This book blew me away! I was unable to but it down. Perfect, dazzlingly, very well written. The details the author described throughout the book was so amazing. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

artifact, family-dynamics, fraud, friendship, framed, fanatics, Hawaii, historical-places-events, historical-research, historical-setting, history-and-culture, law-enforcement, linguistics, murder, murder-investigation, relationship-issues, Washington state*****

Detective Kawika Wong has a Hawaii cop for a father and a mother from Washington state married to a judge, which meant that he spent his school years on the mainland and summers in Hawaii. And he loves the old school mystery detectives and Poe. The imagery is to die for (sorry) but some of the gore and minimal erotica is disquieting. But the exceptional and quite realistic characters as well as the plot make it all to the good. I was riveted despite the length! I geek history and this one is just full of well researched cultural and social history with a side order of the linguistics of the islands' language. I came for the mystery (and Hawaii) but stayed for the mystery, characters, history, and some intangibles.
I requested and received a free temporary copy from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

I would give this 2.5 stars! The concept was interesting and the setting was fantastic, but ultimately the writing could use a bit more work when it comes to moving the plot forward and developing the characters. I appreciate this idea a lot and think it was a good start.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

If I could make this 31/2 stars I would. Living where the bulk of this story takes place made this book interesting to me, but I found the story of Detective Kawika Wong a bit tedious and very convoluted. The murder of a high profile developer is given to the young Kawika to solve since it looks like a Native Hawaiian group maybe involved.
I didn’t particularly like some of the choices he made in his personal life either, and, without spoiling the end, it just didn’t hit the mark for me. Kawika solves the murder but a lot gets swept under the rug. I will read the next book I the series, and hope it gets a bit better.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

A young, inexperienced detective from the wet, working-class side of Hawaii's Big Island, Kawika Wong faces an uphill battle to gain the respect of his more seasoned colleagues. And he has the chance of a lifetime when Ralph Fortunato, the Mainland developer of an unpopular resort on the island's tourist side, is found murdered on a luxury golf course, an ancient Hawaiian spear driven through his heart. This was such an entertaining and well plotted story. The characters were all interesting and not your typical cookie cutter crime solvers. I really liked the protagonist and hope this author writes more in this series.