Dagger Quest

An aging Coast Guard cutter is all that stands between the world and nuclear war.

As NATO and Russia edge toward open conflict in Europe, a Russian bomber collides with a U.S. fighter off the coast of Florida. In the chaos, a nuclear‑tipped hypersonic missile is accidentally launched—and vanishes from the sky.

Days later, the USCGC Kauai finds a drug‑laden sailboat smashed and adrift north of the Florida Keys. The wreckage tells a different story: the "lost" missile didn't harmlessly plunge into the Gulf of Mexico. It came down somewhere in the Keys.

Now the Kauai's crew is locked in a race against a vicious international crime syndicate to find the missing warhead first. If the wrong people get to it, the discovery of a single Russian nuke on American soil could ignite the war everyone fears.

Blending high‑stakes action with authentic Coast Guard detail, Dagger Quest follows the friendship, tension, and courage of a small‑ship crew pushed far beyond routine patrols. Readers who enjoy military and spy thrillers, sea adventures, and shows like Sea Patrol will feel right at home aboard the Kauai.

"Submerging readers in the octane-fueled action of America's coastal military, Dagger Quest by Edward M. Hochsmann is a highly entertaining cross between a seafaring adventure and a high-stakes military drama...  the authenticity of the prose and the detailed technical writing makes readers forget this isn't a direct account of an international incident. Hochsmann also captures the pace, attitude, hierarchy, and seriousness of life on board a cutter, evidence of his own law enforcement experience in the Coast Guard."           Self-Publishing Review