Rebecca Yarros

Rebecca Yarros is an American author who became one of publishing's biggest breakout names with Fourth Wing, the first book in her Empyrean series, which turned romantasy into a mainstream retail phenomenon in 2023. The series follows Violet Sorrengail, a physically fragile young woman forced into the brutal, dragon-riding war college her mother commands, where survival depends as much on political cunning and found-family loyalty as on magic or combat. Yarros pairs high-body-count military fantasy stakes with a slow-burn, high-heat romance, a combination that drove Fourth Wing and its sequel, Iron Flame, to sell in the millions and dominate bestseller lists for months.

Before Empyrean, Yarros had already built a substantial career in contemporary and military romance, including the Flight and Glory and Renegades series, often drawing on her own experience as a military spouse. That grounding in emotionally authentic relationship writing is part of why Empyrean's romance plot lands as more than a genre veneer on the fantasy.

New readers should start with Fourth Wing — the series is told in strict reading order and builds a dense, twist-heavy plot that rewards starting from book one rather than skipping in. The series is planned to run five books, with the story still unfolding as of the latest installments, and film adaptation rights have been optioned, though no release has occurred yet.