The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel

by Erik Burnham

This adaptation of The Last Ronin reimagines the bestselling Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles graphic novel in an action-packed noir novel, perfect for fans who grew up with the Turtles. Also includes original black-and-white illustrations from the Escorza Brothers!Who is the Last Ronin?After decades away, a lone surviving Turtle returns to New York City with one To avenge his family by killing the leader of the Foot Clan, Oroku Hiroto. But nothing about the city―battle-ravaged and ruled over by Hiroto with an iron fist―feels like home, and nothing about Ronin’s mission goes to plan.With the help of old friends and new allies emerging in unexpected places, can Ronin finally get justice for those he lost?What terrible events destroyed his family in the first place?Featuring original black-and-white illustrations from the Escorza Brothers, this first-of-its-kind novel in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles universe is a must-read for every Ninja Turtles fan.

Genres: Audiobook

336 pages, Hardcover

Published June 2, 2026

About the author

Erik Burnham is a Minnesotan writer and artist that first broke into comics with a series of humorous short stories in the Shooting Star Comics Anthology. These stories featured his original creation, Nick Landime, and culminated in a one-shot: Nick Landime vs. the World Crime League, published by Shooting Star in 2005.

Off and on, in this same time period, Erik also produced a short run of an online strip, The Down Side, until technical issues wore him down. He aims to return to the strip one day.

In 2007, Erik found produced work for two other anthologies – a short humor piece for History Graphics Press’ Civil War Adventures #1, and a horror story for Gene Simmons’ House of Horror #3, produced by IDW Publishing.

This lead to several other projects for IDW, up to and including his critically acclaimed run on the ongoing GHOSTBUSTERS comic book.

Erik has worked on other projects not related to comic books, and hopes one day to share those with the public at large. In the meantime, he still lives quietly in Minnesota; any rumors about this being because he’s completely afraid of the forty-nine other states (and Canada) remain unverified at this time.

Reviews

[Terry Rudge · Rating 4 out of 5]

So firstly, The Last Ronin is my favourite graphic novel, so the idea of turning this into an actual novel was always going to have me absolutely foaming at the mouth.

I am, and always will be, obsessed with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I grew up with these dudes, so getting a darker, more brutal version of the Turtles I know and love? YES PLEASE. 🐢

And this story is fricken brilliant.

I love how much darker The Last Ronin is compared to the TMNT we usually get in the mainstream. It feels bleak, violent, emotional and properly grown up, while still keeping that core Turtle DNA that makes you love these idiots in the first place.

The only reason this doesn't get the full five stars is the conversion from graphic novel to prose. Some of the suspense and, more importantly, the sheer impact of the violence just doesn't hit quite as hard without the artwork. There are moments where you KNOW something should be absolutely savage, but the original graphic novel's visuals made those moments land like a truck.

Still though...

It's The Last Ronin.
I love the story. I love the Turtles. I love the darker tone

[Jaimie | _thenerdyhobbit_ · Rating 5 out of 5]

5⭐ vibes rating.

I've always been a TMNT fan. I watched the cartoon growing up, played with the toys when I visited my cousin who had them (lol), and have played countless TMNT video games. I never got into the comics really and so I never paid attention to comics or graphic novels coming out. I saw a friend read this and give it 5 stars so I said WTH and checked it out for myself.

I'm obsessed.

It was darker, grittier, it made me emotional a couple different times, it brought out all the nostalgic feels...I literally couldn't have asked for more.

Were there major editing mistakes? Yes. But it didn't harsh the vibe like it can in some books.

Now, I did go into this completely blind so do with that what you will. I'm not sure how close it was to the graphic novel so I couldn't compare. I didn't even know about the graphic novels until I was maybe 40% into this so I'll be checking those out next!

[Katie · Rating 3.75 out of 5]

I'm going to pretend that I finished it before it suddenly archived.

This is a long and winding tale filled with turtle power. I won't spoil much. Thinking back on the turtles as I knew them growing up, this feels more like the old live-action movies rather than the cartoons. When you find out who the "last ronin" is, you'll probably be surprised. There's some unraveling to be done, with the help of a few ghosts and a newcomer with links to the past.

An older audience, maybe a more nostalgic audience, will likely appreciate this offshoot to the TMNT universe. There's violence, some gore, a bit more than you might expect. The action sequences are a little clunky but appropriate for the material.

