The Ninja’s Oath
By Tori Eldridge
Review by James L’Etoile
The Ninja’s Oath
Tori Eldridge
Agora Books
$27.99
978-1957957319
September 12, 2023
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In The Ninja’s Oath, the fourth installment of Tori Eldridge’s Lily Wong series, our favorite ninja finds herself enmeshed in international intrigue, warring gang factions, and family secrets. Lily receives an urgent message to help find a missing girl in the rural countryside outside of Shanghai. It becomes more than Lily can handle alone.
Lily’s longtime family friend and former Triad enforcer asks for her help to locate and rescue his kidnapped twelve-year-old niece. The search becomes more complicated by long-standing family feuds and traditions.
Their mission is complicated by a feud between brothers, old resentments, and intrigues entwined with the stunning history of the city itself. Lily gets tangled in a web of Triad violence and finds herself aided by an all too familiar assassin. Pushed to her limits, she faces insurmountable odds and worries about her father’s failing health.
As the story unfolds secrets are revealed about the identity of her ninja teacher—known only as Sensei—and the truth behind why he left Japan. The Ninja’s Oath is the best in this series, and the characters will draw you into a world few will ever experience. Adrenaline-fueled action and a richly drawn plot will make you keep turning pages late into the night. Family, secrets, and fighting against the odds, you best never count Lily out.
Lily’s creator, Tori Eldridge has agreed to talk with us about Lily and the popular series.
Lily is such a great, multi-faceted character. Where did you come up with the idea for a kick-ass protagonist like her?
Lily appeared to me while writing a short story with a ninja twist at the end. I realized immediately that I had written the origin scene for a kick-ass heroine who honors her murdered sister by dedicating her life and martial arts skills to protecting and rescuing women and children from violence. To make Lily Wong as authentic and multi-faceted as possible, I drew from my own Chinese-Norwegian heritage and my experience as a fifth-degree black belt in To-Shin Do ninja martial arts.
The Ninja’s Oath story revolves around Lee Chang and his family, whose history is entwined into the history of Shanghai. How did you go about your research? What came first: the characters, setting, or plot?
Ever since I visited our son and his future Hongkonger wife in Shanghai, I knew I would take Lily to that city, involving her father’s Shanghainese cook. For this reason, I wrote Lee Chang into The Ninja Betrayed (book three) to help Lily with the Triads in Hong Kong. During that process, I established his surprising Hong Kong birth and former enforcer position with the Shanghai Black Scorpion Society.
In order to find the story for The Ninja’s Oath, I researched Shanghai’s history and invented a genealogy for Lee Chang that entwined around the pivotal historical events from the late 1800s to present day that would also overlap with triads and Hong Kong. Since I was fascinated by the renovated apartment my son had rented in a classic shikumen house in the Former French Concession, I made it one of Lee’s rental properties in the FFC and wove his family’s story around a more rustic shikumen house in Old Shanghai. The story emerged from there.
Fun fact: My granddaughter was born in Shanghai!
The Ninja’s Oath is the fourth book in the Lily Wong series. Did you have any specific goals in mind to make this new adventure exciting and fresh? Do readers need to read the previous books?
Since all four books take place within a four-month window of time, I wanted The Ninja’s Oath to act as an exciting conclusion to the set. I brought back J Tran, the enigmatic assassin from The Ninja Daughter (book one), who haunts Lily in The Ninja’s Blade and makes a surprising appearance in The Ninja Betrayed. He’s one of my (and my readers’) favorite characters. He also has unfinished business with Lily that I wanted to resolve. I also wanted to finally tell Sensei’s story, see him in action, and explore the reason he left Japan. That said, new readers can drop straight into The Ninja’s Oath without missing a beat.
You always make me hungry when I’m reading a Lily story. Why is food such an important part of her life?
You and me both! Since Lily and I share the same passion for awesome food and tea, I’ve written many of our favorites into the books. The Haiwanese Chicken Rice restaurant in Shanghai was one of my favorite places to eat during my trip. Now, I prepare it at home. The “Die Die Must Try” slogan in The Ninja’s Oath scene was written in chalk on their board. I write extensively about the food and tea because it serves as a window into Lily’s culture, family, and friends.
The Lily Wong series balances family drama with action and mystery for the same reason. There is no way to properly understand a Chinese-Norwegian character like Lily who is twenty-five years old and finding her way as an adult without framing her within the context of family and how they impact, guide, and interfere with her life.
Ninjutsu isn’t well known by the public at large, yet both you and your protagonist have trained extensively in this martial art. Can you tell us what goes on in the training to become a black belt in this discipline?
You’re very right. Most people think of ninjas as pajama-clad assassins from Feudal Japan, possibly with magical powers, often portrayed as deadly mercenaries in action movies and thrillers. From my decades of involvement, I have found ninjutsu and To-Shin-Do—the contemporary evolution founded by Stephen K. Hayes and Rumiko Hayes—to be an empowering, comprehensive, and benevolent martial art.
Ninjutsu is exceedingly hard to master because it requires the practitioner to apply the appropriate and most effective technique, strategy, and concepts with specific adversaries in an ever-changing moment. Unlike Tang Soo Do (in which I hold a black belt) or kickboxing and Wushu (which I have studied) where the student masters a set of choreographed kata and/or fighting scenarios they can use in sparing or competitive situations, the ninja arts originated for combat, protection, and survival.
My journey was unique in that I trained partially in a dojo, but mostly under the guidance of my own Mr. Miagi-like sensei. Since I had the luxury of not needing to work and possessed the extensive movement background and focus from a previous career in dance, I advanced very quickly. I traveled several times each year to seminars where I could learn from highly skilled teachers from a variety of schools, lineages, and organizations. I also incorporated esoteric and spiritual practices into my lifelong meditation rituals and daily life. When I attained my Godan level in To-Shin Do, I was invited to many states in the USA to teach.
What’s in store for Lily next?
Look for a Lily Wong crossover story in the upcoming JOE LEDGER: UNBREAKABLE anthology, out November 10.
Tori Eldridge is the bestselling author of THE NINJA’S OATH, book four in the Lily Wong thriller series, twice nominated for the Anthony Award, Lefty and Macavity Awards finalist, and winner of the 2021 Crimson Scribe for Best Book of the Year. Her Brazilian dark fantasy thriller, DANCE AMONG THE FLAMES, was inspired by her Academy Nicholl Fellowship semi-finalist screenplay. Tori’s shorter works appear in numerous anthologies, including CRIME HITS HOME and Weird Tales Magazine. Before writing, Tori performed as an actress, singer, dancer on Broadway, television, film, and earned a 5th-degree black belt in To-Shin Do ninja martial arts. She is of Hawaiian, Chinese, Norwegian descent, born and raised in Honolulu, and resides in Los Angeles. Tori's deep interest in world culture has prompted her to visit nine countries, including Brazil, China, and Japan. Learn more about her at www.torieldridge.com.