Cutter Kauai Sea Adventures Book Series by Edward M. Hochsmann - Book Tour - Guest Post - Giveaway - Enter Daily!

Hi, lovelies!!  It gives me great pleasure today to host Edward M. Hochsmann and his new book series, “Cutter Kauai Sea Adventures Series,” which includes Book One, “Dagger Quest,” Book Two, “Caribbean Counterstrike,” and Book Three, “Bravely and Faithfully,” all featured here on FAB!!  For other stops on his Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the images in this post.

Be sure to make it to the end of this post to enter to win a $50 Amazon OR Barnes and Noble Gift Card!!!  Also, come back daily to interact with Ed and to increase your chances of winning!!

Thanks for stopping by!!  Wishing you all lots of good luck in this fabulous giveaway!!

Cutter Kauai Sea Adventures Series

Books 1 – 3

by Edward M. Hochsmann

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GENRE:  Action/Adventure, Contemporary

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BOOK SERIES OVERVIEW:

A Note from the Author…

These books are character-driven, based on personal experience and knowledge, with the best qualities of the many wonderful people I met in the Coast Guard woven into the stories. I aim to put you in the story alongside the characters, experiencing the excitement, fear, humor, joy, and sadness of an elite team of maritime professionals as they face extraordinary challenges. I think you will enjoy the books and if you have any questions that could remove any doubt of that, please ask—I am at your service here in the comments or at info@edwardhochsmann.com.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BOOK BLURB – DAGGER QUEST – BOOK ONE:

An aging Coast Guard patrol boat is all that stands between the world and nuclear annihilation!

The world is on the brink of war, with NATO mobilizing to counter a Russian threat to Poland and Lithuania and leaders openly discussing war options. In the midst of the crisis, a Russian bomber collides with a U.S. fighter off Florida causing the accidental launch of a nuclear-tipped hypersonic missile.

A Coast Guard cutter on a routine patrol finds a drug-laden sailboat smashed and adrift north of the Florida Keys. The boat’s damage is from a near miss by the Russian missile which has not harmlessly flown deep into the Gulf of Mexico as initially thought, but crashed somewhere in the Keys.

The Coast Guard crew is in a race against a vicious and powerful international crime syndicate to find and recover the Russian nuke before its discovery can trigger a nuclear war.

Exploring the friendship and teamwork of a typical ship's crew, in the face of unexpected and hazardous challenges, Dagger Quest provides a fast-paced, taut story - excellent fare for both sea adventure and military thriller fans.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT ONE:

From Dagger Quest – Book One:

Ben’s first encounter with the 252 Syndicate ends in a high-speed chase through Key West, Florida:

Ben slowed and veered right onto Flagler with a screaming of tires and modest fishtailing as he straightened on the new path. Their pursuers also swung in behind them from Roosevelt a few seconds later.

“Floor it!  We’ll be hanging a right on Tenth in ten blocks, same tactic. Keep hitting that horn!”

Ben stayed on the horn, dodging through traffic at speeds approaching fifty miles per hour.

“Counting down,” Simmons said, “Fourteenth, Thirteenth, twelfth, Eleventh, slow down and prepare to hang a right, NOW!”

Ben executed another tire-squealing turn and straightened out, heading north on Tenth, gunning the engine and leaning on the horn.

“Stand by to hit the brakes!” Simmons shouted. “Steady, steady, NOW, hit the brakes!”

Ben stood on the brake pedal, tires shrieked, and the anti-lock braking chattered. After skidding to a stop in the middle of the street next to a large lagoon, Simmons shouted, “Get down!” He opened both doors on his side of the car, using the rear door for cover.

Ben dropped behind the seat as their pursuer began screeching to a stop. Suddenly, there was a tremendous crash with the sound of tearing metal and followed by a large splash. Simmons shut the doors and said in a normal tone, “OK, let’s roll. Back to the base, nice and easy.”

Ben shot up and saw several figures in combat gear with guns drawn running forward from an SUV stopped in the middle of Tenth Street. The car chasing them was coming to rest upside down in the lagoon. “WHAT—THE—HELL!” he shouted at Simmons.

“Come on, friend, we need to move it. It’s handled. We’re clear now, so stay law-abiding all the way, please.”

Ben stared at him for a few seconds, then pressed the accelerator. The engine raced briefly, and then, with shaking hands, Ben shifted into Drive.

