Early Review – Call of Fire (Breath of Earth, Book 2) by Beth Cato (3/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Historical Fantasy/Steampunk
Length: 416 pages
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release Date: August 15, 2017
ISBN-13: 978-0062422118
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Breath of Earth series
Source: eGalley from Edelweiss
Rating: 3/5 stars

“When an earthquake devastates San Francisco in an alternate 1906, the influx of geomantic energy nearly consumes Ingrid Carmichael. Bruised but alive, the young geomancer flees the city with her friends, Cy, Lee, and Fenris. She is desperate to escape Ambassador Blum, the cunning and dangerous bureaucrat who wants to use Ingrid’s formidable powers to help the Unified Pacific—the confederation of the United States and Japan—achieve world domination. To stop them, Ingrid must learn more about the god-like magic she inherited from her estranged father—the man who set off the quake that obliterated San Francisco.

When Lee and Fenris are kidnapped in Portland, Ingrid and Cy are forced to ally themselves with another ambassador from the Unified Pacific: the powerful and mysterious Theodore Roosevelt. But even TR’s influence may not be enough to save them when they reach Seattle, where the magnificent peak of Mount Rainier looms. Discovering more about herself and her abilities, Ingrid is all too aware that she may prove to be the fuse to light the long-dormant volcano . . . and a war that will sweep the world.”

This is the second book in the Breath of Earth series; I got it through Edelweiss to review. I really really loved Breath of Earth. Unfortunately for some reason Call of Fire really fell flat for me; there was just too much war and rioting and running from place to place.

Ingrid and crew are fleeing to Seattle from San Francisco but the plot involving Ambassador Blum and the subjugation of the Chinese people continues. There are a lot of politics, rioting, airship travel, and running around in this book. Sadly I really struggled to stay interested and almost stopped reading it a few times. There just wasn’t enough of the neat geomancy and devices that caught my attention in the first book.

I think maybe it’s because there are so many characters in the book, but I just never really connected with any of the characters all that well. The relationship between Ingrid and Cy was sweet but lacked teeth and passion; I feel like Ingrid herself lost some of her bite and intelligence in this book was well.

There were things I did enjoy. I enjoyed learning about Ingrid’s ancestry, enjoyed meeting some of her family and learning more about her father. Lee isn’t in the book nearly as much and I missed him some. Cy was just so cloyingly sweet with Ingrid that I lost a lot of respect for him in this book; I am not sure why…I usually like these sweet relationships.

Overall this was an okay read but I didn’t like it nearly as much as Breath of Earth. I really struggled to stay engaged and interested in this book and found myself skimming through portions of it. There were too many politics and not enough adventure for me. In addition I felt like there were too many characters and they weren’t filled out all that well so I struggled to engage with them. I loved the first book in the series, but I struggled with this book enough that I don’t think I will continue the series. The cover is absolutely stunning though!

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge
– New Release Reading Challenge
– Flights of Fantasy Reading Challenge
– Steampunk Reading Challenge