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

4.5 I picked up this book because of Fonda Lee and my desire to read Greenbone and honestly I had a blast with this and I'm excited for book 2

The characters are fun, it's quick paced and the magic system is easy to understand. I love the journey Jun goes through and how his relationships with himself, his family and his friends change.

The Breath of the Dragon is like reading a martial arts movie where the main character is completely oblivious to the happenings around him. I can’t blame him though, he’s only a kid. Ultimately he finds himself at the center of a plot that he had no knowledge of and he isn’t all that quick at learning how to play politics.

Overall a fast paced, action packed book that would be adored by teenage boys who are really into manga. I think it works well for YA. The pacing was unexpected; I felt like the book was rushing along and I couldn’t figure out what could possibly fill the last 30% of the book, and that’s where the plot just soared.

"Marked or not, everyone of us has Breath enough to will our own destiny into being."
A real fighter wins not because of brute strength or clear intelligence, but sheer will.
Jun Li is a young student who dreams of becoming the Guardian of the East to make his father proud and reunite his family, but throughout his journey he is constantly tested and put up against everything he has ever known to be true.
Once I picked this story up, I could not put it down! I had to keep reading and learning more about the different fighting styles and to see who would win the tournaments. The fights were brutal! I didn't expect it and I felt for all the fighters.
Fonda Lee has a way of writing that instantly transports you into worlds and tests your own beliefs for how things should be. I instantly felt connected with the characters and I'm ready to protect Jun with my life!
!! TW: Violence, cursing, blood, death
*Thank you NetGalley for an early copy so that I could review this novel*

Breath of the Dragon was a wonderful book. As always, Fonda Lee's world building was fantastic.

Let's start with the main. I will admit I found Jun annoying at first. Then again he is a 16 year old teenager so perhaps that is to be expected. He is impulsive and rarely thinks ahead. However, the path he chooses shapes him to grow rapidly and open his eyes to the world around him. I immensely enjoyed watching his character and his relationships develop with other characters.

The book is filled with action and it is so well described and flows. I can't wait to for the next book.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Publishing Group for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This isn’t the usual kind of fantasy I read but it sounded interesting.

I did enjoy this book but I just found it to be ok.It’s well writting style but I just struggled getting into this book. I also didn’t connect with the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC!

I actually liked this book a lot more than I expected to. I’m usually hesitant to read books written by more than one author, as sometimes the shift in writing styles between chapters can be a little jarring. However this was no issue for me! I don’t know how the writing was divided up but it was amazing.

I don’t like prologues at all normally. They don’t tend to relate to the plot that much, and I usually skim through them. This prologue was LITERALLY THE BEST PROLOGUE I'VE EVER READ!! It was so entertaining and overall made a very good start to the novel. It set up the rest of the book, though some of the plot points didn’t show up until the end of the book.

To me, this book felt like a younger YA novel. Jun and some of the other characters weren’t the most mature, and their characterization was a little young for what I like in a YA book. The plot was definitely not younger YA though, so I started to like it a lot more as I got further into it. There was a ton of violence and the imperialistic and controlling general made the politics aspect interesting.

I was expecting there to be dragons because of the title, but there were none. There are characters who have dragon scales on their bodies, and that leads to them having special abilities. This was a unique magic system, and was also the catalyst for the main plot in the prologue.

I loved the worldbuilding!! The East and the West are split into two countries, one who reveres martial arts and the other condemns violence. Jun was exiled from the East as a kid and grew up in the West, making him the perfect main character who can see the strengths and flaws of both countries. He has no particular bias towards either of them. This allows him to not be blinded by the general’s plan to villainize the West.

Overall I really liked this book and I am looking forward to reading the sequels when they are published!

it started off slow and i was having a hard time getting fully invested BUT then the second half came...i love a good tournament

the world building was definitely my favorite part, everything about it was fully realized from the history and mythology to the conflict and the political intrigue. the high stakes felt like high stakes.

although i like the relationships between the characters, i felt like jun and yin had the strongest one and were definitely my favorite. i think i just wanted more all the way around in terms of characters. jun (our mc) did annoy me quite a bit, but by end i felt for him.

i’m interested to see where the next book goes, especially with how it ended.

✶ thank you netgalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review ✶

I believe this is Fonda Lee's YA debut and I absolutely loved it! Everything she writes is so beautiful. I love the cultural connections and the historical context she seamlessly incorporates. I'm curious to Shannon Lee's contributions, since I definitely feel a different voice in there. Very enjoyable. Definitely an auto-buy author.

