The Kaisho (82 page)
Authors: Eric Van Lustbader
Thanks to all at the Hotel Montalembert, Paris; the Gritti Palace, Venice, for all their assistance.
Thanks to Rosalind Andrews for her insight into the workings of WITSEC.
Nicholas Linnear’s air transportation is scheduled exclusively by Bob Kunikoff, Mark Allen Travel, NYC.
Most of all, to Victoria, for her sage advice and skillful editing.
The samurai were the nobility of the warrior class. But if a samurai fell into disgrace, he became a ronin – a mercenary without state or master. From these outlaws came the bandit clans, the Yakuza. Today the world’s largest criminal syndicate.
Now Nicholas Linnear, a shadow warrior bound to tradition and honour, finds himself forced by an old oath to protect the head of this vast network. The man they call the Kaisho.
“The Kaisho
offers readers high-intensity action and intrigue.... Lustbader seldom pulls punches, but neither is he overly graphic. He possesses enormous powers of both sensory and sensual detail
The Kaisho
[is] full of twists and turns and many surprises. Lustbader plots heavily and with deft complexity. He is decidedly not predictable, another fine gift.”
South Bend Tribune
“[Assassin Do Duc’s] early murder spree, described with customary relish, is a powerful prelude to the welcome reappearance of Nicholas Linnear, Lustbader’s most popular hero. He is teamed here with Lew Croaker, his ally from
The Ninja
and
The Miko
.... [
The Kaisho
]
proves as potent as... his previous bestsellers.”
Publishing News
(Great Britain)
“Taut in style... Lustbader writes well, his language transforming simple descriptions into stunning imagery.”
The Pilot
(Southern Pines, NC)
“The Kaisho
confirms Eric Lustbader as the Master of the Orient....”
The Press Syndicate
“The Kaisho
offers relevant warnings about a ‘new McCarthyism’ and a power struggle among Japanese and American mobs and legislatures....”
San Francisco Chronicle
“If you thought Oliver North’s gophers were up to no good in the lower depths of the White House—wait ’til you read the dirty dealings in [Eric Lustbader’s] provocative new page-turner.... His new spy thriller reveals secret soirees, deep throats dishing out devastating dirt, and top-level government intrigue—and it’s a darn good read....”
Shirley Eder,
WWJ News Radio
“A powerful, erotic story that... catches the reader up so thoroughly in its twisting tale of love and hate, weakness and strength, intrigue and revenge, that the book is nearly impossible to set aside.”
Houston Chronicle
“This season’s prime purveyor of goose bumps... one socko thriller... a splendidly shivery tale.”
Cosmopolitan
“Swiftly paced and fascinating... an intricately designed puzzle.”
Chicago Sun-Times
“Action, intrigue, Oriental philosophy and romance... Lustbader is a clever wordsmith who can paint vivid pictures.”
USA Today
“Lustbader has honed the brooding sensation of sudden, violent death... into a unique art form.”
Los Angeles Times
“Hitsville, for sure, this one.”
New York Daily News
“Rarely have I read a book that grabs you so fast in the opening scene, then keeps up the pace until the very last page. Goodbye sleep. Hello
First Daughter
.”
Jeffery Deaver
“The master of the smart thriller.”
Nelson Demille
“A seductive, sophisticated, authentic thriller. Finely conceived, brilliantly executed. Terrific.”
Steve Berry
“I’ve long been a fan of Eric Van Lustbader, and he’s at his heart-pounding best with
First Daughter
. Here are the chills you’ve been looking for.”
Tess Gerritsen
“Action, suspense and politics blended to perfection by a master. An automatic buy-today-read-tonight author.”
Lee Child
“Lustbader at his best. A twisted web of intrigue, violence, and double cross. A master storyteller.”
Publishers Weekly
E
RIC
V
AN
L
USTBADER
is the author of 25 international bestsellers, including the three most recent Jason Bourne novels:
The Bourne Legacy
,
The Bourne Betrayal
and
The Bourne Sanction
. His books have been translated into over 20 languages. He lives with his wife in New York City and Long Island.
You can connect with Eric via Twitter:
@EVanLustbader
,
To find out more visit his website:
www.ericvanlustbader.com
To discover more books by Eric Van Lustbader, click one of the links below:
The ancient Japanese art of death is practiced by a select few. Of those young men who are chosen to train in the way of the shadow warrior, most will fail. Those who pass these trials, the Ninja, become the silent assassins, lonely guardians, and unseen watchers of legend. But rarer still are those masters of the shadow craft, the Shiro – those whose fearsome abilities are matched only by their rigid code of honour. Men like Nicholas Linnear…
Out of the violent chaos of medieval Japan, a band of men from the mountain provinces rose to become some of the world’s most feared warriors. These men trained to perfect their art – a deadly union of martial skill and deception – to defend themselves against the warlords, samurai and bandits who sought to exploit them.
Hundreds of years later their name is a legend whispered down the generations. A select few are still trained in the ancient craft. Fewer still are selected to train at the feet of the most arcane practitioners of the shadow warriors...
Nicholas Linnear is one of these elect. And as the city of New York is terrorized by a ritualistic murderer, he may be the only man who can stop these killings. A ghost, an assassin, guided by honour and tradition: the Ninja.
The Ninja
is available
here
.
2.
The Miko
In ancient Japan they called them the Miko – the maidens of the shrine – women revered for their almost mystical powers who were rumoured to be the servants of the gods themselves.
Traditionally the Miko were a force for good, but the woman stalking the shadow warrior Nicholas Linnear seems bent on murder and revenge…
The Miko
is available
here
.
Many years ago two young men were trained by the same masters in the ancient art of the shadow warrior. One chose the path of the shiro – a life bound by honour and tradition. The other abandoned the code of the shadow warrior to follow a creed of blood and corruption.
Now following a spate of murders in Tokyo, the Shiro warrior Nicholas Linnear must finally confront his blood-brother…
White Ninja
is available
here
.
The samurai were the nobility of the warrior class. But if a samurai fell into disgrace, he became a ronin – a mercenary without state or master. From these outlaws came the bandit clans, the Yakuza. Today the world’s largest criminal syndicate.
Now Nicholas Linnear, a shadow warrior bound to tradition and honour, finds himself forced by an old oath to protect the head of this vast network. The man they call the Kaisho.
The Kaisho
is available
here
.
