Iron Flame: Empyrean, Book 2

10/10—An Absolutely Epic Sequel!Rebecca Yarros has done it again! Iron Flame is everything I wanted and more. High stakes, nonstop action, emotional rollercoaster, and swoon worthy moments that had me screaming. If you thought Fourth Wing was intense, just wait until you dive into this one.Violet’s journey in Basgiath War College is more brutal than ever, and the tension between her and Xaden... Off the charts. The battles are giving, the betrayals cut deep, and the revelations left me absolutely SHOCKED. The character growth in this book is phenomenal, and the twists kept me glued to the pages. There was not a dull moment!I laughed, I cried, I gasped (more times than I can count), and I already need the next book ASAP. If you love dragons, enemies-to-lovers, heart-stopping action, and emotional rollercoasters, this series is MUST-READ.Easily a 10/10. Absolute perfection. #TeamXaden

I am so in awe of both "Fourth Wing" and "Iron Flame" that I thought I would sit here staring at a blank screen for a long time while trying to find words to express my respect for Rebecca Yarros, author of both books. I just spent 3 days reading them and the only reason it took so long is that one still has to bath, eat, water plants, feed pets and sleep though I did not do much of the latter.What writers call voice in both books is so very perfect that I immediately want to reread both books! The voice is fresh and up-to-date and modern even for the dragons yet fits perfectly into whatever period of time this fantasy took place but clearly when there were dragons! Before proceeding, however, I need to hyperventilate briefly.First of all, it is totally immature and so unnecessary for anyone to post a critical plot point in a review especially on purpose and without first posting a spoiler alert. This happens not only with these books but others as well. Doing so is just another, although minor, example of how Homo sapiens have free will which they unfortunately can and often do waste on trivialities. So, then, here is how I deal with the review situation.I do not read them until after I read the book, then I read them to see how others felt about the book. Since one needs to know what the book is about before purchase, then reading the descriptive paragraphs at the listing along with reading the free chapters Amazon thankfully offers at the listing itself will provide that. Thanks Amazon. Reading those chapters and the description plus checking the star/purchase numbers are good steps to take to avoid learning too much in a review prior to reading the book.The second rant has to do with plot. Let me assure everyone there are NO NEW PLOTS. People have been murdering people since the beginning of time. It is how the author takes a plot(s) and makes it her/his own that matters to the reader. It is doubtful anyone knows how many dragon/people/rider fantasy books are out there so in the end it is a personal opinion as to which book(s) one chooses to like.Having so many to choose from means some plot points will seem similar. For instance how many ways are there to shove a dagger into someone's ribs, a plot point in a massive number of books? This author knew how to handle the plot she chose and then developed with aplomb. Both books kept my attention fully--page after page after page.I so love both books. What is so outstanding about both is that we learn most everything we need to know about each well developed character, not by telling, but by showing through their actions and their sharp and sometimes witty dialogue. It is beyond skillful at how on point the conversations are not only between the humans but the humans and their dragons especially Tairn and Violet and with Andarna--such a cutie and definitely my favorite dragon. The growing relationship between Violet and Xaden is razor sharp and on point.Violet gets wonky with her "having to know all the truth up front demands" regardless of how Xaden has put forth so much effort to show her he cares. Everyone has secrets but a book needs tension to advance so whoa and hold on the tension builds and builds between those two. Xaden is my favorite character out of many favorites. Their arguments are worth "eavesdropping" on and their love scenes are well done (Chapter 48 is mentioned by some reviewers).In this book Violet, in spite of her fragile bones and smaller size but because of her iron will and cleverness, and all those who made it through First Year at the Basgiath War College (covered inFourth Wing") are now Second Years. Third years like my favorite character, Xaden, have graduated out and been assigned to outposts outside Basgiath. Thus begins an every other week trip for Violet and Xaden, him with her one weekend, her with him the next weekend. This is so their mated dragons can have time together each weekend.It is also in this book that Basgiath and all the outposts are put in perspective regarding the coming battle. The 'revolution' becomes a much larger focal point and Violet learns about Xaden's connection to the estate in Aretia. One can already see by this point how hard it is to give this book the 10 star, 100% review it deserves! Just read it and see what I mean. It is one well-done, well written heck of a book and do not forget "Fourth Wing first!!This book covers in more detail wards, the reason for them and the ins and outs of setting them up and what happens when they do not work (descriptive details I liked BTW). Details regarding the approaching battle then the battle itself are incredible. I am skimming plot points here since others have covered them very well but there is a lot of stuff left hanging at the end of this book and the end itself will floor you. It is like learning to fly on your own and suddenly losing that ability and plopping onto the ground and then fighting to just take a breath. It is shocking, promise.When an author has done their job, the reader will fantasize about what may happen next but this book leaves so much stuff hanging that there has to be another book. My favorite character deserves a better ending--the last two chapters still has me plopped on the ground breathless. So here's a partial list of the left-hanging questions.What happens between Violet and Xaden after the battle's aftermath? What happens to Aretia? Will Andarna's newly acquired fire play a role in the future especially in helping to set up wards? What happens to Basgiath after the war? What happens about the new dragon hatchlings? Will Cat's crew of riders play a future role? And, BTW, how did Jack get the way he turned out?So very many unanswered questions in addition to many, many not covered here. So, then, Rebecca Yarros, listen up: We readers have to have another book--please, please and thank you!!

There is something to be said about second books in a series, especially fantasy. The necessary world building and character development in book one flowed well, but was overall disappointing in book two. There were great moments and tense moments, but the ending fell flat to me. Been seen so many times before in other stories that it seems like a cliche honestly. Like it's a lame way to continue a series you don't want to just continue with as is. This wasn't a good twist for this story. As I understand why Yarros did it, it doesn't have the right effect on readers. I should be mad or angry but I just rolled my eyes thinking "been there... read that". No wonder some people dislike this book. The ending leaves me guessing what's next but also not really caring. The ending kind of ruined some character development for me. Looking for some much needed author redemption in the next book so I don't DNF the series honestly. The second book should be better than the first, but the end seemed forced to find a way to extend it.Part 1 of this book was amazing and had me crying at the end there... Part 2 was forced and slow at times and honestly annoying at times. It feels like someone else wrote Part 2, it just wasn't the same.