10 Best Books Like ‘Fourth Wing’

Fourth Wing took the so-called BookTok community by storm when it came out early last year, but after finishing the rather chunky young adult fantasy novel by Rebecca Yarros, many fans found themselves aching for something similar. As ever, we’ve got you covered.

The novel takes place in a sort of military school set in a fictional world, and a fictional country called Navarre. You follow the tale of a young girl called Violet, who is the daughter of an accomplished general. Violet has trained her whole life to become a scribe, but at her mother’s behest, she enrolls in the Rider Quadrant to learn to become a dragon rider. 

The trials Violet goes through to achieve this despite her incongruous background form the plot of Fourth Wing, but we couldn’t begin to address the complex worldbuilding through that simple premise alone. Fourth Wing was one of the best-selling novels last year, and its success has prompted Hollywood to look into adaptations, with Variety reporting that Amazon is already planning to develop a TV series.

That could unfortunately be years away, so if you’re hungry for more stories and more fictional worlds in the vein of Rebecca Yarros’ new series, then be sure to check out these 10 fantasy books.

Graceling (2008)

The Graceling series by Kristin Cashore takes place in a fictional world where a select few individuals can perform terrible feats of skill and power. These people are Graced, and they’re known as Gracelings. Our titular heroine, Katsa, is one such person, and she has to live a life of uncertainty as the king’s niece, forced to function as his thug and assassin.

The Cruel Prince (2018)

Written by Holly Black as the debut novel of the Folk of the Air trilogy, The Cruel Prince tells the tale of Jude, whose parents are murdered when she is seven years old. Jude and her two sisters are then abducted and taken to the High Court of Faerie, where they live at their forbearance. Jude struggles to belong despite being mortal, but the Fae who despise humans, including Prince Cardan, the king’s youngest son, will thrust her into a world of intrigue.