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A review by thebooksatchel
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
WHOA Awesome Addictive. MADE ME EXERCISE lol This book got me out of a walk-slump. I restarted my evening walks simply to listen to it on audio. I had to force myself to sleep that night. And I kept waking up and being sad that it isn't morning yet to resume the read. And I kept trying to predict what is gonna HAPPEN NEXT the whole night. I have THOUGHTS
A high stakes enemies to friends romance fantasy set in a military training school. with DRAGONS. Brutal, conflict ridden.
Audiobook performed by Rebecca Soler and Teddy Hamilton
In short :
Violet Sorrengail wanted to be a scribe but is enrolled as a rider (thanks mom) to train for battle at a war college. If she isn't killed by dragons or classmates or bullies or in a training session, there's always Xaden Riorson, "the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant" and sworn enemy of Violet's family to look out for.
The good:
- Enemies to lovers. chef's kiss.
- Steamy romance. Ultimate slow burn that made my heart FLUTTER morphing into cut this sexual tension with a blade and kill me vibes. And then gets into the steamiest sex (two). Honestly more romance writers should write romantsy.
- Loved the MC. Violet/Violence (omg stop). Fights through her life with chronic illness. Very sweet and likeable and sparky.
- The dragons were excellent. I loved the buildup around their world meshed with ours. I loved that each dragon has its own personality. The rules! The unfairness of the rules binding dragons and humans. If you are weak, dragons can simply incinerate you.
Dragons with opinions, yes please.
- The world building : War college where riders learn war strategies and train for battle + dragons who bond with the riders. I loved the rules, the quadrants at the military college, the cause they are fighting for, the unpredictability of their course (if no dragon bonds with you, you simply repeat until you die or until one of them decides to accept you as their rider). Absolutely loved the own set of rules that the dragons lived by too.
- The archives and the scribe department was fascinating to me. This is a very small section of the book. But it shows how history can be omitted, skewed and tampered with. Violet wanted to be a scribe and had to enroll as a rider because of her general (and toxic without-a-heart) mother.
- Very very tropey.Name a trope and you'll find it in this book. enemies to lovers, love triangle, second love interest, forced proximity etc etc.
-Loved the MC Xander and his handsome face (referenced ever single time he comes on the page lol). Sexy enemy. Seductive bane and boon of our fictional boyfriends. And my god, isn't audiobook narrator Rebecca Soler very very good?
- The friendships and side characters were nice. The concept of found family and genuine friendships.
- It is a cliffhanger of an ending. (honestly I saw it coming but nice)
You need to know this:
- This is pure YA language. Even though the book is marketed as new adult (perhaps because of two sex scenes). This wasn't a problem for me because I didn't know whether it was YA/NA. I simply liked the blurb, fell for the social media hype, saw there are dragons in the book and dived in. 100% does not read like an NA except for the sex. In fact at one point when a character mentions their age, i was like whaaaat?
- I saw a comment from a reader being disappointed because the book didn't have medieval kind-of language. It does not. It is very modern 2023ish language in spite of dragons and an old-fantasy-kind-of-school-training. I didn't go in expecting anything so this was not a problem for me and I enjoyed it.
The not-so-good:
- Formulaic very predictable. I don't read a lot of fantasy and I could predict nearly everything but I didn't mind it because of the addictive storytelling. Give this a try if you are willing to trade predictability for addictive plot. (worth it imo)
- The novel leaves you on the EDGE of your seat until 60% of the novel. And after that the pace drops like a dragon in freefall. It felt slow, an amalgamation of fight scenes just for the word count or to get to the plot twists and leave enough unsaid for Book 2. It felt hugely disappointing because the first 60% was really good.
- The friendship between Violet and Dain (and the love triangle which ofc you'll guess from the first time his name is mentioned) is the flatest, most one-dimensional ever. Their scenes felt like chewing on a rogue clove in between a good meal. And I didn't care at all for him or their friendship.
- Actually this is an offshoot of a story being formulaic—Many characters might feel one dimensional. Violet's sister Mira is a force to reckon with in the first chapters. When we meet her later on, she becomes a formula and not a character that you root for. This one dimensionality affects many relationships too, not just that of Violet and Dain. If Violet's mom is a cruel, non-understanding general, then where's that tension b/w her and Violet?
If you loved The Cruel Prince for its addictive style, you'll love this book. On the plus side, no bully turned lover; only enemy turned lover. Also dragons!!
Ending thoughts:
Hyped? yes. Predictable? yes. Enjoyable? yes. Addictive? yes. Did I have a good time? YES
In spite of all its faults it has been a while since a book made me have so many thoughts to write this loooong review. So I count that as a win. Would definitely rec the audiobook. Ooof romance that made my heart flutter.
Quotes :
"I will not die today"
“i know how to handle a corset”(heart eyes)
“Hope is a fickle, dangerous thing. It steals your focus and aims it toward the possibilities instead of keeping it where it belongs—on the probabilities.”
"A dragon without its rider is a tragedy. A rider without its dragon is dead."
"Fascinating. You look all frail and breakable, but you're really a violent little thing, aren't you?"
"People die, it's going to happen over and over again. It's the nature of what happens here. What makes you a rider is what you do after people die."
"Not all strength is physical."