I'm wondering why there's illustrators listed. The cover only? Or does the audiobook come with extra material not offered with the galley?

Robb Moreira does a splendid job. Every turtle sounds like the turtle.

Thank you to NetGalley and RBmedia | Recorded Books for the advance copy of the audiobook, although I wish they'd given me just a bit more time with it.

[Marcia Battles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Be still my childhood!! Received the audiobook from netgalley via arc. How do I put into words so many emotions? Erik this is well written, I felt transported in time. Robb beautiful narration. I puzzled myself trying to determine which one Ronin was. I won't spoil it but you probably won't guess either. A good Boom worth the listen even if you don't know the turtles

[hotsake (André Troesch) · Rating 2.75 out of 5]

Maybe this works better in comic form but this did not work for me.

[Jeff Hackman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book. I have read the graphic novels and this was even better. Very well written and detailed. Highly recommend.

[Justin Soderberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

When a graphic novel or comic series gets adapted to prose novel, it can be hit or miss, but with a series such as The Last Ronin I felt Erik Burnham would really have to screw this up to ruin what is outstanding source material. With The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel , Burnham takes an outstanding story and expands the just right areas to give us one of comics greatest stories in the form of a novel.

Who is the Last Ronin? After decades away, a lone surviving Turtle returns to New York City with one mission: To avenge his family by killing the leader of the Foot Clan, Oroku Hiroto. But nothing about the city―battle-ravaged and ruled over by Hiroto with an iron fist―feels like home, and nothing about Ronin’s mission goes to plan.

With the help of old friends and new allies emerging in unexpected places, can Ronin finally get justice for those he lost? What terrible events destroyed his family in the first place?

Back in October 2020, Kevin Eastman , Peter Laird, Tom Waltz, the Escorza Brothers, Ben Bishop , and Luis Antonio Delgado gave us the beginning of what would be one of not only the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles best story arcs, but a top story arc in comic history. The creative team brought the turtles to a dark and mysterious place where loss and revenge take center stage. It was followed by a few other series, but nothing ever could hold a candle to what took place of five issues in the first volume. That is until now.

I can't image Burnham took on this tough task of novelizing the incredible original series, but with his extensive background with the turtles my guess he knew he couldn't pass up the opportunity. Taking what was set in motion by Eastman, Larid, and Waltz just laying it out on the typewriter wouldn't have done the story justice, instead Burnham takes the story and add just enough to expand on the tale while also giving the story the time and attention it needed.

It can be a lot easier for us readers to go from prose novel to graphic novel adaptation as an artist now gives us a glimpse at what the characters in the novel appear to be. Doing the opposite gives us a chance to already know what they appear like and allows us to immerse ourselves back in the story. Typically the prose novel lacks the illustrations that makes a comic so great, however, with The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel we at least we get original black-and-white illustrations from the Escorza Brothers to help merge these formats together.

The Last Ronin is a dark, bleak, and emotional tale that stands apart from most of the TMNT line over the years. This is all felt once again in the pages of The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel . Somehow Burnham gives me a similar feeling to reading the original series all over again, but this time with a bit more.

Let's take it a step further, not only was this story wonderful in prose format, but the audiobook narration by Robb Moreira takes it to another level. Not only to we get expanded stories, but now we get to be fully immersed in the world of The Last Ronin, what a time to be alive. This story is one that I believe everyone should read, so Burnham's adaptation just opens up more avenues to experience such a tale.

The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel takes an outstanding story and expands it in just the right places. Erik Burnham brings his years of TMNT knowledge and takes The Last Ronin to new wonderful places, this time into prose format.

The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel is available at bookstores everywhere from Abrams. The audiobook, narrated by Moreira, is available via Libro.fm on October 6, 2026.

NOTE: We received an advance copy of The Last Ronin: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Novel from the publisher. Opinions are our own.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Was Not Prepared to Mourn the Ninja Turtles

Thank you to NetGalley and RBmedia/Recorded Books for providing an advance listening copy.

⭐ 5/5
🎧 5/5

I almost didn’t request The Last Ronin, and I am SO glad I did.

I grew up with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but I wouldn’t call myself a hardcore fan. I know these characters because they’ve just kind of always been there. I went into this completely blind and expected a dark, dystopian TMNT revenge story.

And it is that.

But I was not prepared for how much this book would make me mourn the Ninja Turtles.

