I Read "Iron Flame" by Rebecca Yarros (part 1)

[@feb2810]

Disabled hypermobile reader here! EDS can lead to organ rupturing if you're not careful (or not lucky). Obviously this won't happen to everyone, but my point is that it's not something you take lightly. Violet's disability portrayal is bullshit. I was really hoping for some kind of genuine representation of the frustration that comes from working with pain, but instead she's able to magically able-bodyify herself by "pushing it away". I wish we could've seen the repercussions of her ignoring the danger of doing that, but alas.

[@blake7915]

Fellow Zebra here. I've dislocated a rib just by hanging clothes. The 'rep' is complete bullshit, used as a marketing tactic to promote the book.

[@feb2810]

@@blake7915 oh my god there's two of us hi Maybe it was just me, but I was really bothered by how Violet's disability came from her ma having a fever while pregnant. It really felt like it played into that abled belief that something has to go untreated for them to end up disabled. Sometimes shit just happens. I might be reading into it a bit much though.

[@blake7915]

That's also just not how EDS works. Its genetic. 50% dominate and more prevalent in afab individuals. It's likely that people in her family would have had it as well. It's just dumb. @@feb2810

[@whatareyousayinggirl]

I have EDS too!! i agree 100% and it bothered me soooo much that in order for Violet to be "empowered", she had to train not only more than everyone else, but HARDER than everyone else, too? as if that wouldn't result in more pain, fatigue, and possible injuries? but she doesn't even think about painkillers outside of plot moments when she's injured badly? I want to say that i'm happy for anyone who got joy out of the disbaility "rep" (i know it's so rare) but... it also worries me because a disabled person pushing through and ignoring their symptoms over and over shouldn't be inspiring. it just falls along the insidious ableist rhetoric of "just try harder" that makes it harder for us to get the medical support and care that we need

[@somethingclever8916]

Violet's disability disappeared as soon as it was convenient for the author. Maybe if it went a way with magic it would be one thing but she seems to just gotten "over it."

[@thealexellucas]

This series sounds like a ten cent romance novel wearing a cheap costume of a high fantasy political drama it got from spirit holloween on discount.

[@TheFran2555]

Yarros forgot that to be High Fantasy the fantasy has to make sense

[@allbutperfect]

This is a read!

[@darkwindblinding]

you should read it I dare you to

[@thealexellucas]

@@darkwindblinding I've got better things to read and projects of my own to write, I'll pass thanks.

[@Cloudy_with_chance_of_love]

I’ve read…you hit the nail on the head my brotha 😂

[@sarahkarineknits]

the thing about the dragon being named "tiny" is a glaring example of how yarros is using a language she doesn't speak nor hasn't bothered to learn the proper name of to use as dragon names in her book. the dragon's name in the text is "teine" which based on the Scots Gaelic pronunciation videos I have seen is more like "chen-ya". But, instead of getting it right and having the audiobook narrator do the proper pronunciation of the words from this language, she has defaulted to "but my way is easier" which leaves audiobook readers thinking she literally named a dragon tiny. I can't get over the fact that there is a literal discussion about the loss of language and dead languages in her book and yet she continues to call the language she has co-oped "gay-lick" instead of its proper pronunciation "gah-lick". The former is Irish, and the latter is Scottish. -end rant-

[@alexabaxter6658]

Gaaah that's unfortunate. So much effort seems to have gone into the audiobooks for a series like Kushiel's Legacy -- the narrators have to handle French, Gaelic, and Hebrew names pretty consistently, to say nothing of the various parts of Europe and MENA the characters travel to. The French isn't pronounced in full phlegmy fluency but the basic rules you'd expect an English speaker to be able to learn are followed (the one ear-bleeding instance of "trebuchet" being the exception that proves the rule), and the Celtic languages are done well enough it's hard to reverse-engineer the name spellings to search for them :D

[@chloemiller8036]

I would just like to correct you as you made some great points but Gaelic or Goidelic Celtic languages is a collection of languages such as Scottish Gaelic (pronounced as you wrote), Irish Gaelic/Gaeilge (pronounced gail-guh), Manx and so the term Gaelic doesn't really mean Irish, and Irish people don't pronounce it like Rebecca said! I believe this is important to tell people as people are accidentally spreading misinformation about the Irish language while spreading awareness of Rebecca butchering the Scottish one!

[@sarahkarineknits]

@@chloemiller8036 thank you! I was definitely paraphrasing a tiktok I watched so I really appreciate the correction 🙏🏻

[@chloemiller8036]

@@sarahkarineknits no worries, thanks for spreading awareness about Celtic languages! Unfortunately many of them, if not all, are dying languages and the British colloquially used Gaelic (gay-lic) as sort of an umbrella term to describe them all so often they get misnamed or simply called Scottish or Irish! I'm paraphrasing a little and the history is abit more complex, you know big colonial powers and wars but I appreciate you!!

[@sarahkarineknits]

@@chloemiller8036 💖💖💖

[@Dani_77709]

The fact that the second book just came out and there was an announcement that these books will be adapted to screen, for some reason, makes my brain break just a little.

