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erebus53's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is complete cheese... YA Fiction styles with adult sexual content.
This is a huge mashup of a bunch of popular tropes; enemies to lovers, competitive survival/hunger games, magic school, magically branded, kid of the boss/warleader, with teen sensibilities but college age soldiers.
Spicy and silly with DRAGONS! .. and secrets, and libraries. telepathy, spirit bonds and a mildly unbelievable political premise.
This one gets bonus points for ethnic diversity and Disability rep.. the main character has joint hypermobility and chronic pain, and one of her friends is deaf-mute and uses sign language. This is a great illustration of people using various accommodations to allow people with different needs to meet their potential. The sexual content focuses on mindful and explicit consent.
The last part of the book annoyed me because BLAH battles.. I'm not really interested in battles.
This is a huge mashup of a bunch of popular tropes; enemies to lovers, competitive survival/hunger games, magic school, magically branded, kid of the boss/warleader, with teen sensibilities but college age soldiers.
Spicy and silly with DRAGONS! .. and secrets, and libraries. telepathy, spirit bonds and a mildly unbelievable political premise.
This one gets bonus points for ethnic diversity and Disability rep.. the main character has joint hypermobility and chronic pain, and one of her friends is deaf-mute and uses sign language. This is a great illustration of people using various accommodations to allow people with different needs to meet their potential. The sexual content focuses on mindful and explicit consent.
The last part of the book annoyed me because BLAH battles.. I'm not really interested in battles.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Sexual content, Drug use, Chronic illness, Death, Violence, Toxic relationship, Ableism, War, Drug abuse, Blood, Alcohol, Forced institutionalization, Toxic friendship, and Murder
mbomersheim's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Generally, books with dragons just don’t do it for me, and I think this is the most success I’ve had with this mythical creature.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros is the first book in The Empyrean series, taking place at a cut-throat school for those who hope to become a dragon rider. This book is something I’ve seen all over bookstagram and has gotten a good deal of hype, and I get why. It’s got your forbidden romance, love triangle, and hate-to-love tropes on top of the political maneuverings throughout the book. I’m not gonna lie, I wasn’t really interested in picking it up; however, a couple of my friends suggested that I read it, so I thought I’d give it a go.
Overall, I think this book was fine. The world-building was pretty solid, and the writing, while a bit cliche at times, was not bad. This being said, I had some issues. I thought the plot was pretty easy to predict. I thought there was an opportunity missed to do more with the students vying for a higher social/academic standing; I kind of wanted there to be more mind games played, but instead, the book was pretty clear about who the good guys and the bad guys were. There were abrupt cuts and time jumps throughout the book that made me feel like I was missing something, especially during the beginning of the training. Also, it felt like the main male “love interests” were just having a pissing contest with each other which got quite annoying after a bit. I guess it just felt like I’ve read similar stories before, granted without dragons, that I’ve enjoyed more, such as the Nevernight Chronicles. All this being said I have already started reading the sequel, so I guess I’m invested enough.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros is the first book in The Empyrean series, taking place at a cut-throat school for those who hope to become a dragon rider. This book is something I’ve seen all over bookstagram and has gotten a good deal of hype, and I get why. It’s got your forbidden romance, love triangle, and hate-to-love tropes on top of the political maneuverings throughout the book. I’m not gonna lie, I wasn’t really interested in picking it up; however, a couple of my friends suggested that I read it, so I thought I’d give it a go.
Overall, I think this book was fine. The world-building was pretty solid, and the writing, while a bit cliche at times, was not bad. This being said, I had some issues. I thought the plot was pretty easy to predict. I thought there was an opportunity missed to do more with the students vying for a higher social/academic standing; I kind of wanted there to be more mind games played, but instead, the book was pretty clear about who the good guys and the bad guys were. There were abrupt cuts and time jumps throughout the book that made me feel like I was missing something, especially during the beginning of the training. Also, it felt like the main male “love interests” were just having a pissing contest with each other which got quite annoying after a bit. I guess it just felt like I’ve read similar stories before, granted without dragons, that I’ve enjoyed more, such as the Nevernight Chronicles. All this being said I have already started reading the sequel, so I guess I’m invested enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, War, Blood, Violence, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Classism and Grief
prairieraven's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Doesn't live up to the hype but it is a cute, simple read for something that is military school for teens with dragons. The dragons are neat.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism, Death of parent, Death, Animal death, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Bullying, Animal cruelty, Abandonment, Ableism, Cursing, Confinement, Child death, Violence, Police brutality, Genocide, Stalking, Sexual content, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Murder, and Misogyny
pandact's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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? It's complicated
4.75
You know a book is good when it's impossible to stop thinking about it all day! I play a boardgame and think of Liam carving a dragon miniature, or riding a roller coaster feels like flying on a dragon. And this PLOT was a roller coaster with twists and fast paced writing comparable to a Sanderson avalanche.
