Fourth Wing (Special Edition) (The Empyrean, 1)

I was not one of the individuals who jumped on the fourth wing train when it released sadly. I thought the book was way overhyped due to the sprayed edges at first. I bought this limited special holiday edition with sprayed edges before it even had a release title though because I love a good fantasy read. It is entirely worth the hype however!! I fell in love with Fourth Wing and literally could not put it down consumed it entirely in a matter of days. This is quite literally one of the top 5 best fantasy books I’ve ever read!! The story was phenomenal, the characters so well written and you really get a feel of Basgiath through the book!! I don’t want to spoil anything for those contemplating reading it still, just know you want to read this more than once. You’ve got the enemies to lovers, that slow burn romance, the fantasy story, strong female lead character and the bad ass make who hates everyone. There are spicy scenes towards the end of the book for those wondering and are well written. As for this specific holiday edition, you get 2 bonus chapters written from Xadens Point of view, while not necessarily needed for the story, kind of give you a look into his feelings and emotions. Now as for my review of Amazon and the condition of this book; there is a sticker on the front cover that hopefully removes easily. The sprayed black edges came with damage to them and are terribly done sadly. I’m not sure that’s entirely Amazons fault, I’m seeing everyone’s copies from different places with damaged edges. The book however is beautiful.

I ordered a used copy of the book and It came in a great state, it had a few stickers on but it was easy to take off without it tearing anything, the special edition comes with black sprayed edges, there were no damages to the book whatsoever and no edges were bent. Love it! (+Bonus chapters from Xaden’s POV)

I am obsessed with the story and I can’t wait to read the additional content. Rebecca Yarros is such a talented writer and the story has grabbed me from start to finish. I also truly adore the new special edition cover design and end paper. I loooove that it matches Iron Flame. I just wish the publishing house would have done a better job with quality control. Disappointed with quality of the book though, and I know that is out of the author’s hands. Pre-ordered two and both of them are peeling, and one book was ripped in the middle of the book with lots of weird folding and wrinkly mess (misprint and miscutting size??). My package was intact, no damage to the box, secured with plastic balloon stuffing thoroughly, and I think it was just printed that way. Some ink were faded too. I attempted to request a replacement but Amazon can’t guarantee replacements til December. Yikes, that makes me sad. I decided to return one copy. I’ll gift the other one still as planned, but it also have weird printing error, I’ll double check that copy thoroughly today. I would recommend going to local stores instead, if you want a beautiful pristine copy. This way, you can choose the best quality to your hearts’s desire.

