If my last post started with a long-time no-see, I’m not sure how to start this one. It is indeed a long time no see – again. We’re going a bit late but never too late to a March reading recap especially when there are such exciting readings. Also, when a new obsession of mine started: the Empyrean series one, combined with the romantasy one. But we’ll get there.
In March there were a total of 3 readings:
- “Fourth Wing”, by Rebecca Yarros,
- “Iron Flame”, by Rebecca Yarros,
- And “We Should All Be Feminists”, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
Summarising 1 217 pages, averaging 406 pages per book. And now, the usual reading stats:
As we already have a sort of template for this type of monthly post, it is also time for the spoiler alert. From now on this post, you’ll find spoilers in this March reading recap. Advance with precaution and on your responsibility!
“Fourth Wing”, by Rebecca Yarros
(Goodreads | Storygraph)
The first book of March reading recap was the beginning of my new addiction to romantasy. I was recommended to read it by so many friends who had devoured it and whose recommendations never fail to surprise me that I just had to.
I loved this book so much it took me only 7 days to finish it. For the ones not familiar with the saga, “Fourth Wing” is a small 498-page reading.
The story is set in the Morraine province, in Navarre, the kingdom of this Universe. Their main enemy is the gryphons that live outside the wards that have been protecting the kingdom for the past 500 years.
Violet, the main character, is the third daughter of the second-highest general of the kingdom and one of the best riders to ever live. Violet’s older brother, Brennan, died six years before when action takes place, when a group of rebels went against the chain of command. His death broke their family apart, leading to their father’s, a great scribe, death of heartbreak.
His death also impacted Violet a lot, considering she had been educated by her father to follow his scribe’s path. Even though she had dedicated herself to this career, when the time for her twentieth birthday came, her mother forced her to give her best on the six months left until the riders’ tests. It was a suicidal mission, not only because the riders were the elite of their army, for which people trained their whole lives; but also because of Violet’s frail articulations – and weakness was despised by dragons who would choose a rider to bond at the end of the first year.
The time arrived for Violet to go for her first day and first trial to become a cadet of the Riders Quadrant – the Parapet.
Mira, the second Sorrengail sibling, comes to say goodbye and leaves Violet with two last pieces of advice: first, don’t die and, second, don’t trust Xaden Riorson. Against all odds, Violet is able to cross the Parapet coming with one ally, Rhiannon; and an enemy, Jack Barlowe.
As soon as Violet steps into Basgiath War College, she spots her second new enemy, who her sister had warned her about: Xaden Riorson, son of the leader of the rebellion that led to Brennan’s death, who her mother killed in the end of the war, alongside all other alive rebels.
The condition for the rebel’s children to remain living was that they should all try for the Riders Quadrant once the time came. Firstly, because it was thought that no dragon would bond a child of a rebel; secondly, it was the quadrant with the lowest survival rate due to the brutality of the training and the number of killings between cadets. Less competition means a higher probability of bonding a dragon.
Dain, Violet’s childhood best friend, also spots her and tries to convince her to go to the scribe’s school while there is still time. But Violet is convinced to move with the challenge ahead.
All the, now cadets, are attributed to wings and quadrants. For Violet’s luck, she’s in the Fourth Wing, under Xaden’s Leadership, on the Second Squad, led by Dain. It is here she meets the people that will have her back the following year and help her survive, despite the odds – Rhiannon, Ridoc and Sawyer.
As soon as Violet arrives at her new bedroom, she finds a surprise from her sister: a diary Brennan had written Mira to help her through her first year at Basgiath. With the diary’s help and Rhiannon’s training, Violet gets through the course until Threshing Day – when riders will try or hope to bond with a dragon.
Again, against all odds and while trying to protect a small golden dragon, Violet finds herself bonding, not one, but two dragons. Being one of them a black dragon (Tairn), one of the most powerful to ever exist, mated with Xaden’s dragon (Sgaeyl).
