Fourth Wing is a quintessential New Adult romantasy book by Rebecca Yarros. Set in Basgiath War College, where you either graduate or die, students train to defend their city from threats with the help of a dragon that selects them as their rider. Violet Sorrengail, daughter of a general and a late scribe, is out of her depth when she enters the college a weak, frail girl trained to be a scribe, not a rider. With her wits and courage, Violet manages to cross The Parapet, the deathly bridge created to eliminate the weakest students before the college has even begun. That is only the start of her challenges however, as her last name creates instant enemies for her, such as Jack Barlowe, an aggressive first-year rider determined to kill her, and Xaden Riorson, the third-year “wingleader” and son of the general who led the rebellion against Violet’s mother.
I think Fourth Wing was slightly overhyped online, but still very enjoyable. This must be read when you’re craving the genre, as it is LONG. I would have enjoyed it much more with 100 fewer pages. It was slightly hard to follow the rules of their school and world. There were so many important, life-threatening tests, and after each one, I expected it to be the final test, but there were always many remaining. It got quite repetitive. I really fell in love with the characters in this story, human and dragon alike. Everyone's personality felt like Yarros had an entire whiteboard's worth of ideas dedicated to each character, minor or major. Everyone was so thoroughly thought-out. Additionally, the romance in Fourth Wing was absolutely electric.
Overall, I would rate this book 4.25/5. I can’t wait to discover more of this world in future books.
Written by Odessa O.
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