If there’s one thing I know about Rebecca Yarros and her Fourth Wing books, it’s that she’s not afraid to kill anyone. That was clear from the moment Violet and co. stepped onto the parapet, and it became painfully obvious after our dearly beloved Liam’s death in the first book. Now, as we wait for book four (and the book-to-screen adaptation that just found its Violet and Xaden), the author has revealed that she had plans to kill off more characters than she did in Onyx Storm, and they’ll have to go in the next installment. So, yeah, I’m worried, and I’m really anxious about one specific character.
What Rebecca Yarros Said About Character Deaths
Listen, I spiral over comments Yarros makes about what’s going to happen in her books even harder than I spiral over updates and fancasts for the Fourth Wing TV show. So, you can imagine the panic I was sent into when she said the following at Iron Flame Night (via domloves2read):
So, I know when I’m in the book, when I start the book, who is going to die. Now, when I wrote Onyx [Storm] I actually was going to kill off other people at the end. And the way I had to shift the plot, and the way I had to shift things so that it wouldn’t feel like other books and it would have its own separate ending, it left some people alive that should not be alive that I will have to take care of in this book.
Yarros went on to clarify that she didn’t tell the audience if said characters “were good or bad,” and she poked fun at them, saying they are prone to jumping to conclusions that often involve her “plotting Ridoc’s murder.” She also said she always knows who she’s going to kill in a battle before she writes it, and she plants seeds ahead of time so we feel connected to those characters.
So, with all that in mind, I’ve realized I’m actually super duper worried about one character who (at least for now) is alive.
I’m Really Worried About Rhiannon
I know, I know, I can’t believe I’m writing this either: I really think Rhiannon could die in book four, and maybe Yarros had plans to kill her in Onyx Storm. So, let’s walk through why.
Process Of Elimination
I actually got to this conclusion through a weird process of elimination. I was mostly thinking about what characters are either dealing with loose ends or are such a vital part of the story that they can’t die. Think characters potentially involved in the brother mystery, like Bodhi and Garrick, or those involved with Violet’s memory loss, like Imogen. Along with that, characters like Aaric are so powerful that it feels like they have a greater purpose to serve.
Plus, with the death of Violet’s mom, I don’t think Brennan or Mira will go (yet). I also don't think Dain or Sloane will die, considering their seemingly budding relationship. Then, just from a vibes perspective, I don’t think Ridoc will die (yet). And Swayer has already been through too much with going through first year twice and losing his leg.
Through that process, considering whose death would hurt Violet the most and just thinking about what’s happened in the first three books, I landed on Rhiannon as the character who was maybe going to die in Onyx Storm.
Other than Xaden and her siblings, I think Rhi’s death would hit Violet the hardest since she’s her best friend.
A Brutal Parallel
Now, adding to all that, a brutal Fourth Wing parallel led me to this conclusion, too. Think about it, of all the people in Violet’s crew, Rhi is probably the best of the bunch. She’s a natural leader, she was born to be a rider, and she’s simply a very good person. You know who else was near-perfect and all those things? Liam. And he died toward the end of Fourth Wing.
Yarros specifically said she didn’t kill a character in Onyx Storm because she didn’t want it to feel like the end of other books. If Rhi had died, it could have felt a whole lot like what happened to Liam. It would hurt Violet in a very similar way, and it would be the death of another hero, a good one, in this story.
So, yes, going into book four, I’m very worried for Rhiannon. However, for now, I’m going to choose to be very happy that she’s still alive and will live to see another page (for now).
