-- Order the book!! PAPERBACK
By Eric V. Lustbader
Fawcett Columbine (1990)
Reviewed by Robert Thompson 2/8/90
White Ninja is a continuation of the Nicolas Linnear series. Before reading WHITE NINJA, you really should read (or re-read) the previous books in the series; THE NINJA and THE MIKO.
Although Lustbader is one of my two favorite authors, I had a hard time getting through the first eight pages of this one. Talk about your gratuitous sex and violence! Once past the opening scene, however, the book is hard to put down.
Nicolas Linnear is an "All-American Boy" who just happened to have an oriental mother and grew up in Japan. He is the master of several forms of martial arts, a wealthy businessman who is an executive/co-owner of a very important Japanese electronics manufacturing firm.
He also has enemies: Business enemies and ancestral enemies. His business partner and best friend, Tanzan Nangi fends off the business enemies with consummate skill, at the same time providing support for Linnear in his battle with his ancestral enemies.
Linnear has something that a secret and very elite group of people want. They also want him dead. This group has a "rogue" who likes to kill just for the fun of it. Just as he is beset with all of these problems, Linnear looses all of his mental abilities which had allowed him to become a martial arts master.
At this point, I think that the author goes a bit too far. The enemies have powers that are a bit too magical to be believable. He has crossed the line from "just barely possible", to the "pretty darn unlikely". The book becomes a bit confusing at several points as Linnear tries to get back his abilities and come into the full knowledge of his heritage.
None-the-less, this book is a gripping tale, blending politics, business, technology, loyalty and betrayal. It is international in scope, although the focus is on Japan.
In many ways, some of the "supporting characters" are more interesting than the hero. Unfortunately, most of them end up dead, so it is unlikely that we will see them in future books, unless Lustbader somehow resurrects them.
One of the things that really impresses me about the author is his grasp of diverse fields. He knows how international economics work, is very up to date on his electronics technology, and in general seems just a few steps ahead of everyone else. It seems that all of his recent books have contained bits of information that the general public does not become aware of until a couple of months AFTER it is published in a Lustbader book.
Even though this is one of Lustbader's least satisfying "real time" books, it is still one of the best books that I have read in recent months. It's just not as good as I have come to expect from him.