Iron Flame (The Empyrean #2)

Review

Iron Flame picks up immediately where Fourth Wing left off, and Rebecca Yarros wastes no time throwing the reader back into Basgiath’s brutal rhythms. The stakes are higher, the secrets heavier, and the world undeniably bigger. There are moments here that absolutely soar. The dragon lore deepens, the political tensions sharpen, and the sense that something rotten sits at the core of this society becomes impossible to ignore. When the book slows down long enough to breathe, it reminds you why this series captured so many readers in the first place. That said, Iron Flame didn’t quite hit me with the same impact as Fourth Wing. The pacing often feels relentless to a fault, as if the story is sprinting past emotional beats that deserved more space. Character conflicts escalate quickly, sometimes without the developmental groundwork needed to make them fully land. A little more time spent letting relationships evolve and consequences settle would have gone a long way. Instead, the novel occasionally feels like it’s stacking climaxes on top of each other, trusting momentum to carry what reflection and depth might have strengthened. Overall, Iron Flame is still a strong entry and an engaging read, especially for fans already invested in Violet’s journey and the larger mysteries of the world. I enjoyed it, but I also found myself wishing Yarros had given the story more room to grow before pushing it out the gates. With a bit more development time, this could have been something truly exceptional. As it stands, it’s a solid sequel that keeps me interested in what comes next, even if it doesn’t quite recapture the magic of the first book.