[@dfretter]

…oh no 🙃

[@Y3w3lz]

Why would anyone decide to fund this into anything else when the source material is not even coherent 🤔😶😑

[@tyghe_bright]

@@Y3w3lz Because it's massively popular and they want to appeal to the tiktok market

[@israelruiz8706]

​@@Y3w3lzcough cough "money" cough

[@israelruiz8706]

​@Y3w3lz it sold extremely well. The first one was hard to find and it took me months to get my copy

[@mcthurman8822]

6:11 I don’t have EDS, but I have a hypermobility spectrum disorder, and I’m constantly in pain in one part of my body or another. And society often tells me to tough it out. And I would much rather have a character that complains about their pain than have one who ignores it.

[@whatareyousayinggirl]

same, bestie! i have EDS and i would have felt way more seen and represented if she'd actually acknowledged her pain! it's so weird that the book just drops "i have chronic pain" on you and then never brings it up again despite the fact she's in an environment that would 110% give her flare ups and an increase of pain 🤨🤨

[@pippycat2842]

SAME it would mean so much more to me if the book showed Violet pushing back against the ableism in her society instead of trying to ignore her pain and doing things that will hurt her just to prove that she’s “tough” or something

[@jojobookish9529]

If you are pantsing a book, you MUST do rewrites. It is not negotiable. You have to go through that thing and decide what you want, what works and what doesn't. It really seems like a lot of Tok-y books do not do this because that process takes time and reflection and you can't cash in on the trend if you take your time.

[@margaretwinds]

I can attest to this 😅 I pants my novels, and they require MAJOR rewrites, with full plot overhauls and everything.

[@vvitch-mist20]

I call it "nuking" and every single book I've written has been nuked at least once. It's not a great feeling but it's worked each time lol

[@ghstgvts]

Unfortunately, I think most of the blunders in these kinds of stories are a result of Book-Tok romanticizing the use of tropes and cliches to construct character arcs and scenes. It’s less about how cohesive the narrative is and the structural integrity of the plot and world building and more about seeing the love interests fulfill some contrived reader fantasy (power, romantic, etc.). Which is fine, if that’s all you’re looking for, but it doesn’t have to be one or the other. Authors can and should do both.

[@vvitch-mist20]

@@ghstgvts I've noticed that as well like a character is made to fix a box rather than organically. This is the kind shit that makes me wish people thought more critically about fiction novels instead of using them to ignore reality

[@ghstgvts]

@@vvitch-mist20 Exactly. And don’t get me wrong, I love using books as escapism. I love fantasy after all, it came free with the genre, but I also want my stories to be deeper than a puddle. I’ve also noticed that new fantasy has a bad habit of making the world bend to the whims of the protagonists, which is a very amateur mistake to make. It should be the opposite. The world should not exist to suit the needs of the characters, rather it should be the opposite. Reducing the world to mere set dressing does nothing to immerse the reader and actively hinders my personal enjoyment. It’s why I dropped Fourth Wing. Shallow world building, poor prose, unlikeable characters. Just not for me.

[@pmpkn_soup]

24:29 the only "nickname trope" ive EVER enjoyed was "seaweed brain" from percy jackson and the olympians. its the only one that was ever actually endearing

[@mialia-u7v]

@pmpkn_soup It's because Percy and Annabeth had a real connection not just the overwhelming desire to fuck. We need more books like PJO

[@83croissant]

I’ve said this before but , post-ACOTAR Fantasy-Romance genre writers need to write Paranormal or Urban Fantasy because they just want to have this same style but in a vaguely renaissance European past . You can have bras and indoor plumbing in paranormal all you want!

[@crazyfinnster9040]

why can't you have either in fantasy? especially a world where some modern things are said to function using magic?

[@83croissant]

@@crazyfinnster9040 people are free to write whatever they want I’m not the fun police, it’s not against the law. It seems like Certain Writers would be writing in a genre set in the modern day if SJM wasn’t super popular and the obvious thing everyone is trying to copy. If you’re getting defensive for Yarros’ sake I assure you I think very charitably that It’s not just a stylistic choice that Yarros made, I think she’s been forced into this partly. I have no proof of it. I have an impression based on some interviews Red Tower press did about their business model that , they have an extremely punishing schedule for book releases. They basically have said “we want to be the Netflix of publishing” . They have created a bingeable content stream, but in book form. Things that are successful are not necessarily good

[@crazyfinnster9040]

@@83croissant oh no no. im not getting defensive for the writer at all lmao. i just recently read the fourth wing and iron flame and they were my first encounter with this particular author. i just dont much care for trying to set limitations on what can and cant be in a fantasy world. i will admit that the romance stuff and the plotlines involving only those elements are basic at best, the actual fantasy elements seem, while not completely original, have a few cool and fairly unique twists on other takes on dragon riders and mixing in some more "modern" devices in a fantasy world.

[@83croissant]

@@crazyfinnster9040 yeah sorry I think I got very defensive pre-emptively because I have been dealing with fans of the author on The Other App. Having just had a nap and a hot meal I think I was unnecessarily harsh on you.

[@crazyfinnster9040]

@@83croissant hey its all good man. i just didnt want the unnecessary strain between people who hold an inexcusible grudge. however that seems to be happening either way

[@Averyr91]

I agree sooo much. My copy is thankfully so fucked up with a giant misprint that I can’t read it coherently so it saved me from this experience.

[@vvitch-mist20]

What lol. What kind of error caused that? Like the entire book got printed wrong?

[@lankyncranky]

​@@vvitch-mist20some people got their pages upside-down or chapters in the wrong places, but I think some people's spines said FW and not IF

[@vvitch-mist20]

@@lankyncranky That's a $15-$30 book. I'm SUPER fucking angry over that. Like it being bad is one thing but being even poor printing quality. This publisher might not survive 2024.