The action and dystopian setting are great, but underneath all of that is a surprisingly thoughtful story about grief, survivor’s guilt, family, trauma, responsibility, and what happens when surviving becomes something you feel guilty for.

One of my favorite choices is that the brothers never stop feeling like brothers. Even as the story gets darker, there’s still teasing, arguing, terrible jokes, and the kind of irritation that only comes from knowing someone your entire life. That humor doesn’t undermine the grief—it makes it hurt more because they still feel like the characters I remember.

And I cried over Ninja Turtles while doing dishes, so there’s that. 😂

I also loved that you don’t need an encyclopedic knowledge of TMNT lore for this to work. My factual memory of the franchise is definitely fuzzy in places, but my emotional familiarity with these characters was more than enough. In some ways, I think that made the experience even better.

The audiobook adaptation deserves its own praise. This originated as a graphic novel, but I repeatedly forgot I was listening to an adaptation of a visual medium. The writing translates movement, environment, action, and visual information into something that feels completely natural in audio rather than like someone is describing comic panels to you.

Robb Moreira’s performance was excellent too. Even the character voices sounded remarkably similar to how I remembered them, which added another layer of nostalgia without making the performance feel like an imitation.

I picked this because I wanted something completely outside my normal reading lane.

Apparently what I needed was dystopian Ninja Turtle grief. Who knew? 😂

Who Should Read or Listen?

TMNT fans—especially those who grew up with these characters—but I don’t think you need to be a hardcore fan. If you have enough history with the Turtles to care about them and like darker dystopian stories about grief, revenge, family, and legacy, this is absolutely worth trying.

And if you can go in without knowing who the Last Ronin is?

Do that.

[Mwenya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I've been a TMNT fan since as far back as I could remember via the cartoons, I never managed to get into the comics. Despite it, The Last Ronin has been an ever present subject in everything I enjoy. From video game podcasts to casual conversation with friends. Everyone who's a fan of the turtles always recommends it. After listening to this novel adaptation I understand why.

My favorite thing about this is, it's an adaptation first. It feels like a comic in prose and doesn't try to shy away from the source material and what appeals about them - for good and bad (Overwhelming good in my opinion).

The story is simple. Three of the four turtles are dead. They've been dead for a while and the last turtle returns to the city to avenge them. Action is guaranteed. In the prose format one would think endless fighting would tire fast, but there's a good balance here. Especially with POV shifts with the antagonist, Oroku Hiroto. And where balance is lost the action is just that epic. After finishing this I just have to read the comic.

I listened to audiobook and loved the narrator. I can't be sure, but he sounded like a fan. His voice for the turtles sounded so consistent with most of the beloved versions I've watched or played. (A disclaimer for this would be though the male narrator is good with most voices, his voice for the female characters was a bit awkward.) The downside of good voices though is that from what I heard about the comic, Ronin's identity is supposed to be a big reveal, but because the narrator is so good with voices or maybe it's embedded in the prose you can take a good guess who Ronin is. I don't think it ruins the story though as the reveal comes halfway through the book. In truth this just added to other aspects of the story: the change of the city after defeat and its consequences, the heavy themes of rehabilitation, forgiveness, and power of resistance are just built up so well, in the fashion appropriate to the world.

The standout points are definitely the antagonist. His POV was always a treat to dive in. His ethos so fitting for dark tale in the TMNT world. This book will definitely hit for every fan of comics or someone grew loving action cartoons.

Thanks to Netgalley and RBmedia for the ALC.

[Bookish Bard · Rating 5 out of 5]

*Thanks to NetGalley and IDW for this ARC for the audio version of The Last Ronin*

I really enjoyed this one. The Last Ronin is an iconic graphic novel depicting a dark future where only one of the TNMT remains alive and is hellbent on revenge on those that killed his family.

The Last Ronin was later adapted into a full novel in June 2026 and was written by Erik Burnham. The novel greatly expanded on the narrative of the original graphic novel. This is the audio book version of this novel.

I’ll try my best to avoid major spoilers. As I mentioned this book is set in it’s own continuity where at some point around 17 years in the past 3, out of the 4 turtles including master splinter were ambushed and killed. The 4th turtle dubbed the Last Ronin believed to be dead had survived in secret in the mountains of Japan, training for the day he would return to New York and take his vengeance on the foot clan and it’s leader.

