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adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Chronic illness, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship
Minor: Pregnancy
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: War
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Ok. Is this book good? I don't think it is. Is it readable, especially if you haven't read a lot of fantasy? Absolutely. Fourth Wing is a mishmash of fantasy and romance tropes that have been done countless times before (and likely much better). The worldbuilding isn't good, and the political intrigue plot falls apart if you look at it for a moment. Despite how it's marketed, this isn't high fantasy - this is a modern romance book in a theoretically medieval dragon school ("war college" barf barf barf).
This school makes no sense. If you are hemorrhaging military recruits and having to conscript the children of literal rebellion leaders (??????????????????????), why are you allowing hundreds of talented young folks die during Hunger Games-esque trials and Harry Potter-esque games and Divergent-esque quadrant pruning?
This brings me to another point that has been repeated many times - nothing in this book really feels original. It seems like Yarros took the most popular tropes, ideas, and characters from fantasy series and smudged them together. There were points where I recognized lines similar to Hunger Games, Six of Crows, Twilight, etc. Many people have pointed out similarities to other series that I haven't read (ACOTAR, Red Queen, Eragon, etc.). This is a book for people who wanted Alina to get with the Darkling. [Wait, are we sure this wasn't Alina/Darkling fanfic? Violet commands light(ning), Xaden is a morally gray shadow-wielder, and Dain is a rule-bound, childhood friend hottie with an undying crush on Violet.]
Fourth Wing was easy reading but too long, and extremely predictable. It's ok to borrow inspiration from the others' work, but the only thing I felt was marginally original was the disability representation. However, even though Yarros has EDS herself, I still feel like she flubbed the rep. Violet spends most of her time busting her ass and getting hurt to perform at a similar level as her able-bodied peers. Instead of continuing to utilize accessibility devices and her intellect, she rages against modifications that might help, nearly dying dozens of times due to her stubbornness. Though she eventually accepts a saddle from Xaden and Tairn, it's with much complaining (everyone should have a saddle. Why the fuck would you want your riders to fall and die after all that work?). She compartmentalizes her pain, with the overall message being, "See? You, too, can overcome your disability with hard work." I don't think this is a good lesson, and would've liked to see something more along the lines of, "Even with a disability, you can modify activities to reach your goals, kick ass, and be engaged with the things you love." We get some of this messaging, but it's not enough, and I left disappointed.
Relatedly, Violet's plot armor was unbelievable. CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE AMERICAN NINJA WARRIOR/WIPEOUT COURSE?? The gauntlet literally ends with a steep ramp. This killed me. How does someone with a connective tissue disorder get through these military-ass challenges without years of strength training? For someone who (assumedly) has POTS, how is her balance so excellent? How is she so fast? This is shitty disability rep, sorry. It's cool that her disabilities turn off when she needs them to.
I have one last thing to say, though, because I think this part really sucks. Yarros is unashamedly pro-military. She calls her husband her "Captain America" in the dedication and talks in the acknowledgements about how she landed her military hero hubby. Her characters aren't supposed to "get used" to death, but recognize that it's a necessary evil to keep their people safe. Characters are proud of their service, even though it's likely that the military school will kill them. Though the ending of Fourth Wing introduced questions about Basgiath's leadership, the overall message is still, "The military is good and necessary as long as the right people are leading it." This is gross, and I will never be ok with the things this type of reasoning excuses (wiping out a population of trapped people, for example. Is that a necessary evil, Yarros?).
I know this is a lot of complaining, but I enjoyed reading Fourth Wing because it read like a fanfic, and I gobble that shit up. I'm under no illusion that it's groundbreaking, though. If this is one of your first romantasy books and you can get past her political views, I say go for it. You will probably love it, since it's an amalgam of the most popular enemies-to-lovers tropes. It's a nostalgic YA story with smut - sexy, predictable, and satisfying if you don't look too closely. Probably a 2.5 or 3 stars, but rounded up to 4 because I did eat it up until about the 70% mark and I got really excited about the dragons.
