HNF Short Stories
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Anthologies : Companion Books : Related Books : Short Stories : Other Naval & Nautical Genres
This section gives details of short stories that have been written
The Corsican Sisters
- Details
- By: David Donachie
- Short Stories
Flushed with an unwarranted feeling of success, having captured a French Corvette, Charles Wormwood is treating what is no more than a scratch as a proper wound. But he must consider how to carry on the mission given his now dead superior, he now being the man in command of HMS Petra.
Can he find an anchorage for the British Fleet blockading Toulon? At the same time he must discern the state of matters on the island of Corsica: is there support for Britannia or will the islanders’ actively back Revolutionary France, which will make the aims of the Royal Navy near impossible.
With his capture secure and sailing in his wake, Wormwood heads for Ajaccio, one of the three important towns on the island, there to assess local feeling. On landing, with due care to his own safety, in the company of Kissock and a pair of marines, he makes for the citadel which overlooks the town, Almost convinced it’s abandoned, he is presented with the fabulous sight of a creature by the name of Pozzo di Borgo.
- Title: The Corsican Sisters
- Series: The Wormwood Saga
- First Published Format: Kindle
- First Published Date: 2 June 20
A Fleet to Command
- Details
- By: David Donachie
- Short Stories
The story continues from A Hero’s Curse. Having survived another potential catastrophe, which resulted in a slight wound, Lord Charles Wormwood must concentrate on his duties as Flag Lieutenant to Admiral Dangerfield. This is no easy task when he is daily traduced and insulted by the man’s wife. Not that her husband is immune: he too must suffer abuse and, being slow to respond, is usually on the receiving end of a second affront before he’s had time to deal with the first.
Wormwood doesn’t yet know whose side Dangerfield will come down on and it’s essential the man choose: no point in serving under such a superior if there is to be no gain, which for a favoured Flag Lieutenant is usually an independent command – a ship of his own, albeit a small one. The resources and deep pockets of Wormwood’s father, the Earl of Moidart, must be employed to seduce the man.
A top chef is brought down to Chatham from London, adding to the provision of food and wine of the kind the indebted admiral cannot afford. Some carefully timed reflections of Wormwood’s own, aimed the character of the man’s wife, pose the question. Forced to choose who to trust, will Dangerfield put his belly before matrimonial loyalty?
The day comes when they are finally off to war, so Mrs Dangerfield must depart the ship, leaving Wormwood a clear field. The fleet weighs for the Mediterranean, with the admiral, in his first independent command, full of swagger. He’s determined to meet and thump the enemy, thus earning the undying gratitude of the nation. Not if Charles Wormwood can help it.
- Title: A Fleet to Command
- Series: The Wormwood Saga
- First Published Format: Kindle
- First Published Date: 8 March 20
The Hero's Curse
- Details
- By: David Donachie
- Short Stories
1793: Fresh from the first engagement of a new war with Revolutionary France, Lord Charles Wormwood, though he has no real idea why, is hailed as a hero. An honest man would not accept the accolade – an honest man, to Wormwood, would thus be a fool!
Basking in his new found fame, the only sensible thing to do is milk it, which brings him into the sphere of Sir Andrew Braeburn, the most upright admiral in King George's Navy. It also makes him deeply attractive to the man’s daughter Kate, convinced she is both a beauty and a wit, when she is neither.
But Kate has her own qualities - rampant nymphomania combined with a quite ruthless addiction to getting her own way. She also has a parent who can see only good in her and will act to advance the career of the man his daughter has set her heart on marrying.
- Title: The Hero's Curse
- Series: The Wormwood Saga
- First Published Format: Kindle
Midshipman Wormwood: All at Sea
- Details
- By: David Donachie
- Short Stories
I've written many stories set in the 18th Century, detailing the activities of naval heroes, as well as villains and even, I suppose, raised the odd smile. Yet there were things to wonder and laugh at as well, many more to shock modern sensibilities. It is to these I have turned in The Wormwood Saga, a series of stories in what, I hope, will appeal to the readers’ sense of humour in the same way as, when writing them, it tickled mine.
Numerous books on Nelson's Navy tell of heroic deeds, as upright patriots sought to confound Britannia's enemies. Yet for every sailor committed to defeating his country's foes, there were many more with motives less upright, some expressing notions which today would be considered downright treasonous. In the late 18th Century, nothing could be gained without interest or the aid of the powerful and wealthy, while the spectre of poverty was ever-present. There were no cracks in social provision, they were chasms and one simple error could damn any man or woman to a precipitous fall. Given such jeopardy was a daily concern, it was seen perfectly acceptable to look to one's own concerns as well as, and even prior to, the needs of the nation. In the narrative of the wars against the French, these characters and their activities have been alluded to but, in truth, mostly lightly brushed over. No more! The Wormwood Saga seeks to redress this imbalance by taking you into the world of men, both civilian and serving, who saw the public purse as an extension of their own, of time serving captains and useless admirals, of the ingrates who pandered to the wishes of the rich and politically well-connected, as well as the devious activities of a lower deck often wiser and more self-serving than their superiors.
