Title: Onyx Storm
Author: Rebecca Yarros
ISBN: 9781649374189
Publisher: Red Towers Books
Pages: 527
Source: Private Copy
After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there’s no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty. Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it’s impossible to know who to trust.
Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves—her dragons, her family, her home, and him.
Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything. They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find—the truth. But a storm is coming…and not everyone can survive its wrath.
Official Summary
18 February 2025
Onyx Storm, the third book in the Empyrean series. This instalment picks up right where Iron Flame left off, plunging us back into the world of Violet Sorrengail.
First off, I have to say, this book was a wild ride from start to finish. Yarros has truly outdone herself, delivering a story that’s both heart-pounding and deeply emotional. The stakes are higher than ever.
One thing I appreciated was the pacing. Unlike Iron Flame which felt a bit tied down with world-building, Onyx Storm strikes a better balance. The action sequences are intense, and there are plenty of twists that kept me on the edge of my seat. Some plot points felt a bit predictable, and there were moments where I wished for more exploration of certain side characters. However, reading this book you can tell that Yarros took her time with this one and it was not nearly as rushed and thrown together. I can only hope that Yarros will take her time with the next one as well which is going to kill me but for the sake of the rest of the books having this level of quality compared to Iron Flame, I am willing to wait.
Violet’s character development is also great to see in this book. She’s grown so much since Fourth Wing, and it’s satisfying to see her embrace her strengths and confront her vulnerabilities as well as see her taking a bit more of a leadership role. I loved that we also saw her taking a back seat at times and letting other people lead, which is refreshing as in so many fantasies you see how a teenage girl comes into a world she knows nothing about and in no time is calling all the shots, I liked the more realistic take on this.
Her relationships, especially with Xaden, are a lot better in this book than in Iron Flame, I liked that they weren’t having the same argument back and forth as they were in Iron Flame. I liked that there was a lot more communication in this book and it didn’t have me wanting to pull my hair out.
The ending? Let’s just say I’m already counting down the days until the next book. We are left with a cliffhanger which is just cruel as I’m going to probably have to wait a year, if not more for it.
Overall, Onyx Storm is a fantastic addition to the Empyrean series and it may be my favourite book in the series so far. I highly recommend this series!
Also by Rebecca Yarros
FOURTH WING
Enter the brutal and elite world of a war college for dragon riders…
Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.
But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away…because dragons don’t bond to “fragile” humans. They incinerate them.
With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.
She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.
Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom’s protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.
Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda—because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die.
About The Author
Author Bio from the Author’s Site
Rebecca Yarros is a hopeless romantic and coffee addict. She is the New York Times bestselling author of over twenty novels, including Fourth Wing, The Last Letter and The Things We Leave Unfinished. She’s also the recipient of the Colorado Romance Writer’s Award of Excellence for Eyes Turned Skyward. Rebecca loves military heroes and has been blissfully married to hers for over twenty years. A mother of six, she is currently surviving the teenage years with all four of her hockey-playing sons.
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