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A review by sinamile
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
3.0
Actual Rating: ★★⯨☆☆ (2 & 1/2 rounded up)
Audiobook Review
CW/TW: vomiting, disordered eating
This type of storytelling has the romance girlies in a chokehold. I don't know which of them started it (I'm leaning towards SJM, or at least assuming she put it into prominence over the years) but ever since, none of them have let it go and none of them plan to let it go. Not complaining, just observing.
Like, if someone gave me this book coverless and told me it's a new SJM book, I would 100% believe them because this reads exactly like an SJM book, down to the way the love triangle is handled.
Having said that, this isn't a bad book actually, I genuinely do enjoy SJM books so obviously a book that closely resembles that writing style I'm going to enjoy, too. What I did not give a single flying eff about though was the romance. This is a romance book though, so "Arianna, what are you doing here?" I'll tell you! My aroace ass is here for one thing, and one thing only: Dragons. There wasn't much on the history of them, but that's okay coz I'm hoping book two (2) covers that. But I like them, they're more interesting than the humans, I can give you that.
The human characters were okay, they weren't boring or anything like that, actually had a bit of dimension (a tiny bit, enough for me to not be completely bored of them), but I didn't care about them, well some of them. I like Violet's friend group though, enjoyed when they hung out together. It felt like a genuine group of friends. Although there is a certain disattaxhment I feel to them, like I like them, but I also don't care. Like if one of them died I'd be like "shame" maybe and then would keep moving, like I would be angry about their deaths, wouldn't be hurt (not like I would be with the dragons, coz again, I'm only here for the dragons).
My one issue with the main character is that her issues are resolved too easily. She doesn't struggle enough for me. Like give me more broken bones, give me more bad days. MC recovers too easily and too quickly. Like I get why things are happening the way they are, she's headstrong and doesn't give up etc, but I want more struggling on her part. Everything, as I said before, gets resolved too easily. Like she adapts too quickly, learns too quickly. The text could literally say "it's been two weeks" but it doesn't feel like two weeks because a single sentence isn't going to show us how much she's struggled to get half decent at a thing. I like characters to struggle a little longer, to fight desperately. I like them a little broken (eg Rin).
That being said, I don't mind her as a character, actually quite like her tbh, but she's kind of mid, they all are. Like not one was giving not even Rhys—I mean Xaden. They're all just meh characters at best, but I don't completely dislike them though even thought any one of their deaths would mean absolutely nothing to me.
Also, this story felt too damn long and by the time the third act began and all the drama was unfolding, I was emotionally detached, so all the big reveals and sad moments had me feeling like "Okay, next, keep it moving, keep it going, wrap it up". Lowkey kind of dissapoined even though I enjoyed the first 2/3 of this (and I usually love the actiony bits)
Audiobook Review
CW/TW: vomiting, disordered eating
This type of storytelling has the romance girlies in a chokehold. I don't know which of them started it (I'm leaning towards SJM, or at least assuming she put it into prominence over the years) but ever since, none of them have let it go and none of them plan to let it go. Not complaining, just observing.
Like, if someone gave me this book coverless and told me it's a new SJM book, I would 100% believe them because this reads exactly like an SJM book, down to the way the love triangle is handled.
Having said that, this isn't a bad book actually, I genuinely do enjoy SJM books so obviously a book that closely resembles that writing style I'm going to enjoy, too. What I did not give a single flying eff about though was the romance. This is a romance book though, so "Arianna, what are you doing here?" I'll tell you! My aroace ass is here for one thing, and one thing only: Dragons. There wasn't much on the history of them, but that's okay coz I'm hoping book two (2) covers that. But I like them, they're more interesting than the humans, I can give you that.
The human characters were okay, they weren't boring or anything like that, actually had a bit of dimension (a tiny bit, enough for me to not be completely bored of them), but I didn't care about them, well some of them. I like Violet's friend group though, enjoyed when they hung out together. It felt like a genuine group of friends. Although there is a certain disattaxhment I feel to them, like I like them, but I also don't care. Like if one of them died I'd be like "shame" maybe and then would keep moving, like I would be angry about their deaths, wouldn't be hurt (not like I would be with the dragons, coz again, I'm only here for the dragons).
My one issue with the main character is that her issues are resolved too easily. She doesn't struggle enough for me. Like give me more broken bones, give me more bad days. MC recovers too easily and too quickly. Like I get why things are happening the way they are, she's headstrong and doesn't give up etc, but I want more struggling on her part. Everything, as I said before, gets resolved too easily. Like she adapts too quickly, learns too quickly. The text could literally say "it's been two weeks" but it doesn't feel like two weeks because a single sentence isn't going to show us how much she's struggled to get half decent at a thing. I like characters to struggle a little longer, to fight desperately. I like them a little broken (eg Rin).
That being said, I don't mind her as a character, actually quite like her tbh, but she's kind of mid, they all are. Like not one was giving not even Rhys—I mean Xaden. They're all just meh characters at best, but I don't completely dislike them though even thought any one of their deaths would mean absolutely nothing to me.
Also, this story felt too damn long and by the time the third act began and all the drama was unfolding, I was emotionally detached, so all the big reveals and sad moments had me feeling like "Okay, next, keep it moving, keep it going, wrap it up". Lowkey kind of dissapoined even though I enjoyed the first 2/3 of this (and I usually love the actiony bits)