I'll be honest, going in I was nervous. I've been smacked soundly by super-hyped books that I didn't love (ah hem - Addie LaRue and Tomorrow, Tomorrow and Tomorrow) but this book lives up to its hype. Normally, I'm wary of High Fantasy because of the sometimes confusing world building, but Yarros eases her readers into her world of dragons and their dragon riders who compete to the death in their rigorous training so they can protect their world that is under threat.
Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.
But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don’t bond to “fragile” humans. They incinerate them.
With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.
She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.
Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.
Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda—because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die.
A dragon without a rider is a tragedy. A rider without their dragon is dead.
The story is compelling, the threat of death for these young riders is vividly felt and Violet is a main character that I could get behind. She has family drama, unknown potential, and big familial expectations to live up to. Xaden is a hero I can get behind. He's dark with a tortured and complicated past who will, no doubt, be added to many readers' list of memorable male characters. But it was the depth and personalities given to the dragons that stole the show for me.
The first half of the book was good enough to keep me turning the pages, but I felt like I was waiting for something great to happen. A lot of time is spent on the nitty gritty of the dragon rider competition, but it doesn't get truly exciting until the last third. At that point I was on the edge of my seat for the extremely well-written fight scene, and I loved the shocking twists! There's also a sloooowww burn romance and some spicy bits for fans of 'Romantasy'.
You'll enjoy this book if you love:
- dragons
- underdogs
- action-packed battles
- amazing twists
- a swoon-worthy male lead
- slow burn romance with spicy scenes
Congrats to Rebecca Yarros for the unimaginable success (and well-planned buzz) for her debut novel. If you love stories about friendship, complicated family dynamics set within a thrilling world with a Hunger Games-type competition, then you'll want to pick up Fourth Wing. I've already preordered the sequel, Iron Flame which publishes this Fall (November 2023).
My Rating: 4.5 stars
Author: Rebecca Yarros
Genre: Fantasy
Series: #1 in the Empyrean series
Type and Source: Hardcover, personal copy
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
First Published: May 2, 2023
Book Description from GoodReads: Enter the brutal and elite world of a war college for dragon riders from USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Yarros
Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.
But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don’t bond to “fragile” humans. They incinerate them.
With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.
She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.
Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.
Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda—because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die.
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