After a grave misstep that separates Jun and his father from his mother and beloved twin, Jun is looking for a way to redeem himself. Because he isn’t breathmarked like Sai, June has to fight for his honor without using special dragon-grated abilities. To do so, he sets his sights on competing in the Guardian’s Tournament, despite his father’s wishes for him to give up the martial arts entirely. However, as Jun competes, the battle becomes less for his honor and more for the whole country's sake.

This was a delightful foray into the martial arts! It was delightfully refreshing to have a fantasy main character who isn’t super powerful through magic but through hard work and grit! I would not consider Jun to be lovable, but you can't help but root for him through impossible odds. I love the stage this book set and genuinely feel like book two has been paved a seamless path to follow. I'm excited to follow along with Jun's journey through even higher stakes and more political intrigue.

Enjoyed this a lot. The action scenes were great, described vividly and with detail, I like the character work done on our MC as he showed growth throughout his journey from training to tournament. The relationships he forms and harms are reflective of his teenage arrogance. There are however minor plot holes that I found that do nothing to hinder my engagement with the story. The political and military aspects are easy to understand and as this is a YA novel, I can't complain.

I would have appreciated if the perspective of his parents and brother had been shared but I can imagine that will come in the second book which I am looking forward to.

***Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the ebook.

Breath of the Dragon is a captivating fantasy adventure set in what seems to be a feudal-era world, where martial prowess and magical abilities are deeply intertwined. The novel follows Jun, a sixteen-year-old warrior-in-training with a burning desire to prove himself and make his father proud. You will like this book if you enjoy: intricate world-building, well-executed fight scenes (like seriously, well done!) and emotional character growth, this book offers a fresh take on classic fantasy tropes while delving into the themes of perseverance, identity, and redemption.

At the center of the story is Jun, a determined (...stubborn!) young man who dreams of competing in the prestigious Guardian’s Tournament, where the Scroll of Earth—an artifact of great power—is entrusted to a new protector every six years. However, Jun’s path to the tournament is complicated by the fact that he was not marked with the “dragon’s breath,” a mystical sign that grants chosen warriors their power. Undeterred by his lack of the mark, Jun is resolute in his goal to prove that he has the skill and strength to be a protector, hoping that his victory will restore his father’s honor, lost after a grave mistake led to their banishment from the East, and the separation of his twin brother and mother.

After winning the first contest that would allow him to compete, Jun’s father unexpectedly stops him from continuing on his journey. In defiance, Jun leaves his ailing father behind, running away with what little money they have. He finds guidance in the form of Chang, a wise blind man, and his daughter Ren. Together, they teach Jun how to tap into his own inner strength, learning that power is not defined solely by a dragon’s mark but by the will to fight and the wisdom to harness one’s potential. There's also so much going on that Jun doesn't understand until it's far too late (both politically--and in his own personal life with his father--but no spoilers!)

One of the book’s strongest points is its fight scenes. They are vividly described and easy to follow, which can sometimes be a challenge in fantasy novels where battle sequences often become muddled in excessive detail. Here, the choreography of Jun’s battles is clear, fast-paced, and the stakes leave you biting your nails...especially with the Leopard character.

The novel also excels in its portrayal of political dynamics. The tension between the East and West, along with the intricacies of the "Breath marked" and their place in society, provide a backdrop of conflict that feels both authentic and integral to the story. The political landscape is not overwhelming or overly complex, and adds an additional layer of intrigue to the plot, influencing Jun’s journey and his relationships with others.

Jun’s personal growth throughout the novel is well done. Initially stubborn and focused solely on himself, Jun’s journey is as much about overcoming his internal struggles as it is about defeating external opponents. As he learns to harness his own “dragon’s breath” through the guidance of Chang and Ren, Jun begins to realize that true strength comes not just from physical prowess but from wisdom, compassion, and inner resolve. This emotional evolution makes Jun a compelling protagonist, and readers will find themselves cheering him on every step of the way.

To add to this, I just cannot wait for Jun's story to continue, to see Yun and Ren again. To meet Sai the twin (at least...hopefully)!

Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

Unless something absolutely egregious happens in the next like 200 pages I feel absolutely comfortable writing this review. I think this book is wonderful. It really dives into martial arts and how ingrained it is into the society of Jun's world. I enjoyed how easy it was to follow the fight scenes (that's not always easy to do with writing).

4.25!

“The first one to show doubt loses.”

I am so glad I started my Fonda Lee journey with this book because it gave me such a good idea of her writing, it was so addicting and so fun to read like it wasn't anything mindblowing but the concept was very well thought and the way it was written was so easy to get invested in. I feel like the story itself was very unique. It's a series so I won't be too critical about the world building but it was severely lacking in this book. There were occasional glimpses of it but nothing rock solid for the book to have a foundation so I hope the next book explores a bit of that. I really enjoyed reading the about the magic system and of about the breathmarks and how it works and who they are and how they're chosen. It was right up my alley.

"Li Jun is only sixteen, born under the Red Star. He's the youngest competitor at the tournament, and even though he doesn't have a breathmark, he fights as if divinely inspired by Dragon himself."

The main focus of this book is about Jun, a twin who is not breathmarked and banished alongside his father for practicing the art of fighting because it is forbidden in the east whereas his mother and his twin who is breathmarked are taken to be raised and morphed into soldiers, I feel like Jun not being breathmarked was the part that I really liked becaaue it didnt make the main character to be the strongest like he wasnt given that, he had to train and figth and earn it and his passion for it was amazing to read. The lengths that he went through to get there was also something I appreciated and the brief emotional points that we got to read between him and his father were also well done. Yin Yue and Fen (I maybe confusing her name) were nice additions to the story as side characters. I liked the bond of friendship that they made over the span of this story.

"I had a good sifu,' Jun said, 'who told me that the only way to master others is to master yourself first."

The plot was overall also an enjoyable factor of this book. The whole tournament kinda gave me that first season of beyblade vibes lol, the arena and the way the contestants fought was something that I was craving to read, I liked the journey that Jun had to go through to be on that level the overlapping plot wasnt really that gripping for me, I was more interested in reading about the tournament and one more thing that I felt could have been way better were the action sequences in this book, I feel like they could have been more descriptive than they were. It would have set the mood and the tone of those scenes much better but besides that I didnt really have any problems that bugged me.

Overall, I would recommend!

♡ BREATH OF THE DRAGON ♡ (ARC)

Rating: I liked it!

If you're one of those who've watched Bruce Lee growing up, then this one will bring back the nostalgia from his early movies as this book is based on characters and teachings of Bruce Lee.

This is a YA fantasy book that follows the strong-willed Jun, born without the Breathmark (sign of Dragon), who will not let anything hold him back in reaching his greatest dream to be the Guardian. But the Guardian Tournament could be more than just the battle for honor and the coveted position. The fate of the country - of East vs West and the political tensions have intensified.

This book depicts a quest for ambition and the fierce determination to not let anything stand in one's way. But at certain times, it comes with a cost. How far can one push through the odds - whether life or death.

The tournament lacked power and intensity. I wished the action writings were more developed as this is action-packed martial arts themed. But the storyline in itself got me hooked since prologue and I can say, yes till the end. I'm excited to see more character development from Jun and also the minor characters alongside him. The plot twists also got me intrigued!

I will definitely be waiting for Book 2 as I need to know their fates and how Jun and his comrades can forestall the tides of war. To win in a battle that is more than ambition, more than what you've known and trained your whole life for, and recognizing that life itself is SO MUCH MORE than what's presented on the facade.

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Thank you to @wednesdaybooks via @netgalley for providing me with an ARC and as always, opinions above are all mine. #wednesdaybooks

First, I really enjoyed this. I am relatively new to what I would consider high fantasy, and I will admit to be extremely nervous about Fonda Lee's name being on this because I know the Green Bone saga is her most highly acclaimed work, and that is high fantasy. However, Breath of the Dragon was extraordinarily accessible—probably the fact that it's YA—so my nervousness was short-lived, and Shannon Lee and Fonda Lee put together a really entertaining, compelling story.

There are corrupt tournaments, powerful yet magically-deprived martial artists, and so many cool, easy-to-imagine action scenes. Jun actually thinks, behaves, rationalizes, and fears the way a sixteen year old would, even under the weight of trauma. He has a huge ego that often gets him in trouble, but he matures as the plot progresses and becomes an extremely likable young man that I rooted for.