“See, you’re a natural,” Simmons said with a smile. “You didn’t even realize you shifted into Park.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 BOOK BLURB – CARIBBEAN COUNTERSTRIKE – BOOK TWO:

Mission: Five days to destroy the enemy in the Caribbean before a catastrophic weapon is unleashed—but all he can think about is the woman he left behind…

The deadliest nerve gas ever made has fallen into the hands of a murderous Caribbean drug cult. The criminal 252 Syndicate has the gas in a secret lab on an oil rig servicing ship, but the ship has been taken for ransom by the Salinas Cartel in a violent drug war. The U.S. can’t use airstrikes and calls on Coast Guard Officer Ben Wyporek to lead his crew through a risky covert raid on the Salinas cult’s fortified island base. He accepts the assignment, but remembers a previous lethal encounter with the 252s and struggles to say goodbye to the love of his life, Victoria Carpenter.

Ben and his crew aboard the stealth-equipped Cutter Kauai must sneak into the harbor and tow the ship away. But if Kauai is detected and defeated, death by gas or at the hands of vicious adversaries will follow. Now, every decision Ben makes will determine the fate of his entire crew—and the chances of reuniting with Victoria.

This second book of the series builds on the friendships and teamwork of Kauai's crew, this time in the face of several challenging missions and one potentially lethal encounter. It is a worthy sequel to Dagger Quest that sea adventure and military thriller fans will enjoy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT ONE:

From Caribbean Counterstrike – Book Two:

Pan-Commonwealth Airways Flight 403 with 126 passengers and crew has dual engine failure in a thunderstorm and is headed for a forced landing in the Atlantic over a hundred miles north of the Bahamas:

Taylor grabbed the intercom handset and pressed the call button. Burgess answered immediately, “Cabin, here.”

“We’re going in, Chief. Get them ready for it. We’re going to try for the Hudson River scenario, so keep the aft doors closed.”

“Understood, Captain. I have two burly beauties from the RN on guard in the last row. You worry about bringing us in safe. We’ll be alright back here.”

Taylor smiled slightly. I might have known. God bless you, Richard! “Well done! I’ll ring the bell five seconds before contact. Get them moving as we come to a stop.”

“WILCO. Godspeed, Captain. Out.”

The scenario Taylor referred to involved the ditching of a similar Airbus in New York’s Hudson River when bird ingestion knocked out both its engines shortly after takeoff from La Guardia airport. The flight crew executed a masterpiece of judgment and skill, saving everyone on board. Not so easy this time. They landed in the sheltered water of a river—we’ll have waves and swells to deal with.

“Peregrine Four-Zero-Three, Miami Center, Nassau is losing radar contact. Observe you heading two one five magnetic, over.” Surveillance radar was limited to line of sight, and at this distance, the aircraft dropped below the radar’s horizon at around thirteen thousand feet. The controller would use the aircraft’s last heading, descent rate, and speed to estimate the impact point to be passed to rescue forces.

“Center, Four-Zero-Three, roger, estimate six miles to contact, over.”

Four-Zero-Three, Center, copy. Best of luck, Captain. Out.”

“No joy, Captain,” Patel said as he took his hand off the starter.

“Right, leave it. Give me flaps four at one thousand.” Taylor had held off the flaps until the last possible moment. They would reduce the aircraft’s touchdown speed dramatically, but also added significant drag. “Ring the cabin bell once you position the handle.”

“Will do, Captain.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BOOK BLURB – BRAVELY AND FAITHFULLY – BOOK THREE:

A New Captain’s First Patrol Turns into a Fight for Their Lives

Young Coast Guard Lieutenant Haley Reardon has not even gotten her feet on the ground on her new patrol boat command when she finds herself and her crew supporting a dangerous covert mission. They must insert and retrieve a Defense Intelligence Agency operations team trying to seize a transnational criminal syndicate boss from a small Caribbean island controlled by a front company of the Chinese government and protected by a superior military force.

A honeymoon period would be lovely, but, as always, the world gets a vote.

Can Haley avoid leaving the DIA team to their fate, when attempting to rescue them could destroy her crew and boat and lead to war?

This third installment of the series conveys the humor, friendships, and teamwork of Kauai's crew from the previous books, with a new series of exciting actions from search and rescue to combat. The crew and their new skipper must come together for the toughest mission they have ever faced.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT TWO:

From Bravely and Faithfully – Book Three:

Kauai has arrived and is retrieving the twenty-two human trafficking victims from the sinking freighter Miho Dujam:

On her second return to the foredeck, Haley noticed Ben was no longer herding the remaining women in line. In fact, he was nowhere to be seen, and she wondered if he had returned on board while she was shuttling survivors to the messdeck. After her third run, she remained on the foredeck and watched as the last survivor came aboard. Drake and Bondurant then cast off Kauai’s mooring lines before jumping across. As the two vessels drifted apart, Haley went directly to Drake and asked, “Chief, where’s the XO?”

“He’s inside looking for evidence, ma’am,” Drake replied.

“He’s what?”

“He told us to cast off and return on board after the last survivor crossed over. He’s taking the RHIB back.” He and Bondurant shared a worried look.

“How much longer will that ship last?”

