Fourth Wing

Let me cut to the chase: I found the book largely ridiculous.

The plot of “The Fourth Wing” revolves around Violet, a young woman grappling with a condition that I guess is basically EDS, except it gives her some sort of weird hair. Yarros can't stop herself from
using the word “subluxate” as often as possible. Any time Violet strains a little bit, she's bound to subluxate something.

Violet's life takes a turn as she's made to join an elite league of dragon riders who protect the realm of Navarre, in spite of spending her life up to the ripe old age of 20 preparing to become a scribe. Her
oppressive mother, a predictable trio of love interests, and the bonding of the weakest girl at school with the strongest dragon shape the plot.

Beyond the plot lies a narrative that, while not infuriating, lacks the depth to truly captivate. Yarros seems inexplicably enamored with the word “chuffed,” which is all the dragons in the book seem to
really do. The male protagonist's ceaseless smirking, along with his
textbook “hotness,” sent me into a rage more than once. How can one guy smirk so many times on one damn page? We get it. His only real facial expression is smirking. Of course this super hot badass guy loves smart women and recognizes Violet's underlying strength.

The culmination of their sexual tension, which isn't tense–you know from the start they're eventually going to have sex–feels really out of touch. It's as if Yarros harnessed her imagination from TikTok and brought it to life with forceful clumsiness. They have sex, they
destroy a room, the dialog made me cringe, the emotional depth was
lacking.

I thought Yarros would be a 20 year old TikToker who had never had
sex, but read her biography at the end and she's some 40-something
mother of six which made me laugh.

The writing is terrible. Short, choppy sentences started with “but” break up the book.

I have more criticisms than an Instagram post will hold. “The Fourth Wing” had potential to be a captivating tale, but falls short on multiple fronts. I will possibly read the second book–if I feel like
self-flagellating.