Onyx Storm (The Empyrean #3) By Rebecca Yarros. Audiobook

My Anticipation & Initial Hurdle
I entered Onyx Storm with significant excitement, fully expecting to dive right in. There was just one problem: my memory of the prior books had completely faded. I had to make an unplanned detour - restarting the entire series from book one. As someone who rarely re-reads, this wasn't my ideal start. While I'd glimpsed spoilers online (they don't bother me), I was still keen to see how Rebecca Yarros would weave this next chapter. I hoped to love it as much as the series opener, quietly praying it wouldn't mirror the slower, lengthier feel I recalled from the second installment.

Characters: Familiar Faces, Stagnant Growth?
Violet and Xaden return as our central duo, with a few surprising narrative voices joining the fray towards the end (no spoilers here!). My feelings about them remain complex. While many fans are convinced they're endgame, I'm still on the fence.

Individually, they hold my interest. Violet's ferocity is undeniable - her physical disability never stops her from dragon-riding or holding her own in a fight. Her insecurities about her body are portrayed with relatable realism, especially given the relentless battles she faces. That persistent need to prove herself twice as hard as her peers continues, though they seem more accepting now. My issue is that her personal growth feels stagnant, especially compared to the fascinating evolution of her dragons, one in particular.

Xaden? He's an enigma, guarding secrets that make the book's final events deeply mysterious. A highlight for me was the dragons' expanded role; we get to know them much better. However, the sprawling cast remains a challenge. With a multitude of characters sporting similar names, and fleeting mentions of figures with dense backstories, I found myself frequently lost. The ensemble is simply too large to track comfortably.

p>Writing & Pacing: A Rollercoaster Ride
Yarros's writing itself is engaging. The varying chapter lengths worked fine for me. The narrative rhythm, however, was uneven. The first quarter hooked me immediately, picking up the previous book's threads with compelling urgency. Then came the long, meandering middle where my attention wavered, only to be recaptured by a final quarter that introduced intriguing new perspectives for the future. This inconsistency is a core part of my conflicted experience.

Plot: The Heart of My Conflict
Here lies my biggest struggle. While the first two books had clear direction, Onyx Storm felt adrift to me. The series is politically dense, and my confusion has only compounded - too many islands, factions, and conflicts to track. The central aim of this book's plot felt nebulous; the stakes were unclear. A lot happens, yet simultaneously, not much seems to move forward, making the middle section a drag.

The romantic scenes, frankly, often felt like filler. They didn't significantly advance character development or the core storyline for me. This created a strange duality: I was both intrigued and disengaged, wanting to continue while also being tempted to set the book aside. I'm still parsing whether this is the book's issue or my own fatigue from a marathon, three-book series read.

Final Impressions
My experience with Onyx Storm is defined by conflict. It was a top 2025 anticipation for me, yet my actual reading was mixed. I enjoyed returning to this world but was often confused by its convoluted politics and sprawling cast. The lack of a clear narrative direction left me unmoored and less emotionally invested. While the book's opening and closing acts delivered the intrigue I craved, the journey between them dampened my enthusiasm. I'm curious about what comes next, but not with the breathless urgency I see in other readers. This installment, for me, was a storm with moments of brilliant lightning, but one that lost its way in the clouds.