Running the Union blockade starts as just a daring adventure, but rapidly turns into a rescue mission in The Blockade Runners! This short story by Jules Verne is free for Kindle and many other formats!
Captain James Playfair has designed, and with the help of his rich uncle Vince, built the Dolphin, a steam powered blockade runner that’ll make a quick profit running supplies to desperate Confederates. When the obligatory sea-going adventure’s pretty-girl-disguised-as-a-cabin-boy turns up, Playfair follows his heart to rescue her uncle, a captive abolitionist journalist.
This is a fun short story by Verne. It isn’t nearly as involved as his longer works, but I certainly enjoyed it.
The Blockade Runners, free for Kindle