I had a lot of beef with this book but I can also see the appeal of why it's so popular. It has a foundation for a good story but none of it is fleshed out and once you notice how often the author uses flash forwards or shortcuts to avoid writing scenes, you can't stop noticing it.

Here are my major thoughts (you're welcome to read my forum posts and comments for more):

Yarros's naming conventions are very on the nose. The main character's name, Violet Sorrengail (a play on "soar" and "gale") takes center stage, among other names that are just as cringe but dressed up in another language, Scottish Gaelic, which she bastardizes, so they're not as noticeable unless you do some research.

Violet representing a disability (Ehlers Danlos Syndrome) is great but the author prioritizes physical descriptions such as frail, tiny, and small instead of describing the disability itself, especially in the first quarter of the book. The further you get into the story, the more her disability is discussed, yet also is pushed to the wayside when it grows inconvenient under the plot armor of Violet exercising and building muscle, yet in the opening chapters Violet describes after 6 months of physical training, she couldn't gain any muscle, so it feels like the author is indecisive committing to her character having this disability.

Violet is a Mary Sue. Not as insufferable as she could be but still very much a special snowflake that the author picks and chooses when she's smart, when she's strong, when disability exists, etc. Sure on paper she has flaws and difficulties but they're always resolved neatly.

The deaths in this book are predictable and follow a formula. There is one character that the author put effort into getting an emotional reaction from her readers, and she was mostly successful in that, but it is still quickly swallowed up in the next course of action and so the devastation of it is wrapped up quickly.

There's a bit of foreshadowing in this book that readers may enjoy upon a second reading but they're so surface level, it's hard to appreciate it.

The modern language and descriptions clash with the setting of the book. There are descriptions of gym equipment, playgrounds, and slang such as "for the win" dropped randomly that shows the author's millenial-ism on full display. The cursing I don't have too much issue with but some of its usage feels so out of place and out of touch, it's just really awkward, and that's coming from someone who curses like a sailor.

The powers in this book range from the most mundane to basically God. There doesn't seem to be a connection or pattern. Everyone, regardless of what their magic powers are, start by learning to use this refillable magic pen (lol), open doors, "crank their speed", and telekinesis, which they must practice to master their true power, which can range from elemental, telepathy, precognition, weather, etc.

The dragons are the main draw but shortly after their introduction, they are basically ignored until the finale chapters. The author tries to keep them relevant by having the main dragon character drop a line of dialogue in the current chapter before fucking off again so the readers are reminded that if they keep reading, they might get to see more of the dragons (insert jangling keys).

There's a bully character harassing Violet over assumptions he's made and when he's corrected, he immediately apologizes like he's learned his lesson, which I find ridiculous enough, but then a chapter or two later, resumes with lethality. The author flip-flops with character motivations and it just comes off like she's coming up with things on the spot, like I'm reading a draft and not a fully edited and published bestseller.

There's a trial the characters must overcome and it's literally Ninja Warrior. Word for word. At this point, I lost hope for anything being original or thought out in this book.

The main love interest I did enjoy but he suffers from a lack of depth as well, but he is probably the most fleshed out from the entire cast.

This is a side note and not applicable to the book, but I noticed a lot of fans posting spoilers in other people's forum posts. Please resist the urge to "correct" someone on a character's motivations, actions, or insinuate tragedy falling to said character. I hate-read this book so I wasn't hurt by the spoilers but I did see other people who were. Even vagueposting with an emote, it's not hard to unravel the implications of "[insert character name] + sad emoji".

I've read worse books but Fourth Wing is pretty terrible and the author stealing Scottish Gaelic language to make her book seem more exotic, and butchering it, is unacceptable. Will I hate-watch the show when it comes out? Maybe from the bow of my pirate ship.