Title: Iron Flame (The Empyrean #2)
Author: Rebecca Yarros
Genre: Fantasy, fantasy romance, military fantasy
Publisher: Red Tower Books, Entangled Publishing
Publication Date: 2023
Format: Hardcover
Length: 623 pages

Read if you like: found family, epic battles and trials, the chosen one trope, representation of chronic illness, morally grey characters, unique magic system, magical creatures, gut-wrenching plot twists

Rating: 

Iron Flame was my most anticipated read of the year. I devoured Fourth Wing when I finally managed to get my hands on it earlier this year, and have been eager to continue the series ever since. I think it’s often difficult to live up to the expectations when a book is as hyped as Iron Flame was, but I would call this book a sweeping victory for Yarros because it might be one of the best sequels that I’ve read in a long time. 

Fair warning: there are spoilers for both Fourth Wing and Iron Flame below. Please proceed with caution.

The Book: Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros

Iron Flame throws us right back into the shocking discovery that came at the end of Fourth Wing: Violet’s brother Brennan is alive, and he and Xaden, alongside a huge host of others from Basgiath and beyond, are at the centre of a revolution against Navarre. 

Naturally, this is a lot for Violet to take in, particularly from a brother whom she thought was dead only days prior, and as a result, while she and Xaden determine their next best moves after the Basgiath betrayal, she also spends time drilling both Brennan and Xaden on how this revolution began, what their involvement is, and how it is that they’ve managed to keep it a secret from the leadership back at Basgiath and in Navarre. 

Xaden provides as many answers as he feels he’s able to, but admits to Violet that being the leader of a rebel movement means that there are things that are simply beyond her security clearance that he cannot share with her. Violet is still feeling significantly betrayed at his omission of truths that led them into the battle that claimed Liam and Soleil and so while she tacitly accepts that he won’t tell her everything, she also asserts that their relationship cannot resume in the capacity that it had before if Xaden can’t find a way to be honest with her in all regards.

Despite the betrayal that led select members of Fourth Wing to the battlefield that they’ve only just recovered from, discussion ensues with Xaden’s assembly of allies, who all determine that the safest path for the whole resistance is if the students return to Basgiath and plead ignorance over the true reason that they had been sent into battle. They initially want to keep Violet under lock and key while the others return, but Xaden refuses to allow it, noting that he will protect Violet and that there’s no way that they could adequately explain her absence to her mother. They all return in an attempt to trump Dain’s father and his attempt on their lives, which they only narrowly succeed in, with Colonel Aeto’s swearing vengeance on the lot of them.

This vengeance, it seems, will begin to be paid out immediately as Xaden graduates and is promptly provided with a posting as far as possible away from Basgiath. Even though Tairn and Sgaeyl are bonded, the leadership of Basgiath and the military only provide Xaden and Violet with sufficient leave to see each other once a week. This is several days longer than Tairn or Sgaeyl have ever gone, but no one will move an inch for them now that they’re suspected of treason. Xaden and Violet are told they can either make the arrangement work, or they and their dragons can face persecution. 

From here, Violet has to navigate her grief over all of the events that have occurred, the ongoing and continuous violence and death that is Basgiath, and her role in a future revolution. She’ll have to decide what side she wishes to be on, and how far she’ll indeed go for the cause before she risks all that she and her peers have ever worked for. 

The Review

What. A. Book. 

I don’t recall the last time that I read something that had me so thoroughly gripped, so completely consumed that I simply could not put it down.

We’ll start with the plot because there was A LOT of it. The book was split in two, between Violet’s time at Basgiath and her time beyond it, and they felt like two individually distinct eras. At Basgiath, she’s finally earned the reputation that she worked so hard for. She’s respected, feared, and even revered by some, but it’s a constant battle to maintain the respect her fellow cadets have for her while also fending off those seeking to hurt her, while also keeping the friends who aren’t involved in her nefarious activities at arm’s length. The result is a fairly isolating experience for her that weighs her down and chips away at her until she finally reaches a point where she determines their help and their support outweighs the potentially devastating impacts of continuing to leave them in the dark. 

The explosive second part, which is an extreme amount of seriously exciting action, brings forward all the foreshadowing that we’ve seen and starts to weave the more intricate aspects of the plot together. Yarros did such a tremendous job of world-building that by the time you hit part two, you’re completely immersed in the characters, their interactions, and the ongoing action around them. It feels like so much is happening at all times that you almost can’t keep it all straight as you barrel toward the conclusion.

The characters do an incredible amount of growing and changing throughout this book as well, far beyond the establishing we saw in book one. Violet felt like she regressed a little for me through the first half of the book where she’s bull-headed about absolute honesty, but I do appreciate the way that, over time, she begins to learn that there isn’t a fail-proof model for being in a relationship or surviving trauma. It doesn’t need to be black and white all the time and when she learns more implicit trust, it becomes more interesting and engaging for her as those around her begin to evolve as well.

Xaden was intriguing in book one, but Iron Flame gives him room to shine. Even though the full book is from Violet’s perspective, Xaden spends most of the novel trying to rectify the chasm he’s created with Violet over his lies. We learn more about who he is, what motivates him, how he came to be, and why he acts the way that he does. We see that despite his reputation of level-headedness with all others, he becomes positively unhinged around Violet. It’s heart-wrenching to see him grapple with this, with his total inability to regulate himself if he feels that she’s not safe, and while she’s often his saviour, you also see how she ruins him too. He’s so desperately in love that there’s no line that he won’t cross for her, even if it brings him straight to his demise. 

Honestly, I loved everything about this book. It was a beast, but it was superbly paced in my view with a lot of action and a quick-moving plot. The bits of foreshadowing that were drizzled throughout the story had me constantly guessing about what was going to come next, and I was seldom ever right in what I was thinking. I also LOVE the dragons, and while a telepathic dragon rider sounds like a really weird concept, Yarros has somehow nailed the execution of dragon dialogue and actions so well that any interaction with them is so immensely enjoyable that I was constantly looking forward to it. 

This is the type of fantasy that I find completely and utterly addictive. It has a great magic system, seriously high stakes, a fast-paced, action-packed plot, and enough romance to gut you at all the right moments. This might have been the most hyped book I’ve seen in a long time but my goodness, did it ever earn it as far as I’m concerned. 

This will likely end up going down as my favourite book of the year. A superb return for Yarros, and devastating to me that we now need to wait who knows how long to get the third book in this series.