Iron Flame

Me, finishing Iron Flame & texting my book bff “oh my god oh my god oh my god I finished Iron Flame. I have passed away, I am in utter shock.”

Well done Rebecca Yarros, well done. There was so much hype around the release of Iron Flame the month leading up to it that I was a bit skeptical of its greatness and chalked it up to tiktok hype. I am pleased to say it was a fantastic novel and I cannot wait for the rest of the series. Rebecca, I have so many questions!!

Let’s get into it, because there is a lot to unpack here. This review will be spoiler heavy, so heed my warning.

DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW UNLESS YOU WANT THE BOOK TO BE SPOILED.

I really really liked Iron Flame. The character development, themes, plot, spice, and everything else came together to create an immersive world and pull you into the story. Violet continues to be a bad ass while also continuing to learn how to deal with her lesser strength, her relationship with Xaden, and now some huge secrets she has to keep – even when being tortured for the information.

Xaden continues to be sexy, strong, and secretive – much to Violet’s dismay. The progression of their relationship was super good and with that ending??? I CANNOT WAIT FOR BOOK 3.

The Iron Squad continues to be friend-group goals, Jesinia comes more into play, and we even meet some new characters that offer an interesting twist into everything (I’m looking at you, Catriona).

I want to dive into a few different themes in the book because I have so much to say that I could write a novella about my thoughts. Instead, I will try to limit myself here.

The big theme we start off with is trust. We start off Iron Flame with Brennan being alive after having been presumed dead for the last 6 years. Not only did he fake his death, but Xaden and the rest of the resistance crew all knew and kept it a secret from Violet. We left off Fourth Wing with Violet realizing Tairn and Andarna kept the resistance a secret from her. Now back at Basgiath War College, Violet has to keep Rhi and the rest of the Iron Squad in the dark about what happened at Athebyne, and Xaden has to work to regain Violets trust. That is a lot of dishonesty, secrets, and strained relationships from all sides. This was such a good theme not only in the beginning of Iron Flame, but through the whole novel. I loved seeing the evolution of the trust worked on and regained between all these different groups, it was interesting and heart wrenching and oh so good.

The evolution of Xaden and Violet’s relationship. This was a really great theme throughout the entire book. Their chemistry is incredible, and it is heart wrenching to see them not be together but want to be. Xaden and Violet are great together, but they really needed to work on their trust and and openness if they were ever going to make it work. “How can I love you when I don’t even know you” was one of the most powerful quotes from Violet related to this, and just really shows how deep both their trust issues and affection for each other went.

Seeing Xaden try so hard to prove himself to Violet time and time again was honestly sexy and I can’t believe she didn’t cave sooner; I would have! As Iron Flame went on, they continued to work on their honesty and openness and their chemistry continued to flame, it was almost unbearable. When Varrish kept preventing them from seeing each other, ughhhhh! It was a great plot point but I was so sad for them each time. When Xaden was fighting to have the night free to see Violet while Sgaeyl and Tairn got to be together? OMG.

There were a lot of great themes and plot lines in this book, too many to break down individually. There was a ton of introspection, relationship issues, communication work, secrets, character development and so much more that went on in Iron Flame that you really can tell Rebecca is setting us up for one hell of a series going forward.

I loved the addition of Cat, her special power, and her history with Xaden and subsequent hatred of Violet. There is nothing like a scorned lover and man she feels scorned hard. I love that her power is to amplify emotions, and she makes Violet super jealous and self conscious. It was a good plot point and great avenue for continued character development of Violet. I even liked that they had to begrudgingly work together as the book went on.

Other themes and things I want to mention/ point out but not get into… maybe I’ll have to do a review post part 2 once I re-read it.