Sometimes I find in YA fantasy I think the side characters are annoying or insignificant and that is certainly not the case here. Everyone feels so dynamic and alive, but I do wish there had been some more backstory for them and that there were more scenes with them on-page. Overall, I really enjoyed this one.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for providing an ARC!

4.25 ⭐️

3.5 ⭐️

First off, I’d like to thank NetGalley & the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this story! I even told my husband he needs to pick it up & dive into it because the martial arts aspect mixed with the fantasy is just, so well done!

I’m looking forward to the second book and seeing where the journey goes!

Rating: 4.5/5
I received an eARC for my honest opinion.

This was my first Shannon Lee, Fonda Lee book and I liked it. In this book you will meet Jun, who is a twin, but his brother was picked to become a guardian, and he wasn’t all because he was dragon touched, and Jun wasn’t. Jun and his father moved from East to the West because he was practicing martial arts. Years later, when he is 16 Jun decides to go to the tournament for the elite guardians, he jumps in someone’s wagon headed to the West and that is where Jun's whole life changes.

I found this book’s world-building to be nothing less phenomenal. I loved the attention to details and how this author brought this fantasy to the world. I felt as though I was there with the characters traveling, learning new ways to fight, understanding the whole more and more. I found the lore of breathmarked and high stakes of the Guardians Tournament to be something new and fresh when it came to fantasy. I found myself so enthralled with the book that I was so sad when it ended. I need the next book soon as possible. I didn’t mind the politics in this book because the way that the author wrote it was just another layer to the book. The fight scenes were epic, and I loved that the author took their time to make sure that we had some great scenes. The characters were likable and well developed, I found myself emotionally invested.

I loved the main character, and I found his growth in this book to have been so great. I won’t lie at first, I didn’t like him, I found his character to have a huge ego, but you will see that he learns and understands and that ego goes away. I liked that he was interested in learning and knowing more about what is going on. I liked that you would see a lot of different paths that Jun can walk but he always finds himself on the right one. I liked Ren and I found her to be a perfect middle for Jun, she has compassion, she is brave, and friendly but also understands about life and the world that they live in. I can’t wait to see what the next book will bring for these characters.

I also received the audio of this book, and I found Eric Yang did a great job with narrating this book. He really brought the book to life and made me feel as though I knew the characters.

I can’t wait to own a copy of this book, if you like fast-paced, martial arts, fighting tournaments, YA book.

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin Press for the opportunity to review this book.

❤️🖤 Breath of the Dragon ARC Review 🖤❤️

Thank you so much to Shannon Lee, Fonda Lee and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Breathing of the Dragon is a YA fantasy and book one in the Breathmarked series. Every six years a tournament is held to determine the new guardian of the Magical Scroll of Heaven. Sixteen year old Jun is finally able to compete and is determined to prove himself as the one destined to guard the precious scroll

This was an interesting read. I enjoyed the story overall and liked the world building. However, I struggled a little bit with Jun throughout. Sometimes his behavior felt really juvenile for his age and other times it felt way too mature for his age. I also felt like the politics in the world didn’t quite fit with the overall tournament vibe of the story. It bounced around a lot for my ADHD brain and I felt a little lost at times. I had a hard time reconciling all of it into one character and story, which I felt like it prevented me from truly immersing myself in this book

Overall this was a three star read. I did like the general story and world building. I feel like there’s potential for additional character development in the next book in the series. This book does have some potential triggers, so please check if you’re sensitive. This book had hints of potential romance, but nothing in this book so no rating for spice will be given

If you’re a fan of YA fantasy with an interesting political world and engaging magic system, then absolutely pick this one up!

This is a young adult fantasy that follows Li Jun, a young martial artist. His twin brother at the age of 6, who is breathmarked is chosen by the council to train with all other breathmarked children to fight for the Emperor as Aspects.

No other individuals/citizen are allowed to practice martial arts besides Aspects, so when Li Jun shows his martial skills his punishment with his father is banishment from his home, mother and brother.

After 10 years of banishment, his hopes is to fight in the Gaurdian's tournament to bring his family honor and be renowned as the best warrior.

