Fourth Wing

The Empyrean #1

Enter the brutal and elite world of a war college for dragon riders from USA Today 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

What I thought of the book:

Just before I read this book, my first epic fantasy, I read a horrid young adult vampire book. It was not scary or romantic or anything, it was just terrible. So with that in mind I started this book. Within the first few pages I wanted to put it down, because it appeared to be going in the same direction as my previous read. My lovely wife kept nagging at me to keep on with the book, saying fantasy is 90% worldbuilding in the beginning. I thought to myself, okey so I will finish this and give it a 1 star rating. 

Luckey I kept on reading. It was absolutely brilliant. I would have kicked myself if I stopped reading. There is a very good reason people go on and on about this series. If you do get your hands on a copy, which is very rare secondhand, buy it. Do not hesitate. It is really worth it.