Tokyo Suckerpunch : A Billy Chaka Adventure

I have to admit, what initially drew me to this, Isaac Adamson's first novel, was the title and the colorful cover. The novel turns out to be as playful as the jacket, with plenty of comic book color thrown in.It's the adventure of Billy Chaka, an American journalist working for Cleveland's best-selling Asian American zine. Covering a handicapped Olympics in Tokyo he finds himself thrown into a wild adventure involving beloved geisha girls, the yakuza, and other characters culled from the Japanese underworld.There's plenty of action, as Billy usually resorts to fits of martial arts in many situations. And there's a lot of humor derived from Chaka's observations on Japan and the Japanese and especially on geisha girls, with whom he is obsessed. Also a bit of un-PC humor which is refreshing.This is something a little bit different and a very playful novel. I'd recommend it as a quick and fun read. I'm sure Adamson has more Chaka adventures in the works. His writing is, for the most part, smooth and confident.

I had a film professor talk about a friend of his in Hollywood that wants to make this story into a movie but can't come up with a log line that does the story justice. So I went online and bought a copy to know what he was talking about. There's a lot going on in this little novel. A journalist in Japan who's got a thing for geisha meets a lady who's being pursued by several different groups. They all have different motivations to catch up to her, and the journalist gets mixed in to the mess too. Really fun story, easy to read in a day. Definitely recommend it if you have a long trip and like to read instead of playing with electronics.

I really enjoyed this book. I was sorely disappointed in the Shopaholic books, too silly for me and the main character was very unlikeable. I was looking for something fun but with substance, and this definitely entertains! I was drawn into the author's subtle humor (Sarah's dental visits) and the excitement of the mystery. I admit I wish they had gone more into Orange Blossom, for all that work she simply vanishes at the end. And the last couple of pages were a whirlwind of answers so quick that I had to read it a couple of times. But the book was as much about the ride as the destination. I've just finished Hokkaido Popsicle and I'm on to Dreaming Pachinko next!

I picked this book up for $2 at an outlet mall discount book store. It started interestingly enough, so I picked up the other Billy Chaka books for about $10 including shipping. Then I dug in and barely made it thru the first book. It was so contrived and terribly fluff -which is ok- but I'd hoped for a little bit more humour and writing skill being that it was published by a company and not a DIY POD setup. The fight scenes were terribly contrived and too over the top to indulge in creative license. If I was a teenager, however, I would probably have enjoyed this series more but as an adult... meh, I wasn't terribly impressed.

This book is incredible. I can't believe the negative reviews. And it's hilarious, laugh out loud hilarious. I read it years ago and was looking for it on audible to listen to. I still quote lines from this book.

I liked this book quite a bit. The way the author introduces characters is pretty neat. Great start to a great style of books. Full of information about Japan, and it really makes Japan come alive. I loved it!

Excellent book!

This is an awful, awful, and very cliched book, with only mediocre writing.