The Way of Ronin: Defying the Odds on Battlefields, in Business and in Life

From a Special Forces Veteran and the Founder of Ronin Tactics, a gripping memoir detailing Tu Lam's life, from his childhood as a Vietnamese refugee, his military career as a decorated Green Beret, his time as an underground MMA fighter, to becoming the basis for Call of Duty'sRonin character.

Tu Lam is known not just for his remarkable accomplishments in the military, as a decorated Green Beret in more than two dozen international war zones, but for his exceptional work outside of it. His fellow soldiers know him for his successful company that he runs with his wife providing aid to military and law enforcement, as well as his tireless charity work for veterans with physical and mental disabilities. Others know him from his popular History Channel television series Forged in Fire: Knife or Death, or for his appearance in and contribution to the world’s bestselling video game, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

His accomplishments are all the more impressive considering that Tu Lam was born in a Saigon basement during a North Vietnamese air raid. He barely survived a month drifting at sea in an overcrowded fishing boat. He nearly drowned in an Indonesian refugee camp. He suffered an American childhood of racism, abuse and hatred. Despite all that, he still returned to conflicted zones around the world to “free the oppressed”—starting with himself. That decision led him to more than two decades of grueling instruction in every facet of the special forces, then deployment to war and conflict zones—all while channeling his inner anger in secret underground no-holds-barred fighting matches. When he finally retired from the military after more than two decades, his demons caught up with him, leading to years of addiction. But even that didn’t defeat him. Tu Lam’s life is, at times, all too real, and at many others times, almost unbelievable. For fans of Jocko Willink and David Goggins, The Way of Ronin is an ultimately triumphant tale of what one man can accomplish against seemingly insurmountable odds.