This is not like the turtles you know from the Saturday morning cartoons. This is grimdark, violent, death, murder and a lot of cursing……and I loved it.

Whoever initially pitched the idea of an r rated turtles story is a genius. The story is wonderfully adapted into novel form and again adapted into an audio book. It’s narrated by Robb Moreira who does an excellent job bringing this world to life.

I enjoyed it so much I’ve just bought the other two stories in the Roninverse in graphic novel form. The Lost Years and Re-evolution and can’t wait to get stuck into them.

This is an easy 5 out of 5 for me for both the audiobook and the original novel.

[Curtis Mason · Rating 4 out of 5]

What to expect: The Last Ronin graphic novels were turned into a novel and this is the audiobook for that novel. I had not read the comics until I was given the opportunity to listen to an advanced reader's copy of the audiobook.

This is a very dark story filled with mental illness and violence, but does not have much if any foul language, depending on what you consider foul language. Unlike the Saturday morning cartoons, there is minimal humor and no pizza, Rocksteady, or Bebop.

The story is set 20 years into the future for one surviving Ninja Turtle who returns to New York to try to exact revenge on The Shredder for killing his whole family. There are flashbacks to help the reader know how everyone died and what happened in those 20 years. The remaining Ninja Turtle, Ronin, hears the voices of his dead friends. There are generally 3 viewpoints that the story is told from: Ronin, Shredder, and someone else. Telling more would be giving spoilers.

It did take me a few chapters to get into the book, not because it was poorly written, but because I did not know the history and it had been a long time since I had followed the TMNT. Also a novel has to give a lot more context than a comic book to create the visual in the mind of the readers.

Narration was very good and there were good differences between the different turtles and other protagonists.

Writing 3.5/5
Narration 5/5
Overall 4/5

[O.j. · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first heard about The Last Ronin graphic novel that was coming out, I was excited. I enjoyed future what ifs like Old Man Logan and Hulk The end. It is a nice way of seeing how an older version of a hero feels their place is in the world. I was interested in seeing what the future meant for the team I’ve been a fan of since 1987.

This novel does a good job of fleshing out the graphic novel from a few years back. Just like the original comics, this story was grittier than the cartoons that followed. When I saw that they were recording an audiobook it intrigued me.
The narrator, Robb Moriera, does a good job keeping the listener engaged. I especially loved that he used different voices and nuances that brought the brothers to life.

While the novel does add some stuff from the graphic novel, I think the graphic novel was better. The visuals of the graphic novel conveyed the bleakness and grittiness of their future. I would give the novel a 3.5-star rating, however, since this was an audiobook and the narrator did a great job, it became a 4-star.

Thank you to Net Galley and Recorded Books for the ALC. All opinions are my own and given honestly.

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had been a little sceptical about this; as a huge fan of The Last Ronin comics, I couldn't really see what a novelisation would bring to the table, but it's really rather good! The writing is fantastic and really fleshes out the story, which I particularly liked in regards to the flashback sequences, as I had thought in the comics that Raph and Donnie were beaten a little too handily, and the extra info here really helps sell the danger they were in and the damage they took. I only really had 2 very small issues; firstly that the "Who is Ronin?!" mystery does not work when you are already a fan of this story and I personally found the hoops they jumped through to avoid saying his (and his brothers) names in early chapters to be extremely grating, and secondly I struggled a little with some of the action sequences (which is probably a Stace problem as I am one of those folks that can't see things in their head as they read them). Overall though, it is very much well worth a read.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 ⭐

This was fantastic! As a huge fan of The Last Ronin comics, I was really impressed by how closely this audiobook followed the original story. It captured the characters, action, and overall feel of the comics so well that it genuinely felt like experiencing the story all over again in a different format.

My only complaint is that the violence didn’t feel quite as gruesome or graphic as it does in the comics. Which, to be fair, is a pretty difficult thing to replicate when the comics can literally show you the blood and brutality 😂. But that’s a very minor complaint and definitely not enough to take away from how much I enjoyed this.

I received the ALC from NetGalley, and the narrator was fantastic. They did an amazing job bringing the story to life and made this such an enjoyable listen.

If you loved The Last Ronin comics, I definitely think this audiobook is worth checking out!

[TJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is a little late because life got in the way, but for that same reason, this book was exactly what I needed. Having been a fan of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles since I was a kid, I have to say it didn't take long for me to get lost in the nostalgia and become completely engrossed in the story.

