe, they are forced to crash-land on an unimaginably beautiful planet where life has evolved for hundreds of millions of years to perfect the ultimate predator environment. However, their failure may mean more than their death.
If the Argos fails to arrive, their ET benefactors will believe humanity has snubbed their only demand .... and Colonel Drake knows the Asteri are not the kind who forgive favors spurned.