‘Iron Flame’ Review: A Promising Series Falters

This article contains spoilers for “Fourth Wing” and “Iron Flame” by Rebecca Yarros.

In every new book series, there’s always the dreaded second installment — the book where a series can either falter or hit its stride. Unfortunately, “Iron Flame,” the second book in Rebecca Yarros’s Empyrean series, is unable to find its footing. The novel takes the reader on protagonist Violet Sorrengail’s journey of secretly joining a revolution while trying to survive Basgiath War College, resulting in a bumpy ride throughout for both Violet and the readers.

The major area where “Iron Flame” stumbles is its structure. The book is split into two sections: The first following Violet’s journey during her second year at the war college, and the second following the aftermath when she decides to leave said war college for Aretia, with half the cadets at the college accompanying her. Because of the book’s 600-page length and coverage of two completely different plotlines, “Iron Flame” ends up feeling like two different books smushed into one. The book’s structure also feels like an endless loop. At the end of the book, Violet returns to Basgiath to defend it from venin, soulless dark wielders that draw power from the land, and ends up deciding to stay for good — making the first half of the book seem like a waste of time.

The novel falters yet again in its lack of page time for Xaden Riorson, Violet’s former wingleader and current love interest. Early in the book, it is revealed that Xaden was assigned to Samara, a military outpost a day's flight from Basgiath, and will only be able to see Violet every seven days. Because of this, he only shows up once every few chapters, and his presence is notably missed. Not only is there a lack of banter between him and Violet, but the emotional connection that the two of them had previously garnered, which causes the book to lose a lot of its heart. With Xaden and Violet in a relationship limbo due to their struggles with communication and honesty, most of their conversations sound repetitive as they argue constantly about keeping each other in the dark. Their relationship makes the book feel like a flat circle, as the two become a broken record forced to play for eternity.

Unfortunately, major pitfalls are embedded in the novel’s core, as the plot suffers through uninteresting plotlines and information dumps. Even with new additions and interesting new journeys, “Iron Flame” fails to deliver as Violet’s initial goal to raise Aretia’s wards is never fully successful. Along with plots that go nowhere, others are resolved within seconds as the new antagonist, Burton Varrish, is quickly killed in an anticlimactic scene. Similarly, other plot twists, such as Xaden being revealed to be an inntinnsic, an illegal power that allows him to read people’s minds, are forgiven and forgotten within chapters. Thus, these shortfalls make the novel a disappointing next step in a series that started with “Fourth Wing,” which is known for its interesting plots and insane twists and turns.

However, “Iron Flame” is not without its triumphs. Yarros masterly weaves both a heavy and light tone that balances out many of the novel’s missteps. Yarros does not stray away from the harsh reality of war — even leaning into it as Violet survives multiple assassinations, her fellow squad mate Sawyer loses his leg in battle, and Violet loses her mother in the end. Yet a humorous tone still emerges throughout, with the constant banter between the cadets in Fourth Wing and witty one-liners from Violet. Through its interweaving tones, Yarros shows that although war can take the innocence, and even lives, of adolescents, it does not have to take their spirit. Because of this message, readers can fall in love with her characters and become attached to them, allowing them to understand that these characters’ lives are really on the line in this war.

Overall, “Iron Flame” is a clear example of how the second installments of fantasy books often falter. Inconsistent plot developments, a poorly constructed structure, and questionable character decisions all contribute to why the novel struggles to catch its stride. But even at its lowest points, Yarros’s charm shines through. She showcases the ups and downs of war and the found family that emerges throughout it all. She does just enough to keep readers invested in her characters and to stick around to see how everything all turns out. With the unfortunate second installation in the series behind her, the Empyrean series seems to have nowhere to go but up.

—Staff writer Maxi Duncan can be reached at maxi.duncan@thecrimson.com.