The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Fourth Wing (Spoiler-Free)

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The Fantasy Review’s spoiler-free beginner’s guide to Fourth Wing.

I hadn’t read The Empyean series by Rebecca Yarros until January 2026, so if you are behind, like I was, I hope this easy guide helps you get started! I’ve included the premise, reading order, how many books there will be, a list of main characters, and more.

The Premise

Fourth Wing follows Violet Sorrengail as she is forced to join a brutal military school, Basgiath War College, where students are trained to become dragon riders and defend the kingdom. By “brutal” I mean most candidates die before they graduate, either during training or are killed by other students for being “too weak”.

Violet always thought she was going to become a scribe, like her father, but her mother is General Lilith Sorrengail and she forces her youngest child to follow in the footsteps of her two older siblings.

Now all Violet has to do is survive: this means fighting other students (some of whom are the children of executed rebels – dead because of Violet’s mother), managing a physical disability that means she has brittle bones, and not being eaten/burned alive by a dragon before she bonds to one.

This plot is like The Hunger Games or Divergent meets Pern, with an enemies-to-lovers romance plot.

The Characters

Here is a list of the main characters you’ll want to be aware of before reading Fourth Wing.

Violet Sorrengail

Violet is the main character in The Empyrean series. She enters the Riders Quadrant despite chronic pain and weak joints, and has to use her brain to win the battles her body cannot.

Xaden Riorson

Xaden is the wingleader of Fourth Wing, and is the child of a rebellion leader Violet’s mother had killed for treason. He is powerful, dangerous, and clearly has a lot of secrets.

Dain Aetos

Dain is Violet’s childhood friend, and a second-year at the war college. He’s surprised Violet’s mother forced her to join the college and wants to keep his oldest friend alive.

Others

Other names you are going to see along the way include:

Rhiannon
Ridoc
Sawyer
Liam
Imogen

Not everyone is a friend, but there is a wonderful found-family aspect to these books I adore, and I think you will too.

How Spicy Is Fourth Wing?

Is Fourth Wing YA?

Fourth Wing is not YA! It is marketed as “New Adult” so all you need to know is if you’re not an adult, this book is not appropriate to read!

The books include:

Swearing
Violence
Torture
Sex

So no, this is not Eragon.

Fourth Wing Spice Level

You can expect plenty of lusty thoughts, but not as much spice as everyone seems to go on about. There’s still a good deal of story following Violet training/surviving, and other things I can’t talk about in a spoiler-free beginner’s guide to Fourth Wing.

What chapters in Fourth Wing are spicy?

If you want to be ready to skip the spice or go back and reread it, or whatever reason you have (I don’t judge), the spiciest chapters in Fourth Wing are:

Chapter 30
Chapter 32

Remember that this romance is something that builds throughout the book, so I don;t think those scenes would mean anything at all without the rest of the book as context. Other chapters have kissing/other build up scenes, but nothing graphic.

The Dragons in Fourth Wing Explained

I don’t want to spoil anything, as you can learn all the cool stuff in the books, but some interesting facts about the dragons in these books include:

The dragons choose the riders. So, students at the war college walk amongst the unbonded dragons, and they either walk out dead or bonded (with some exceptions).
When a rider bonds with a dragon, they develop magical abilities. This is called a “signet” and abilities vary.
Dragons are fierce and do not answer to humans. They work with humans to protect their offspring, so no general or leader of humans can be ordering dragons about – it’s all cooperation.

Will There Be a Fourth Wing Movie or TV Series?

Currently a Fourth Wing TV series is in the works at Amazon MGM Studios, with Michael B. Jordan’s Outlier Society attached.

We don’t know much, but towards the end of 2025 the showrunner changed and things are still in the air. There is no casting news, confirmed series order, or anything else.

There has been a graphic novel adaptation confirmation though! There will be six graphic novels (two for every book currently out in the Empyrean series).