A review by everydaymagic
Breath of Earth by Beth Cato

4.0

Alt-historical YA fantasy romance. Make no mistake, this book is a romance, first and foremost. It infiltrates every part of the story, in a PG-rated fashion. BUT...there is also an amazing form of magic called geomancy that is _utterly fascinating_ and so well drawn. And the wonderful characters of historical San Francisco that are Chinese, Japanese, American, British, and mixed-race, along with political lines drawn differently due to the influences of this magic. And the steampunk element, mainly present in the airships and their technology (which geomancy powers), which I found so fascinating. This is the first book of the series, and as such, leaves much more left for the heroine and her companions--and their foes--to accomplish. Very enjoyable.