Abhcan's Little Daggers (Novel Series)

**Abhcan's Little Daggers** is a novel series by Finnegan Scríbhneoir of the Tribe of Cork, based on the story of Operation Spriocearcaitheoir, the SDF-Navy's Operations for trade protection between 1942 and 1948. It was the first major long-range deployment of the SDF-Navy and

## Books in the Series

### Abhcan's Little Daggers

In 1942, a trade convoy of six vessels steaming towards Dumhach, centred around the freighter *Arbhar*, is attacked without warning by submarines of unknown origin and nationality. As two further attack follow, the young SDF-Navy begins to implement Operation Spriocearcaitheoir, Operation Headhunter, the effort to secure the vital trading routes through the waters of the Free Lands against foreign incursions, dispatching a number of vessels to Shella, the midway point between the Archipelago and the Mainland.

This task group, centred around the light cruiser SDFS Abhcan and the freighter SDFS Miúil, mostly consists of small sloops of the Miodóg-class, one of them being *SDFS Stilín*, affectionally called Stilly by her young and inexperienced crew. Soon, they begin their first ASW-cruises, escort convois and experience both things about themselves, about life, the seas... and their enemies. Seeing ASW-Operations from the other side, the side of the surface vessel, suffering from the inexperience of the young SDF with long-range and long-term deployments, suffering from being away from home, from the Mainland for a longer time then anyone imagined, Shella becomes more then a just harbour as shore leave leads to the discovery of local sights, with relationships of all kinds soon blooming up.

Over several patrols, the sloops earn the nickname Abhcan's Little Daggers, seeing that most of them are named after various types of small knifes and commanded from the cruiser *SDFS Abhcan*.

However, despite the constant threat of submarine attack, a new enemy makes itself known: The Winter 1942/1943, the harshest winter in recorded history. Soon, the fight for naked survival begins as the submarines renew their attacks without prior warning...

The first novel was published shortly before the start of Winter in 2017. In the book made second place in the Sahsahlah Best Foreign Book Award, only loosing to *Taming Maiden* by Koh Matsu from the UIS of AHSCA. A movie based on the book was filmed in 2018 and is set to release in 2019.

### Summer Time

In 2018, shortly before the onset of winter, the second book was published, *Summer Time*, which deals with the summer of 1943 and the ASW-cruises in that time, the overwhelming boredom and cabin fever broken by the heavy fighting and convoy battles, which the SDF-Navy vessels fight against their still unidentified foe - if there is a foe?

As the stress gets to the sailors, conspiracies come up and go down and

### Flying Penguins

To be published in 2019, the novel will describe the air operations of Operation Spriocearcaitheoir, especially by the planes of SDFS Faoileán and her Shane Airworks Piongain Seaplane Fighters, which are pressed into a reconnaissance role as the Snámhán fails and the Débheathach is pulled from active service.

### 'Book 4'

To be published in 2020, no details are currently known.

### Fishing for Sharks

The book is set to deal with the Squalo-Incident of 1945, when Abhcan's Little Daggers force the Lutetiian Submarine *Squalo* to surface shortly before they depart for the Mainland for refits. It is set to release in 2021.

In it, *SDFS Stilin* will only play a minor role as the action will shift to *SDFS Aeval* and her mission to Lutetii with the crew of *Squalo* aboard to prevent a war - but hawks wait to strike on either side.