(Originally published on Instagram, @makiialucier)

One of the great pleasures of writing Dragonfruit was in choosing my character and place names, because they are island names. I didn’t limit myself to any one island or region. They come from all over the Pacific, beautiful, unique names. I’ve shared a few below. (The island kingdom of Tamarind is named after a favorite childhood snack, by the way. The tamarind seed. And Garapan comes from a village on the Northern Mariana island of Saipan, where I was born.) ♥️ DRAGONFRUIT will be on bookshelves April 9, 2024.



Anaa
Catamara
Chesa
Emere
Fetu
Gafao
Garapan
Hanalei
Isko
Jejomar
Kalama
Liko
Moa
Nominomi
Oke
Oliana
Olifat
Penina
Piti
Papeete
Rakakala
Rona
Salamasina
Saudeleur
Tamarind
Taga
Tarisso
Vaea
Viti