阅读和聆听 
"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 then 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 $ex 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 enemy aspect. There should have been more time taken to explore Xaden's own hatred of Violet, and vice-versa.
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 bad) 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, 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 feel, 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 characters 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, 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 scene 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 cringey 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). That 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.
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🐉⚔️ 𝙵𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚑 𝚆𝚒𝚗𝚐 ⚔️🐉
🐉⚔️ 𝙵𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚑 𝚆𝚒𝚗𝚐 ⚔️🐉✍🏼 𝚁𝚎𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚌𝚊 𝚈𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚘𝚜 I’ll be honest: I didn’t want to fall into the hype. Everyone was raving about Fourth Wing, and I went into it thinking, “It can’t be that good.” Well, joke’s on me because I was hooked from page one. This book is pure entertainment—fast-paced, addictive, and so much fun. Is it perfect? No. Is it original? Not really. But does it make you want to drop everything and read it in one sitting? Absolutely.The story wastes no time throwing you into the chaos of Basgiath War College, where survival isn’t guaranteed and dragons literally choose who lives or dies. Violet Sorrengail is thrust into this brutal world, and watching her transformation is one of the most satisfying parts of the book. She starts out fragile and underestimated, but her quick thinking and determination make her a character you can’t help but root for. And her bond with the dragons? Perfection. Tairn, with his gruff wisdom and sharp wit, completely steals the show. Add in Andarna, the small but fierce golden dragon, and you’ve got a dynamic duo that’s impossible not to love.And then there’s Xaden Riorson. Dark, brooding, tattooed—basically the blueprint for every morally gray love interest we secretly adore. His chemistry with Violet is off the charts, and their enemies-to-lovers arc is everything. Sure, it leans into tropes, but it’s done so well that you won’t care. Their banter, tension, and the way he always has her back? Chef’s kiss.The worldbuilding is surprisingly easy to follow, which I appreciated. There’s no endless info-dumping or overly complicated magic systems—just a rich, immersive world that lets you dive right in. And while the plot is fairly predictable, it’s packed with high stakes, betrayal, and just enough twists to keep you on your toes. The dragons, though, are what truly make this story special. They have their own personalities, their own motivations, and they feel just as alive as the human characters.Was some of the dialogue a little cringey? Sure. Were there moments where the drama was over the top? Definitely. But honestly, that’s part of what makes this book so fun. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, and it’s not trying to reinvent the wheel—it’s just here to give you a wild, unforgettable ride.If you love dragons, romance, or just need a book that’ll completely pull you in, Fourth Wing is it. It’s the kind of story that makes you lose track of time, and when it’s over, all you’ll want is more.💭“𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚜 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚖𝚢𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛, 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝙸’𝚕𝚕 𝚍𝚘 𝚒𝚝. 𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚐𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸’𝚖 𝚔𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚝.”“𝙷𝚘𝚙𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚔𝚕𝚎, 𝚍𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐. 𝙸𝚝 𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚜 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚏𝚘𝚌𝚞𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚒𝚖𝚜 𝚒𝚝 𝚝𝚘𝚠𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚔𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐𝚜-𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚋𝚊𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜.”
