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thatswhatshanread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
But alas!!! This was a fun one!!
You’ve got dragons, you’ve got a war college, you’ve got enemies to lovers, you’ve got mysterious happenings outside of the border that are kept hush hush, you’ve got redacted history and rebellion, you’ve got strong friendships and literal soulmates… I loved it. Our female protagonist Violet is not unlike any other leading character in these kinds of books—she’s weak and fragile, not cut out for the life she’s forced to take on, a disappointment to her mother, the least impressive of her siblings. UNTIL! She proves everyone wrong, even herself, as she is meant to do for the story to exist of course. Which isn’t a bad plot, even if it’s been done many times before, because it clearly works. Violet goes from meek little sister who prefers books over battle, to the incredible dragon rider who packs a striking punch. And Xaden—pretends he loathes her and wants to kill her, broody and closed-off, strong and intimidating to everyone else, but in reality a very kind, caring person who would do anything for Violet. Their chemistry was sizzling, and I loved learning more about their fated connection. The YOU DIE, I DIE trope to a T.
Dain—basically Gale from The Hunger Games but even worse—however, can suck a dozen eggs.
Overall, an intriguing and heart-pounding introduction to the Empyrean series! Great mix of fantasy and romance! You’ll want your own dragon and wingleader boyfriend asap.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Vomit, Stalking, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Chronic illness, Genocide, and Classism
garbage_mcsmutly's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Medical content, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Animal cruelty, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Stalking
devincold's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and War
andmingmingtoo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Pros:
-The general premise is really fun. I was excited to learn more about the dragon, magic, and government systems of the world
-The action sequences actually felt tense, and they definitely felt like they would be cinematic if in a visual format
-The side characters were really fun (and often eclipsed the main character in likeability)
-Xaden is an interesting and actually respectful male lead
Cons:
-A lot of Violet's inner monologue feels jarring and sometimes detracts from a tense vibe in a scene
-A lot of scenes that would be interesting and would add to the characters' growth are left offscreen, like they were cut for time, despite this being an original work where the author could decide what did and didn't exist. For instance,
-A lot of visual descriptions of settings were left out, like
-For the most part, we have to take Violet's word for it that characters, including herself, have experienced growth. The growth seems to happen offscreen and is not substantiated by their onscreen actions
Additionally, this book is screaming to be part of a series (I am aware that the sequel is out and a series is in the works, as is a movie). In my opinion, there is no finite conclusion of the book's overall plot quest at the end, mostly because there is not one unifying plot quest. The extent of the book is defined temporally, not from a plot perspective, which can give the book the feel of a series of episodes, rather than a unifying experience.
Obviously, this book is popular! I did enjoy it, and I can see how others may enjoy it more than me. That being said, it is not a polished experience, but if you know to expect that, it may help you brace yourself and enjoy it more.
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Child death, Sexism, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Drug use and Alcohol
prairieraven's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Classism
wickedgrumpy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.25
I could not read the word badass without cringing. The world building was positively wild. It's in a more historical fantasy setting where they write with quills, use weapons, crossbows were a big deal, people who wield magic have access to smaller abilities like locking/unlocking doors, making mage light, etc. There lots of wooden shit, but that also translated to having wooden exercise equipment to essential get swole in a modern fashion, rather than bodyweight exercises. There's a brief mention right at the beginning about shoe sizes which means they have standardized them? And the whole riders quadrant can get married before everyone else when the graduate.... At age 23? That's early for this society? And the focus of sexual relations was just pervasive. The talk of raging hormones... The convenience of fertility suppressants getting a brief mention before boning down. Oh and gods are worshipped, but not by dragons.
There was some disability rep that I think was decent considering that it was a fantastical setting with healers, and the character didn't want to "look weak" and would refuse treatment to speed the healing process. There was some LGBT+ rep as well, but mostly on a surface level for side characters.
Honestly, it was fine but the romance had me putting the book down regularly and made finishing this book difficult.
Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
cait's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
wildflower_magic's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
Minor: Torture
solarel's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
So world-related plot holes aside, it’s well worth the read. And it’s very much my jam. (The sexual scenes were probably the best written smut I’ve read in a long time. Well done.)
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, and War
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"Fourth Wing" is the start of a new fantasy series that follows a 20-year-old named Violet Sorrengail. Violet has wanted to be a Scribe her entire life, but her mother, a ruthless commanding general, has forced Violet to join the dragon riders. Violet is at a physical disadvantage to her other peers at this war college because she is smaller and frailer than most. But maybe, with her cunning knowledge, she can prove to everyone that she can be the dragon rider her mother wants her to be.
I had moderate expectations going into this book because it is so beloved online. With how much praise it has received, I was expecting something great, and I would say my expectations were pretty much met. This book felt very much like a blend of "The Hunger Games" and "Divergent", but with dragons, which is how I believe it was originally pitched to me. For those who love fantasy series and who have high expectations for those books, I do not think this book did anything particularly special, but for those who just want a nostalgic good time, I really do recommend this book.
Violet is an interesting character to read from because she is so intelligent. She as spent her life aspiring to be a Scribe, so she has spent her time training in the library and reading everything she could get her hands on. This gives her some crucial critical thinking skills that prove invaluable for her survival at this war college. I do think she reads a little young. She is supposed to be 20 years old, and she engages in 20-year-old behavior, but there were moments that I felt she was a little naive or bratty and it felt more like a teenaged mind.
This is my first experience with dragons, and I really enjoyed it! The politics surrounding dragons and the rules that dragons follow when selecting a human to bond with was all fascinating but easy to understand. I really had a soft spot for a sweet little golden dragon by the end of the book.
Violet's best friend, Dain, drove me up a wall. He just could not take a hint and he could not protect Violet in the way she needed. It was sweet that he wanted to protect Violet and look out for her, but he had absolutely no faith in her and repeatedly tried to step in to keep her from competing, even after she expressed to him how she was feeling and asked him to stop. They have no chemistry, they are just good friends, but Dain thinks otherwise, which created some tense, cringe moments.
The ending had me SCREAMING. I am SO excited for that reveal, and I cannot wait to pick up the next book and see how this revelation plays out! I am also rooting for Violet and Xaden and I am excited to see how their bond continues.
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Toxic friendship, War, and Injury/Injury detail