Vengeance is Mine

About the Book

When Kate MacKinnon hears that Nikki Trixx, a Waikiki prostitute, has been found murdered on a sacred Hawaiian he‘iau, she is appalled. To Hawaiians, a heiau luakini is the most sacred of shrines, for it is there that their ancestors offered up human sacrifices. Kate knows there will be trouble—from politicians, Hawaiian sovereignty activists, and racists—each group accusing the others of the desecration. Near Julia’s body, Kate discovers a Holy card titled “Pride” —a strange, terrifying creation straight out of Hiëronymus Bosch. As Kate struggles to solve the mystery of a Waikiki serial killer, we find ourselves caught in a carnival fun house mirror. Assumptions glimmer, alter, and magically disappear. When Kate is finally rescued from peril, we learn that friends and enemies, and the innocent and the guilty, are not always who they seem.

About the Author

Elaine Hatfield, Professor of Psychology at the University of Hawaii, has written 12 books—two of which won the American Psychological Association’s National Media Award.

Richard L. Rapson, Professor of History at the University of Hawaii, has also written a dozen books, most of which have focused on the psychology of American life, past and present. He has been a T.V. moderator, Dean of New College, and named by the Danforth Foundation as one of the nation’s best teachers.

Together the authors have published a sextet of serious novels and detective stories.