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Fourth Wing

by Rebecca Yarros · 2023

Fourth Wing is the first book in Rebecca Yarros's Empyrean series, a "romantasy" set in the war-torn kingdom of Navarre. Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail had expected a quiet life among the scribes, but her general mother… more

First published 2023 · 512 pages · The Empyrean #1 · English

29 quotes ★ 4.56 (3,817,251) Fantasy

Quotes from the Book

A dragon without its rider is a tragedy. A rider without their dragon is dead.
2k
There’s nowhere in existence you could go that I wouldn’t find you, Violence.
1.7k
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.
1.3k
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.
1k
Fascinating. You look all frail and breakable, but you’re really a violent little thing, aren’t you?
860
I’m going to keep you. You’re mine, Violet.” “Only if you’re mine.” “I’ve been yours for longer than you could ever imagine.
775
Lies are comforting. Truth is painful.
756
I am the sky and the power of every storm that has ever been. I am infinite.
715
One generation to change the text. One generation chooses to teach that text. The next grows, and the lie becomes history.
690
Oh, gods.” “Which one are you calling out for? Because it’s just you and me in this room, Vi, and I don’t share.
681
The right way isn’t the only way.
648
It’s been. My honor.
642
I will not die today.
529
Should I get the Wingleader?
509
There is nothing more sacred than the Archives. Even temples can be rebuilt, but books cannot be rewritten.
502
But I will not run. I wouldn't be standing here if I'd quit every time something seemed impossible to overcome. I will not die today.
444
There is no me without you.
426
And when others are quick to stand in front of me, Xaden always stands at my side, trusting me to hold my own.
364
Going for blood today, are we, Violence?" "My name is Violet." "I think my version fits you better.
360
My breath catches and my body warms, the traitorous bitch. You are not attracted to toxic men, I remind myself, and yet, here I am, getting all attracted.
316
You’re making us look bad. Stop it.
303
You can't make me fall for you and then die.
269
None of this is worth it without you.
263
I'm so wildly in love with you that I can't imagine what my life would even look like without you in it. And I probably shouldn't have said that, but if we're doing this, then we're starting from a place of complete honesty.
258
You’re not going to handle me?” I call after him, shock raising my brows. “Not tonight!” he tosses over his shoulder. I scoff. “What are you waiting for?” “It’s no fun if you expect it,” he answers, striding into the darkness. “Now, get back to bed before your wingleader realizes you’re out after curfew.” “What?” I gawk after him. “You’re my wingleader!
251
You never considered that it was you I couldn’t stay away from?
248
I am annoyingly aware of everything you do.
234
Thank you, Liam. Thank you for being my shadow. Thank you for being my friend.
229
He cares for you. That’s already hard enough for him.” “He cares about keeping me alive. There’s a difference.” “Not for him there isn’t.
228

Did you know?

  • The book launched a viral BookTok craze, with the series amassing over a billion combined hashtag views.
  • Violet's connective-tissue disorder was inspired by Rebecca Yarros's own Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.
  • It topped the New York Times bestseller list for many weeks and sold over two million copies within six months.
  • It was named International Book of the Year at the 2024 TikTok Book Awards.
  • The dragons in the story are written with distinct, often sarcastic personalities.
  • Red Tower Books is the fantasy imprint of Entangled Publishing.

About Rebecca Yarros

Rebecca Yarros is a #1 New York Times bestselling American author known for romance and fantasy fiction. Married to a soldier and raised in a military family, she has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which informs the chronic-pain representation in her work. The Empyrean series brought her global commercial success.

More about the author →

About the book

Fourth Wing is the first book in Rebecca Yarros's Empyrean series, a "romantasy" set in the war-torn kingdom of Navarre. Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail had expected a quiet life among the scribes, but her general mother forces her into the deadly Riders Quadrant at Basgiath War College, where cadets must survive brutal trials and bond with a dragon to gain magical power. Physically fragile, Violet must rely on wits over strength, all while entangled with Xaden Riorson, a powerful older cadet whose rebel father was executed on her mother's orders.

Beneath its dragons and military academy trappings, the novel explores survival, disability and resilience, loyalty versus duty, and the slow erosion of the official version of history a person is raised to believe. Yarros, who has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, gave Violet a connective-tissue disorder and chronic pain, making physical vulnerability central to the heroine's arc. The book leans openly into familiar romance tropes alongside its high-stakes fantasy plotting.

Released in May 2023, Fourth Wing became a viral BookTok phenomenon, spending many weeks atop the New York Times bestseller list and selling millions of copies within months of publication. It was named the International Book of the Year at the 2024 TikTok Book Awards and drew coverage well beyond genre press, with The Times of London calling it "Top Gun with dragons." A television adaptation is in development and a graphic-novel adaptation has been announced.

Key characters

  • Violet SorrengailProtagonist; a physically fragile cadet forced into the Riders Quadrant who bonds with two dragons
  • Xaden RiorsonPowerful wing leader and shadow wielder; love interest whose rebel father was executed by Violet's mother
  • Dain AetosViolet's childhood friend and squad leader who can read memories
  • General Lilith SorrengailViolet's domineering mother who commands her into rider training
  • TairnThe formidable black dragon that bonds with Violet
  • AndarnaA young golden dragon that also bonds with Violet

Book details

First published
2023
Length
512 pages
Series
The Empyrean #1
Reading time
19 hours
Genre
Fantasy
Goodreads rating
4.56 (3.8M ratings)
First line
“Conscription Day is always the deadliest.”

Critical reception

  • Topped the New York Times bestseller list for many weeks and sold millions of copies within months of release.
  • Named International Book of the Year at the 2024 TikTok Book Awards.
  • Became a defining BookTok phenomenon, popularizing the "romantasy" label.
  • The Times of London likened it to "Top Gun with dragons."

The buzz

Series & reading order

  1. 1 Fourth Wing
  2. 2 Iron Flame
  3. 3 Onyx Storm

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