What do you think?
Rate this book
Jason Striker #1
Jason Striker, Master of Martial Arts: Kiai!
Karate, kung-fu, aikido -- Jason Striker was a master of them all. His entire body was a finely honed weapon, capable of destroying even the most skilled antagonist. But Striker was a man of peace; his school of martial arts was dedicated to defense, not aggression.
Then came the tournament, a fight-to-the-finish matching of the top representatives of the world's leading martial arts. There would be no rules, no fouls called, no techniques forbidden, no repercussions if men should die. No such meeting could ever occur in the U.S., for here there are laws against manslaughter. But in the far reaches of his estate in Nicaragua, Vincente Pedro was the law...
Then came the tournament, a fight-to-the-finish matching of the top representatives of the world's leading martial arts. There would be no rules, no fouls called, no techniques forbidden, no repercussions if men should die. No such meeting could ever occur in the U.S., for here there are laws against manslaughter. But in the far reaches of his estate in Nicaragua, Vincente Pedro was the law...
- GenresAdventure
191 pages, Paperback
First published June 24, 2013
11 people are currently reading
183 people want to read
About the author
Piers Anthony
442 books4,217 followersThough he spent the first four years of his life in England, Piers never returned to live in his country of birth after moving to Spain and immigrated to America at age six. After graduating with a B.A. from Goddard College, he married one of his fellow students and and spent fifteen years in an assortment of professions before he began writing fiction full-time.
Piers is a self-proclaimed environmentalist and lives on a tree farm in Florida with his wife. They have two grown daughters.
Piers is a self-proclaimed environmentalist and lives on a tree farm in Florida with his wife. They have two grown daughters.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 25, 2018
This is the first of one of a number of series that came out right after Enter the Dragon became a success.
Jason Striker, the biggest naif ever to become a green beret, is a judo instructor. Through circumstances, he joins a martial arts tournament along with a bunch of stereotypes. From there, things get weird.
A strange book, entertaining in a so bad it's good way.
Jason Striker, the biggest naif ever to become a green beret, is a judo instructor. Through circumstances, he joins a martial arts tournament along with a bunch of stereotypes. From there, things get weird.
A strange book, entertaining in a so bad it's good way.
October 2, 2019
This book was a huge disappointment. It read more like a young adult book from the scholastic book club, or some pimply faced kids secret journal of play by play moves on some Street Fighter type of game. The authors disregarded the story to basically write a how to judo manual.
What little story there is, is that Jason Striker takes the place of one of his students in a martial arts competition. Here we are treated to countless judo, karate, aikido, boxing and wrestling moves. Technics and everything to do with martial arts. Later, after the tournament, Jason is struck with a delayed death-blow. He travels with friends to Japan to find a cure. They obviously find one or else there wouldn't be more books in the series. The ending is pure crap. I was mystified at how this wrapped up. Not only was I let down by this book, I'm even more depressed that I was stupid enough to by all the books in this series. Oh well, there might be hope if book 2 is better. Two stars is being very generous.
What little story there is, is that Jason Striker takes the place of one of his students in a martial arts competition. Here we are treated to countless judo, karate, aikido, boxing and wrestling moves. Technics and everything to do with martial arts. Later, after the tournament, Jason is struck with a delayed death-blow. He travels with friends to Japan to find a cure. They obviously find one or else there wouldn't be more books in the series. The ending is pure crap. I was mystified at how this wrapped up. Not only was I let down by this book, I'm even more depressed that I was stupid enough to by all the books in this series. Oh well, there might be hope if book 2 is better. Two stars is being very generous.
April 30, 2015
I love the fantasy stories by Piers Anthony, but not so much this judo story. I found the writing awkward...and a tad simple. Great details on the fighting styles of boxing, judo, kung-fu and so on. But put it all together and it just seems blah. I picked it up a Kindle Unlimited book, and I don't strike gold every time.
October 22, 2021
Oy, Piers! For a writer who is capable of such greatness, it's hard to imagine how such dreck flowed from your pen. Granted, this was a collaboration, but even so, this is a serious low point in Anthony's oeuvre, as the mid-70s remained remarkably spotty for him. Where to even begin...?
