Onyx Storm

Empyrean, Book 3

By: Rebecca Yarros

Narrated by: Jasmin Walker, Justis Bolding, Teddy Hamilton, Rebecca Soler

After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there’s no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty.

Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it’s impossible to know who to trust.

Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves—her dragons, her family, her home, and him.

Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything.

They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find—the truth.

But a storm is coming...and not everyone can survive its wrath.

The Empyrean series is best enjoyed in order.
Listening Order:
Book #1 Fourth Wing
Book #2 Iron Flame
Book #3 Onyx Storm

©2025 Rebecca Yarros (P)2025 Recorded Books

I'm spoiled by graphic audio

Story is great but I've gotten too used to the graphic audio versions and I had a really hard time listening. Most of the time I couldn't tell which character was being portrayed.

BEST. BOOK. WORST. NARRATOR.

I absolutely LOVED this book I devoured it. I can’t stand Rebecca Soler’s nasal narration. Audiobooks should all be dual narration or read by a full cast, even if sound effects aren’t included. it is the year of our lord 2025,.. one person narrating so many people is just bonkers …. I can’t wait for the dramatized adaptations because it will be AMAZING.

A bit disappointed

So far book one was the best then book two was enough to keep you engaged and book 3 feels like it could have been summed up in a few chapters.

The story was okay. The narration seemed choppy at times like it was pieced together from several different sessions.

I really disliked the voice of Xaden in the Xaden POV chapter. It was way too far over the top. I expected every sentence to end with "bruh" and begin with giving instructions on how to roofie drinks at a college bar. Upon hearing the voice I immediately changed my perspective of Xaden from the love interest and hero of the story to creepy gym bro that hangs out around the girls freshman dorms. I'm now rooting for him to get killed off at some point, just from hearing that narration.

Darker, better, wilder

Exhaling a loooooong breath. 😤 Here we go. Spoiler-free ⬇️
PS: This will be long.
FYI: I am emotionally hung up here... I should've known this would happen.
Ratings:
- First 25% = 2 ⭐ all over the place
- Middle 50% = 3 to 4 ⭐ depending on the section
- Last 25% = 5 ⭐🎆
The balance is precarious, but it is there.
Overall rating= 3.5 ⭐rounded up.

Overall thoughts:
This is my least favourite book in the series... But also, the most intense emotional ties in characters.
Some aspects were underwhelming, others were so short-lived.
I struggled in the beginning but there was a moment in chp 13 where things shifted.
I enjoyed the worldbuilding and world discovery, but I was overwhelmed in places and I needed a companion guide for this world... 📔Gods bless FantasyFangirls for theirs.
It was an emotional trip, and a "trip".
You could feel Rebecca's passion for this project and her spirit come back the more you read it. It wasn't present in the beginning, but the last 50% is her again.

Audiobook:
With the first 25% being a jumble, and having been listening for a week to the graphic audios of FW and IF, the start was pretty rough.
It did get better as the book got better and as I got used to it. But wasn't the most enjoyable.
I'd still listen to it.

What worked amazingly:
- Character development for literally
Every. Single. Character.
They all took their space, without overstepping on others, and without feeling rushed or unrealistic. 10/10 💞
- Xaden, okay I'll elaborate. His journey was compelling and heartbreaking. He was intense. It was intense. And although we don't get his POV, we get his truth. Being on that trek with him... How dark can the world get before it taints our souls? 🖤
- Violet's focus and confidence are shining in this book. Her relational growth, emotional growth, and her behaving with the mind of a scribe and the heart of a rider are one of this book's highlights. 💜
- The potential. While I hope that books 4 and 5 don't have any fillers, I hope even more that the potentials that this book opened are really fulfilled. OS is a medium book, bridging the 1 story to the world story; it probably introduced all the elements that will help win this war, knowingly or otherwise. I can't wait to see what Rebecca does with this. 🚀


What wasn't working in the book:
- The first part was so messy, that I felt stupid for not understanding half of what's written. Mind you, I just finished my re-read so I am very much in the world. 1️⃣
- ⛓️‍💥Rebecca was aiming for mysterious and foreshadowing hints, but they presented as her interrupting a conversation mid-way just to build anticipation. That left me frustrated. 🔇
- While it was only natural for politics to take up more place in this book, it was also a huge dump of names, locations, strategies, and battles that were not as mapped out as they should be. 🆘
- 🔮Too much was going on, and yet not enough. There was travelling, readings, and finding items/pieces of the story, but I ended up with more questions than answers, and many half-truths/facts.


What ruined Onyx Storm?
But I will not be condemning Rebecca over this, hence my rating, because I believe this happened for 2 reasons:
If you'd rather hear me say it than read it: Instagram - TikTok
1) This is Rebecca's first fantasy endeavour, and at some point, she took on more than she was able to. However, she did realise her limits and I look forward to her taking her break before she can come back fresh to continue writing this series. 🔃
2) The fandom ruined this. It is incredulous that I and almost every single one of my friends decided to put ourselves on a self-imposed social media ban, and binge-read OS because WE DO NOT TRUST THE FANDOM! We don't trust each other not to spoil the book, or ruin it for each other. And In this craze, the fandom went out of its way to come up with crazy theories and read too much into things. It became a lab dissection instead of a journey, and I hate that this affected everyone's experience. 🕳️🕳️🕳️