This school makes no sense. If you are hemorrhaging military recruits and having to conscript the children of literal rebellion leaders (??????????????????????), why are you allowing hundreds of talented young folks die during Hunger Games-esque trials and Harry Potter-esque games and Divergent-esque quadrant pruning?
This brings me to another point that has been repeated many times - nothing in this book really feels original. It seems like Yarros took the most popular tropes, ideas, and characters from fantasy series and smudged them together. There were points where I recognized lines similar to Hunger Games, Six of Crows, Twilight, etc. Many people have pointed out similarities to other series that I haven't read (ACOTAR, Red Queen, Eragon, etc.). This is a book for people who wanted Alina to get with the Darkling. [Wait, are we sure this wasn't Alina/Darkling fanfic? Violet commands light(ning), Xaden is a morally gray shadow-wielder, and Dain is a rule-bound, childhood friend hottie with an undying crush on Violet.]
Fourth Wing was easy reading but too long, and extremely predictable. It's ok to borrow inspiration from the others' work, but the only thing I felt was marginally original was the disability representation. However, even though Yarros has EDS herself, I still feel like she flubbed the rep. Violet spends most of her time busting her ass and getting hurt to perform at a similar level as her able-bodied peers. Instead of continuing to utilize accessibility devices and her intellect, she rages against modifications that might help, nearly dying dozens of times due to her stubbornness. Though she eventually accepts a saddle from Xaden and Tairn, it's with much complaining (everyone should have a saddle. Why the fuck would you want your riders to fall and die after all that work?). She compartmentalizes her pain, with the overall message being, "See? You, too, can overcome your disability with hard work." I don't think this is a good lesson, and would've liked to see something more along the lines of, "Even with a disability, you can modify activities to reach your goals, kick ass, and be engaged with the things you love." We get some of this messaging, but it's not enough, and I left disappointed.
Relatedly, Violet's plot armor was unbelievable. CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE AMERICAN NINJA WARRIOR/WIPEOUT COURSE?? The gauntlet literally ends with a steep ramp. This killed me. How does someone with a connective tissue disorder get through these military-ass challenges without years of strength training? For someone who (assumedly) has POTS, how is her balance so excellent? How is she so fast? This is shitty disability rep, sorry. It's cool that her disabilities turn off when she needs them to.
I have one last thing to say, though, because I think this part really sucks. Yarros is unashamedly pro-military. She calls her husband her "Captain America" in the dedication and talks in the acknowledgements about how she landed her military hero hubby. Her characters aren't supposed to "get used" to death, but recognize that it's a necessary evil to keep their people safe. Characters are proud of their service, even though it's likely that the military school will kill them. Though the ending of Fourth Wing introduced questions about Basgiath's leadership, the overall message is still, "The military is good and necessary as long as the right people are leading it." This is gross, and I will never be ok with the things this type of reasoning excuses (wiping out a population of trapped people, for example. Is that a necessary evil, Yarros?).
I know this is a lot of complaining, but I enjoyed reading Fourth Wing because it read like a fanfic, and I gobble that shit up. I'm under no illusion that it's groundbreaking, though. If this is one of your first romantasy books and you can get past her political views, I say go for it. You will probably love it, since it's an amalgam of the most popular enemies-to-lovers tropes. It's a nostalgic YA story with smut - sexy, predictable, and satisfying if you don't look too closely. Probably a 2.5 or 3 stars, but rounded up to 4 because I did eat it up until about the 70% mark and I got really excited about the dragons.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Torture, Vomit, Grief
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Gore, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Toxic relationship, Vomit, Toxic friendship
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Honestly didn’t know what I was getting myself in for with this being my first Fantasy read but I LOVED it!
I don’t know what I thought in my head when I first decided to read fantasy but I’m so glad I did as I really enjoyed it.
