Caribbean Counterstrike
A killer nerve gas. A Caribbean cartel. And the woman he left behind.
A killer nerve gas has fallen into the hands of a ruthless Caribbean drug cult. The deadliest nerve agent ever made is hidden in a secret lab aboard an oil servicing ship seized by the Salinas Cartel during a violent turf war with the 252 Syndicate. If it’s ever released, thousands could die.
Airstrikes are off the table. Instead, Coast Guard Lieutenant Ben Wyporek and the crew of the USCGC Kauai are ordered to slip into hostile waters, infiltrate a fortified island controlled by the cartel, and seize and tow the captured ship out from under their noses before the 252 Syndicate can recover it. If they’re detected, the mission could ignite a regional war—or end in mass death by nerve gas.
Ben accepts the assignment knowing all too well what the 252s are capable of—and knowing that every decision he makes could doom his crew and erase any chance of a future with DIA analyst Victoria Carpenter. As the clock runs down, the Kauai’s crew must gamble everything on a single, high‑risk strike in the heart of enemy territory.
Caribbean Counterstrike is book two in the Cutter Kauai Sea Adventures, raising the stakes with covert action, nerve‑shredding seamanship, and a slow‑burn love story threaded through the gunfire.
A close third‑person ride through Ben, Victoria, and the Kauai crew as they face an impossible mission.
Realistic Coast Guard tactics, small‑boat operations, and harbor infiltration under cover of darkness.
A high‑concept threat: black‑market nerve gas caught between warring criminal syndicates.
A fortified Caribbean island, cartel gunmen, and a desperate tow operation under fire.
The deepening relationship between Ben and Victoria, tested against the cost of command and compromise.
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Editorial Reviews
Self-Publishing Review:
Fresh off their lethal drug ring battle a few months earlier, the cutter has been quietly promoted to perform sensitive missions under the Director of National Intelligence, thanks to its elite crew. Their latest assignment brings them into even more dangerous waters, where they hunt down a murderous drug cartel boasting biochemical weapons, along with an international crime syndicate that knows how to hold a grudge. The rugged crew returns for more deadly sea chases and shootouts, though there is an added layer of cloak-and-dagger espionage in this latest installment.
Hochsmann’s meticulous prose continues to hum with lived experience and authenticity, while the relationships onboard the Kauai only deepen in complexity. Despite the patriotic nature of this swashbuckling series, there are also moments of brutal honesty about the challenges and issues within the US military – from unwieldy chains of command to the expendable nature of dedicated servicemen. The author’s ability to craft a blockbuster story while weaving in critical themes of trust, honor, and independence is a testament to his nuanced perspective on the complex subject matter… this gripping maritime thriller delivers in every way.
Encarta Publishing:
With plenty of challenging missions, including the face-off with the drug cartel and crime syndicate, Caribbean Counterstrike takes readers on a wild ride. The story also comes with a sweet subplot as Ben and Victoria try to start a relationship while dealing with the constant distance and danger they often face.
Caribbean Counterstrike is the perfect follow-up to the series’ first novel Dagger Quest. Filled with action and adventure, mixed with a little romance, it is an ideal read for anyone that wants to escape from their daily lives for a few hours.
OSUV Carlos Rojas, under Tow, Isla de Barbello Harbor, Honduras
02:53 EDT, 6 April
Ben
Like Sam over on Kauai, Ben had to suppress the urge to jump every time lightning flashed out on the starboard side. The rain had passed entirely, and visibility was nearly perfect. Ben and Lopez had nothing to occupy their attention as the ships slowly moved out of the harbor, unlike their shipmates on the other vessel. He was thoroughly frightened and deduced Lopez was in the same state.
“So, Lope, when we were debriefing after the last one, Captain Mercier told us you would get some ‘special’ attention over at Law Enforcement School. Did that come to pass?”
“Oh, yeah, sir. While everyone else in my class was living the good life in Charleston every weekend, I was getting advanced small arms and personal defense training shoved up my ass!”
“I hear ya. I got the same thing up in Quantico. Like to freeze my ass off on that small arms range all day.” He winced again in the darkness as a long series of lightning flashes strobed across the starboard side. It was actually quite beautiful, the bolts weaving up from the surface of the Caribbean and then winding through and lighting up the clouds from within. He wished he could enjoy the view. “Quite a show.”
“No shit, sir,” Lopez said in a measured voice. “I’d prefer to see this movie in the next showing, though.”
Ben laughed, then looked forward in alarm as a searchlight lanced into the darkness from the promontory, followed by the sound of gunfire. “Shit!” He keyed his radio. “Alpha-Four, One, light off now!”
“Alpha-One, Four, roger, lighting off!” Brown replied.
As the first flare burst off to starboard, a muffled whirring sounded deep in the hull, followed by the rattling rumble from the smokestacks as the ship’s generator fired. The main engines needed a lot more power to turn over than the batteries could provide, so step one was getting a generator running.
As the generator’s noise topped out, a second, louder whirring came up from the engine spaces. Ben’s heart sank when the initial rumble of the large engine died away. A second main engine start sequence sounded a few seconds later, with the same result. Ben was about to key his radio, then thought better of it. An inquiry at this point would just distract Brown from his work. The sound of automatic gunfire came up from the well deck—the SEALs joined the fight with their heavy machine guns.
The fight between Kauai and the promontory was heating up, and Ben could hear the ‘thumps’ every half-second from the main gun and see the tracers streak across the water. Williams was doing a good job keeping the pressure on. So far, nothing more than small arms fire was being thrown their way. Suddenly, a flash followed by an enormous boom came from Kauai, and the main gun ceased firing. “Shit, shit, shit!” Ben exclaimed, pounding his fist on the helm console. After a few seconds, the rapid thumping and twenty-five-millimeter tracer streaks returned, and Ben let out an enormous sigh of relief.
Ben was about to comment on a second flare that had appeared almost overhead when an enormous blast threw him onto the deck. One moment he was standing there; the next, he was flat on his face, covered in broken glass. “Lope!”
“Here, sir! I’m OK!” the young petty officer said as he got to his knees.
Ben looked behind the Bridge. The rocket had apparently hit the port smokestack, which was now shredded. He had just gotten to his feet and pulled Lopez up when the second rocket hit the foredeck. This time, the forward windows shattered, and the two men were thrown down again. Worse, shrapnel from the explosion sliced through some outer strands of the towing hawser. Given the enormous strain the line was under, there could be only one result: the cascade of individual strand failures in milliseconds merged into one loud “Bang.” The two new ends shot away from the breakpoint, one slamming into Carlos Rojas’s superstructure with a loud “clang” and the other falling into the water just short of Kauai.
Ben looked forward in shock as they got to their feet again, then keyed his tactical radio. “Alpha-Four, Alpha-One, we just lost the towline. We need main engines now, or we’re dead!”
“Almost there, sir! We’ve fixed the problem and are closing up now!”
“For God’s sake, hurry!”