[@lankyncranky]

@@vvitch-mist20 this is apparently a 5 book series too lmao

[@vvitch-mist20]

@@lankyncranky How is there any story enough to fill five books? The first one barely did anything, and this one seems worse.

[@YasminBook1]

Thank you for your words on Palestine 🇵🇸

[@dfretter]

👊🏽✊🏽🇵🇸

[@kandibug5303]

Fun Fact: 4th Wing publisher Red Tower promised to make books like the "height" of YA/Teen books like the Hunger Games or Six of Crows, but now with more "spice." Which would explain so much. Like the publisher is encouraging their writers to "write in the YA/Teen style" (or whatever they think YA/Teen books are) just with stuff to make it "more adult."

[@crazysmall.artist]

That's creepy af

[@monster-enthusiast]

"Kinda wish this wasn't just water" oof.

[@EmilyOlivieri]

Thank you for doing the work so I don’t have to read this book 🙈

[@dfretter]

I gotchu 👊🏽

[@kenzashenna]

Thanks for that intro! It's how I prefaced my goodreads review as well. I have a hard time separating art from artist when it's literally about a genocide.. No excuses there! BUT her husband has liked a tweet along the lines of "the book reads very pro Palestinian" so I'm not sure whether that's they're actual stance.

[@squeezlepop]

Re: secrets. I really liked what the characters in Outlander decided. "A relationship can have secrets, but it can't suffer lies." Those two had things they really did need to keep from each other so they just agreed that was okay.

[@melissarose2213]

Well in outlander they seem much morelike adults for some reason althoughthe ages are not far off violet at least seems like a 14 yr old lol

[@sanfransiscon]

So sorry you have to put yourself through these books. Fun fact, the other day I got an email inviting me to a writer's seminar on "why Fourth Wing works" lol

[@dfretter]

I mean…I think it “works” as in it makes/has made money. I don’t think it works as a story or as a piece of literature. But I’d be fascinated to hear this lecture.

[@mercycunningham2813]

Did anyone honestly believe it would get better? But on behave on the disability part: That illness I can't remember the name of, Julian Greystoke has a daughter who actually has it and Julian explains in her videos about Fourthwing that it's not a static condition but every case and day is diffrent. She does the explaining better than me. But that's maybe good to know

[@monster-enthusiast]

4:46 hmm I'd totally watch a bookish pet peeves video. 7:19 facts, a person I know is fat and disabled and it certainly doesn't stop her from being fatphobic and ablesit.

[@dfretter]

On the first part of your comment: GREAT cause I wasn’t sure what to do for my mid week 😅

[@Syryu]

"The government wants these kids to fail! They do not do anything to provide them with the tools to succeed." So basically, every American public school.

[@xRaiofSunshine]

At least something about this book is realistic 🥴

[@lawliet6910]

"She's resigned herself to some sad truth which I don't remember what it was, who cares" LMAO I didn't read the first one and I'm definitely not interested all things considered; I'd heard some stories about copies arriving messed up and I just... I'm glad if the books help people get back into reading but also, readers deserve better @_@

[@kandibug5303]

Fun Fact: I learned this from MyNameisMarines from her connections, but appearently there were sensitivity readers for book 1, 4th Wing, but they couldn't do their jobs as the book was only finished writing just a few weeks before print so they couldn't afford to take time to revise the book on the sensitivity readers' suggestion who also didn't have time to actually read the manuscript.

[@strangeaelurus]

That's insane! Is there any confirmed reason why the time management was so bad?

[@kandibug5303]

@@strangeaelurus It cause of the the publisher (Red Tower) business statement to making books both fast and yet high quality collector items like the sprayed edged everyone lost their minds about so something has to give if you are a publishing company just focused on sending out content quickly with only a lot of hype and FOMO backing its releases and it's the editing process. MyNameisMarines has a TikTok playlist and KZbin videos about Red Tower and how its goal of making books fast conflict with the supposed "high quality" books it's going for given the substandard writing of Iron Flame (and Assistant to the Villain) along with the physical books being sold in poor condition in terms of print quality, binding, and literal misplaced/missing pages.

[@strangeaelurus]

@@kandibug5303 ohh. Thanks for the information!

[@zooer64]

I believe that modern books don't try to stand the test of time. While Twilight was considered cringe, I could pick it up today and barely feel the disconnect. But these books? These fantasy stories? They feel like trends meant to squeeze out hype and money while it burns bright before everyone realizes they're not worth it.

[@TheSlurpy11]

A lot of the dragon names are Scottish Gaelic (not Irish Gaelic) words thay are misspelled and misprounced by the author and audiobook team, which is another thing Yuckos is in hot water for. Eg. "Teine" isnt "Tiny", it's Che-nyeh. Listening the audiobook pronunciations made my eyes water. Like literally just google the name pronunciations and boom-now you know??? I hate that Yarros bastardised an endangered language, colonised it for her novel, and the publishing team didnt hire a Scotts language expert. I think they have now after her embarrassing interview where she said all the names in her own book wrong, but too little too late.

[@vvitch-mist20]

This author is my 2nd arch-nemsis bc of Fourth Wing. You deserve financial compensation for putting yourself through this book. I could literally rant for days about this trashfire of a book series.

[@gizemunver6188]

Im guessing the first is SJM?

