To Shape a Dragon's Breath: The First Book of Nampeshiweisit

Slow read, which tried my patience. But it was good, and felt like it actually took place in history.

This is an outstanding book, easy 5/5 stars. Can't believe it's a debut novel. So good that I read the last half of the book in one sitting (while staying up to 2am)! Awesome pacing, a rich and detailed world, and a truly heroic main character fighting to keep her cultural identity in defiance of European colonizers. This is set in a steampunkish alternate earth where there are dragons, and the Vikings used these dragons to conquer all of Europe before going on to colonize North America. Because of this the book makes plentiful use of Scandinavian-inspired words, which can be figured out via context if you don't want to search for their meanings (a basic knowledge of chemistry will also help you to understand the magic/alchemy system used in the book!) I can't wait for the author to write the next book in this series, because I wan't to know more about the amazing world she has created here.