The highly anticipated third instalment in Rebecca Yarros's The Empyrean Series hit shelves to great excitement, and bought readers back into the fraught world of Basgiath.
From the blurb;
'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 withing 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.'
Fourth Wing, the first book in this breakout series, was stunning for it's world building, and while Irom Flame, the second novel of the series, continued to expand our knowledge of the dragon filled fantasy, Onyx Storm is a cross country adventure that brings to light a far greater scope to our understanding of the world. For those in love with Yarros's world building Onyx Storm will not disappoint as she paints a picture of beauty and plight.
While the meat of this tome is an adventure, it does take some time before we can get to this journey. Iron Flame left many readers with more questions than answers, and jumping forward in time a few weeks from the point of the battle that rocked readers understanding of both the world and characters of Iron Flame, Onyx Storm picks up in a turbulent Basgiath. Fighting to set down the foundation for the journey that follows the first quarter of Onyx Storm may feel slow for readers hoping to be thrown in at the immediate aftermath of Iron Flames shocking conclusion.
As the third in the fantasy series it should come as no surprise to readers that Onyx Storm's cast of characters is now lengthily, with each adjusting to the new norm of life after the fallout of Iron Flame, and with individual and larger social battles to be fought among this cast. Within that the most thwart relationship of all is between Violet and Xaden, and it is this relationship that becomes the core focus and motivation for much of the book.
Onyx Storm set's up an exciting future for the series while simultaneously encouraging readers to go back and re-read the previous two books as Yarros reveals her foreshadowing prowess.
With a lot of story to cram in, it comes as no surprise that Yarros does set some key plot points up as reveals. While in Fourth Wing, and even Iron Flame, every step forward felt hard won, Onyx Storm gets around some revelations with coincidence, luck and family secrets to get to it's characters to the point of success. While this allows the story to move faster, and for Yarros to fit a lot of action into the tale, it is frustrating to have so many crux moments be based around what characters have done before, unseen and unknown, rather than to fight for and uncover the knowledge on the page. That being said the conclusion of Onyx Storm, and the questions the book raises, do promise that some of this off page action will be seen on page in coming novels, lightening the blow of having missed out on seeing crux moments.
Yarros's Dragon filled world remains as enticing as ever, and her ability to breath life into a now broad cast of characters remains strong. With the help of her closest allies Violet journey's across the known lands and beyond the scope of any maps in the search of the seventh dragon bread Andarna hails from. A mission with great weight after the revelations of Ion Flame this is also a pinnacle moment in the story of Andarna, allowing her character to further flesh out and have more of a hold on the page.
As readers have come to expect from Yarros's Empyrean Series Onyx Storm is packed with high octane action. From fights of magic, to hand to hand combat, to heartrending battle on dragon back. Onyx Storm will keep action lovers on their toes while delighting fantasy readers with more and more expansive world building and magic systems.
We are also treated to a bolder, more rebellious, Violet. Following the aftermath of Iron Flame Violet un-apologetically steps into the light, fully embracing her power and importance to the upcoming war. We get to delight into her becoming the leader she was destined to be, and in watching her bond with not just Andarna but also Tarin expand and grow.
For those who love Ann McCaffrey's Chronicles of Pern, the relationship with dragons in the Empyrean Series speaks to the works of McCaffrey and brings a characterization to the dragons that is stand-out against many other fantasy novels of today. Yarros continues this trend, reaffirming the importance of the dragons individuality throughout the novel, and through the mission to find the seventh bread, furthers our knowledge and understanding of Dragons own histories and political structures outside the realms of mortal men.
The conclusion of Onyx Storm will bring readers even more questions than they had before, leaving us to wait in anticipation for the fourth instalment.
We give Onyx Storm Four Stars
ISBN - 978-0-349-43706-4 Hardback Cover Price - £25.00 First published in the United States in 2025 by Red Tower Books
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