Jun is confident and at times too over confident MC, with his one focus entirely on training, competing in the tournament, and becoming the Gaurdian it exemplifies his choices of not caring about the consequences his actions may cause.

I loved the world the authors created with people having a touch of dragon's blood that gives them specialized abilities. It gives plenty of action, training montages, and self-discovery.

I did find the first half of the book's pacing to be quite slow. I'm also not sure if there was supposed to be a love triangle aspect between the characters Jun, Ren, and Yin and would have loved more build up between their connections separately and together. This also brings me to the point that I felt like more connections could have been made between Jun and Sifu Chang as his mentor to bring more of that emotional urgency to the various relationships formed throughout the book.

Overall this was a decent fantasy, and I highly recommend if you like martial arts, coming of age stories.

ARC/ALC review: Jun and his father are exiled from their home when government officials find out that his father has been illegally teaching his sons martial arts. Jun's mother and twin brother are left behind, with his dragon-marked brother going to train in martial arts under the government. 10 years later, Jun is in the East and is dead-set on proving himself as a warrior in the Guardian’s Tournament. His father forbids it, so Jun runs away to compete anyway. Upon arrival, he quickly realizes there's more at stake this year than he could have imagined.

Overall, I think this was a great start to a series. I am not into martial arts but found all of the fight scenes well-written and captivating. The world-building has been done in a way that sets up a lot of questions for future books to answer.

The reason this isn't rated higher is because, despite the technical high stakes of the tournament, that high stakes tension didn't really hit until after the tournament was over. That last 30% or so of the book after the tournament was my favorite by far.

Additionally, the characterization of all the characters felt a bit weak, making plot developments pack less of a punch when I haven't been brought around to feeling for them in the first place.

I'm hoping future installments up the tension and excitement and flesh out the characters more emotionally.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and Netgalley for an e-ARC of Breath of the Dragon. Here are my thoughts!

16-year-old Jun has been training for the Guardian’s Tournament his whole life. Winning would allow him to help make political decisions that could improve his and his family’s well-being. His father forbids him from entering, so Jun betrays his father and finds a way to attend only to be faced with a very different tournament than he expected.

I loved this book so much that I went out and bought a copy when it came out last week. It has everything I want in my fantasy novel. The plot moves quickly in a world that is well-built in a timely fashion. The characters are unique and complex, leading to some very intricate friendships and enemies.

The magic and action are also spot on. I was constantly surprised by what was going to come next and found it very difficult to put the book down. This is my first novel by either Fonda Lee or Shannon Lee. I own The Green Bone Saga, and after reading this novel I am moving it up higher on my to read list.

A fun fact about that novel is that Shannon Lee is Bruce Lee’s daughter, and a lot of the martial arts teachings are based on his own teachings! I can’t wait for the second novel in this duology!

I definitely picked this one up as an ode to my father as he loves Bruce Lee. Throughout the story, we follow a young boy training with his dad and attempting to prove himself/grow stronger. Turns out, his brother is marked as something special but he isn't which is kind of what spurs along the training. While the world building was fantastic, I had a hard time connecting with the characters which is likely why this book fell a little bit flat for me. Still happy to have read it just for the comforting fact of experiencing something my dad likes in my own way.

Thanks or the eArc! <3

This first book in the new fantasy series based on martial arts study and characters by Bruce Lee certainly tries to set itself up as an epic start to a story, but it is both paced too slowly and was ended too abruptly. The side characters are much more intriguing than the MC and the politics seems lazily constructed.

The decision to completely separate this first novel and the story of one brother from the twin and his story also worked against it. Surely someone as clearly involved in politics as an adept would have to at least be considering the goings on of the empire from wherever he ended up. Not my only complaint, but a big issue since this kind of weird editing across the series already points to plot issues.