[@vvitch-mist20]

@@gizemunver6188 JJ Abrams because the failure doesn't know how to end his work. What kind of writer can't end a story!? He just was gonna meander and meander endlessly his whole career? And he makes big Disney money? He, like Rebecca, are jokes to the craft.

[@bowlingdreamboston]

It was such a waste of time and money, even more than my ex…

[@vvitch-mist20]

@@bowlingdreamboston Mood honestly.

[@asdfghjklasdfghjkl321]

I'm too gay to ever read this series

[@dfretter]

You win best comment 🏆

[@asdfghjklasdfghjkl321]

Omg thank you daddy 🥹

[@cunningfox7838]

I promise you won’t be too gay to watch it when it comes to TV

[@katiekohn00]

Thanks for your views here, especially at the start. And thanks for reviewing a book I've never read and never plan to read but that is high profile enough to push your profile onto folks' algorithms! Looking forward to more of your reviews and thoughts.

[@Cofiend]

Haven’t read it, but from everything I’ve seen about this series (positive and negative) the iCarly comparison seems like it’s remarkably on point. Like Rebecca Yarros grew up reading Harry Potter, dragon riders of pern, eragon and watching things like iCarly and Degrassi.

[@eseverud18]

The dragons’ names are in Scottish Gaelic. I only know this because a TikToker went over them. Muireann over on TikTok pronounces them the right way. :) I’m so glad I didn’t get this book, as it seems like it only gets dumber from here!

[@ladyblubel]

Honestly, I hate the whole conflict between Xaden and Violet because, while she was a Scribe and wants to pursue knowledge, she is still the child of a military official and in a family legacy of officials??? She of ALL people should know how important withholding information is, her own FATHER did it by hiding the truth about the world in children’s books. Does she think if her mom knew about the stories, she would let her keep them? Why does she as a character value honesty so much to the point that she gets upset that Xaden hides an entire revolution and everything pertaining to it from her?

[@dfretter]

Violet doesn’t strike me as the most rational of characters

[@ladyblubel]

@ I agree, which is such a shame 😪

[@arekkrolak6320]

Not only I do not have to read that book, it was never on my interest list :) but I still appreciate your sacrifice ;)

[@whatareyousayinggirl]

EDS-er here! I felt so uncomfortable reading these books because the "rep" is just... gross. It's being marketted as representing EDS, and also as being "inspirational", yet the dtory relies on the disabled character pushing through, ignoring, or just out-right not having any realistic pain/injuries/symptoms?? Violet's obsession with proving her strength, worth, and capabilities, made sense given the ableist environment she's in (in fact, i thought her internalised ableism was interesting, albeit rather unexplored) however, the way Violet proves herself is by gritting her teeth, mentally shelving her pain, and performing either as well as or better than her able-bodied peers, and this is never really problematised. In fact, it's cheered on by the characters and the text, because the story rewards her with success over and over. Violet's pursuit to fit in and "not look weak" is increasingly unhealthy and unsustainable, given what the author chooses to tell us about Violet’s disability symptoms. I just couldn't wrap my head around the text telling me she was in pain or at risk of injury, but then consistently having her ignore, or worse, never even think about what might help her survive, like painkillers, a heat pack, hot baths, and other things. It was just... so gross to me. People have died from this inspiration porn "just push through it" ableist rhetoric, including a woman with EDS super recently, and it's a form of insidious ableism i've faced for years even from doctors. I'm seeing tiktok comments saying Violet is super inspiring and that people SHOULD push through, which scares the hell out of me.

[@leightoningstrike6971]

0:45 I have heard a different Rebecca scandal/misstep/faux pas referenced every video I have clicked on since Iron Flame came out 😬 I keep thinking I know what the reviewer is going to reference and then it's a different thing 😅

[@monster-enthusiast]

I really wanna see what you think of the lightlark sequal now, I think it came out the same day as this one.

[@dfretter]

Oh don’t worry, I gots a copy and I’m gonna get to work on it soon

[@dixieAQHA]

I did not know that about her social media posts, but I am also not surprised. Also (unrelated to that) really excited to go through the rest of your videos.

[@chrisdanielsson5229]

I mean, if the dragons have claws, couldn't they like scratch runes? It's such a flimsy reason 🫣

[@rae3781]

I mean that's what happened with the dragon language in the Elder Scrolls. All the dragon words for shouts were written in stone walls by dragons who used their claws.

[@monster-enthusiast]

Exactly what I was thinking

[@weirdandproudofit1]

I know a few other people with the same illness, including a fantastic indie author. I don't have it, but I haven't seen a person with it who thought it was good rep. (The author is Joy Demorra if anyone is curious)

[@chewiedox]

These books make “Flowers in the Attic” by V.C. Andrews look like Pulitzer Prize-worthy writing.

[@carlamarieb6704]

This whole book was so childish to me and kind of cringe with the F bombs. The plot was all over the place and I didn’t fully understand anything because the world building sucks. There is not enough detail for me to truly understand what is going on or for it to have an actual impact.

[@alexarviso6836]

Anti zionism isn't anti semitism. Anti zionism is anti nazism.

[@robinronin]

Yeah, this always blows my mind as well. How did people live through WWII and think “it’s okay for us to do the exact same thing to Palestinians”?? These colonizers are just as bad as the Nazis and it needs to be said. Why are people condoning and defending this? It’s not antisemitic to be against colonization and genocide. Jewish people who do not support the colonization and genocide of Palestine, are not Zionists. Zionists are rebranded Nazis continuing the cycle of violence. It’s very easy.