“There is nothing more sacred than the Archives. Even temples can be rebuilt, but books cannot be rewritten.”
“You’re freakishly calm for someone who just heard she’s about to be hunted.”
It’s a typical Wednesday for me."
A high stakes enemies to friends romance fantasy set in a military training school. with DRAGONS. Brutal, conflict ridden.
Audiobook performed by Rebecca Soler and Teddy Hamilton
In short :
Violet Sorrengail wanted to be a scribe but is enrolled as a rider (thanks mom) to train for battle at a war college. If she isn't killed by dragons or classmates or bullies or in a training session, there's always Xaden Riorson, "the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant" and sworn enemy of Violet's family to look out for.
The good:
- Enemies to lovers. chef's kiss.
- Steamy romance. Ultimate slow burn that made my heart FLUTTER morphing into cut this sexual tension with a blade and kill me vibes. And then gets into the steamiest sex (two). Honestly more romance writers should write romantsy.
- Loved the MC. Violet/Violence (omg stop). Fights through her life with chronic illness. Very sweet and likeable and sparky.
- The dragons were excellent. I loved the buildup around their world meshed with ours. I loved that each dragon has its own personality. The rules! The unfairness of the rules binding dragons and humans. If you are weak, dragons can simply incinerate you.
Dragons with opinions, yes please.
- The world building : War college where riders learn war strategies and train for battle + dragons who bond with the riders. I loved the rules, the quadrants at the military college, the cause they are fighting for, the unpredictability of their course (if no dragon bonds with you, you simply repeat until you die or until one of them decides to accept you as their rider). Absolutely loved the own set of rules that the dragons lived by too.
- The archives and the scribe department was fascinating to me. This is a very small section of the book. But it shows how history can be omitted, skewed and tampered with. Violet wanted to be a scribe and had to enroll as a rider because of her general (and toxic without-a-heart) mother.
- Very very tropey.Name a trope and you'll find it in this book. enemies to lovers, love triangle, second love interest, forced proximity etc etc.
-Loved the MC Xander and his handsome face (referenced ever single time he comes on the page lol). Sexy enemy. Seductive bane and boon of our fictional boyfriends. And my god, isn't audiobook narrator Rebecca Soler very very good?
- The friendships and side characters were nice. The concept of found family and genuine friendships.
- It is a cliffhanger of an ending. (honestly I saw it coming but nice)
You need to know this:
- This is pure YA language. Even though the book is marketed as new adult (perhaps because of two sex scenes). This wasn't a problem for me because I didn't know whether it was YA/NA. I simply liked the blurb, fell for the social media hype, saw there are dragons in the book and dived in. 100% does not read like an NA except for the sex. In fact at one point when a character mentions their age, i was like whaaaat?
- I saw a comment from a reader being disappointed because the book didn't have medieval kind-of language. It does not. It is very modern 2023ish language in spite of dragons and an old-fantasy-kind-of-school-training. I didn't go in expecting anything so this was not a problem for me and I enjoyed it.
The not-so-good:
- Formulaic very predictable. I don't read a lot of fantasy and I could predict nearly everything but I didn't mind it because of the addictive storytelling. Give this a try if you are willing to trade predictability for addictive plot. (worth it imo)
- The novel leaves you on the EDGE of your seat until 60% of the novel. And after that the pace drops like a dragon in freefall. It felt slow, an amalgamation of fight scenes just for the word count or to get to the plot twists and leave enough unsaid for Book 2. It felt hugely disappointing because the first 60% was really good.
- The friendship between Violet and Dain (and the love triangle which ofc you'll guess from the first time his name is mentioned) is the flatest, most one-dimensional ever. Their scenes felt like chewing on a rogue clove in between a good meal. And I didn't care at all for him or their friendship.
- Actually this is an offshoot of a story being formulaic—Many characters might feel one dimensional. Violet's sister Mira is a force to reckon with in the first chapters. When we meet her later on, she becomes a formula and not a character that you root for. This one dimensionality affects many relationships too, not just that of Violet and Dain. If Violet's mom is a cruel, non-understanding general, then where's that tension b/w her and Violet?
If you loved The Cruel Prince for its addictive style, you'll love this book. On the plus side, no bully turned lover; only enemy turned lover. Also dragons!!
Ending thoughts:
Hyped? yes. Predictable? yes. Enjoyable? yes. Addictive? yes. Did I have a good time? YES
In spite of all its faults it has been a while since a book made me have so many thoughts to write this loooong review. So I count that as a win. Would definitely rec the audiobook. Ooof romance that made my heart flutter.
Quotes :
"I will not die today"
“i know how to handle a corset”(heart eyes)
“Hope is a fickle, dangerous thing. It steals your focus and aims it toward the possibilities instead of keeping it where it belongs—on the probabilities.”
"A dragon without its rider is a tragedy. A rider without its dragon is dead."
"Fascinating. You look all frail and breakable, but you're really a violent little thing, aren't you?"
"People die, it's going to happen over and over again. It's the nature of what happens here. What makes you a rider is what you do after people die."
"Not all strength is physical."
“There is nothing more sacred than the Archives. Even temples can be rebuilt, but books cannot be rewritten.”
“You’re freakishly calm for someone who just heard she’s about to be hunted.”
It’s a typical Wednesday for me."