“Ma’am, I’m surprised she’s still upright.”

Haley hated stepping in, but things seemed to be getting out of hand. “Chief, call the RHIB!”

“Kauai-One, COB, is the XO with you?”

“Negative,” Lee’s voice replied.

Drake lifted his radio again, but before he could speak, a series of loud bangs erupted from the Miho Dujam, and she quickly rolled to the left. He keyed the radio and shouted, “Kauai, COB, XO is still on board!”

The ship continued to roll with a cacophony of bangs and crashes and, within twenty seconds, had completely capsized with only her hull bottom visible. Haley, Drake, and Bondurant were transfixed in shock until the 1MC jolted them into motion.

“Man Overboard Port Side, repeat Man Overboard Port Side! This is no drill!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GUEST POST:

Local Hero’s Story – Ben Wyporek

Alan Roberts

Merrifield Sentinel

March 31^st

Alan: I am at the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center, known as AUTEC, located on Andros Island in the Bahamas, sitting with Lieutenant Junior Grade Benjamin Wyporek, U.S. Coast Guard. Lieutenant Wyporek is one of the crewmen on board the Coast Guard Cutter Kauai involved in the heroic rescue of over 120 survivors from the Pan-Commonwealth airliner crash on the 26th of March. Lieutenant Wyporek is a graduate of Folsom High School in Merrifield, Illinois, and the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. Lieutenant, thank you for meeting with me today.

Lt. Wyporek: No problem. And you can call me Ben.

Alan: Thanks, Ben. So before we get to the crash, tell me about your unit.

Lt. Wyporek: Kauai is an Island Class patrol boat, 110 feet long, with a crew of 16: two officers and 14 enlisted. Our homeport is Port Canaveral, Florida, and our primary duty is the range safety cutter for rocket launches from Cape Canaveral. But, those only happen maybe once every two months, so most of our time is spent on the more common Coast Guard missions, like maritime safety and security.

Alan: I see. What is your job, and how long have you been here, Ben?

Lt. Wyporek: I came on board around 15 months ago. I am the Executive Officer, what we call XO, the second in command of the boat. I guess I would describe my primary job as the assistant to the captain. But I stand a lot of watches when we are underway, lead boardings, keep the crew healthy and performing, do a lot of administrative stuff, that sort of thing.

Alan: From what we have heard, it must be very exciting.

Lt. Wyporek: Sometimes it is. More often than not, though, it can get pretty boring.

Alan: I’ll bet that crash wasn’t boring.

Lt. Wyporek: [Laughs] Yes, that was one of those moments of stark terror separating the hours of boredom.

Alan: So, tell me about it.

Lt. Wyporek: We got the call right after the plane went in. We were a little south of Nassau on our way here to AUTEC, so we were the closest surface unit. We put on full speed and headed for the estimated position. It was over 120 miles, so it took us about four hours to motor up there. Fortunately, the C-130 out of Clearwater and the H-60 out of Nassau found the survivors, so we didn’t have to search.

Alan: Why didn’t the aircraft pick them up?

Lt. Wyporek: The C-130 can’t land in the water. [Smiles] Well, not more than once, anyway, and the H-60 could only pick up five or six at a time. So it was up to us.

Alan: I understand there was a storm. It must have been challenging to make the rescue.

Lt. Wyporek: That was the scary part. Not so much the wind and seas, but the lightning. The upside of taking four hours to get there is we had time to get ready. Because of the lightning, we had to move everyone inside. It takes planning and organization to squeeze 126 people into a 110-foot patrol boat.

Alan: What was the worst moment for you?

Lt. Wyporek: The lightning strike. The survivors were a good bunch—very calm, considering everything that had happened to them. The helo’s rescue swimmer and the flight crew had them prepped and ready by the time we got there. The on-load was going smoothly about a third of the way through when we had a lightning strike about a hundred yards away, and everybody freaked out. I can’t blame them; it shook me up too. The survivors panicked and started rushing the ladders, and I thought it was all over. Fortunately, our leading boatswain’s mate restored calm.

Alan: How did he do that?

Lt. Wyporek: [smiles again] When a six-foot-three, 240-pound man who looks like he could be a linebacker for the Bears steps up and hollers, “Knock it off!”, that will get your attention. Fortunately, we got the rest on board without any major problems.

Alan: What would have happened if lightning hit the cutter?

Lt. Wyporek: The boat is metal and acts like a Faraday Cage—the charge would have moved along the outside of the boat and into the water. Everything inside would have been fine, and that’s why we had to get everybody inside.

Alan: What would have happened if the cutter had been struck during the pickup?

Lt. Wyporek: Mr. and Mrs. Wyporek, among others, would have probably gotten a big check from the SGLI [Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance]. Sorry, I don’t like thinking about that.

