Call of Fire

by Beth Cato

Overview

A resourceful young heroine must protect the world from her enemies—and her own power—in this thrilling sequel to the acclaimed Breath of Earth, an imaginative blend of alternative history, fantasy, science, magic, and adventure.

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.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062422118
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	08/15/2017
Series:	Blood of Earth , #2
Pages:	416
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Nebula Award–nominated author Beth Cato hails from Hanford, California, but currently writes and bakes cookies in a lair west of Phoenix, Arizona. She’s the author of the Clockwork Dagger duology and the Blood of Earth trilogy, plus scores of other short stories and poems across a multitude of publications. She shares her household with a hockey-loving husband, a numbers-obsessed son, and three feline overlords.

Editorial Reviews

★ 06/26/2017
Cato brings increased nuance and skilled characterization to her second Breath of Earth historical fantasy (after Breath of Earth), set in an alternate early-20th-century San Francisco. Ingrid Carmichael, who was unable to use her earth magic to spare the city from the infamous 1906 earthquake, takes up the cause of its persecuted Chinese residents, who have been blamed by the Japanese-American Unified Pacific (UP) coalition for the deaths of the city’s protective geomancers. Accompanying her new friend Cy Jennings aboard his airship, Ingrid pursues her threatened Japanese mentor, Mr. Sakaguchi, and his Chinese allies north to Seattle, where they try to evade capture by a fox spirit masquerading as one of the 12 directors of the UP. Surviving encounters with legendary creatures—thunderbirds, qilin, Theodore Roosevelt—Ingrid uncovers more of her own uncanny heritage, which is linked to Pele, volcano goddess of Hawaii. Cato ably juggles historical fact and fantastical elements to create an alternate 1900s America as finely adorned with Asiatic touches as the modified kimono that Ingrid wears. Her characters of all backgrounds share traits such as a love of family that emphasize their kinship even as power, politics, and racial enmity drive them to war. Agent: Rebecca Strauss, DeFiore and Company. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

A gritty, imaginative, and unforgettable read.” — Library Journal (starred review)

“Cato brings increased nuance and skilled characterization to her second Blood of Earth historical fantasy...[she] ably juggles historical fact and fantastical elements to create an alternate 1900s America as finely adorned with Asiatic touches as the modified kimono that Ingrid wears.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“A powerful, fast-paced, entertaining enigma, a fantastic melding of alternate history and urban fantasy with a definite taste of steampunk thrown in. Memorable costars, a protagonist with real star power, picturesque scenes and her use of mythical Asian creatures, plus flowing dialogue, make it a real page-turner.” — RT Book Reviews

“The plot moves briskly...and while the book builds on the complicated world of this alternate history, it remains simple, entertaining, and difficult to put down. Cato’s skill at creating engaging characters shines throughout.” — Kirkus Reviews

“The acclaimed Cato creates an alternate early 20th-century San Francisco of stunning detail. Drawing on the power struggles of the refugees and women’s work, this vivid reality will keep readers intrigued to the very end.” — Library Journal (starred review) on Breath of Earth

“Cato, author of the Clockwork Dagger books, begins a new steampunk fantasy series with supernatural creatures, action-packed adventure, mystery, humor, a touch of romance, and more to come.” — Booklist (starred review) on Breath of Earth

“With an interesting mix of steampunk, alternate history and urban fantasy, this mystery and slow-building romance - first in Cato’s new series - is excitingly different. Her marvelous star is multi-faceted and her co-stars are colorful. Her fantastical fiction is unique.” — Romantic Times Book Reviews on Breath of Earth

From the Publisher

Cato, author of the Clockwork Dagger books, begins a new steampunk fantasy series with supernatural creatures, action-packed adventure, mystery, humor, a touch of romance, and more to come.

Booklist (starred review) on Breath of Earth

A powerful, fast-paced, entertaining enigma, a fantastic melding of alternate history and urban fantasy with a definite taste of steampunk thrown in. Memorable costars, a protagonist with real star power, picturesque scenes and her use of mythical Asian creatures, plus flowing dialogue, make it a real page-turner.

RT Book Reviews

With an interesting mix of steampunk, alternate history and urban fantasy, this mystery and slow-building romance - first in Cato’s new series - is excitingly different. Her marvelous star is multi-faceted and her co-stars are colorful. Her fantastical fiction is unique.

Romantic Times Book Reviews on Breath of Earth

With an interesting mix of steampunk, alternate history and urban fantasy, this mystery and slow-building romance - first in Cato’s new series - is excitingly different. Her marvelous star is multi-faceted and her co-stars are colorful. Her fantastical fiction is unique.

RT on Breath of Earth

★ 06/15/2017
Having survived the 1906 San Francisco earthquake caused by her father's godlike powers, geomancer Ingrid Carmichael and friends Cy, Fenris, and Lee flee the devastated city and head north. Ingrid wants to learn more about her father, from whom she has inherited her magical abilities, but she also seeks escape from Ambassador Blum's machinations to exploit her skills for political purposes. When Lee and Fenris are captured in Portland, OR, Ingrid and Cy make their way to Seattle with the help of another mysterious Unified Pacific ambassador, Theodore Roosevelt. As she attempts to free her friends, can Ingrid avoid becoming the spark that ignites war? VERDICT Cato's sequel to Breath of Earth takes readers further into an alternate turn-of-the-20th-century America, wrapping a dark time in U.S. history in a bright fantasy veneer. The incorporation of sympathetic characters results in a gritty, imaginative, and unforgettable read.—KC

Library Journal

2017-06-20
The second book in Cato's (Breath of Earth, 2016, etc.) historical fantasy series takes its tenacious heroine and her strange powers from San Francisco to the Pacific Northwest.In the days after the devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake—caused in this world by magic and political conflict—Ingrid Carmichael flees to Oregon on an airship. Cy, her gallant love interest, and a few friends accompany her as she tries to escape the overwhelming power and machinations of Ambassador Blum, a shape-shifting official with ruthless aspirations for the supremacy of the Unified Pacific, the Japanese-American alliance that dominates the world. Ingrid's own mysterious powers make her both a principal player and a desirable chess piece in a complex web of plots and conspiracies. She finds herself relying on the aid of Theodore Roosevelt—another ambassador and someone she has known since childhood—and gets caught up in the plight of the Chinese, who face brutal racism and segregation from both Americans and the Japanese. As Ingrid learns more about her magic and where it comes from, it becomes clear that an exploration of her personal history might be the key to averting a catastrophic war. Cato's novel ends with the promise of more exploration in a future book, but this volume offers plenty of straightforward action. The plot moves briskly through a series of chases and fights, and while the book builds on the complicated world of this alternate history, it remains simple, entertaining, and difficult to put down. Cato's skill at creating engaging characters shines throughout, and she seems to relish the banter and gentle scenes that showcase Ingrid's growing experience of romance. While the experiences of many of the characters as people of color still sometimes feel like surface-level gestures at diversity, the use of aspects of Japanese and Chinese cultures feels more considered than in the first book. An entertaining installment in a series that tackles an ambitious reimagining of history.

Kirkus Reviews