Read more
When Mauna Loa awakens, survival depends on the wisdom of the past. Hilo Dome: Volume 2 fuses Hawaiian mythology, post-apocalyptic suspense, and expert wayfinding in a high-stakes odyssey where culture, community, and courage are the only paths to salvation.Hilo Dome: Volume 2 — When Pele awakens, survival depends on ancient ways.In the aftermath of the Great War, Nathan Ohana and his crew aboard the canoe
Kaulele must find safety as earthquakes and eruptions threaten to destroy Hilo. Guided by traditional Hawaiian navigation, they set out across dangerous seas, hoping to lead their community to refuge before the land is swallowed by fire.
Their journey takes them to abandoned islands and fragile outposts of survivors, where old grudges and cultural divides test their resolve. The crew must weigh survival against tradition, progress against the wisdom of the past, as they navigate both the ocean and the shifting loyalties of those they encounter.
Jack Bartley blends Hawaiian mythology, post-apocalyptic survival, and the art of wayfinding in this second volume of the
Hilo Dome series. As Madame Pele’s fury builds on Mauna Loa, Nathan and his crew discover that the greatest challenge lies not in outrunning the fire, but in holding fast to the values that can carry their people beyond it.
About the author
Jack Bartley lived on Oʻahu for almost five years while serving as an officer in the U.S. Navy in the 1970s, completing a WestPac/Vietnam tour on a Knox-class destroyer escort during that time. He later returned to the East Coast to earn his Ph.D. in ecology and became an associate professor at the University of Delaware. For fifteen years, Jack brought UD students to Hawaiʻi each January to study reef systems, volcanic origins, evolution, and Polynesian culture.
His column
Educational Perspectives appeared monthly in the
Newark Post for ten years. He published the romantic comedy
Public Ed – A Novel in 2005, which remains available as an e-book. His fictionalized memoir of his time in the U.S. Navy,
Smoke on the Water, was published by Koehler Books on April 15, 2025. The first book of his young adult series,
Hilo Dome, was released by Histria Books on May 27, 2025, to be followed by
The Seekers and
The World Awakens.
Beyond writing, Jack has released two CDs of Celtic folk music with his former band “So’s Your Mom” and recently completed mixing a double CD of Americana music with his duo “Whiskey Creek.”
Now retired, he devotes his time to writing and music. Jack also serves as a docent at the James Farm Ecological Preserve near his home in Ocean View, Delaware, where he lives with his wife, Susan, Jesse the Dog, and Clementine the Cat.