This creates a new connection between the two and makes their lives depend on one another. Even if a dragon without its rider is a tragedy, a rider without their dragon is dead. The mating bond between Sgaeyl and Tairn also makes Xaden and Violet dependent on each other’s survival.
Not everything would be great, as bonding the second most powerful dragon to exist and bonding two dragons makes Violet more of a target than her ascendents already made her.
The difference now is that Xaden needs her to live. Not only was he now her new personal fight trainer, but he also appointed Liam, another son of rebels, as Violet’s shadow and guard, as he was also a first-year rider in the Fourth Wing.
The growth of Xaden and Violet’s bond makes Dain angrier and more distant from his childhood best friend, leading to placing the Codex (book of laws by which riders must obey) above Violet’s life and their friendship.
The now official Squads, participate in the War Games, which aim to prepare the Wings for what awaits on the battlefield, with the rise of attacks in the borders. After an attack in these first games nearly kills Liam, Violet uses her just discovered signet to kill Jack Barlowe.
Xaden and Violet spend their first night together just sleeping because Xaden won’t admit his feelings for Violet and she won’t have sex with him until he does. He eventually gives in and decides to stop covering his feelings, giving us the romantic pair we have been waiting since the beginning in this enemies to lovers.
The Squads are taken on a second War Games mission, this time in an outpost across the school. Xaden’s squad is sent to Athebyne and he decides to take Violet and Liam with him, due to the mating bond between the dragons.
After a pit stop along the way, where they meet with a group of gryphons and their flyers, Violet realises something was being hidden from her since the beginning.
The Squad finally arrives at the outpost only to find it empty… Xaden quickly realises they were sent there to die. He also figures Dain had used his confidential memory reading signet to access Violet’s memories. They realise of a nearby venin attack and decide to take their chance and protect the civilians. Entering a brutal fight, leading to Liam’s death and one of the most touching moments of the book.
It is during this intense fight that Violet realises she can use her signet to kill venin; and even discovers Andarna has the skill to stop time, turning crucial into the victory of the battle.
Despite winning, Violet is attacked and poisoned by venin and taken to mending. When she awakes, three days later, she finds Brennan, who apparently is alive.
Overall, I just loved this book. It is more of a romance than actual fantasy, which might be why I was so much into it. In several reviews I read from people I believe to be more expert on the fantasy genre, the most reoccurring topics were that it isn’t the most complex world to follow or to get into – which is good if you’re starting with the genre.
And I just loved Rebecca’s writing, it is so easy to read with short chapters that end with cliffhangers keeping you from staying away from the next pages. I found myself, more times than I’m proud of, reading until two in the morning with work the next day because I just couldn’t put it down.
Speaking about the characters it is crazy how our opinions vary and evolve during the book. At first, we all love Dain but the eye-rolling each time his character appears from half the book on… I mean the second time he insisted Violet would go to scribe school I already wasn’t a fan. Trust our girly, she can do it, she won’t die, you’re her childhood best friend, support her!!
Xaden, in his hand, gets the reverse character evolution especially in that extra chapter… From fearing the imposing Wing Leader to loving and wanting a man like him.
Two characters that can’t be left out are Violet’s dragons: Tairn and Andarna. Especially Tairn with his famous “Should I get the Wing Leader?” line. I just lived for them and their telepathic interchanges. Tairn the sassy condescending older dragon who just doesn’t have two more fucks to give, and Andarna being the most adorable little dragon there is.
Even though it was a very fast-paced book, I couldn’t help but feel that the last chapters were a squeeze of new characters (flyers), terminologies and elements (venin, wyvern). It wasn’t easy to follow as I wanted to devour the book and know how it would end; meanwhile, new things were constantly appearing. Leading to a lot of paragraphs rereading to ensure I was following the action and not missing any detail. I felt like I was sprinting, to be honest.