[@ashleyfrench1821]

God I’m so happy u made this video, bc I read fourth wing and hated it but I was still interested in knowing what happens in the second book SO THANK U

[@sentorus67]

One thing i dont understand is why is their country covering the attack in the first place? their already an isolationist country and never really cared about protecting people outside their borders.

[@lacey_lace_edc1152]

The wold building in this book is just plain confusing. Its supposed to be a magical world I assume because of the lesser magic and dragons. At the same time the slang and dialog in general seems like it was stolen straight from tik tok and pre-teens that just started cursing because they think its the cool thing to do.

[@amychurch]

Finally getting to settle in to watch this one. “Unfortunately this might be a two parter” What do you mean unfortunately? I’m here for however many rants are available 🍿

[@amychurch]

(Just want to clarify that I did not monetarily support Yarros when I read this book) Anyway, starting out strong with mentioning how characters can’t function when they’re attracted to someone. When Xaden is literally white knuckling a table to stop himself had me wanting to chuck the book off a cliff. So RIDICULOUS

[@amychurch]

omg I cackled when I read “unfalling for you” is Violet 12 years old?! 😂 idk how anyone takes this writing seriously

[@amychurch]

Re: editing and sensitivity reads: both FW and this one were edited by the CEO of Red Tower/Entangled 🙃

[@amychurch]

Can’t wait for part two, and then dump all my thoughts on the book in the comments 😂 it was ROUGH

[@Dani_77709]

New Adult books shouldn't be labeled like that just because there's a lot of swearing. In YA books there's so much bad smut so honestly how books are selected in what age category is confusing already. The only ones that make sense is middle grade. Back to the point of the comment - Most of the time the swearing read like a child who just learned these words and wants to use them all the time OR an adult author thinking that this will draw the teenagers to read their books. Those are my two assumptions.

[@sophiavolkvo1399]

Commenting to boost the vid! Loved it.

[@fttoma]

I'm not interested in her work, but she put you through it 😂

[@madeleinejohnson9408]

Bless you for summarizing Iron Flame. I was curious with Fourth Wing and found it bad, but entertaining. Iron Flame has been such an awful read that I don’t know if I can even finish it…

[@DarwinRoger893]

The bar is very low but I'm so grateful that you said genocide and not a conflict in Palestine. Im shocked that people haven't talked about RY being pro military and a genocide supporter yet but at least you're using your platform to speak up about it

[@TheSlurpy11]

SPOILER . . . . . . The best twist of the book was Andarna being Indominous Rex. The invisibility-level camoflague, killing a superior dragon, battle strategy, etc. It was so predictable that she'd turn out to also be a Super Special Girl and I feel like even Yarros knew that, which was why she retconned Andarna's hatching to deliberately align with Violet's threshing. My bet is Violet's second cygnet/signet (i listened to the free audiobooks on KZbin, idk how it's spelled) from Andarna is going to be some kind of purification power so she can absolve Xaden. But I will not be reading to find out because screw this slushy, overwritten, perverted fake fantasy 😊

[@Aro_dynamic46]

This series is just: Romance first, everything else third

[@LovelyFatima]

That sigh at the beginning says it all.

[@kandibug5303]

Another fun fact: I think the author herself said the Iron Flame was eh-da-ted in 2 weeks by the CEO of the book's publisher, Red Tower. So that explain some thimgs.

[@SykarDaera]

The CEO, not a real editor, right?

[@kandibug5303]

@@SykarDaera Yep. Iron Flame thanks the Red Tower CEO for helping edit the book, but from what other sleuths say the CEO has no training or education as an editor.

[@SykarDaera]

@@kandibug5303 WOW

[@Tomorrow_lauren]

Very late to this video, obviously, but i keep thinking about how that "3 little words and I'm yours" scene is basically an exact scene from Gossip Girl btwn Chuck and Blair (they constantly say "3 little words" thru the series). Like, i was unlikely to get through this book, but holy plagiarism, Batman! 😂

[@ariastark1559]

Iron Flame Violet gave me Elena Gilbert vibes throughout the book. Its crazy how much I liked the first book and how much I hated this one. Not a single thought process inside Violet's head made any sense to me. If in the first book she was being somewhat clever, cunning, daring and horny, in the second book she is just horny all the time. And yet she was constantly fighting with Xaden about the same thing over and over again. I wished they would break up already. Honestly, is that really the epic endgame couple of the book? "He, the leader of the rebellion, hid the truth from me, the daughter of the general that killed his father, how *shocking*. I will never trust him. That being said I wanna b*ang him as soon as I see him." Therefore the ending of the book did not shock me in any way. In fact, I was hoping for it. Only the side characters were likable in this book, but we all know Yarros will focus on Xaden x Violet again, only now they will be fighting about a different thing. And the fact that there will be tv series about this mess is beyond me. I honestly hate myself for blindly following the Instagram trend by preordering the second book, without waiting for a bit to see the reviews.(Goodreads score for this book is too high, by the way. Help me bring it down, guys). Luckly at least my UK softcover version was printed without any issues. I heard even the German hardcover got the text upside down. This book is just cursed 😂

[@SmileyTricey]

Omfg yes!!! I couldn't put my finger on why I didn't like her, you put it perfectly! ELENA FUCKING GILBERT. Agh.

