Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros
What's It About?
Iron Flame has seemed to top the already towering high stakes of Fourth Wing, and raises them even further. Typically, it's tough for a second installment to live up to the first book, but Iron Flame is a wonderful follow-up that has left me speechless and wishing for the third book.The Empyrean series is bringing us back into a period where the thought of waiting for the next book drives us crazy; we are buying merch and going to midnight releases. This is a time when being part of the fandom is just as much fun as reading the book itself! After putting my thoughts together for a week, I am finally ready to review and discuss the viral sensation that is Iron Flame (Entangled: Red Tower Books) by Rebecca Yarros.
Powerful Lead Defies the Odds
Most people expected our leading lady, Violet Sorrengail, to die before finishing her first year at Basgiath War College, even her own mother. Unfortunately, this was just the first of many trials meant to weed out the weak and unworthy. Now starting her second year with new leadership, Violet is questioning her ability as the new vice commandant, which pushes her to the brink repeatedly, showing her weakness and powerlessness.
Unless, of course, she betrays another member of the revolution, who just so happens to be a man she loves, named Xaden. While Violet might be at a physical disadvantage, she uses her wit, will and years of scribe training to discover the secrets hidden for centuries within the walls of Basgiath War College.
“The first year is when some of us lose our lives. The second year is when the rest of us lose our humanity.”
Iron Flame begins right where we left off in Fourth Wing, leaving you little time to catch up and thrusting you directly into the drama. With a revolution brewing, the loss of her dear friend Liam, finding out the brother she has mourned is still alive, and coming to terms with Xaden’s betrayal- Violet wakes up from her life-threatening injuries reeling.
Armed with a secret that can endanger herself and everyone around her, Violet comes back to Basgiath War College to begin her second year of dragon rider training. Because Violet is returning with a massive secret, she is forced to pull away from her squad and friends.
Throughout Iron Flame, the students undergo much more rigorous training (if you call actual torture a form of training), and her squad notices her actively pulling away from them. Fortunately for Violet, her friends are the ride-or-die type (pun intended) and encourage her to share the burden of the revolution. This only brings them closer, not just as a squad but as a family.
Rich and Fascinating Lore
Much like Fourth Wing, the real stars of the show here are the dragons. Yarros has crafted such a rich and fascinating lore and dynamic with the dragons and their laws. While much of their society and inner workings are still a mystery, it only proves to the reader that a dragon is not just a tool used by riders but a population with their own complexities, personalities and relationships. This book not only solidifies that dragons are powerful creatures with their own history but also that they are a very sassy species! Thankfully, Tairn and Andarna’s sassy comments are heavily featured in this book as well.
I’m not sure how, but Iron Flame has seemed to top the already towering high stakes of Fourth Wing, and raises them even further. Typically, it’s tough for a second installment to live up to the first book, but Iron Flame is a wonderful follow-up that has left me speechless and wishing for the third book. Now, the fun part begins, where everyone can come together to discuss and theorize what will happen next! Whatever it is, I know I won’t know peace until it is released!
About Rebecca Yarros:
Rebecca Yarros is the #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of over fifteen novels including Fourth Wing and In the Likely Event, with multiple-starred Publishers Weekly reviews and a Kirkus Best Book of the Year. She loves military heroes and has been blissfully married to hers for over twenty years. She’s the mother of six children, and is currently surviving the teenage years with two of her four hockey-playing sons. When she’s not writing, you can find her at the hockey rink or sneaking in some guitar time while guzzling coffee. She and her family live in Colorado with their stubborn English bulldogs, two feisty chinchillas, and a Maine Coon cat named Artemis, who rules them all.
Having fostered then adopted their youngest daughter who is nonverbal and on the autism spectrum, Rebecca is passionate about helping children in the foster system through her nonprofit, One October, which she co-founded with her husband in 2019. To learn more about their mission to better the lives of kids in foster care, visit www.oneoctober.org.
To catch up on Rebecca’s latest releases and upcoming novels visit her website. (Photo Credit: Katie Marie Seniors)
