The Ghost Of A Ninja

Tipsy Sensei #2

by Richard Auffrey

Several men who stole some Japanese antiques, which might possess magical powers, have been slain under mysterious circumstances. Is the ghost of a ninja responsible for these deaths? Nate Randall, a sake expert, is asked to help a friend who is worried that he is going to be murdered next for his involvement in the theft.

Can Nate solve this mystery and save the life of his friend? How far is Nate willing to go to save his friend's life? Or will they all succumb to the deadly intentions of an ancient Japanese legend?

This supernatural thriller and murder mystery is a sequel to Yurine's Pot & the second story in the Tipsy Sensei series.

Genres: Fantasy

42 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 8, 2012

About the author

Richard Auffrey is a food, wine, sake & spirits writer and educator in Massachusetts. He is also a Certified Sake Professional and conducts sake classes, tastings, dinners and other events.

His Tipsy Sensei urban fantasy series is intended to be a collection of stories that place ancient Japanese legends in a contemporary setting, while also spreading his passion for sake. The stories are based in Boston, Massachusetts and also reference some of his favorite restaurants.

He is currently working on "Demons, Gods & Sake" (Tipsy Sensei #4), which will be a full length novel.

Reviews

[Eric Townsend · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book should be about ninjas, or ninja ghosts, or ghostly ninjas, or some combination of those things, but really… it isn’t. This book is about food and sake (the drink). Look, I know Auffrey is a food and drink writer, that’s his thing, but it takes over this novella far more than I wanted. There are breaks in the action devoted to describing each dish or drink, making the pacing of the piece feel very off. Even the do-or-die type of moments, something that should have been amazing ninja battles, or parkour-filled chases, wound up being about, you guessed it, sake. Ugh.

There are bits of The Ghost of a Ninja that I did like. The mythological/paranormal Japanese lore was really interesting. The ghost-ninja-thing was a cool character. And…that’s about it. I just couldn’t get into any of the main characters, the baddie was cliche and dull, and at no point did I care if Nate or his friend met their unfortunate end.

Overall, it wasn’t a bad read per se, it just wasn’t what I wanted, expected, or hoped for. Not enough ninjas in your ninja book sir, and that’s just not alright.

[Sadie Forsythe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wouldn't have thought it was possible to make rape, murder, and vengeful spirits boring, but Auffrey managed it. Mostly because the writing is so stiff, flat and dry. There is no sense of peril or tension. I have the rest of this series, but I think I'm just going to delete it.