I definitely was not the right dynamic for this book. And that’s totally my fault. This is when I kind of wish I could read a couple chapters prior to requesting a book.
The story and world building seemed to take forever…..again probably just my perception because I couldn’t seem to get interested in the story.
If you like slow world building…..martial arts……and a cliffhanger ending then this will be a good read for you.
I received an ARC of this title, all opinions are my own.

Honestly a breath of fresh air in YA fantasy! This is a must read if you're at all interested in martial arts, and obviously Bruce Lee.

Jun goes on a little quest to get to a major martial arts tournament to determine who will become the next Guardian of the scroll (an ancient text of wisdom) and advisor to the emperor. Along the way he learns to expand his mind and fighting skills in different styles. You really root for Jun on his journey. I really enjoyed the side cast of characters who help along the way.

I was most intrigued by the politics of the west vs east and I'm looking forward to having more of that in the sequel & seeing how that plays out. I was honestly wanting to get more into the politics side of the plot, so I hope it's done well in the sequel. But that's also me as someone who is not a *big* fight scene person - there are a lot of them in this book, but that's the point! I do think they're well written for sure.

This is a exciting and emotional ride that will captivate young adult readers who crave high-stakes fantasy adventures, coming-of-age stories, and martial arts action, making it a perfect fit for fans of epic quests and self-discovery.

The story kicks off with twin siblings being separated at a young age because of their abilities. One of them was breathmarked, tied to the mystical powers of the dragons, while the other wasn’t. That dynamic created so much tension and emotion right from the start, and it really set the tone for the rest of the book.

I’ve loved martial arts since I was a kid, so I couldn’t get enough of how it was woven into the story. And there was a tournament!

This was a YA novel, but really captured some important themes related to family, loyalty, and perseverance.
So glad I snagged this arc from NetGalley!

Thank you, #NetGalley and #StMartinsPress, for a chance to read this is exchange for an honest review!

I have good and bad news. The good news is, it’s only nine days into 2025, and I am holding myself to a goal I set in our QTL reflection. This year, I decided to DNF any book that I wasn’t enjoying at the 50% mark. So here’s the bad news. My first review of 2025 features one such book: Breath of the Dragon by Shannon Lee and Fonda Lee.

In East Longhan, only the Aspects are allowed to train and become the best fighters in the world. But when a young Jun accidentally exposes his knowledge of the forbidden art, the Aspects exile him and his father from the East. Desperate to reunite their family once again, Jun’s father renounces his love of fighting and tries to live a quiet, repentant life. But that’s not enough for Jun. Now a teenager with an aptitude for martial arts, Jun will do anything to enter the Guardian’s Tournament to display his skills and bring glory to his family name.

Breath of the Dragon is written in a style that is very matter-of-fact and does not leave much for the reader to learn or discover on their own. I felt as if an experienced communicator was relaying each moment, piece of history, or relationship standing to me in a way that could brook no argument. It stifled my curiosity, in both the way it was written and that the story doesn’t allow you to discover anything. There is no space for the reader to have anticipation, read between the lines, or collect drops of information to put together a connection on their own. The language is concise and clear, and it’s not very descriptive.

The same can be said for worldbuilding in this book. Again, there is no awe or discovery when it comes to learning about the world or the tension-filled history between the East and West. Everything is clearly laid out for the reader through info dumps that are as sterile as a textbook. This delivery, coupled with the simple, plain language, would easily break my immersion in the scenes. I didn’t feel like I was a part of the story, like there was no way for the reader to live and breathe in the world or events when everything is presented so plainly. This is not my preferred way to experience a story, and I didn’t enjoy being an unaffected observer of Jun’s journey.

My final reason for not continuing my adventure with Breath of the Dragon was the dialogue. This is not a dialogue-heavy story, and when it does appear, it’s very simple and juvenile. Again, the savvy communicator persona of this book appears and influences the way each character talks to one another. It’s very heavy-handed, and I’ll say this again, sterile. These rare conversations don’t allow the reader to parse out how the relationships are developing because it’s plainly laid out. I got tired of constantly being told how everyone was feeling and thinking.

I get the sense that Breath of the Dragon was not written for me. I can see how the story’s matter-of-fact style would benefit a younger reader. They could easily get swept up in the excitement of a fast-paced plot and enjoy the larger-than-life experiences the young protagonist is up against without wanting to explore deeper themes or character dynamics. I was not the target audience, so I am hesitant to condemn this as a bad book. It’s not, it’s just written for another reader at a different time in their reading journey.

Rating Breath of the Dragon - DNF
-Brandee

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. The thoughts on this story are my own.