It also puts the adult in "young adult," if you know what I mean, and balances wish fulfillment with a gritty fantasy world. The magic is always dazzling and exciting, but so are the limitations and challenges for the characters. That's the best example (while avoiding spoilers) of how Yarros deftly avoided problematic tropes like a Supercrip, and you can tell it's OwnVoices. It felt like the book was reading my mind most of the time and you know the publishing team is going to go far because it's already signed for Amazon TV!
All I can hope is that the next book has an ending that's just as satisfying or waiting for the rest of the series is going to kill me!
For now I'll just listen to the soundtrack of How to Train Your Dragon and the bonus chapters 🐉
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Murder, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, and Death
Moderate: Death of parent, Toxic friendship, War, Grief, Medical content, and Xenophobia
seren's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual content, Death, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, Blood, Gore, War, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, and Murder
2blueshoes's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This book brought the “dangerous magical school” vibes of Harry Potter and mixed it with the “dystopia and constant death” of Hunger Games. I enjoyed it. I felt weird about it. I had a lot of questions.
The heroine of this book (Violet) is twenty, but reads younger at first in her emotions and lack of experience. As a reader it is gratifying to see her grow and become stronger (both mentally and physically) throughout the book, but it means she’s a difficult character to get to know - she is developing and changing so quickly it’s hard to pin her down. She’s weak then feisty, strategically clever and then angsty and recklessly plunging into danger. It feels like you are reading about twenty years of someone’s life, instead of one. By the end, Violet is undeniably a badass, and speaks her mind (especially to the men in her life) in a way that had me texting cheer emojis and sharing screen shots.
Although there are multiple heroes in this book, the only one that anyone cares about is Xaden. (That’s a lie, I’m obsessed with Liam bring him back please). It’s clear from the start he’s a love interest, and Violet is immediately and unwavering in her desire to… uh, ride his dragon. The sexual tension didn’t absolutely wow me in this book, but all the right elements for a dishy shadow zaddy romance are there. Xaden reminds me so much of Reven, the hero in Liar’s Crown, but he’s definitely a more morally questionable character. (I’m always low key wishing heroes could be badass and also not murder people, but that doesn’t really jive with the tone of the book. So, prepare yourself to not love everything he does.)
If you are someone who needs to know how complicated magical worlds work straight away, this book will test your patience. I had questions all the way through, and even after finishing the book many aren’t answered (what is up with the white hair thing?) That said, the world building is impressive, and differs from any magical school or dragon stories I’ve ever read. I enjoyed the scenes with the dragons SO much, and found their complicated personalities and lore the best part.
This book is really long, but I didn’t find myself bored or skipping scenes. I loved how much we got to explore in just book one of the series - and can’t wait for the next.
The heroine of this book (Violet) is twenty, but reads younger at first in her emotions and lack of experience. As a reader it is gratifying to see her grow and become stronger (both mentally and physically) throughout the book, but it means she’s a difficult character to get to know - she is developing and changing so quickly it’s hard to pin her down. She’s weak then feisty, strategically clever and then angsty and recklessly plunging into danger. It feels like you are reading about twenty years of someone’s life, instead of one. By the end, Violet is undeniably a badass, and speaks her mind (especially to the men in her life) in a way that had me texting cheer emojis and sharing screen shots.
Although there are multiple heroes in this book, the only one that anyone cares about is Xaden.
If you are someone who needs to know how complicated magical worlds work straight away, this book will test your patience. I had questions all the way through, and even after finishing the book many aren’t answered (what is up with the white hair thing?) That said, the world building is impressive, and differs from any magical school or dragon stories I’ve ever read. I enjoyed the scenes with the dragons SO much, and found their complicated personalities and lore the best part.