[@crlake]

😆 This whole video was hilarious. I couldn't even finish Fourth Wing.

[@Kat-ge7nn]

vi from arcane... that's literally it.... edit: wait imogen looks like vi and then main chararacter is NAMED violet/vi??? WHAT

[@stellymads]

YESSS the over use of the hyphenated phrases and the swearing got so annoying. the two phrases “well-the-fuck aware” and “xaden-fucking-riorson” were on the SAME PAGE towards the very beginning 😭

[@meganedwards194]

Hi there, I have Hypermobile Spectrum Disorder which is similar (some say the same as) EDS and I’m really not a fan of the “pushing through” narrative, because it suggests that that’s possible if you just try hard enough. I would really appreciate some rep that shows someone who is affected by their disability on page and adapts their life to it, because that’s the reality. You have to take life at a slower pace.

[@dfretter]

Hi, thank you for sharing your experience and perspective. I appreciate you ✌🏽

[@tomdelongjohns]

this is my first video of yours and i was immediately hooked by "book reviews with a regular dude." SO stoked to hear your opinion on this trash fire of a novel.

[@meghschildt]

The “thirsty” behavior is so cringy, I hated reading that shit

[@Garrison_the_Barbarian]

"I'm going to get busy unfalling for you..." This is basically what would happen if Dhar Mann wrote fantasy novels. Ick...

[@dfretter]

That’s so funny and so accurate

[@Garrison_the_Barbarian]

@@dfretter I'm glad I could make you chuckle. :)

[@brytaniegovea8269]

The Reddit page is always talking about how because Violet talks about time slowing down constantly that it hints at her second power, but I’m pretty sure the author just didn’t have a good editor. A good editor would have had her take all the repetitive crap out.

[@0okuzukirio0]

I don't get it, why must it be a thing for author to write their MC to overly thirsty and aware of the love interest's appearance. I can understand if that is the first time they met but EVERY FREAKING TIME they met??? I'm so confused, is this how normal people suppose to think? I'm sorry but if I know someone is a psycho, I don't care how hot they are, I'm not staying within 3 meters radius, not making eyes contact and it'll best if we would never interact at all

[@Den7205]

not into this book at all. But listen to book tubers talking about it is entertaining 😂

[@unhingedwoman]

Oh crap I didn't even know about the Israel thing. Well then, that seals it for me lol Yeah, EDS affects the cartilage, which is why her eyes and hair are so pale too.

[@BooktrovertReader]

Book starts out and the girl is so thirsty. Lol my bookish pet peeve as well

[@angelbunny__]

the book where i really liked the nickname trope was blood and ash cuz he calls her princess and honestly it really only works cuz it feels so cute to be called princess 😭

[@Krystalbrown1105]

I drudged through Iron Flame and the more i got into the book, the more i absolutely despised Violet as a character. I much prefer her dragons. Andarna cracked me up. That ending though. :O

[@tyghe_bright]

I feel like Rebecca Yarros might be OK at writing contemporary YA, but seems like she's really lost writing adult and fantasy.

[@KewlImp]

I don't like pantser to describe my writing style. I like to call myself a Discovery Writer. Even with that said though, I go where the story takes me. I've been working a dragon rider book (where I accidentally wrote 175k backstory because the start of those books are so slow) and the main character is on his own and I expected to start writing some self-discovery book. I'm 35k words into this book and I have by accident written a romantasy so far. I DNFed the audiobook an hour in. I mention my own writing because Yarros is the type of writer to say, this is my couple and no matter what they need to end up together. There is no way Violet after her world view was shattered is going back to the death college. She knows the government is lying and sending riders to their death because they are unprepared. But we have to put Violet back into the death college somehow. She didn't want to write outside of the death college. It doesn't make sense. That isn't to get into the dragons protecting their secrets, the torture resistance training, and really bad rep for the EDS. I deal with really bad depression. I mean really bad. Some things you can't just 'power through'. Wrapping your limbs isn't not going to stop all the pain and joint issues. It is made even worse because she is in a DEATH COLLEGE. In that DEATH COLLEGE, they are beating her ass and literally torturing her. You don't just 'power through' that.

[@dbeep2822]

😂😂😂 What a dumpster fire. Shadow boo was Rhysand-coded, so it sounds like he completed that transformation. In the ACOTAR books golden boy gets villianized for being overprotective/controlling but then later the shadow boo does the same damn thing (and arguably worse) but remains the hero and love interest.

[@MsMestrella]

HA! should have found this review BEFORE I actually read the ebook, that was some lost time I will never get back...LOL

[@SC-rf2ro]

I haven’t finished, but Violet is a very irritating character🤦🏾‍♀️ She’s supposed to be “smart”, but she behaves in the opposite manner. It bothers me that she genuinely thinks her friend of fifteen plus years set her up🙄, and even when he told her he has no clue what she’s talking about, she STILL didn’t believe him, and ran back to Zayden🤦🏾‍♀️ and, I totally get that their friendship has been shaky, and she found a new love in Zayden, but girl come on🙄 get a damn grip ! Use your brain, you’re supposed to be smart. It annoys me when girls do that in general, they’ll get in a relationship and leave their friends in the dust. Idk if I’m gonna continue the series, I did enjoy the story but idk🫠 there are a lot of icks I have.

[@dfretter]

That whole “I have a significant other so now imma ghost my friends” thing bugs me too.

