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Conquest: a Historical Novel of Kamehameha the Great
This historical novel, set in 1793, continues the saga of Kamehameha as he continues his battles to unite the chain of the Hawaiian Islands (Splintered Paddle). Hero Kalani and his wife have settled onto his Maui farmland seeking a peaceful life. In the night, Kalani wakens to the horror of torch-carrying attackers setting fire to his Maui village. Those trying to escape are killed by tattooed, masked men. Burnt to death is his wife. His dream of a peaceful life free from battles is ended. Were the killers a fierce, secret warrior group, the pahupu? Kalani sets out to find and kill them. To escape from murder by a high chief who accuses him of heresy, and a false noble status-the wearing of feather cloak and helmet, Kalani seeks the aid of one of Kamehameha's wives, a former lover. On a search to find pahupu, an English sea captain, Vancouver, takes a liking to him and asks him to find the killers of crew members. A twisted path unfolds as he searches for the killers of his wife and aids Vancouver. Peace in the islands is shattered by the king of Oahu. He threatens Kamehameha leading to great battles in Waikiki and the cliffs of Nuuanu. Throughout the ordeals, Kalani realizes that his risky adventures in the past led to the deaths of people he loved. Well researched, the battle scenes are based on actual historical battles.
352 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 27, 2020
3 people are currently reading
9 people want to read
About the author
Bill Fernandez
17 books5 followersBorn and raised on the tiny Pacific island of Kauai in the Hawaiian Islands, Bill enjoyed a childhood unlike most because the ocean was steps away and summer temperatures all year round. His family built a large movie theater on the island (Roxy) which introduced Bill to a much larger world.
Then the soldiers arrived: 40,000 GIs four months after Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. Life changed: gas masks, machine gun nests, curfews enforced by armed soldiers, rationing of gas and food. Bill adapted: he built a shoe shine kit, ran errands for candy and cigarettes for the GIs, and worried about a Japanese invasion. Family worried about internment of Japanese.
After graduation from Kamehameha Schools for Hawaiian children, Bill entered Stanford University, and graduated with BA and law degrees (JD). Law practice in Sunnyvale, CA, (future home of Silicon Valley) led to a judicial appointment to the Santa Clara County, CA, bench where he served more than twenty years.
Retired, Bill and his wife Judie traveled and then settled into a family home in Kapaa where Bill began his writing career. First, a memoir about the family movie theater, then two memoirs about his childhood adventures, and three novel series (Grant Kingsley, John Tana, and Kalani). The novels feature native Hawaiian men, heroes trying to understand and adapt to the foreign invasion of Western Capitalism and religion. The novels are well researched and historically accurate.
The last two historical novels begin in the late 1700s, during pre-Western contact when Kamehameha the Great fought battles to unite the islands under one ruler. The hero is Kalani, a young Hawaiian man sent by his mother to become a warrior for Kamehameha to protect her and his sisters from slavery. He has much to learn. First: he has no genealogy to protect him from higher ranks, is threatened but survives, learns about women, slavery, treachery, guns and cannon, as well as human sacrifice. The second novel in this series, Conquest, begins when Kalani's wife is burned to death during a vicious nighttime attack on his farmland. He seeks revenge on the masked killers. Kalani spies for Kamehameha, helps Captain George Vancouver, disguises himself as a priest of Lono, and fights in dramatic battles set on Oahu.
All of the novels are well researched and reviewed by Kirkus.
Then the soldiers arrived: 40,000 GIs four months after Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. Life changed: gas masks, machine gun nests, curfews enforced by armed soldiers, rationing of gas and food. Bill adapted: he built a shoe shine kit, ran errands for candy and cigarettes for the GIs, and worried about a Japanese invasion. Family worried about internment of Japanese.
After graduation from Kamehameha Schools for Hawaiian children, Bill entered Stanford University, and graduated with BA and law degrees (JD). Law practice in Sunnyvale, CA, (future home of Silicon Valley) led to a judicial appointment to the Santa Clara County, CA, bench where he served more than twenty years.
Retired, Bill and his wife Judie traveled and then settled into a family home in Kapaa where Bill began his writing career. First, a memoir about the family movie theater, then two memoirs about his childhood adventures, and three novel series (Grant Kingsley, John Tana, and Kalani). The novels feature native Hawaiian men, heroes trying to understand and adapt to the foreign invasion of Western Capitalism and religion. The novels are well researched and historically accurate.
The last two historical novels begin in the late 1700s, during pre-Western contact when Kamehameha the Great fought battles to unite the islands under one ruler. The hero is Kalani, a young Hawaiian man sent by his mother to become a warrior for Kamehameha to protect her and his sisters from slavery. He has much to learn. First: he has no genealogy to protect him from higher ranks, is threatened but survives, learns about women, slavery, treachery, guns and cannon, as well as human sacrifice. The second novel in this series, Conquest, begins when Kalani's wife is burned to death during a vicious nighttime attack on his farmland. He seeks revenge on the masked killers. Kalani spies for Kamehameha, helps Captain George Vancouver, disguises himself as a priest of Lono, and fights in dramatic battles set on Oahu.
All of the novels are well researched and reviewed by Kirkus.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
July 12, 2020
The protagonist, Kalani, is a very likable character. He and his sidekick Moki get involved in the politics of the day, meaning fighting in some of the more notable battles of the time. I hope to read more stories with this character.
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