by Judith Fernandez (Contribution by), Bill Fernandez (Author)
When a sugar baron kicks John Tana off his farmland on Maui in the mid-1800s, the orphan Hawaiian seventeen-year-old feels the shock of the dramatic change in land control in the Hawaiian Kingdom. As John tries to find his way in the new Western-controlled world, he struggles with private property rules and the new religion. John Tana is the first novel in a planned trilogy revealing the tragic displacement all commoner Hawaiians felt in the 19th century as the monarchy weakened. John sails his canoe to Lahaina, Maui, seeking distant relatives. He finds them as well as whalers and seamen who control the town and torment him. He meets relatives Aunt Malia, David, and a beautiful young cousin, Leinani. His romantic interest gets slapped down by his aunt, a Christian. John befriends a Chinese man who is threatened by business competitors, finds out a hired killer is after him, and knows he must leave so his family sails for the island of Oahu. Life in Honolulu is more complicated. When a Chinese man kills his white employer, racism erupts. John convinces him to surrender to the police and finds a Hawaiian lawyer for him. The newspapers call him a hero. Leinani is sent to a strict girls school, and he leaves for the mountains to study the forbidden martial art of lua. He meets a king who recruits him for a militia, a French girl who falls in love with him, and learns that the killer has found him. In a dramatic meeting, Leinani learns the truth about her ancestry. Realizing he can marry her, John tries to see her but she commits to marrying a rich American before he can talk to her. Then the killer strikes. John knows he must leave the island and escapes in his canoe to Kauai Island. The second novel of the trilogy, Gods, Ghosts and Kahuna on Kauai, will be available in late 2017.
Author Biography
In the first novel in the trilogy of the hero John Tana, half Native Hawaiian author Bill Fernandez reveals the devastation of Native Hawaiians from the invasion of Western capitalism and religion in the mid-1800s. The story ends in the third novel set during the overthrow of the Kingdom in 1893. Bill's extensive research creates a dramatic story of the clash of values which continues to impact the lives of Native Hawaiians. Born on Kauai, educated at Kamehameha Schools for children of Hawaiian ancestry and Stanford University and its law school, Bill's legal career in California culminated in serving as a judge in Santa Clara County Courts. After retiring to his hometown on Kauai, Bill explores his Hawaiian background, history, and life in memoirs and novels. He enjoys giving author and historical talks. Bill serves on the Juvenile Justice State Advisory Commission, the board of a social service agency on Kauai, Hale Opio, and the Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce, and served as president of the Kauai Historical Society.