Breath of the Dragon (Breathmarked #1)
Shannon Lee and Fonda Lee
Wednesday Books
Published January 7, 2025
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About Breath of the Dragon
The first novel in a sweeping YA fantasy duology based on characters and teachings created by Bruce Lee!
Sixteen-year-old Jun dreams of proving his worth as a warrior in the elite Guardian’s Tournament, held every six years to entrust the magical Scroll of Earth to a new protector. Eager to prove his skills, Jun hopes that a win will restore his father’s honor—righting a horrible mistake that caused their banishment from his home, mother, and twin brother.
But Jun’s father strictly forbids him from participating. There is no future in honing his skills as a warrior, especially considering Jun is not breathmarked, born with a patch of dragon scales and blessed with special abilities like his twin. Determined to be the next Guardian, Jun stows away in the wagon of Chang and his daughter, Ren, performers on their way to the capital where the tournament will take place.
As Jun competes, he quickly realizes he may be fighting for not just a better life, but the fate of the country itself.
My Review
Jun displays a huge amount of growth as a character through this first book in the duology. He begins as a talented and ambitious kid whose interest in the tournament has more to do with proving his ability to others and finally making his dad proud of him. As the story progresses and he meets other fighters and allies, he begins to see the larger picture and the broader scope of responsibility in the role of the Guardian.
I thought that growth was really realistic and well-paced. I also enjoyed the ways that his relationships with other characters developed over the course of the story.
For some reason, I didn’t expect as much of the story to be centered on literal one-on-one fighting in a competitive setting. The early chapters show Jun competing for victory at his martial arts school, where the top student will go on to compete in a national tournament. Then, once he gets to the city, more scenes focus on the matches between fighters.
At some points, I could see why a scene was important to the larger story. The fights started to feel repetitive after a while, though.
Breath of the Dragon nicely wraps up the central plot of the book while setting up the major conflict in the sequel. We are left with new threads to pull in the next book, and I’m interested to see where the story goes.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 15 up.
Profanity/Crude Language Content
Some swearing and a few F-bombs.
Romance/Sexual Content
Jun feels attracted to a girl and jealous when someone else shows interest in her, too.
Spiritual Content
People revere the Dragon, whose breath gives extraordinary ability to certain people, and the Lady of Many Hands, who recorded his teachings in two indestructible scrolls. In the West, only the Guardian and those he permits to can look at the Dragon scroll.
Some characters have dragon scales on their bodies, which is evidence that they have special abilities from the Dragon. Others have a strong presence of Breath inside them, which they can draw on for energy and power.
Violent Content
Situations of peril. Battle violence. Fatal combat. Soldiers kill unarmed workers. Reference to execution. Death of a parent.
Drug Content
None.
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