While this novel is purely fictional, and the characters and story arose out of my imagination, there are places, people and events in this book that are inspired by real places, people and events. Certain facts have been tweaked for the sake of story.
In the 1943 story line, the Dungeon, also known as Station Hypo, was a real place where highly classified work was done. It was here—and at a few other key places like Washington, DC, and the Philippines—where enemy messages were decrypted that helped the Allies win the war. This was where Joe Rochefort worked, and he and his men were instrumental in winning the battle of Midway. Though there were no women in the Dungeon (to my knowledge), over ten thousand women worked tirelessly on cracking German and Japanese ciphers and codes throughout the war. These women were our secret superpower, and they did everything from breaking major codes to translating messages to traffic analysis. I was inspired by a few particular women, especially those who worked on the Japanese cipher machine Purple (what I call Magenta, though Purple was actually solved much earlier) and JN-25, the Japanese naval code.
Operation Vengeance and the shooting down of Admiral Yamamoto’s plane was a pivotal part of the war in the Pacific, and a major blow to Japan. It was a daring feat with terrible odds of success, but succeed they did. I found the book Lightning Strike: The Secret Mission to Kill Admiral Yamamoto and Avenge Pearl Harbor by Donald A. Davis to be highly informative as well as a fascinating read. The real pilots who made up the “killer” flight to actually take down Yamamoto’s plane were Captain Thomas G. Lanphier Jr., Lieutenant Rex T. Barber, Lieutenant Besby F. Holmes and Lieutenant Raymond K. Hine. And the pilots chosen to cover the “killer” pilots and provide backup were Major John Mitchell, Lieutenant William Smith, Lieutenant Gordon Whittiker, Lieutenant Roger Ames, Captain Louis Kittel, Lieutenant Lawrence Graebner, Lieutenant Doug Canning, Lieutenant Delton Goerke, Lieutenant Julius Jacobson, Lieutenant Eldon Stratton, Lieutenant Albert Long and Lieutenant Everett Anglin.
Otto Kuehne (full name Bernard Julius Otto Kuehn) was a German national convicted in Hawai‘i as a spy in early 1942. He used his family to help gather information on American forces and sent it to Japanese consulates. Otto was sentenced to death by firing squad, but after the war he was deported to Germany. Regarding the Tomimura message that helps prove Fuchs was a spy, there really was a navy yeoman named Harry Thompson, who was recruited by the Japanese in the 1930s to board ships and provide engineering, tactical and gunnery info about the US Pacific Fleet in San Diego. Famed cryptanalyst Agnes Meyer Driscoll had a hand in deciphering an intercepted message that helped nail him. The real Thompson was convicted and sentenced to fifteen years in prison, though had it been wartime, he would have most likely received the death penalty.
In the 1965 story line, the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel is indeed a real place, and I tried to stick to the facts as much as possible regarding the hotel itself and Laurance Rockefeller. In July of 1965 the hotel opened with big fanfare, and there was a VIP weekend with Mr. Rockefeller’s special guests. However, the characters in this novel are my own creations, as was the story line—there was no murder on the opening weekend. My grandparents were at the opening of the hotel. They lived in Waimea in the 1970s, and whenever we went to visit them, they’d take us to brunch and then set us free on the beach. It was always a highlight of our trips and I have fond memories. Also, since then, I’ve spent countless hours swimming, snorkeling, paddling, hiking, sailing and surfing in Kauna‘oa Bay and up and down the Kohala Coast, so I know the hotel and the area well. It truly is a magical and special place, and I hope I’ve done it justice in my descriptions.
I can’t even believe that I have five books out in the world now and a bunch more stewing in my brain. Being an author is a dream come true for me! I am grateful to everyone who helped me give birth to this novel. My wonderful agent, Elaine Spencer, who helps guide me every step of the way. My talented and extraordinarily insightful editor, Margot Mallinson, who has such skill for drastically improving my stories, and the whole team at MIRA, who have all been great champions of my work. It really does take a village to put a book out into the world, and I feel blessed to have such a fabulous village. Also, it takes a patient man to live with me when I am writing and have my head in the clouds much of the time—forgetting to screw on the lid to the peanut butter or rinse the sand off my feet—so thank you to my loving boyfriend, Todd Clark. I’m also very thankful for the sharp eye of William Hochman, aka Bulldog 6, who helped me with technical and WWII details, as well as just being a huge support overall. And to all my friends who help me brainstorm and come up with book ideas and mull things over with me and read early copies, you know who you are. Malia and Dolan Eversole helped me plot this one—thanks guys. It truly has been an honor to write these WWII Hawai‘i stories, and I thank each and every one of you for reading them. Mahalo nui loa!