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A review by amy_in_the_city
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This book was really fun! Finally, a true "enemies to lovers" story, not "person-I-kind-of-dislike-for-petty-reasons to lovers." I appreciated that Violet clearly communicated what she wanted from Xaden, and he respected that boundary. That really should be the bare minimum, but is unfortunately rare in romance, especially fantasy romance. I loved the dragons and all of Violet's and Xaden's friends except for you, Dain! .
The world-building was clunky. There were several instances of unnatural exposition through dialogue starting with "as you already know" or someone explaining something to another character that they should already reasonably be expected to know. There was also a lot of telling us Xaden was "ruthless" and "vicious" without ever actually showing him acting that way. This was just fine with me since I don't like cruel love interests much, but it bothered me that they were trying to convince us he was a "dark and dangerous bad boy" when he's really not. Another minor issue was I really didn't like Xaden's nickname for Violet. I thought it was awkward and not cute.
I feel like Violet kind of overreacted to the third-act conflict.I understand being disappointed that the guy she likes didn't tell her that he's been working with the enemy because the enemy is actually the good side. I understand needing some time to process that. On the other hand, it is unrealistic to expect a guy she only just officially got together with like the day before, who was also her mortal enemy for the longest time, to tell her, the daughter of a general, that he and all his friends have been committing treason. Did she really want him to risk his life and the lives of all his friends as well as the lives of everyone the rebellion is defending because she's just so important to him? His reasons for not telling her were solid, and I really don't think this warrants her saying she can never trust him again.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading the next book in the series!
The world-building was clunky. There were several instances of unnatural exposition through dialogue starting with "as you already know" or someone explaining something to another character that they should already reasonably be expected to know. There was also a lot of telling us Xaden was "ruthless" and "vicious" without ever actually showing him acting that way. This was just fine with me since I don't like cruel love interests much, but it bothered me that they were trying to convince us he was a "dark and dangerous bad boy" when he's really not. Another minor issue was I really didn't like Xaden's nickname for Violet. I thought it was awkward and not cute.
I feel like Violet kind of overreacted to the third-act conflict.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading the next book in the series!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Medical content, Ableism, Death, Bullying, Chronic illness, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content, Blood, Body shaming, Death of parent, Animal death, Murder, and Toxic friendship