A big part of that was thanks to Robb Moreira's amazing narration. He really brought every character to life, and the voices he gave the turtles were especially brilliant. The story was packed with action and delivered a narrative that, even if a little darker, is one I think every TMNT fan could appreciate.

I had a great time with this one and highly recommend it!

I received the advanced audiobook recording of this publication via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

[Sukhdave Takhar · Rating 5 out of 5]

*thank you netgalley for the ALC of this so i was able to listen and give my honest review*

Narrator 5 stars
Book 5 stars
All around 5 stars

I had no idea this was a book let alone an audiobook so i was so excited to get my hands on it. I really didnt have too much info on the whole Last Ronin storyline but tmnt was my whole childhood (45). So when i started into the story i was shocked not what i was thinking was gona happen. My day and week was ruined lol but the story was awesome. I loved the whole ronin character and how you didnt know which brother it was for awhile. The story moved so fast i was wanting more maybe with the new character(no spoiler). I really hope this gets the movie treatment because it was awesome.

[Christopher · Rating 4.25 out of 5]

Early release NetGalley audiobook listen here.

I’ve been curious about the comic series since I heard it announced, but this was my first real foray into the TMNT universe since the 90s live action series and animated show. Other than those childhood references and a few games with my son, I went in blind to this multiverse variant narrative.

The Last Ronin was definitely the more adult approach, just from sheer brutality, but 100% turtle power is on display here. Great story, and it’s great to see a direction that the universe could take there. The narrator did a great job with turtle voices, and the story did somewhat subvert my expectations — but still all in favor for going where it needed to for tying up all the TMNT beats in the plot.

[Nevermore Crow · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Coward."

La novelización de The Last Ronin es un primer experimento de adaptación. Vamos a tener una película de acción real, un videojuego... Primero ha llegado la novela y, aunque no se desvía de la historia que ya conocemos por el cómic, es capaz de profundizar no solo en el Ronin sino en Oroku Hiroto, y es en el villano donde vamos a encontrar lo más interesante.

Destaco el capítulo en el que Hiroto se pone la capa de Shredder y se dedica a sufrir delirios de grandeza muy fuertes bajo la lluvia. Le da una capa extra de profundidad a un villano que en el cómic se me quedó un poco corto.

[Travis Butler · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Last Ronin
By Erik Burnham
Narrator: Robb Moreira

I loved watching the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon when I was a kid so this was very nostalgic for me. I was surprised by how dark the story was but really enjoyed it. The pacing was fast and kept my interest from start to finish. I really hope audiobooks are done for the other graphic novels.
Thank you to NetGalley and RBMedia for the opportunity to read this book early in return for my honest review.

[Brandon Griesbaum · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

A really nice and detailed adaptation of the original graphic novel. Could have used another proofreading pass but nothing horrible enough to really detract from the story itself. The intermittent illustrations were a really nice touch.

The story itself is a 5/5 and worth consuming in any way you can get your hands on it.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley I was able to listen to a audio arc of The Last Ronin.
This was such a delightful audio book experience and story line was amazing as well.
For someone who was a fan of tmnt but has been out of the fandom for a while, it really wasn't hard be emerged in to the story. I really loved this and will definitely be buying a physical copy

[Donavan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arguably one of the best TMNT storylines since, ever.
Its novelization however makes small changes and expands various storylines to really complete the picture. It’s like a fantastic Japanese western

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was fun and nostalgic. The battle choreography was intricate and easy to picture. The storyline and characters fit with The Ninja Turtles vibe.

The audiobook narrator was fabulous. I loved the voices he used.

[Kevin Christman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable for what it was.

[Trent · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'd give it 4.5 I round up since I can't give that exact

[Mindy Volesky · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome!!

I was a huge TMNT fan as a kid so this was so dope! All the things that I wanted from this story were present and represented the original storyline so well. Loved it!

[Shane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written. Really digs into the Ronin's physical, mental, and emotional pain and deeply explores the dark psychology behind Hiroto.

[Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was fine, but I really didn't like the writing style. The sentences were very choppy and it seemed to be all tell and no show.

S-N, V-H, L-L/S

[Chantale Canadian Book Addict · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this audiobook very much.

It’s entertaining . The story is good

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great chunk of 90s nostalgia with the dark side from the graphic novels rather than the bright humor of the original run of TV cartoons.