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A review by ketreads
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
adventurous
fast-paced
3.0
A book that I'm surprised to find I actually didn't hate!
I really enjoyed a lot of what this book had to offer.
While I do agree with a lot of critics that this book doesn't break any new ground when it comes to fantasy writing, I did appreciate the authors attempts to add her own minor flare to tropes we know well. We follow the main character of Violet, someone I found a lot less annoying than I see most negative reviews found her. Violet has spent her years growing up weak from a childhood disease and training to be a scholar. When days before entering what is this world equivalent of university, her high-ranking-dragon-riding mother forces Violet into dragon riding school. One which is well known for it's mortality rates!
I won't lie to you (and it's probably blaringly obvious from my page) but I love me some dragon-based fantasy. This book had me hooked from the offset. While we do encounter a lot (ok, a lot a lot) of more YA leaning tropes, the book still overall managed to keep my attention and curiosity throughout.
Onto the negatives: the world makes 0 sense. I won't get into the specifics but ask my reading buddy and you'll hear all about my ''ok but explain again to me how massive 5Xs the size fire-magic breathing dragons don't decimate a population of griffons'' rants throughout the book. I also felt the dragons being built up as such powerful, awe-inspiring, and ruthless harmed the book more than helped. Especially when the only dragons we get any time with spend the book acting like fellow sarcastic teenagers??? The dialogue was not it.
In the end, I still found myself enjoying the story's journey & never felt the urge to DNF or throw it at the wall as I see some peers doing.
I really enjoyed a lot of what this book had to offer.
While I do agree with a lot of critics that this book doesn't break any new ground when it comes to fantasy writing, I did appreciate the authors attempts to add her own minor flare to tropes we know well. We follow the main character of Violet, someone I found a lot less annoying than I see most negative reviews found her. Violet has spent her years growing up weak from a childhood disease and training to be a scholar. When days before entering what is this world equivalent of university, her high-ranking-dragon-riding mother forces Violet into dragon riding school. One which is well known for it's mortality rates!
I won't lie to you (and it's probably blaringly obvious from my page) but I love me some dragon-based fantasy. This book had me hooked from the offset. While we do encounter a lot (ok, a lot a lot) of more YA leaning tropes, the book still overall managed to keep my attention and curiosity throughout.
Onto the negatives: the world makes 0 sense. I won't get into the specifics but ask my reading buddy and you'll hear all about my ''ok but explain again to me how massive 5Xs the size fire-magic breathing dragons don't decimate a population of griffons'' rants throughout the book. I also felt the dragons being built up as such powerful, awe-inspiring, and ruthless harmed the book more than helped. Especially when the only dragons we get any time with spend the book acting like fellow sarcastic teenagers??? The dialogue was not it.
In the end, I still found myself enjoying the story's journey & never felt the urge to DNF or throw it at the wall as I see some peers doing.