Historical Fiction/Nautical Fiction
Date Published: June 23, 2026
Publisher: Acorn Publishing
The murder of his wife at the hands of British soldiers prompts American privateer Captain Jonas Hawke’s vow to make Britain pay.
A grief-stricken Jonas strikes deep into the heart of the enemy, driven by his personal vendetta. When he raids a port city, one of his men crosses an unthinkable line, which forces Jonas to come to terms with the anguish that distorts his definition of justice.
Concerned his wrath will bring irreparable harm to the cause for America’s freedom, Jonas grapples with his role as a warrior and as a man. When he learns the Royal Navy is hunting his ship, he fears his deadly decisions may have cost him and his crew everything. It’s too late to turn back. Instead, he must continue on and face the inevitable perils of war.
Perilous Shores is a gripping, action-packed, and historically authentic tale of revenge, survival, and one man’s relentless pursuit of his country’s independence.
What is the hardest part of writing
your books?
ANSWER: Rewriting/revising them! I always end up cutting scenes or parts
of scenes that were fun to write, but do not move the story along, and thus are
extraneous.
What are your most played songs?
ANSWER: I can’t write with real music playing, whether instrumental or
with lyrics. I have an app called Endel that helps take that part of my brain
that distracts me and sends it off to la-la land, so I can focus. But my most
played music of late is the Broadway cast recording of Operation Mincemeat. It
gets me in a creative mood because the folks who wrote it were incredibly
creative to take a real world military deception operation and turn it into a
musical comedy that is factually accurate, and at the right moments
appropriately respectful and somber, and still have wonderful songs!!
Do you have critique partners or beta
readers?
ANSWER: Beta readers have become indispensable for me! I trust and need
their insights, and they catch problems with the story that I just wouldn’t see
without their input. I haven’t tried critique partners yet, but another Naval
Academy classmate has asked me to aid him in his first fiction attempt, and
we’ve pretty much agree that’s the approach we’ll take for the relationship.
What book are you reading now?
ANSWER: I’m finishing a book on the Penobscot Expedition, as well as
reading a thriller called The Organization: Operative Nova. I read across
genres and enjoy all of them. Even romance!
How did you start your writing career?
ANSWER: I’ve been writing in high school. My first story was sold in
1991 to a San Diego sci-fi paper called The Omega Chronicles, which is sadly
defunct – not due to my story!. The “career” part really started when, after
attending a writers conference for about four years, I finally mustered up the
courage to show my work to Holly Kammier, the co-owner of my now-publisher,
Acorn Publishing. She told me to rewrite chapter one from scratch, but that if
that came out well, they’d be willing to work with me, so long as I agreed to
send the material through a developmental edit. Needless to say, I agreed!
Tell us about your next release.
ANSWER: The MS I just finished is titled Treadnought and is the
third installment in Jonas Hawke’s journey through the American Revolution.
He’s still fighting at sea, and eventually becomes part of the Continental
Navy. He also unfortunately is ordered to participate in the Penobscot
Expedition. That’s all I should say to avoid spoilers! It should come out early
next year, perhaps in March.
After that, I’ll focus on my World War II novel in two volumes, then
turn to Jonas’s son, William. At least, that’s the plan for now. It could be
derailed by whatever historical shiny object next attracts my attention! A
Naval Academy classmate, friend, and fellow author would like me to write more
Jonas story, and she got me thinking….But World War II is definitely next!
About the Author
Tom’s first novel, Against All Enemies, earned gold medals from the Military Writers Society of America and Literary Titan. In Harm’s Way, the first in the Sea Hawkes Chronicles series has also garnered several awards.
He resides in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife and daughter and a cat and a dog. Whatever free time he has is still spent on the water.
For more about the author and to follow his blog about nautical and naval trivia, visit his website ThomasMWing.com.
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