Normally I would never have considered reading a novel about martial arts since they don't interest me in the least, but as a fan of Piers Anthony's (better) work, I tried to approach this book with an open mind. And, to be fair, the descriptions of the various arts and contests were probably the strongest passages to be found here. But the co-authors stumble, and ultimately fall, on nearly every other count. Most glaring is the unrelenting misogyny which mars this book to the point of near unreadability. The female characters are presented as little more than convenient sheaths for erect penises. Even more troubling is the characters' penchants for underage girls, a disturbing and repulsive motif which, alarmingly, is not unique to this Anthony book.
Other problematic elements include an incestuous relationship; the miraculous -- and, frankly impossible -- spontaneous healing of a paraplegic man, which only serves to minimize the state of those who are actually paralyzed and confined to wheelchairs; ignorant, paper-thin racial stereotypes; the frequently episodic nature of the plot; the plot's predictability, resulting in a total dearth of surprises; and especially the ending in which the authors, after writing in a more or less realist style for the first 180 pages, suddenly appeal to the mysticism of a transfer of souls from a dying old man to a young boy, a gimmick which smacks of a lazy deus ex machina.
After reading this I felt the urge to light a match: a real stinker! If you want a brilliant Anthony book from roughly the same era, try "Prostho Plus," and skip this steaming pile unless, like me, you're an obsessive completist.
Normally I would never have considered reading a novel about martial arts since they don't interest me in the least, but as a fan of Piers Anthony's (better) work, I tried to approach this book with an open mind. And, to be fair, the descriptions of the various arts and contests were probably the strongest passages to be found here. But the co-authors stumble, and ultimately fall, on nearly every other count. Most glaring is the unrelenting misogyny which mars this book to the point of near unreadability. The female characters are presented as little more than convenient sheaths for erect penises. Even more troubling is the characters' penchants for underage girls, a disturbing and repulsive motif which, alarmingly, is not unique to this Anthony book.
Other problematic elements include an incestuous relationship; the miraculous -- and, frankly impossible -- spontaneous healing of a paraplegic man, which only serves to minimize the state of those who are actually paralyzed and confined to wheelchairs; ignorant, paper-thin racial stereotypes; the frequently episodic nature of the plot; the plot's predictability, resulting in a total dearth of surprises; and especially the ending in which the authors, after writing in a more or less realist style for the first 180 pages, suddenly appeal to the mysticism of a transfer of souls from a dying old man to a young boy, a gimmick which smacks of a lazy deus ex machina.
After reading this I felt the urge to light a match: a real stinker! If you want a brilliant Anthony book from roughly the same era, try "Prostho Plus," and skip this steaming pile unless, like me, you're an obsessive completist.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 14, 2024
The first Jason Striker novel is not really a Men's adventure novel per say, but I read that the series will definitely evolve into the weird Men's adventure territory in further instalment. The martial arts / tournament story of this first book was very good in itself. The first 3/4 of the story is basically a play by play of a brutal open martial arts tournament that made my think of the movie Bloodsport. The author is really good at describing the many fighting scenes, with simple but effective prose. The last part of the story sees Jason Striker traveling to Japan with other participants of the tournament to eventually assault a mysterious castle full of ninjas. I really like that last part as the novel morph into a full blown adventure novel. We get deadly traps, ninjas, killer ninja dogs, killer ninja monkeys and all sorts of mayhem. How can one not be super excited to continue the series?
September 4, 2018
Piers Anthony came a long way
This is one of Anthony's earliest works and it shows. The lead us maybe the most full men's adventure protagonist I've ever read and calling the plot all over the place is generous. You're better spending your dollars elsewhere.
This is one of Anthony's earliest works and it shows. The lead us maybe the most full men's adventure protagonist I've ever read and calling the plot all over the place is generous. You're better spending your dollars elsewhere.
December 20, 2016
Unusual book with little depth of story but with excellent martial arts combat description. Very bloody and very fast moving.
June 19, 2023
More blood and guts than I expected from a book coauthored by Piers Anthony but I guess that's what I get for reading a book about martial arts. The main character, Jason Striker, is a well fleshed out character. The story was okay. I might read a sequel or two. You never know.
August 9, 2015
This book is incredibly misogynistic. Now that that is out of the way, I still enjoyed it. It reminds me quite a bit of a good tournament anime, without the cool magical elements.
It doesn't end where you expect it to, so really you get two adventures in one!
It doesn't end where you expect it to, so really you get two adventures in one!
Want to read
January 15, 2010Wanted
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews