Fourth Wing (Standard Edition)

By Rebecca Yarros

Book Overview

A #1 New York Times bestseller - TV series in development at MGM Amazon Studios with Michael B. Jordan's Outlier Society - Amazon Best Books of the Year, #4 - Apple Best Books of the Year 2023 - Barnes & Noble Best Fantasy Book of 2023 - NPR "Books We Love" 2023 - Audible Best Books of 2023 - Hudson Book of the Year - Google Play Best Books of 2023 - Indigo Best Books of 2023 - Waterstones Book of the Year finalist - Goodreads Choice Award Winner - Newsweek Staffers' Favorite Books of 2023 - Paste Magazine's Best Books of 2023

"Suspenseful, sexy, and with incredibly entertaining storytelling, the first in Yarros' Empyrean series will delight fans of romantic, adventure-filled fantasy." --Booklist, starred review

"Fourth Wing will have your heart pounding from beginning to end... A fantasy like you've never read before." ―#1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout

Enter the brutal and elite world of a war college for dragon riders from #1 New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Yarros

Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general--also known as her tough-as-talons mother--has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.

But when you're smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don't bond to "fragile" humans. They incinerate them.

With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother's daughter--like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.

She'll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.

Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.

Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda--because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die.

The Empyrean series is best enjoyed in order.
Reading Order:
Book #1 Fourth Wing
Book #2 Iron Flame
Book #3 Onyx Storm

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1649374046
• ISBN13: 9781649374042
• Release Date: May 2023
• Publisher: Entangled: Red Tower Books
• Length: 528 Pages
• Weight: 1.61 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.8" x 6.3" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Give me dragons or give me death!

4.5* stars. Review summary: All the feels, dragons, love/hate relationships, dragons, action, politics, and a cute dragon. While the strong plot is sometimes overshadowed by Violet's feelings for Xaden, you can't deny the fantastic writing and engaging characters. This may not deserve all of the hype, but considering it is a fantastic read, the hype is accurate. Full review: Don't hate me, but Violet was annoying. There, I said it. Now on to what I loved about this book! First and foremost, the dragons: the DRAGONS! I adored everything about them, from their personalities and their powers, to how they connect with their riders and their designs/descriptions. There will forever be a special place in my heart for Andarna; that spunky little dragon is Baby and must be protected at all costs. I swear if she gets hurt, I will invent a machine just to go into this book world and destroy whoever hurts her. And I really hope Taryn does not lose his sarcastic edge; he is the perfect grumpy old man, and I love him with his blunt mouth. Aside from the dragons, the humans were pretty cool too. Particularly Laim and Rodic throughout, and Imogen by the end. Like I said in the beginning, Violet's back and forth of, "Xaden is hot; Xaden is my enemy and hates me; Xaden is hot though," was aggravating. I understand her hesitation, but the constant oscillation was maddening. In the first half of the book, I felt most of the characters fit their archetypes and weren't really notable individuals, but as things progressed (and the death toll rose), the remaining students' personalities filled out to more than just their role. The pacing at times was a bit slow, and with it being an academic setting, there were info dumps, but it didn't feel drawn out. The atmosphere was really good. It was easy to imagine most of the action, the setting, and the more fantastical things, except for The Gauntlet obstacle course. That thing I could not picture. It took some of the enjoyment out of that scene as my brain was more concerned with trying to figure out the logistics of what was happening. The action was also pretty decent... unless you know a bit about swords and proper ways to fight. If you're not interested in the action being accurate to a high degree, you don't have to worry about it. While I'm not that picky, and I still enjoyed the scenes, the little voice in the back of my head asking, "Is that possible?" kept going off. Though my YouTube shorts page could have contributed to that; Sellsword Arts are a fun and knowledgeable bunch to watch. I suppose another thing that bugged me about Violet was how everyone, including her, kept saying how weak she was and saying that she was... broken in some mysterious way, and it was never explained in the story. I only learned at the end in the author's notes that Violet, like the author, has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. Short explanation: it's a disorder that makes your joints weak, and a person is likely to injure themselves more easily by doing moderately strenuous tasks because of it— from my understanding. If that was explained earlier and a little bit better in-world, other than her "weakness" being a mysterious, possibly magical cause, I feel like I may not have felt as confused, nor had judged her as harshly, thinking that she just had main character syndrome/"I'm not like other girls" vibes. All the feelings are in this book, and you feel them right along with Violet; the writing was immersive, not only with the atmosphere and setting, but with the characters' emotions too. I wish that we could have gotten more of Xaden's point of view; I loved the little snippet we were given at one point.

Great book but shouldn’t be on kids and teen section

VerySpicy dragon thriller

The hype is real.

I absolutely devoured Fourth Wing and read it in two days. The hype is real. What I loved most about this book was Violet’s journey. She starts as someone many people underestimate, and watching her face impossible challenges, adapt, persevere, and grow into her own strength made her incredibly easy to root for. I love a good underdog story, and this one delivered. The character development was fantastic. I quickly became invested not only in Violet, but in the entire cast. The friendships, rivalries, alliances, and tensions all felt meaningful, and I found myself genuinely caring about what happened to these characters. The world-building was immersive without being overwhelming, and the pacing was phenomenal. Every chapter seemed to raise the stakes, reveal something new, or leave me desperate to know what happened next. This is one of those books where “just one more chapter” quickly turns into staying up far later than planned. What surprised me most was how much fun this book was to read. Dragons, danger, high-stakes training, political intrigue, memorable characters, and nonstop action combined into a story that completely pulled me in from start to finish. I can honestly say I loved every second of reading this one. A friend told me to make sure I had Iron Flame ready to go if I enjoyed the beginning of Fourth Wing, and that turned out to be excellent advice. I’m incredibly glad the next book is arriving tomorrow because I’m not ready to leave this world behind yet. If you’ve been hesitant because of the hype, don’t be. Fourth Wing absolutely earned its five stars from me.

Loved this Book

Probably one of my new favorite books

EDS awareness and a great read

After how disappointing Quicksilver was, I was unsure of what to expect with Fourth Wing. I am happy to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this read! I share the same connective tissue disorder (hEDS) as Yarros, so despite the fantastical setting I've found a lot of the protagonist's struggles to be highly relatable. I did have to dock a star due to a few amateurish writing methods, but other than that what a lovely read! Very much looking forward to books two and three in the Empyrean series. <3

"A dragon without its rider is a tragedy. A rider without their dragon is dead." - Fourth Wing

6 stars 🤩 new favorite book unlocked. Game of thrones meets how to train your dragon, but for adults! Slow burn. Enemies to lovers. A few good spicy scenes. Has a twist at the end, and leaves you on a cliffhanger. Can't wait to read Iron Flame

Great Series

This is so good!!! I listened to the dramatized narration at the same time I was reading the book. Made it a faster pace read with all the sounds if the dragons etc. Brought the book to life!!!

In LOVE. Obsessed!!

A good friend of mine, whom I've known since childhood, recommended that I read this series because she's loved it ever since it was released. I started it about a week ago, and OMG! I'm in love!! I went and purchased the hardcover copies of all 3 books, and I plan on buying the softcover versions as well for the other 2.

Fourth Wing is my favorite series.

Adults will love this book. It is an adult made dragon riders take. Just the storyline and the characters are amazing. I can't put it down.

Most Definately Not For Children Or Teens Or To Listen To With Your Young Adult Or Parents

I absolutely LOVED this series! I still love it! Im not done. I actually got the GraphicAudio Books, the ones with the full cast and sound effects "A movie inside your mind!" From my library app. I am only reviewing it here because I saw it listed under "Childrens and YA Adventure Books". I got this on a whim, to listen to on a road trip with my 15 year old son, and my in their 60's parents. I thought I remembered my niece reading the book, and I swore I saw a girl around 14 reading it one night at a Cub Scout Meeting. I figured it was fine. It was. It was totally awesome! Everyone was into it and captivated. There were a few comments, "My sister and I didn't discuss our men." A description here or there that caused me to think, "daaaang, she wants to climb him like a tree." Everything was fine and dandy and then Wham! BAM! Thank you Violence and Raiden because not only are the dragons mating, but the humans are as well... in super descriptive detail! And, amazingly, this isnt a quicky adult scene. It goes on, and on, and on, and on, and... we make a plan. We will just fast forward through the next one and keep listening. 5 minutes later Im skipping 30 seconds at a time for like 15 minites of the book. Okay its over... it was over for about 20 minutes and they are going at it again.. . And again. In graphic detail... this isn't even including the graphic descripion of death and violence. So not for "children" or teens or probably teens and young adults! LeCretia

If you like dragons and y/a fiction (and Wattpad) definitely the book for you

The world building is definitely one of the most interesting parts of the book. Its story is very interesting but the whole “I’m just to tiny” thing gets old quick. It is really long can’t even remember why it’s that long. If you like dragons and y/a fiction (and Wattpad) definitely the book for you. Still good though definitely had me hooked throughout.

Obsessed

This book has consumed me for the past 3 days and legit a fre chapters away of finishing. I hadn't read this fast since I discovered james patterson in high school. I am obsessed I am not one to ready fantasy but the dragons the cadets the world the spice it all worth it !! It lime Harry potter 2.0 rated r with a disclaimer of SPICE 😅 love it.

I quite literally couldn’t get enough of it!

I’m not one for reading books, I’d rather craft. My sister talked me into reading. The summary had me wanting more so I got the first book….. I finished it in 2 weeks which is extremely fast for me. I struggled putting it down honestly. It’s so well written and detailed that I could imagine everything in my head as I read it, like my own personal show.

Amazing!

I was leery to read but this book was amazing. Think Harry Potter for adults but with way more dragons! Reader beware there is lots of spice to be found in these pages!

Fantastic!

I normally wouldn't have read this, but it was a book club read. I couldn't put it down! Well written and just a great read. You won't be disappointed!

Stayed up all night to read it!

First book in a long time that I literally could not put down! Stayed up all night to read it and it was completely worth it! Can’t wait for the next one!