[@mandisempai]

I DNF this book, I decided I need what remaining braincells I have left because damm! Fourth Wing was ok, it was paced much better, had more intrigue and the romance wasn't cringe. Rebecca chose violence cause she went full 2012 wattpad and gave no fucks. Other Woman Drama in an anticipated follow up?? Nope.

[@DJC-System]

I genuinely enjoyed Forth Wing because it was the first book I have read since I was like 13. After reading Iron Flame the twist at the end and the events leading up, really killed potential future reads from this author. From the never ending back and forth same argument for 400+ pages "I want the complete truth all the time" "I'll tell you the truth if you ask me a question" Violets constant whining and Xaiden's edgieness just made these characters feel so shallow and empty. There are so many names to remember in this book that when bad things started to happen to side characters i had to look up my notes to figure out wtf was going on to whom. If someone is still reading this massive spoilers ahead: | | | V F Jack fucking Barlow... They fucking keep him alive (Nolan was mending him). Jack had this miny redemption arch where he actually saves Violets life when shes slipping from the tower then at the very end of the book he's like "oh bwahahaha i was evil all along" it genuinely felt like the author RY was pulling at strings. Love your reaction so far i'm only 6 minutes in and have to go to bed LOL but i will definitely be watching this to completion. I really don't have an interest in reading the 3rd book due to how RY made Violet and Xaiden so annoying in this book that you end up hating them both and enjoying the side characters more 🤣😂😅

[@totalknightmare]

Love the candied apple nails

[@StrawberryChaiLatte]

So why I am gathering is that she acquired a Night Fury and a Light Fury, she is also Daenerys Stormborn Targaryen, and this is also Shadow and Bone…CHILE

[@erinhammo9291]

Has anyone ever told you that you have a fantastic speaking voice? You remind me of an NPR book reviewer, LOL

[@dfretter]

I’m actually super self-conscious of my speaking voice. People have made fun of it my whole life. So thank you that’s very nice

[@erinhammo9291]

@@dfretter Then people are absolutely ridiculous, you sound great. I think you excel at public speaking!

[@itslumika]

Haven’t read the books but my friend gave me the gist of it so the reason why everyone apparently enrolls into that collage is because their parents lead an uprising against their political/religious system and so their children now have to prove that they are a part of the system so they have to enroll and become dragon riders so they don’t get offed like their ancestors or something.

[@jenniferscotland2224]

Thought this was a duology or I would not have bothered reading!

[@quinnm4125]

i tried to read iron flame and i gave up after 10%… i did a whole reaction podcast for my friends but it wasn’t enough to keep me going haha

[@dfretter]

What’s your podcast??

[@quinnm4125]

@@dfretter i haven't published it anywhere so far (i just sent it to the ppl who wanted to hear it) because it's very unstructured and i don't have recording equipment - i have no idea if it's good enough to post or if anyone would even be interested in listening to it xD

[@dfretter]

@quinnm4125 fair enough, if you ever drop a podcast, I’ll check it out!

[@ChocolatexCherries3]

"i think i thought the spice in this book was cringy cause i wrote spice is cringey" your dead pan delivery is hilarious

[@danielbroome5690]

To put the disability rep in comparison, this was published in 2023, and in 1972 the first Elric of Melnibone novel was published with a protagonist who suffered constant pain, easy injury and poor overall health in a better way than Fourth Wing does. The character Elric needs to deal with this condition constantly and barely keeps it under control with a potion and it is a constant challenge that he overcomes by compensating for it and succeeding in spit of it, and there's no cheap way of getting out of it either. The potion he has, is a medication at best to reduce the symptoms from deadly to merely horrible, and the only way he gets to remedy it is by effectively selling his soul to a cursed demonic sword which has a totally different cost that is no better.

[@VintageBohemian21]

I’ve personally just turned to the classic fiction novels, especially Brontë and Austen. Modern day books just can’t compare to such beautiful writing 🤎 I wish I could find a modern day book with similar vibes, as in I can have the same “this is a very very good book” feeling.

[@joannamarieart]

Maybe try Kate Morton? I've loved all of her books, and they are very well written! I know I'm just a random stranger, but I'd definitely encourage you to try one, I think it'll be worth it!

[@marocat4749]

That exist, they just, are burried by that i guess., unresolved textual tension have some i think,

[@sunshinebuze]

Loved your intro

[@aisubekibungo]

this might sound dumb but did you paint your nails in the same colors as tengen from demon slayer? :0 (if not then sorry for being a weeb, the colors do look nice tho!!)

[@dfretter]

Not dumb. Yes I did 🙂 never apologize for being a weeb. I LOVE anime.

[@FreshSalad645]