Other themes

• Secrets and the damage/protection they do, and the fine balance
• Insecurity and inner thoughts/emotions you don’t let yourself think about until they are right in your face
• Right and wrong, the choices we make, and why
• Sacrifices for love and the safety of the people

Things I loved – SPOILERS BELOW

• Violet vs Codagh scene
• The relationship and work Rhi and Violet have to do to salvage their friendship and the trust Violet puts into them? UGH YES
• The torture scenes? SO GOOD, it was described really well and I thought Rebecca Yarros did a fantastic job. Varrish is so cruel and terrible, and to have Nolan be there too? NOOOOO
• When Dain comes into the picture….. just wow holy shit, great development.
• THE SPICE SCENE on the throne of Tyrrendor, WHEW.
• I love that almost everyone knows how to speak sign language with Jesinia, that is so awesome. I love Jesinia’s character development too!

The continued world building and history was great, I love that you thought you knew so much in book 1 and then in Iron Flame you realize you actually know nothing and were very sheltered inside the Basgiath War College. You learn about the whole other part of the continent out there, the fliers, the other people, and more about the dreaded venin. There are people being left alone to die without support or saving from Navarre. The venin are running rampant while leadership continues to lead Navarre to believe that they don’t even exist. Then, to top it all off, you learn that the scribes 400 years ago rewrote all of history and hid everything away to keep the people in the dark. It all continued to build to the story and start to set up the rest of the series, and it really drew me in. I hope we continue to learn more, especially about the empyrean.

Also I need to know more about the 7th type of dragon??? Andarna girl can’t wait to learn more about you.

There are SO many other things I want to mention and talk about, but overall I LOVED Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros. It was so good and I definitely will be rereading it in the next 30 days.

Worthy of a million re-reads.

💬: N/A

📖Genres: fantasy, romance, romantasy, dragons, adult

📚Page Count: N/A

🎧Audiobook Length: 11h 39min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 4.5/5

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IRON FLAME DRAMATIZED ADAPTATION - PART 1

TW - <spoiler>Blood, Physical abuse, Medical content, War, Death, Grief, Murder, Animal death, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Cursing, Violence, Confinement, Gore, and Kidnapping</spoiler>

Iron Flame Dramatized Part 1 is the first half of the dramatized version of the novel "Iron Flame" written by Rebecca Yarros. The dramatized version of Iron Flame starts off where the dramatized version of the first book in the series, Fourth Wing, left off. It's Violet's second year of Dragon Rider College and there's a new Vice Commandant that's making her life hell, in addition to that she has to deal with the secrets that she learned at the end of Fourth Wing, including <spoiler>the supposedly mythical creature the Wyvern is real and they have been attack towns and outposts on the edge of the country. </spoiler> Will Violet be able to survive her second year and will she be able to help keep the secrets of the marked ones?

I didn't really enjoy my reading of the Fourth Wing novel but I did enjoy the dramatized adaptations. I think this time around, with Iron Flame, I'm going to continue listening to the dramatized adaptations because they seem to be more exciting than the author's writing and the original books. Part 1 of the Iron Flame adaptation was really exciting and it kept my attention for the duration of the audiobook.

There's an intimate scene in here and because I'm a 33 year old woman listening to 22 year old's get it on, I'm not very interested or invested in the scene. Like Fourth Wing Dramatized Part 2, I'm giving the spicy scene 2 chilies 2🌶️ out of five chilies.

Overall, Iron Flame Dramatized Part 1 was really exciting and entertaining. I think I'm just going to wait until part two comes out in two month, I don't want to bother reading the actual novel in this case because I personally do not like the author's writing style at all. This adaptation was great, I'm giving it 5 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 5/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on [Hoopladigital.com]

I never thought I would find myself so invested in the lives of drama twisted into dragons, but here I am. I sobbed multiple times in this book for the emotional turmoil that I underwent watching two very in love people not trust each other as well as the numerous other times this book took me by the throat and held on. This is definitely five stars for the vibes, the characters, and the way they all now live permanently in my heart. Can’t wait for book 3.

There are books you read because you can't put them down, and books you read because you feel a connection to the characters despite... everything. This was one of those books for me. The writing is clunky. The whole thing is poorly paced and edited. And yet, I finished it - because Violet is infuriatingly relatable, and I just wanted to see what happens next. So that counts for something.