Alan: I can imagine. How do your parents feel about your work? And do you have a significant other that may have feelings about it?

Lt. Wyporek: Mom and dad worry about the scary stuff, of course, and we avoid talking about it when we can. I have a girlfriend, and she worries too, but she gets that it is part of the job.

Alan: Sounds like a very understanding woman. Any plans?

Lt. Wyporek: Yes, she’s quite wonderful, and I’m lucky to be with her. As to plans, well, that’s getting a little too personal.

Alan: I understand. Thank you, Ben, for taking the time to talk to me today. I wish you the best of luck with everything, and I hope I can get another story from you sometime soon.

Lt. Wyporek: [laughs again] God, I hope not!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR BIO:

Edward Hochsmann is the pen name of a retired U. S. Coast Guard search and rescue and law enforcement professional. The veteran mariner, aviator, college professor, and defense analyst has added “author” to his list of experiences. Ed likes reading, police procedurals, contemporary music on the road, and classical music in the office. After a career traveling from Australia in the west to Italy and Germany in the east, Ed has settled into a quiet life in the Florida Panhandle to focus on writing (and not shoveling snow!)

Ed has two novels published right now (plus one launching in August 2022) in the Cutter Kauai Sea Adventures series about a Coast Guard patrol boat assigned to "special" missions. Dagger Quest takes place in the Florida Keys and involves an aging Coast Guard patrol boat dragooned into a search for a lost Russian nuclear weapon in a time of international crisis. The second, Caribbean Counterstrike, features the same patrol boat and crew, now with equipment and training upgrades, sent to recover a deadly nerve gas from a murderous Caribbean drug cartel. Bravely and Faithfully has Kauai, under a new captain supporting a covert raid on a Caribbean island held by the Chinese.

Ed's second series, C6S: Patrol Force deals with a combined defense establishment and constabulary for a galactic economic empire called the Confederation of the Six Systems (C6S). Ed has published two novellas and a novel-length collection late last year.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CONNECT WITH ED:

Website:

https://www.edwardhochsmann.com

Email:

info@edwardhochsmann.com

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/KauaiSeaAdventures

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/edhochsmann

BookBub Author Page:

https://www.bookbub.com/profile/edward-m-hochsmann

Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20594307.Edward_Hochsmann

Amazon Author Page:

https://amzn.to/3PwRSDS

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BOOK BUY LINKS – DAGGER QUEST – BOOK ONE:

Amazon US Kindle eBook:

https://amzn.to/3T1a2R2

Amazon US Paperback:

https://amzn.to/3weMX3D

Amazon CA Kindle eBook:

https://www.amazon.ca/Dagger-Quest-Cutter-Kauai-Adventures-ebook/dp/B0B1L82HD1

Amazon CA Paperback:

https://www.amazon.ca/Dagger-Quest-Cutter-Kauai-Adventures/dp/1956777962

Kobo US eBook:

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/dagger-quest-1

Kobo CA eBook:

https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/dagger-quest-1

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BOOK BUY LINKS – CARIBBEAN COUNTERSTRIKE – BOOK TWO:

Amazon US Kindle eBook:

https://amzn.to/3PB0ZDw

Amazon US Paperback:

https://amzn.to/3C978E2

Amazon CA Kindle eBook:

https://www.amazon.ca/Caribbean-Counterstrike-Cutter-Kauai-Adventures-ebook/dp/B0B1N24GBV

Amazon CA Paperback:

https://www.amazon.ca/Caribbean-Counterstrike-Cutter-Kauai-Adventures/dp/1956777954

Kobo US eBook:

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/caribbean-counterstrike-1

Kobo CA eBook:

https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/caribbean-counterstrike-1

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BOOK BUY LINKS – BRAVELY AND FAITHFULLY – BOOK THREE:

Amazon US Kindle eBook:

https://amzn.to/3SRhPRs

Amazon US Paperback:

https://amzn.to/3zX9B1C

Amazon CA Kindle eBook:

https://www.amazon.ca/Bravely-Faithfully-Cutter-Kauai-Adventures-ebook/dp/B0B1W1J26C

Amazon CA Paperback:

https://www.amazon.ca/Bravely-Faithfully-Cutter-Kauai-Adventures/dp/1956777938

Kobo US eBook:

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/bravely-and-faithfully-1

Kobo CA eBook:

https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/bravely-and-faithfully-1

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GIVEAWAY INFO:

Ed will be awarding a $50 Amazon OR Barnes and Noble Gift Card (Winner’s Choice!!!) to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a purchase is made, I may receive a small commission to help support this blog.  This does not cost you anything, it just helps pay for all those fabulous community outreach projects and awesome giveaways on here**

This contest is sponsored by a third party. Fabulous and Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish Promotions.  Prizes are given away by the sponsors and not Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish Promotions are solely responsible for the giveaway prize.