Parents' Guide to Onyx Storm: The Empyrean, Book 3

This decent third installment serviceably continues Violet's adventure and grand love story with Xaden. Series fans will appreciate more time with the couple in Onyx Storm as they face new threats and problems, and it's nice to see them tackle their missions with new confidence. This book hits some highs, but there are also distracting issues. Parts of the plotting can feel rushed, like the breaks from one chapter to the next often feeling arbitrary. In other parts, scenes are lingered on too long, which can bog down the pacing. Outside of the action scenes, characters are, at times, put in forced-feeling situations purely to progress particular plot objectives. And repeat wording may irritate: There must be multiple synonyms for the word "desiccated," no? And there are certainly other ways to describe how "beautiful" Xaden is.

Author Rebecca Yarros' strongest choice is leaning into the mini-mysteries, odd puzzles, and riddles that pop up in the plot's periphery, dropping hints and clues for what's to come. It makes the pages fly by, and none of these sections feel like filler or info dumps. As the story ramps up to the finale, readers may find themselves divided on whether or not Theophanie is a good villain. Her power is terrifying, but the jury's out on whether her actions make sense and are believable. For example, why does she say, repeatedly, that Violet will come to her on her own, when this never happens? Or why does Theophanie not just "turn" a few dragons and be done with it? The ending's a shocker, but there's fun in trying to figure out what exactly happened and to whom, what everything means, and why Violet needed Imogen to do what she does. Theories are sure to run rampant and fuel anticipation for the next book in the series.