“You turned oranges into a weapon, Violence?” – Xaden Riorson High fantasy, dragons, and an enemies-to-lovers romance in a world wrought with war? YES PLEASE! Okay, let’s start at the beginning, the part before I even start reading the book. Fourth Wing is everywhere: Bookstagram, BookTok, everyone and their mother AND brother have read Fourth Wing. I was interested. I had been putting it off for fear that it would disappoint. Well…when I started reading, I was thinking “Yeah, a nice new young adult fantasy with dragons. I hope it’s as good as Eragon!” Yes, I know I know…I found out very quickly that this is an adult fantasy and definitely NOT young adult. I could tell by the type font and layout, as if the sexuaI innuendos weren’t enough right from the get-go! And man…were some of them so cringy. What force on this planet made me even think it was young adult?! Some of the innuendos and just the bickering, bantering type of dialogue was so cringy and awful that I had to read parts aloud to my husband for a serious laugh. It was like twelve-year-olds who have heard about s3x but haven’t experienced it trying to talk about it. It was awful. Cringy. So terrible that I was affronted that I was still enjoying the book! One of the lines I remember most was something like “I want to climb him like a tree.” Okay. I get what she means…but if you picture that particular simile…what DOES that even mean? There were better choices out there than…a tree…🤦‍♀️ Cringe aspect incoming: While I love a good enemies-to-lovers trope, in fact one of my favorites, the way this was set up made the characters feel flatter than paper. We have our main character, Violet, whose small size is constantly emphasized for a good portion of the novel. Yes, thank you for telling us for the FORTIETH TIME that she is small and petite. Point taken. Cool. She is also warned early on about the traitor son, Xaden Riorson, who from the moment he sees her, emphasizes his need to kill her. Except…every time he has the chance, there’s some dumb excuse as to why he didn’t. And then all of a sudden, he’s saving her from death MUTIPLE times, and then they are kissing. ⚔️ This is all well and good, or would be, IF there was more to the enemies aspect. There should have been more time taken to explore Xaden’s own hatred of Violet, and vice-versa. Xaden also has this little nickname for her: Violence. This is okay…sometimes. But number one, she isn’t violent. She will harm her opponent for survival purposes, but doesn’t want to kill anyone. Number two, Xaden uses the nickname even at the worst of times, like in the midst of battle where the air of the scenario should be more serious. Sometimes “Violence” is over-used and takes away from what is happening in a dire moment. Fourth Wing (Special Edition) (The Empyrean, 1)At least it gets better. After about halfway through the book (roughly page 250), the cringe isn’t there anymore. It’s like the author became a better writer AS she was writing. The (human) characters finally started getting some dimension to them, and the cringe-worthy dialogue (with one exception about measuring size, though it’s placement wasn’t too terrible) was no longer present. We finally get a little bit of Xaden’s hatred-turned-passion toward Violet, but still not enough to see why he would want to kill Violet personally, as opposed to attempting to kill her mother, the main responsible party for his misery, instead. I know there will be more books to explore this later, but to make the true enemies-to-lovers identity, and for it to feel genuine, there should have been a bit more from the start. What truly makes this book shine is the dragons. Absolutely everything about the dragons. The series is named after their mysterious governing council (or what it is perceived as, though may be something else entirely), the Empyrean. The dragons are intriguing characters who all deserve more page time, especially Andarna and Sgaeyl, as well as the secondary character’s dragons, which we don’t get to see a whole lot of. With the dragons having their own governing system and being respected as the highest of beings is great, they certainly deserved more. The dragons also channel magic into their riders, and each rider manifests their own unique power based on their inner self. The magic system is enjoyable and works well for this world. There are two parts about the book that absolutely make it phenomenal: Threshing, and the last 50 pages of the novel. Threshing is the day when riders get to go out into the field and try to bond with a dragon. The dragon must pick the rider, of course, and not the other way around. No spoilers, but this section comes somewhere between pages 120-180ish and is the part of the novel that truly had me hooked. I couldn’t put it down! The last 50 pages of the novel are the exciting battle one waits for in this kind of book. Once again, no spoilers, but with references throughout and the multiple reveals during this stretch of reading make for an action-packed cliffhanger ending making the reader itch for more. I don’t even know where this story will go from here. I know whatever happens, I’ll be along for the ride and I know I’ll have my wildest imaginings blown out of the water. Final consensus: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐💎Why? Overall, the entertainment value of this novel has great sway in my final rating. Despite complaining about cringy aspects, they offered great laugh-out-loud moments. Despite the flat characters at first, they definitely fill out a bit more later, and the thing is, one can’t hate on that. It’s only the beginning of the story (my understanding at the time of this blog post is that it is planned as a five book series). The dragons truly make this book phenomenal, and everything about the last 50 pages really brought this novel to become something more, to put forward the promise to an exciting war story with its fair share of romance…and loss. Yes…I even teared up a bit at one part. No matter what anyone tells you about the book, its entertainment value makes for a FIVE STAR DIAMOND of a novel… i.e. a MUST READ for all fantasy lovers and seekers of a top-tier book with dragons.

Just yes!

Item came in good condition except for the top of the sprayed edges has some flaws.