- Title: Midshipman Wormwood: All at Sea
- Series: The Wormwood Saga
- First Published Format: Kindle
- First Published Date: 2 June 2020
Nelson: The Powder Keg
- Details
- By: Jan Needle
- Short Stories
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It is 1782 and England’s Royal Navy rules the waves. But one impatient young captain is far from happy merely policing the maritime highways. ‘We need some action, Tim, some proper action with steel and smoke and powder. Blood and Glory, Hastie! That is what we need.’ These are the words and dreams of the young Horatio Nelson, whose lust for war and honour is so consuming he is even prepared to disobey the orders of his Admiralty and Government superiors. Nelson: The Powder Keg is the third in a series by Jan Needle that looks at some of the lesser known and sometimes shocking exploits of the Norfolk clergyman’s son before he became one of the country's most iconic heroes. Once again, the story is recounted by his friend Tim Hastie, who this time joins him on board the 28-gun former French frigate the Albemarle. To his dismay Nelson – health ravaged by years in the disease-ridden tropics – is sent on escort duty in the icy Baltic, and from there to Canada with bullion to pay the British Army in Quebec, where his ship’s sails get frozen to the yards. With the American War of Independence over, it is all too tame for Horatio, who is desperate to seek glory on the Caribbean Station. When he finally gets there, and the French invade Turk’s Island, the intensely patriotic Nelson can’t believe his luck – until his own counter-invasion goes horribly wrong. Returning to Britain, half in disgrace and with a wife most men think tragically unsuitable, he is on the verge of giving up the sea – or even, horror of horrors, joining the French Navy! The hated French, however, are his saviours. For it is now the 1790s, and the French Revolution has torn a gash in Europe. The growing chaos of their revolution reignites the war between the two countries, and Nelson, appointed to command the Agamemnon, finds himself in the Mediterranean, where his destiny takes some unexpected turns. One of them is his meeting with a beautiful young woman. She is called Emma Hamilton. |
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- Title: Nelson: The Powder Keg
- Series: The Nelson series
- First Published by: Endeavour Press
- First Published Format: Kindle
- First Published Date: 18 January 2017
Benedict Arnold's Navy: The Marines at Valcour Island
- Details
- By: David Perry
- Short Stories
- Title: Benedict Arnold's Navy: The Marines at Valcour Island
- First Published by: Griz Independent Publishing Resources
- First Published Format: Kindle
- First Published Date: 30 January 2016
Heart of Oak
- Details
- By: David Cook
- Short Stories
| 1799 |
It is December, 1799, and Captain of Marines Simon Gamble has been sent behind enemy lines to capture an impregnable fortress called Dominance on the Maltese island of Gozo. Gamble must lead his lightly-armed men against the prime veteran soldiers of France, in a daring and brutal fight where there can only be one winner. Success means freedom for the Gozitans from their French oppressors; failure means the marines face an unmarked grave on foreign soil. A hero and a soldier to some, but certainly no gentleman, Gamble; battle-scarred and haunted by the horrific bloodshed at the Siege of Acre prior to this mission, must fight a new guileful enemy, even if the price means life, death or dishonour. This is Gamble's toughest fight yet, and one he knows he cannot afford to fail. For the ultimate battle will be for revenge. Heart of Oak, is an authentic historical story set during the liberation of the Maltese Islands, the second novella in The Soldier Chronicles series. |
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- Title: Heart of Oak
- First Published Format: PB
- First Published Date: 28 June 2014
Reaper's Harvest
- Details
- By: Alec Merrill
- Short Stories
- Title: Reaper's Harvest
- First Published Date: 2016
Napoleon: The Escape
- Details
- By: Jan Needle
- Short Stories
| 1818 |
The Battle of Waterloo has been fought and won. Napoleon has been exiled to St Helena, left by the British to spend the rest of his days rotting away in obscurity. But many still worship him as a God amongst men, and are desperate to see him free to rule and fight for them once again. Samson Armstrong, an out-of-work ship’s captain, unwittingly stumbles on a plot to spring Napoleon from his imprisonment. Armstrong had been at sea during the Napoleonic Wars, commanding the ‘Tamarind’ for the East India Company. But with the war over, and Napoleon defeated, he has been sacked, like so many others, to scrape any living that he can. Now, he once again finds himself caught up in the skirmish, as he overhears Napoleon’s favourite assassin, the spy Ledru, cementing plans to rescue the exiled emperor, with a rag-tag band of ex-Army men – and the latest American invention, the submarine. They will go to any lengths to free the people’s ‘hero’ and revive the battle against British rule. Amongst those who have turned their back on the English government is Lord Cochrane, the once-famous frigate captain known as the ‘Sea Wolf.’ With impassioned speeches, and the promise of a hefty reward, Samson is persuaded to captain the ‘Tamarind’ for their cause. Meanwhile on the island, Napoleon has made himself dangerous enemies: the British governor in charge of him who despises his arrogant attitude, and a spurned mistress who has borne his child. Her new lover is the ex-dictator’s personal physician – and he is experimenting with arsenic... As the ship and the submarines near their destination the walls close in on Napoleon. Will Samson and the motley crew arrive to rescue him in time? What really happened on the island of St Helena? Did Napoleon die... or did he escape? ‘Napoleon: The Escape’ is a thrilling naval adventure story, combining fact and fiction to create one possible outcome for the many rumours which have surrounded Napoleon’s death. |
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Robber Crabs
- Details
- By: Joan Druett
- Short Stories
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Wiki had been enjoying life in the East Indies and the South China Sea. He could speak the local language, so had sailed happily on coastwise craft in the company of Bugis rogues and pirates. But then George Rochester had arrived on the Potomac, and while it had been delightful to get together with his old college friend, it had also ruined Wiki’s current existence.
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