Another aspect to highlight, not 100% related to Rebecca but we also need to give her the credit for creating such a legion of fans all around BookTok and Bookstagram. The amount of fun I had scrolling through all the theories and memes was only beaten by my will to read the second volume and understand what was going to happen next!
Overall, just a very well-done 5 stars reading.
“Iron Flame”, by Rebecca Yarros
(Goodreads | Storygraph)
I don’t know if it was obvious, but I was so hooked on “Fourth Wing” that I almost instantly switched to the second volume. We needed answers, Rebecca!
“Iron Flam” picks up right where we were left at “Fourth Wing”.
Violet is in her recovery bed and sees Brennan for the first time in six years. However, he now goes under a different name to stay under the radar and away from Sorrengail associations.
Xaden and Brennan are called to the Assembly – the group leading Aretia. There are two topics on the table: the fact that they need luminary and Xaden insulted the person who could provide it; and the return of the cadets to Basgiath and the necessary lies to keep Aretia safe.
Before returning, Violet learns that Andarna is now a moody teenager who needs to be carried by Tairn on their return and left in the valley for her Dreamless Sleep.
The arrival at Basgiath is chaotic, as they are all presumed dead. Xaden starts strong by accusing Dain’s father, Colonel Aetos, of sending them to their deaths, leading to Colonel Aetos dismissal by General Sorrengail.
After graduation, Xaden is appointed to an outpost in Samara. He and Violet are only allowed to travel once a week for their dragons to be together. And a new commandant is appointed: Vice-Commandant Varrish – who threatens both Violet and Mira, to keep the younger one in line.
The new year comes with new classes, which is the case of the “Rider Survival Course” (RSC) – a classified course to help riders in extreme situations, whether it is being lost or captured and tortured by the enemy. But that isn’t all, as students are taken unexpectedly for it.
Being back at Basgiath and learning of the fragility of the wards, Violet starts to investigate them at the archives, with the help of Jesinia.
At the arrival of this year’s future cadets, Violet is appointed at Parapet and meets Liam’s younger sister, Sloane; and is surprised to see the King’s son, Cam, going under the name of Aaric.
After the crossing, Solas, Varrish’s dragon, makes his first unnecessary appearance and decides to burn a few of the cadets alive.
Due to all that happened at Athebyne and that Violet has to lie about, she distances herself from her friends to protect them. She starts getting closer to Imogen, her new running partner, third year and rebel descendent.
It is at the fighting mats, when a cadet kills another one that was joking to be Violet, using a phrase said by Colonel Aetos before sending the group to War Games: “Secrets die with the people who kill them”, that Violet understands she might not be as safe as she expected.
This is only the first out of many events that let the group that was at Athebyne know someone is out to get them. The suspicion only grows as Varrish insistently requests Andarna’s presence in trainings and threatens Violet for her dragon’s absence. Also, as Violet is preparing to leave on the first visit to Samara, Varrish has her being searched.
Arriving back at Basgiath, from a trip where both couples barely had a chance to be together, and with Xaden still trying to win Violet’s trust back; Varrish remains annoyed for not seeing Andarna and almost burns out Violet with an excessive lighting punishment.
The first call for RSC arrives and the Squad is taken with scribes and infantry to an orientation test, where riders are disconnected from their dragons.
On the second visit to Samara, Violet finds Mira is now appointed there and is shocked to see that her sister is in love with Xaden, the only person she had told her not to trust. As the two are bonding, Violet takes the chance to question Mira about what is going on outside the wards and if her sister believes it to be folklore, which she dismisses.
Sparring this year becomes interesting and full of confessions as Dain admits to not know what was going to happen as he shared Violet’s memories. But that’s not all, as Aaric admits knowing what is going on outside the wards in Poromiel.
The first interrogation training in the RSC arrives and Violet is beaten and mended over and over as she refuses to talk. Admitting to Nolan to have precious information leads to him helping her escape. As the Squad returns, they are surprised to find Jack Barlowe back and alive, mended by Nolan for the past year.
Returning to classes and to battle brief, the riders hear of an attack in Samara and, the insinuation of Xaden’s death makes Violet leave immediately. Despite finding chaos, she also sees both Xaden and Mira are alive.
This unthought-out act makes Varrish furious on Violet’s return to Basgiath. She has no other option and comes forward to her Squad about everything, leaving only Brennan and Aretia to herself. They all immediately support her and go on the first mission to find the First Six Vault – where Aaric’s help is needed. With the success of this mission, two journals are retrieved: one for Brennan to read and translate, the other for Violet.
Despite all, the mission doesn’t go unnoticed and Violet is kidnapped and tortured for five days by Varrish. Dain is, once again, asked to read her memories and, this time, Violet decides to show him the truth of Athebyne – shocking him with the information.
At the end of the day, this is a romantasy kind of book and of course, Xaden appears to save the day and free Violet.
As they leave, they find General Sorrengail, who admits to having made a pact with Xaden to protect Violet in her first year in Basgiath. Leaving, once again, mistrust among the couple. Her mother also admits to knowing what is going on outside the borders and their implication with it.
Violet decides to come forward with the truth to all students, letting each one decide what to do. Half of the students and a few teachers fly back to not warded Aretia, creating chaos with such a green plan.
Andarna comes back to the action as the sassiest moodiest teenager we could have expected her to be, without being able to finish her Dreamless Sleep.
After a first reading of the journals, Violet makes a first (failed) attempt to raise the wards; which leads her to meet the Viscount without letting Xaden know. Escorted by her two siblings, with a very pissed Mira by Brennan’s aliveness, they arrive and find Xaden to be waiting for them. It is also at this moment that Violet finds about Xaden’s broken promise of marrying the Viscount’s niece, Cat. A flyer who uses her signet to exponentiate Vi’s emotions and make her even more jealous of the situation.
The Viscount challenges Violet to win the luminary, but little did she know she would have to fight venin with her two siblings. After winning this fight, the Viscount says he’ll only agree if the riders train the flyers.
On the way back to Aretia, both riders and flyers must work together and fight against wyvern. This fight leads to casualties and grudges on both sides.
To decrease the heated feeling, teachers propose mat fights to let go of resentments. Of course, Cat decides to dare Violet, and the environment heats as one almost kills the other and the duo has to be separated.
Xaden decides to be honest and admits to being practically the King of Tyrrendor, taking us to a very caliente scene in his throne. If you’ve read this book, you know exactly what I’m talking about. And, OMG, am I right?
Venin and wyvern continue to get closer to Aretia but Dain and Violet still aren’t able to find a way to protect it without making flyers lose their powers.
In a new assignment, to encourage bonding between flyers and riders, Sloane tells Violet that, when a dragon bonds a family member of a previous rider, they either go insane or develop a second signet. Raising, once again, suspicions about Xaden’s honesty.
Solas appears once again to surprise everyone and Andarna kills him. Which is punishable among dragons but, given the conditions, the elders decide to forgive her.
Venin continues to approach and there’s a second attempt to raise the wards, this time, with the six most powerful riders of each dragon type. Once again, it isn’t enough. However, when wyvern tries to cross them, they die. But flyers keep their powers, which isn’t supposed to happen if the wards were functional.
General Melgren, the most powerful general Poromiel has ever seen, wants to meet with Aretia people. He has a special signet that enables him to see the result of battles before they happen. This time, he has shared that once they fight the venin, they are going to lose. He also invites the rest of the rebels to join the battle as he won’t be able to predict the result of it, giving them a chance at victory.
This meeting makes General Sorrengail realise her long death son is alive when he’s the one refusing to help and join the fight.
Violet comes to the realisation everyone needs to go back to Basgiath to protect the wards and the Dragons Hatching Ground. After flying there and, side by side with her mother, Jack Barlowe makes a last appearance as venin, killing his own dragon to remove the wards, leaving Basgiath unprotected.
