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kkilburn's review against another edition
4.0
Unique heroine, great action, good mystery
I gobbled this book, Tori Eldridge's debut, like it was one of the Chinese food delicacies whipped up by protagonist Lily Wong's Norwegian father. And if that's not enough to spark your interest, Lily is also a modern ninja on a mission to save women and children from abuse and human trafficking. This is a very well crafted mystery with a unique heroine, a superbly developed sense of place, wonderful glimpses of Lily's, well, interesting family dynamics
I gobbled this book, Tori Eldridge's debut, like it was one of the Chinese food delicacies whipped up by protagonist Lily Wong's Norwegian father. And if that's not enough to spark your interest, Lily is also a modern ninja on a mission to save women and children from abuse and human trafficking. This is a very well crafted mystery with a unique heroine, a superbly developed sense of place, wonderful glimpses of Lily's, well, interesting family dynamics
thatothernigeriangirl's review against another edition
4.0
Remarkable and enjoyable!
You can’t help but fall in love with Lily Wong from the first chapter
You can’t help but fall in love with Lily Wong from the first chapter
cleanbooksarebetter's review against another edition
4.0
Very unlikeable protagonist at times, but I expect no less of a vigilante. Good writing, perfect story flow, I just thought our protag made some very dumb decisions over all. Good combat scenes. Sometimes graphic. I like how race is talked about, considering both the protag and the author are Eurasian. Author is knowledgeable in anatomy lol. Would read another book by this author.
alliallialli's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture and Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault
slc333's review against another edition
4.0
It was interesting and enjoyable. Lily is an interesting character with her Ninja training and Chinese/Norwegian culture, her guilt over her younger sister's rape & murder. She takes alot of risks and is very dedicated to her self-appointed mission to helping women escape situations of abuse. She is also hiding this part of her life from her father whom she is close to and her mother whom she clashes with alot. Her interactions with the assassin, and the assassin himself are also another fascinating element to the story. He is not a good guy, but he has reasons for why he is the way he is and he is an interesting character. The action and pacing are also good and well balance with Lily's interactions with her family and her investigations. She is not technically a PI but she certainly operates like one in her pursuit of justice for women who have been abused.
jbrendanshaw's review against another edition
3.0
A compelling action mystery with a Norwegian/Chinese heroine who has trained in martial arts to avenge her sister's death and save other women in abusive relationships. The central mysteries here are ultimately all interlocking and allow her to mix detection with fighting. Some compelling stuff here about Lily's own desires and how she has sublimated them in service of her mission to save other women.
mirificmoxie's review against another edition
4.0
4 Stars
*A gritty, exciting mystery about revenge and redemption*
ARC provided by Agora Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I love Martial Arts, and I love kickass heroines. So The Ninja Daughter caught my eye right away. This is the story of Lily Wong, a young woman who dedicates her life to helping abused women after her sister is raped and murdered. Sometimes her work involves helping women orchestrate their escape from abusive situations. Other times she distributes vigilante justice herself. Lily is a flawed character who operates outside of the law, but I enjoyed reading about her. Her work was gripping to read about, but I also enjoyed the exploration of Lily’s personal life. With a Norwegian father and Chinese mother, Lily’s heritage pulls her in conflicting directions. She struggles with balancing family expectations with her own self-given task of protecting women. And I liked how Martial Arts teachings were infused into the whole story. So many people misunderstand Martial Arts. It is completely evident that Eldridge draws from her own training in To-Shin Do for both the fight scenes and the mentality of Martial Arts. According to her bio, she also has a similar cultural background to Lily, so she draws a lot from her own life experiences.
This is definitely an adult story. It deals with topics of abuse and rape and other violence. The opening scene is a torture scene. That being said, the overall story is not too graphic. The violence falls into the middle ground: there is enough content to put off sensitive readers, but it is not nearly as graphic as some popular books.
The story ended up being more of a Mystery than a Thriller. Lily’s roll as protector often has her functioning like a private investigator, so the story had a strong Mystery vibe. That wasn’t what I was expecting, but I enjoyed it. I love reading Mysteries. Combined with the other elements of the story, The Ninja Daughter was my kind of book.
There were some aspects that showed this is a debut novel and the first in a series. There was a lot of information that had to be set up. Not just the characters and plot, but also a lot of background about Chinese and Norwegian culture as well as the different Martial Arts disciplines. It was a lot of information to fit into a short novel. But I was engaged the whole time, and this was a great debut novel. I look forward to reading the sequel!
RATING FACTORS:
Ease of Reading: 4 Stars
Writing Style: 3 Stars
Characters and Character Development: 3 Stars
Plot Structure and Development: 4 Stars
Level of Captivation: 4 Stars
Originality: 4 Stars
*A gritty, exciting mystery about revenge and redemption*
ARC provided by Agora Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I love Martial Arts, and I love kickass heroines. So The Ninja Daughter caught my eye right away. This is the story of Lily Wong, a young woman who dedicates her life to helping abused women after her sister is raped and murdered. Sometimes her work involves helping women orchestrate their escape from abusive situations. Other times she distributes vigilante justice herself. Lily is a flawed character who operates outside of the law, but I enjoyed reading about her. Her work was gripping to read about, but I also enjoyed the exploration of Lily’s personal life. With a Norwegian father and Chinese mother, Lily’s heritage pulls her in conflicting directions. She struggles with balancing family expectations with her own self-given task of protecting women. And I liked how Martial Arts teachings were infused into the whole story. So many people misunderstand Martial Arts. It is completely evident that Eldridge draws from her own training in To-Shin Do for both the fight scenes and the mentality of Martial Arts. According to her bio, she also has a similar cultural background to Lily, so she draws a lot from her own life experiences.
This is definitely an adult story. It deals with topics of abuse and rape and other violence. The opening scene is a torture scene. That being said, the overall story is not too graphic. The violence falls into the middle ground: there is enough content to put off sensitive readers, but it is not nearly as graphic as some popular books.
The story ended up being more of a Mystery than a Thriller. Lily’s roll as protector often has her functioning like a private investigator, so the story had a strong Mystery vibe. That wasn’t what I was expecting, but I enjoyed it. I love reading Mysteries. Combined with the other elements of the story, The Ninja Daughter was my kind of book.
There were some aspects that showed this is a debut novel and the first in a series. There was a lot of information that had to be set up. Not just the characters and plot, but also a lot of background about Chinese and Norwegian culture as well as the different Martial Arts disciplines. It was a lot of information to fit into a short novel. But I was engaged the whole time, and this was a great debut novel. I look forward to reading the sequel!
RATING FACTORS:
Ease of Reading: 4 Stars
Writing Style: 3 Stars
Characters and Character Development: 3 Stars
Plot Structure and Development: 4 Stars
Level of Captivation: 4 Stars
Originality: 4 Stars
theretiredlibrarian's review
4.0
Enjoyed it very much. Good start to what I hope will be a great series.