Fourth Wing(No 1 in the Empyrean series) by Rebecca Yarros (18+)

Fourth Wing is the first in the five-book Empyrean series and a hugely popular member of the “romantasy” genre — a newly evolving subgenre of fantasy fiction that prioritises a romantic plotline — followed by its equally engaging and successful sequels Iron Flame and Onyx Storm; the two remaining unnamed books in the series have yet to be released.

Fourth Wing follows clever 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail, who has trained her entire life to become a member of the knowledgeable and reserved Scribe quadrant.

Yet, when she is on the precipice of entering life as a Scribe, dedicating herself to documenting and preserving the history of the kingdom of Navarre as well as the wider continent, she is thrust into a life of cut-throat competition and even deadlier dragons — the Riders Quadrant.

To honour her bloodline as daughter of the ruthless and distant General Lilith Sorrengail — and for reasons beyond her station — she is forced to fundamentally uproot her life’s vision and join the ranks of countless fierce cadets, all vying for the status of Navarre’s elite dragon riders.

Beyond the bleak survival statistics at Basgiath War College, Violet is significantly disadvantaged from the start owing to her naturally fragile joints and bones – a condition that reflects Yarros’s own experience with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, bringing more representation for chronic illnesses in the fantasy fiction genre.

EDS is a rare inherited condition that affects connected tissue, and I appreciate how Yarros has raised awareness and encouraged readers to deepen their understanding of this condition through her work.

Stigma against “invisible” conditions can often isolate the affected; engaging with books that shed light on life experiences that are often misunderstood is an excellent way for young people to expand their world view, allowing them to be more empathetic and understanding when they encounter those with real-life manifestations of such conditions.

Additionally, Violet’s story of overcoming dangerous obstacles through hard work, determination and her fair share of luck illustrates that mindset is everything when tackling big goals — especially when that goal is bonding with a wild dragon and surviving a deadly war college!

In Basgiath’s three-year military academy, all cadets are divided into one of the four Wings, each of which is led by a powerful third-year Wingleader.

Every Wing contains three Sections, each of which are composed of three Squads. In this environment of unrelenting enemies who would happily take your spot for even minutely better odds of bonding with a dragon or succeeding in combat trials, one’s Squad is everything — the only people you can count on to truly have your back.

Having said that, any sign of weakness indicates that one would do more harm than good to their squad on the battlefield when defending the quadrant; therefore the weakest links are in grave danger as they are actively sought out by their peers.

The dynamic between Violet and her Squad was a relatable slice of friendship and found family; I enjoyed watching the main characters grow throughout the series, enduring treacherous hardships as a team.

Violet must prove herself as a worthy dragon rider to her cohort in order to simply remain alive. Then, she needs to excel in every area from the combat mat to battle analysis to be respected.

That’s quite a tall order! All of these obstacles aim to weed out the weakest and prime the strongest for the year’s pinnacle event: Threshing, where dragons choose their riders based on a mysterious criteria entirely unknown to humans.

In the Empyrean series, dragons and humans have a mutually beneficial symbiotic relationship, where they effectively bond their souls together — to the point where one cannot live without the other — to channel unique magical abilities called signets.

Signet abilities are based on the nature of the human-dragon bond as well as their respective personalities.

Dragons are sentient beings that communicate with their riders — and each other — telepathically, and so have the room to develop deep and lasting friendships. The magic system in this series is quite developed and comprehensive, leaving room for theorising and predictions for the many plot twists ahead!

In particular, Violet’s experience with magic’s intense need for balance and the consequences of its absence was super interesting.

Furthermore, many nuances and details are mysteriously kept secret by the ancient, supreme political authority that governs all dragonkind: the Empyrean.

I enjoy the mystique of the Empyrean’s secretive nature, as there is enough canon detail that one is constantly guessing on how the plot will develop.

There are many subplots happening at the same time that all three books provide a constant stream of entertainment and plot twists that will keep you on the edge of your seat; I highly appreciated the consistent storyline momentum in this series, as it pushed me to finish it in less than a week!

Violet is unceremoniously thrown into this world of magic and dragons as not the journalist, but the soldier.

Although she has the brief respite of knowing that her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, has her back from his role as the dutiful and rule-following Squad Leader, it is difficult to relax when the most powerful and ruthless Wingleader in the Riders Quadrant vows to end her life when she least expects it before the first day has even begun.

Xaden Riorson is an incredibly powerful shadow-wielder, meaning that he summons and controls shadows from everywhere and nowhere, so it’s not necessarily an ability Violet can hide from.

Yet, he is only one of the many students who wish to take her down a peg or two for being the daughter of the callous General Sorregnail.

Having said that, every day Violet survives in Basgiath, the war outside of Navarre’s walls grows fiercer, the death toll rises, and fewer dragons are deciding to bond with humans.

As Violet delves deeper into this cruel world of the dragons, she discovers a far more dangerous layer of deception cast by leadership, and revealing the truth may cost much more than her life.

Of course, this is a spoiler-free book review column, but I will share Yarros’s commentary on this mega twist: censorship is a huge theme throughout this series, highlighting how we can easily lose sight of our history when we obscure the truth of our pasts — both good and bad — inevitably dooming us all to repeat it.

One of my favourite parts of this series is how, even though the main plot is always developing new twists and turns, the story remains super coherent and engaging. In terms of both characters and key events, there is always something to look forward to, making this series a real page-turner. I found this to be a great way to build reading momentum, as each book is action-packed enough to keep you on the edge of your seat, yet contain enough emotional depth that the characters are complex and relatable – even if we don’t always agree with them.

Overall, this romantasy bestseller is hugely popular for its well-established magical and political system, vibrant characters, and its immensely relevant overarching theme of transparency and growth. If any of this interests you, I would encourage you to give Fourth Wing a try!

• On a final note, I would like to hear your thoughts on my column; for any comments on The Empyrean Series, or simply to give me a book recommendation of whatever you’re reading at the moment, contact me at bookspacebda@gmail.com to tell me all about it. I’m always looking to review books from a variety of genres and authorial backgrounds, so all recommendations are appreciated