The enemy arrives just as Jesinia makes the most important find: there is a seventh breed of dragon – Andarna’s.
They choose to raise the wards of Basgiath, leading to General Sorrengail’s death as her power is drained to do so.
After fighting and winning against the most powerful venin, Violet looks for Xaden only to find he has become venin himself. The book ends with Xaden meeting a captured Jack, searching for a cure that doesn’t seem to exist.
Even though it seems like an eventful book, in reality, the beginning was really hard to get through. Contrary to the first volume, “Iron Flame” is a very slow burn and challenges a reader Rebecca got used to such a fast-paced storylines. It has such a slow beginning when it takes us mostly nowhere… Too much unnecessary description.
When it comes to the characters… Let’s start with the Sorrengail family… I didn’t love Brennan, and something tells me he is up to no good… The fact his dragon is the same breed as Jack and Varrish’s… Just doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence in him…
Speaking of the literal devil… Where was Varrish in the end? His dragon was killed but we don’t hear any more of him… Did he also turn into venin?
On the other hand… Momma Sorrengail is such a surprise… But she did say that she would do anything for her children in one of those retrieved letters… Coming from a cold distant mother to a person who gives her life so altruistically for the kingdom. This shows she was a bigger person than what we see her as in these two volumes of the series.
This second volume took a lot more time to build to practically nowhere. When, in the last chapters, we were trapped with so much new information. As it happened in the first volume, I found myself, once again, needing to reread paragraphs to ensure I was following the action.
Rebecca leaves a lot of cliffhangers for the third volume and what it will bring to so many characters…
Contrary to “Fourth Wing”, when I loved everything Xaden did; on this volume I found myself constantly annoyed at him, with his “you have to ask the right questions” annoying attitude when he was the one that needed to win Violet back. It seemed very toxic to me. And now, with this ending, I want to see how his attitude will change now that he is the one needing Violet’s help. I’m sure no one will have to ask the right questions now… Right?
On the other side of men in this saga… Dain…? Honey? What was that? Was it you? Because I loved it! Talk about character development, am I right?
Additionally, let’s not leave out the fantastic dragons and especially our moody teenager! From cute to sassy! Didn’t see it coming, loved it when it arrived! Adolescence is looking fabulous on you, Andarna. And all the revelations about a seventh breed of dragons and waiting for Violet for five hundred years… This dragon continues to surprise!
Summing it all up, for me, it wasn’t such a hell yeah as “Fourth Wing” was, but I still loved it and I can’t wait for January 2025 to finally have some answers.
A 3.5-star reading for me.
“We Should All Be Feminists”, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
(Goodreads | Storygraph)
Here we are at the last one for the March reading recap. This book essay was adapted from Chimamanda’s 2012 TEDx Talk where she anecdotes and analyses what it means to be a feminist, arguing that it shouldn’t be an insult.
Chimamanda challenges our gender stereotypes that perpetuate inequality between men and women. It tackles the injustice that silences people from wanting to exceed society’s norms and expectations, while simultaneously criticising the way masculinity is constructed, suggesting that society must change if we want to reach equality.
Coming from a fantasy world, and wishing to move to another, I thought this might be a good cleansing reading.
Was I wrong…
It is a great book essay; however, it was too tough of a reading for what I was looking for. I read it in one sitting and was left wondering about feminism, its current concept and role in society and the role we all feminists should have in a fight that doesn’t stand alone for women’s rights.
Having a Western European perspective, I couldn’t help but feel relief from the situation Chimamanda portrays in Nigeria. Even if anecdotally told…
However: #Flawless, #QueenB, #LovedIt.
A 4.5 out of 5 stars kind of reading.
Hope you enjoyed March’s readings as I did, and I hope to have convinced you to join the Empyrean series’ madness.