This book is really long, but I didn’t find myself bored or skipping scenes. I loved how much we got to explore in just book one of the series - and can’t wait for the next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Animal death, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Misogyny, Sexual content, Murder, Toxic friendship, Blood, Bullying, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death of parent, Vomit, and War
rachelmorag's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, and War
dianaschmidty's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Also, let the record state that I TOTALLY predicted that ending, but I still loved the reveal.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, War, Toxic friendship, Animal death, Ableism, and Medical content
Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
jennie_serine's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
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
5.0
I absolutely love this book. If you like books that has dragons, magic, mystery, romance, enemies-to-lovers, heroine which is almost always underestimated because of how her body is “weaker” than others but doesn’t give up… this is the book for you. Also if you are a fan of the Divergent series and Hunger Games, this is kind of a mix between the two but with DRAGONS AMD MAGIC. I have read it 4 times in 2 months and I love it. There is also a “spoiler alert” CLIFFHANGER ENDING!!! Who doesn’t like a cliffhanger ending the first book in a series
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Deportation, Grief, Murder, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Blood, Cursing, Deadnaming, Chronic illness, Violence, Body shaming, Bullying, Outing, Physical abuse, and Toxic friendship
walenchao's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Hope you like 2010s YA books but with graphic sex 3/4 into it. Page 400 of 500 is not the place for the first explicit sex scene in a romance novel, yet somehow it’s the only non-boring sequence in this overwrought, plodding tale.
The “world building” is a flimsy Potemkin city of cardboard cutouts and embarrassing tropes and cliches, with the only redeeming feature being the dragons themselves, something there are precious few moments with outside of the usual Joss Whedon dialogue and snarky remarks. Lots of “chuffing” as a catch all expression for dragon-y displeasure.
In this medieval inspired Harry Potter meets dragon ROTC knock-off you will read phrases like “for the win” and “he is absolute love” and punctuation, that. Always. Does. This. Because. That’s. How. The. Fanfic. Community. Writes. I. Guess? Seems. Rude. To. The. Fanfic. People.
Needless modern swearing, somehow people still use the middle finger as an insult here and turns of phrase that don’t make sense, a will they/when they romance between pretty insufferable characters billed as “enemies to lovers” that is paper thin and one of the worst protagonists I have ever read as your only POV.
The heroine spends most of her time objectifying the boys in her class, being buffy-style snarky, poisoning her classmates (!!!!) and talking about how she’s so weak and frail and small (tiny, he could crush me, oooh these big huge strong men oooooh) while somehow constantly being able to take an incredible amount of damage and abuse in comparison to her classmates. Everyone is stronger than her at all times except when she needs to do something and it would be inconvenient to fail. This is mostly because every test and trial results in the death of other students, supposedly to “cull the weak” but the narrative is that they have fewer and fewer eligible riders every year and that they’re losing the war at the border so I don’t really know why they’re just… letting everyone die or kill each other at a school?
This goes from mild curiosity to a absolutely tedious chore by about page 275. Lots of sloppy trope-bait writing, in all honesty it seems like it could have really used another editing pass because the sentence to sentence structure is a rickety mess.
This gets 1.75 “smiles curling up her face” 😏out of 5 “arched eyebrows”.🤨
The “world building” is a flimsy Potemkin city of cardboard cutouts and embarrassing tropes and cliches, with the only redeeming feature being the dragons themselves, something there are precious few moments with outside of the usual Joss Whedon dialogue and snarky remarks. Lots of “chuffing” as a catch all expression for dragon-y displeasure.
In this medieval inspired Harry Potter meets dragon ROTC knock-off you will read phrases like “for the win” and “he is absolute love” and punctuation, that. Always. Does. This. Because. That’s. How. The. Fanfic. Community. Writes. I. Guess? Seems. Rude. To. The. Fanfic. People.
Needless modern swearing, somehow people still use the middle finger as an insult here and turns of phrase that don’t make sense, a will they/when they romance between pretty insufferable characters billed as “enemies to lovers” that is paper thin and one of the worst protagonists I have ever read as your only POV.
The heroine spends most of her time objectifying the boys in her class, being buffy-style snarky, poisoning her classmates (!!!!) and talking about how she’s so weak and frail and small (tiny, he could crush me, oooh these big huge strong men oooooh) while somehow constantly being able to take an incredible amount of damage and abuse in comparison to her classmates. Everyone is stronger than her at all times except when she needs to do something and it would be inconvenient to fail. This is mostly because every test and trial results in the death of other students, supposedly to “cull the weak” but the narrative is that they have fewer and fewer eligible riders every year and that they’re losing the war at the border so I don’t really know why they’re just… letting everyone die or kill each other at a school?
This goes from mild curiosity to a absolutely tedious chore by about page 275. Lots of sloppy trope-bait writing, in all honesty it seems like it could have really used another editing pass because the sentence to sentence structure is a rickety mess.
This gets 1.75 “smiles curling up her face” 😏out of 5 “arched eyebrows”.🤨
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, War, Violence, Bullying, and Forced institutionalization