I loved seeing the journey Violet went on as she ends up joining the riders quadrant instead of the scribes quadrant like she had initially planned. Along the way, she meets a few people who have it out for her and want her dead after what her mother has done previously to members of these people’s families. We meet Dain who Violet has known most of her life since she has been at the school for years as her mother is general there. Dain is very protective of Violet and is looking out for her every step of the way, but in particular when Xaden starts to get close to Violet…
Violet is a small girl but she was able to successfully complete the parapet and even the Gauntlet (even if she did cheat a tiny bit) while many others failed. Even Violet’s own sister believed that Violet wasn’t strong enough for the riders quadrant. Dain also speaks to the scribe quadrant leader to help get Violet into the scribe quadrant but she refuses as she believes she’s destined to be in the riders quadrant.
Upon meeting all the dragons, Violet ends up bonding with 2 dragons! (Tairn and Andarna).
Violet has issues with remaining seated when in flight but with some help from Xaden and even Tairn, they soon come up with a way for her to remain seated. Along the way, Violet is targeted through the night by a group of 6 people (it was 7 until someone ran out of the room when she woke!) and she only got saved thanks to Xaden himself. However, Violet remembers that she saw none other than Amber running out of the room after she guided the unbonded riders there which led to Amber being executed for breaking the Codex. Violet eventually discovers her signet is Lightning and she first realises this when she uses it in a battle and kills someone after they attacked Liam with a dagger.
At the end, there’s a big battle scene in which Liam and his dragon, Deigh sadly die even when Violet and Tairn try to save them. In the process of the battle, Violet is attacked by a venin and ends up being poisoned. Xaden manages to get her to safety where she is saved and comes around 3 days later, herself and Xaden are talking in Xaden’s room when there’s a knock at the door….
Brennan? This whole time he’s been alive when Violet thought he was dead!
I don’t know what I thought in my head when I first decided to read fantasy but I’m so glad I did as I really enjoyed it.
I loved seeing the journey Violet went on as she ends up joining the riders quadrant instead of the scribes quadrant like she had initially planned. Along the way, she meets a few people who have it out for her and want her dead after what her mother has done previously to members of these people’s families. We meet Dain who Violet has known most of her life since she has been at the school for years as her mother is general there. Dain is very protective of Violet and is looking out for her every step of the way, but in particular when Xaden starts to get close to Violet…
Violet is a small girl but she was able to successfully complete the parapet and even the Gauntlet (even if she did cheat a tiny bit) while many others failed. Even Violet’s own sister believed that Violet wasn’t strong enough for the riders quadrant. Dain also speaks to the scribe quadrant leader to help get Violet into the scribe quadrant but she refuses as she believes she’s destined to be in the riders quadrant.
Upon meeting all the dragons, Violet ends up bonding with 2 dragons! (Tairn and Andarna).
Violet has issues with remaining seated when in flight but with some help from Xaden and even Tairn, they soon come up with a way for her to remain seated. Along the way, Violet is targeted through the night by a group of 6 people (it was 7 until someone ran out of the room when she woke!) and she only got saved thanks to Xaden himself. However, Violet remembers that she saw none other than Amber running out of the room after she guided the unbonded riders there which led to Amber being executed for breaking the Codex. Violet eventually discovers her signet is Lightning and she first realises this when she uses it in a battle and kills someone after they attacked Liam with a dagger.
At the end, there’s a big battle scene in which Liam and his dragon, Deigh sadly die even when Violet and Tairn try to save them. In the process of the battle, Violet is attacked by a venin and ends up being poisoned. Xaden manages to get her to safety where she is saved and comes around 3 days later, herself and Xaden are talking in Xaden’s room when there’s a knock at the door….
Brennan? This whole time he’s been alive when Violet thought he was dead!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Genocide, Death of parent
adventurous
emotional
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Toxic friendship, Abandonment