Spoilers included. For language and communication, I found it very frustrating that they communicate through their dragons during battles. It can make sense for long distance but it doesn't make sense short distance because it adds steps to communication while they are flying fast. The dragons can communicate but the humans (which are wielding weapons and magical power around) can't. They also never learn battle communication in school with each other or the dragons (they can't even address someone else's dragon), which is crucial in high intensity and stress environnements. We don't see it as much because Xaden and Violent can talk to each other (how convenient) but imagine the others ? "Tell X that I'm going to go to Y to do Z!" she says to her dragon who legitimately has a good reason to hate humans now ! And despite their "mind conversation", which would be a very interesting thing to keep quiet or secret, through sheer stupidity (or formatting error), Violent consistently replies out loud to Xaden mind talks. They are discussing private matters and she just replies out loud to things he didn't say out loud... On top of that, she knows they are watched, spied on, etc. Still replies out loud ! About the deaths, I agree. Some of the deaths don't matter at all (like Nadine's). Those that matter, like Violet killing Jack, her first kill, something that should impact her forever... nope he's alive ! Imagine if her brother had died because he knew the truth and got into contact with the rebels. That's why he was murdered, and both Violet and her mom didn't know. Now they discover the truth, and then can both hate the establishment and bond over something traumatic. Then the mom sacrifices herself because she still wants to save her school and all the kids. You'll feel for her because she had good in her, she was just misguided. But no, the bro is uselessly alive and her mom is like "I will never agree with you but I'll die now". Her sacrifice doesn't even touch you that much because even if she says it's for her children, it very much feels like it's not specifically for them, you know. I also hate their relationship because they argue over nothing for an entire book. Like literally, this would be solved by grown ups in about 15min around a glass a wine. No one in their right minds would know everything about their partner's job or occupation. I don't know the details of my partner's IT job because I don't work there. It's not because he's holding out on me, it's because there are no reason to tell me (and go against his NDA). He doesn't know all the details of my job either. It's pretty normal ! I expect him to share when Sharla over at accounting is giving him the doe eyes so I can pretend to be jealous to make him laugh. But I don't need to know his work pc password because that's a safety concern and I understand that. I have so much more I could criticize but my ultimate opinion is that these books are today's "Twilight". If some people really like it, I will not bother them about it. To each their own. They will be adapted and they will try to sell the crap out of it, and it will annoy many people. If they cast well, the movies/series might even make this a bigger deal. And then, in 5 years, when they collectively wake up from the fever dream they had, they'll realize that it was a fun time but the writing is mid at best. Hopefully, it will get some people into reading and they'll discover that there's more to a good plot than a dark edgy boy and an annoying MC who fuck. Also, I read the first one right after reading "Priory of the Orange Tree". It was like eating an amazing steak and then realizing that the rest of my week would be 1$ microwavable burgers and barely hot oven fries.

[@urnoelle]

Is so great to know that someone else had to take IMMENSE breaks in between reading this monstrosity of literature. After Part 1, I read an entirely different book just to escape the repetitive, boring nature of Iron Flame and Rebecca Yarros’s writing. And this is from someone who actually really ENJOYED fourth wing and finished it in a week.

[@vainpiers]

When im writing i tend to go back and remove or alter any slang or language that will date the story too much. Unless its dialogue that suits the character. But also im not writing fantasy, I'm writing something set in the vague 2020s. Also phrases like "well the fuckaware" is hard to write because its a sentence with a lot of inflections, its hard to get inflections across inntext.

[@UndeadBeanSprouts]

The amount of time I read the phrase “I’m sorry?” To convey confusion was insane….I ended up marking each time it happened and it end up being every 10-12 pages the says “I’m sorry?” When wanting clarification. Then the “villain teacher” did it and I was ready to throw the book.

[@Y3w3lz]

My take for the book from this video... 1) the bond between dragon and rider is more antagonistic than a partnership 2) the writing is disjointed and at times pointless 3) its trying to be smut but failing miserably 4) im ok saving my money an getting something else 5) the author needs an editor not just a proofreader I'll just save the shelf space instead of having to DNF the book... 😑

[@Krista1030]

Everything you said is just facts

[@CaraRowen]

acting as if you can't be or produce bad representation just because you are part of that specific marginalized group is like acting as if Candice Owens don't exist smh. the facts are that when you put a character in a marginalized group unless you are doing something or saying something or shaping something with that marginalization, it's just set dressing.

[@harmonierainbow7559]

No time for editing. The garbage needs to hit the market while it’s still hot.

[@mercycunningham2813]

And a another one for the algorithm. Not only pantsers need an Editor every Author needs one. The Saviors Champion and The Cyborg Tinkerer were writen by very rigid potters. And boy I'm as pantser an not impressed with those. Worse both of the Authors give/gave writing advice. Some of it was even good. Getting a good editor because they are bloody expensive was in the past one of the main reasons for trying to get into traditional publishing. Seems they don't do even pay that anymore. I shall make things worse for you. Rumor has it that the publisher commissioned Fourth Wing as the next big thing. I can believe that. Having friends and family members who are traditionally published I in fact have no illusions. It's nothing new in the industry. A friend of mine wrote about 15 years ago a commissioned book for a publisher and she had the editor interfere with every idea till it was what the publisher wanted and when it failed it was somehow all the authors fault. But the publisher didn't invest a dime into advertising, wrote a summary that misrepresented the book and the cover was awfull and had nothing to do with the book.

[@tarredion]

Unfortunately a lot of the plot just sounds like priory of the orange tree.. a comparison I’ve seen for fourth wing too… not that books can’t be similar…. But from everything else I’ve heard priory might not be the best book ever but at least I could finish it

[@Frooti.loopz23]

These books sound like torture to read, thank you for the review.

[@padlocksncocoapuffs]

Omg thank you because I really didn’t want to have to read it

[@dakotalange2858]

YOU WATCHED I ROBOT TOO! 🙌

[@writerbyday]

I think this has to be popular because the concept is interesting, because the execution of these books is atrocious. There’s no editing, clearly author notes that didn’t get revised or taken out, and a meandering plotless narrative and no character choice logic. It’s books like these that make me feel like women also can’t write women (just as an aside, I am female) 😅.