Rebecca's ability to manufacture tension for her two main love interests is genuinely unrivaled. Getting your endgame two together in book one of five is a bold move, and one I was a little concerned about, but she's out here pulling it off. The tension/arguments in this book got a little repetitive by the end, but neither of them was really budging much so I get it.

I loved teenage Andarna, I wish we had seen a bit more of her in this book. Tairn and Sgaeyl were amazing, as always. The banter was beautiful, the spice was fantastic.

I had some mild complaints of Violet not piecing things together sooner, but as I thought about it more I realized how distracted/distressed she was through this entire book, and it seems more realistic that she wouldn't have put things together as quickly.

loved it. can't wait to obsess over everything and theorize about Violet's second signet until book 3.

Woah… That was amazing. Heartbreaking. Wild. Addictive.

As we all know, this book is very popular on Booktok, but I keep seeing a lot of criticism for it. Unlike a lot of people out there, I really liked this book. The pacing was much different from the first book, but for me, I liked it. It was much more serious and slowed down than the first book which makes sense as Violet and the squad that we love so much enter into their second (and deadlier) year at Basgiath. They have more time to take stock of their surroundings and lives. I also keep seeing a lot of criticism about Violet and Xaden’s relationship, specifically their back and forth / “lack of growth”. I may be in the minority here, but it made sense to me. For a large portion of the book (minor spoiler!), they are separated and only see each other for less than 24 hours every couple weeks. Of course, you aren’t going to solve your major issues in your relationship that quickly. Especially with everyone watching you like a hawk. Also, while Violet isn’t 16 or anything, she also isn’t 30 year old with life/relationship experience and access to a good therapist. She is a general’s daughter… and Xaden is a war revolutionary’s son. That doesn’t say warm and cuddly communication, you guys.

Criticism that I disagree with aside…. there were also parts that I really loved. I loved Xaden and Violet’s snarky back and forth. I loved seeing the loyalty and found family vibes from the squard (Ridoc is the best!). I loved Tairn and his relationship with Adarna. AND I absolutely loved the plot of the “revolution” and what the government is hiding from the rest of the public. This book really has a bit of everything, and I can see how the author is laying the groundwork for future books.

Overall, I literally cannot wait for the next book! The cliffhanger was jaw-dropping, and I need answers!! 100% recommend reading this if you have read Fourth Wing. And if you haven’t read Fourth Wing… Go read it!

Given that I read the first book just days ago, and it's so fresh in my mind, i found my self comparing the sequel to the first.

While I found a lot of improvements from the first to the second, I also found things I didn't like as much. Anything I say will be a spoiler, so I'd rather not.

I really enjoyed this book, though. It's not devoid of issues, but it's fun.

I had a hard time following all that was happening during battle scenes. While listening to the audiobook, the narrator talked super fast during those scenes so I often had to skip back a few seconds to get a grip of what was going on. And also, I didn't understand a lot of decisions certain characters made, they don't make sense to me. But, since the plot did leave me hanging a bit, I'm intrigued about the next book.

Not Rebecca literally making deaths not applicable to any future plots lmao. I bet Varrish is alive

Not Xaden being a carbon copy and acting E X A C T L Y like a certain Dark Prince from Blood and Ash.

I have a feeling all of Xadens letters will be republished into a special edition only copy. If that doesn't happen I'll genuinely be shocked.

Characters introduced and for what? Not like we know much about them. Not when every character or plot building scene is ended abruptly just to cut a few days ahead or even a week or two ahead to force Violet and Xaden scenes.

So many grammatical errors and syntax issues.

This is presumably book two out of five, and along with that I've heard rumors Rebecca was rushed to edit this plot down to put it into one book vs two. I feel like I only ever hear that excuse when it comes to a disappointing book release. Your publishing sucked for this release, bookstore owners are bashing the copies they received and having to send copies back, Amazon & others over promised copies and canceled pre orders, cancelling the opening day parties at some locations, too many people have received completely damaged pre orders and then to TOP that, a not great follow up of a reading experiencing. I'd create whatever excuse I could too to lessen the criticism but overall this whole thing is a giant Yikes.