Rebecca Yarros

is a two-part, 700-page (digital edition) that continues the story of Violet Sorrengail’s efforts to survive her second year in the murderous Basgaith War College and her complex relationship with Xaden Riorson. Three issues lessened my enjoyment of this offering and my decision to discontinue reading at the end of part one.

Part One tells a complete story. It would have been better to end the book at that point. Part Two picks up the story after part one and ends with a cliffhanger designed to entice readers to purchase the next book in the series. The decision to include both stories in one volume was likely influenced by the original intent to create a five-volume series and reluctance to increase the series length by an additional book. However, the decision should have considered reader fatigue. While the story is interesting, I was ready to move on to other books on my reading list.

Another issue is the decision to emphasize romance and depict Violet as a naïve, immature young woman. Volume one ends with Violet deciding she can no longer trust Xaden because he cannot tell her everything. Both are dragon riders, a branch of the Navarre military service. Even rank recruits understand that varying levels of security are attached to critical information. Access to information requires the proper security clearance. Yet Violet spends the first half of part one pouting and punishing Xaden because he refuses to reveal top-secret information to her. That thread quickly became and lessened my respect for Violet.

Finally, many aspects of part one repeat aspects of book one, and nonsensical plot elements are included in the story. For example, it is thoroughly established that humans cannot tell dragons what to do. Yet Vice Commandant Varrish of Basgaith War College orders Violet to make a dragon appear for his inspection. When the dragon refuses to appear, Varrish charges Violet with disobeying an order and punishes her almost to death. Nonsense.

I may pick up Iron Flame again in six months or a year and read part two, but the shortcomings outlined above weighed heavily in my decision to move on at this time.… (more)

Violet is making her way into the dragon quadrant despite her wishes otherwise. Scholarly and fragile, she fights her way through a school of not just hard knocks but deadly consequences. The reward would be to become a dragon rider. The reward for failure is a fatality.
Violet is a brittle thing at first but she is determined and courageous. I loved watching her grow and level the playing field with each new challenge. The electrically intimate romance that developed along the way didn't hurt. I look forward to reading the sequel.… (more)