(Third read – 2025/01) Hardcover review: This is my third read of FOURTH WING and while my thoughts are fairly similar to the first two times I’ve read this novel, I do think it’s important to jot down a few new thoughts. I loved picking up on things I may have missed or glossed over the first two times I read as well as picking up on things that are relevant in book 2, <i>Iron Flame</i>. There are some scenes that still hit just as hard no matter that you’re now expecting them to happen. I love Xaden in this book, and my special edition does have a couple of the chapter’s in his POV which is something I would have liked to see more of. Violet is great and all, but a dual or multiple POV would slap so much harder. (Second read – 2023/06) Audiobook review: It is safe to say that this book is just as good the second time around... and I will without a doubt be purchasing myself a copy to re-read when the second book hits shelves in November. My biggest qualm with FOURTH WING as an audiobook was the narrator. I very nearly stopped listening to the audiobook copy because it sounded like the female narrator was sick for the better part of the novel. Some parts of the book made this more evident than others. Nevertheless, still an enjoyable listen despite this. (First read – 2023/06) E-book review: I saw this book was blowing up Bookstagram and decided to jump on it right now despite the potential for it being over-hyped. I was so gratified to learn that the hype is absolutely justified. FOURTH WING has taken the bookish community by storm - and it is entirely worth it. It is truly a phenomenal read... and I deeply encourage you to get yourself a copy if you haven't done so already! I sure will be, because reading the library's copy won't be enough! In case you've been living under a rock and have never seen nor heard about FOURTH WING, it's about Violet Sorrengail, a twenty year old woman, who was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant at Basgiath War College. That is until her mother, the commanding general, orders her to join the Riders Quadrant. Violet's chances may seem limited, partly because she hasn't been training for very long due to her entire lack of intention of joining the dragon riders... but also because she's her mother's daughter and many would love to kill her for that reason alone. There's only two ways out of this predicament - graduate or die. I will likely struggle to relate anything about this novel that hasn't already been said as well as navigate my speechlessness on how amazing this book was... but I will write a review nevertheless. Rebecca Yarros excelled at creating a rich and tangible world with characters that are realistic and relatable. Violet as our FMC is perfect. She's portrayed as someone whose got the deck stacked against her - she has a chronic illness, she never wanted to be a rider, and she is 'petite' compared to the other typical rider statures. She's also described as weak, fragile, vulnerable, etc. All of these things are seen as a likely death sentence for her, but she turns them into strengths by using her best asset to her advantage - her brain. She is smart, brave, and cunning. She thinks outside the box, she's down-to-earth, loyal and friendly. I honestly couldn't get enough of her and can't wait to see what the next book in the series will bring for her. The secondary characters are each very well done and crucial in making this book as successful as it is in my eyes. I don't want to give anything away in regards to the plot, but I quickly fell in love with each character that was encountered because they are all so well written and lovable. The dragons cannot be left out of this comment because they are truly exceptional... and they may be my favourites of the book by far with their wry humour and sarcastic comments. I thought the dragons to be unique and so interesting - I am so curious to learn more about their world, their powers, etc. Enemies to lovers romance? COUNT. ME. IN. This was so so well done and I absolutely adore how it all played out. Xaden Riorson stole my heart early on and may live up to be my favoite book boyfriend ever. There are a couple spicy scenes - well placed and well done, might I add, but I think they could be skipped if that's not your jam without impacting the enjoyment of the novel. The plot is fast-paced with lots of tension and action that kept me flipping the pages long after I was tired. The world-building was vivid and descriptive without being too overwhelming or confusing. The intricate storylines were truly well done and I didn't see half of what came at me coming. Proceed with caution though, I found myself sobbing through the last 15-20% of this novel while Rebecca mercilessly ripped out my heart and dragged me kicking and screaming to the show-stopper of an ending. Is it November yet?! This is without a doubt a novel and characters whom will stay with me for a long time... and will absolutely guarantee a re-read in the near future! One of my favourite books this year - easy.

Lo compré por la emoción del momento, pero no merece la pena. Precio desorbitado y los capítulos extra de Xaden se pueden encontrar en la página web de Rebecca Yarros. Hay ediciones más bonitas y mucho más baratas que merecen más la pena.

I LOVVVVEEEEE foruth wing, I have recommended this book to soo many people its not even funny, everyone i have talked to has loved this book as well. I have nearly ever copy in English I could possibly get