The aspect I wanted a lot more of was the fighting styles, but that seemed a little derivative. Give me a book about Ren, though…

Thank you to NetGalley for my digital copy. These opinions are my own.

ten years ago, jun and his father were exiled from their home, separated from the other half of their family, due to practicing martial arts. now, jun’s father is content putting the martial arts behind them, but jun isn’t…especially when it comes to the guardian’s tournament, which happens every six years. despite not being breathmarked, jun knows he has a decent chance of winning, so against his father’s wishes, he sneaks off to the capital to take part in the tournament. as he competes, he begins to realize that he’s not only fighting for a better life for himself, but for the country itself.

as someone who grew up watching mixed martial arts, i was very excited to read a book focusing on martial arts, especially one in the fantasy genre. the descriptions of these fights were so detailed, helping me clearly envision what was happening (which isn’t always the case when i read fight scenes). the breathmarked element and how this played into the martial arts was interesting, too. most guardians are breathmarked, as their breathmarks can give them supernatural powers, such as having unbreakable bones, knowing an opponent’s exact weak points, and so on. jun’s twin has a breathmark, and was taken away when they were younger because of it, but jun himself does not have one. even though this makes him the underdog, he still works hard to be the best.

this was a thrilling YA fantasy, and i can’t wait for book two!

Li Jun is a young man who was separated from his mom and twin brother after he and his father were exiled to the other side of the snake wall (I’m imagining something similar to the Great Wall). He decides to enter a martial arts tournament to be the next Guardian of an ancient scroll but finds himself in political turmoil.

The combat was written pretty well, though I can understand writing it out can be a lot so the fights felt pretty short. The flow of the story went very well. You get the set up, his traveling, competition, and after. It all flowed together very naturally with realistic characters who are drawn together by chance. He travels with Ren, a performer and adopted daughter of a traveling flutist, and what I liked is that there was no signs of romance between them. Li and Ren had a level of respect for each other and had a reason to keep each other around. Overall, this was a solid book with a good set up in the last few chapters for the next book.

This was a pretty interesting read that had me pretty engaged for most of the story. There were only some parts that I wish had been more fleshed out but otherwise it was a solid read. It only had some parts that were slow and the ending felt a bit rushed. But I loved the action and the twists and turns. 3.75 rounded to 4 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc

I was provided both and ALC and an ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own. I read both the ebook and listened along to the audio. Both were great formats to follow along Jun's journey to restore his family's honor and fight for what is right in the empire.

This follows Jun, an aspiring warrior who has been separated from is mother and twin brother from a young age. Sai is breathmarked, while Jun was not so as any hot-headed 6 year old, he can't understand why his twin is allowed to do things he isn't. Jun and his father are exiled, while Sai is taken to be trained as an Aspect and their mother goes with him. Their separation is extended due to unrest between the East and the West. He hopes to restore honor to his family and reunite with his mother and brother by becoming the next Guardian. His father has forbidden him from participating in the upcoming Guardian Tournament despite the Master of the school he trains at stating he is ready to compete. Martial arts were the reason they were separated from their family in the first place, and his father doesn't want to lose Jun.

I hope we get to learn more about Sai, the twin, in the next book. He is mentioned often, but after the prologue, we never reunite with him. Jun thinks about him often, and uses the thought of reuniting with him and their mother as motivation for many of his actions. I also hope to learn more about the Aspects and the Breathmarked in general. Their abilities and lore is fascinating, but as a personal preference I always want more information about magic and lore.

If you enjoy martial arts especially those of Bruce Lee, and fantasy this is a great book to pick up. It is action packed and has great world building. There is good character development, and our main character has to work hard for his achievements as he isn't the chosen one with special abilities like some of his opponents. There is a good political intrigue plot along side the fight scenes, and I suspect that will be expanded on more in the next book. I'm looking forward to seeing where book 2 takes us and how the plot develops and where Jun's journey goes next.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this eARC and audiobook arc in exchange for an honest review!

Fonda Lee is forever one of my favorite authors and she, along with Shannon Lee, knocked it out of the park with this one. Even though it was YA, the stakes and danger Jun was in was intense. The authors did not hold back.

There were times Jun's passion for martial art was frustrating because it kept getting him into problem but as the story went on and we found out more about Jun and the world, his determination made more sense.

The characters were so alive. Even the minor characters all had memorable moments that made you love them. I loved the court politics and the AMAZING fight scenes. I can't wait for the sequel and to find out more about the world and this magic system.

What to expect:
Tournament Story
No Romance
Martial Arts (alot of it)
Fast Paced
Academic Rivals
Found Family
Fight Scenes
MMC in a YA