Lezersrecensie
Fourth Wing
Themes: dragons, school, romantasy, rebellion
Content warnings: violence/war, brutal deaths, blood
Representation: hypermobility
Rating: 1.5
-
I want to start off by saying that although this book was definitely not for me, this is merely my opinion and everyone is entitled to having their own opinion :)
Everything that this book is known for - similar vibes to Divergent & THG, badass characters, interesting plotline - made me very enthusiastic to start this book. I usually fear reading really popular novels, since they always leave me disappointed, but now I was genuinely excited for the story. However, from the beginning to the end of the book, the plot did not interest me at all. I did not care for the characters or their lives, I did not care for the school-setting (which I usually absolutely love) and most shockingly, I did not even care for the dragons. While reading, the only thing I could think of was 'I don't care'. Nothing interested me, but I was encouraged by a colleague and a bookclub to carry on reading, so I did - while I should have DNF'd the book.
The writing style felt stiff and forced, which is why it took me ages to read a chapter (it took me almost a month to finish this book, where I usually read multiple books a week) and why it was so hard for me to focus on the plot.
The plot itself felt too similar to Divergent: get into Dauntless by performing an unknown and possibly dangerous task, try to stay alive when in Dauntless and train to keep your world safe. The only thing that differed was the high fantasy setting and the presence of dragons. Believe me, I love Divergent (hence the username), but this felt like a parody.
Then, Violet. I was very hyped before starting, because FINALLY A CHARACTER THAT REPRESENTS MY CHRONIC ILLNESS!! YESS!! Only the representation felt childish and not fully correct. Yes, hypermobile joints can dislocate quite often and painfully and should be taken good care of. That part of the representation was great! However, ignoring your illness only because you want to fit in? No thankyou... Being too stubborn so you'll need to be rescued by your crush constantly and your crush accepting that? Also no thankyou... This character does not at all have a good relationship with their illness - which is very difficult to achieve, don't get me wrong - but representation of neglecting your illness is not good at all in my opinion.
I also did not understand the romantic tension between Xaden and Violet at all. It was just unnecessary for the plot.
That being said, I would not recommend this book. I cannot pinpoint one aspect that I actually enjoyed or thought was well-written. However, if you're interested in high fantasy, dragons or an academic setting, you might like this novel.
Content warnings: violence/war, brutal deaths, blood
Representation: hypermobility
Rating: 1.5
-
I want to start off by saying that although this book was definitely not for me, this is merely my opinion and everyone is entitled to having their own opinion :)
Everything that this book is known for - similar vibes to Divergent & THG, badass characters, interesting plotline - made me very enthusiastic to start this book. I usually fear reading really popular novels, since they always leave me disappointed, but now I was genuinely excited for the story. However, from the beginning to the end of the book, the plot did not interest me at all. I did not care for the characters or their lives, I did not care for the school-setting (which I usually absolutely love) and most shockingly, I did not even care for the dragons. While reading, the only thing I could think of was 'I don't care'. Nothing interested me, but I was encouraged by a colleague and a bookclub to carry on reading, so I did - while I should have DNF'd the book.
The writing style felt stiff and forced, which is why it took me ages to read a chapter (it took me almost a month to finish this book, where I usually read multiple books a week) and why it was so hard for me to focus on the plot.
The plot itself felt too similar to Divergent: get into Dauntless by performing an unknown and possibly dangerous task, try to stay alive when in Dauntless and train to keep your world safe. The only thing that differed was the high fantasy setting and the presence of dragons. Believe me, I love Divergent (hence the username), but this felt like a parody.
Then, Violet. I was very hyped before starting, because FINALLY A CHARACTER THAT REPRESENTS MY CHRONIC ILLNESS!! YESS!! Only the representation felt childish and not fully correct. Yes, hypermobile joints can dislocate quite often and painfully and should be taken good care of. That part of the representation was great! However, ignoring your illness only because you want to fit in? No thankyou... Being too stubborn so you'll need to be rescued by your crush constantly and your crush accepting that? Also no thankyou... This character does not at all have a good relationship with their illness - which is very difficult to achieve, don't get me wrong - but representation of neglecting your illness is not good at all in my opinion.
I also did not understand the romantic tension between Xaden and Violet at all. It was just unnecessary for the plot.
That being said, I would not recommend this book. I cannot pinpoint one aspect that I actually enjoyed or thought was well-written. However, if you're interested in high fantasy, dragons or an academic setting, you might like this novel.
1
Reageer op deze recensie
