Fourth Wing / Empyrean reading order: Fourth Wing (2023)

Short version of the door: Where to start Fourth Wing. This page is the Empyrean table.

Three novels are on the shelf. Yarros has described a longer Empyrean plan. Untitled later novels are not an excuse to wait, and they are not hiding as a prequel.

Threshing Day (2026) is an Empyrean-related extra, not the next numbered novel. If a shop piles it next to Fourth Wing as “book 4,” that is retail gravity, not a table of contents.

The published novels

Publication order is the only path. There is no chronological reshuffle.

Extras

House rule: read 1–3. Read Threshing Day after Fourth Wing if you want more Basgiath texture. Do not use it as an on-ramp. Do not postpone Fourth Wing until book 4 has a title.

A TV adaptation has been discussed. It is not a reading order.

Common mistakes

• Starting with Onyx Storm because it is the newest thick hardcover.
• Treating Threshing Day as book 4.
• Starting with ACOTAR because “all romantasy is one series.”
• Waiting for the full five-book plan before opening book one.

What to read next

1. ACOTAR (Sarah J. Maas) — If you want another romantasy door with a novella that looks like a novel.
2. Shatter Me (Tahereh Mafi) — If you want another YA voice-driven run that keeps going past a trilogy. Start at Shatter Me, not Watch Me.
3. The Bargainer (Laura Thalassa) — If you want a shorter romantasy whose Desmond novella sits after book two.
4. Zodiac Academy (Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti) — If you want another unfinished-feeling academy with a strict first book.
5. Flesh and Fire (Jennifer L. Armentrout) — If a prequel series looked like the door. It is not. Start at From Blood and Ash (2020), then A Shadow in the Ember. Book 4 of Empyrean will still be book 4 when it exists.

FAQ

What is the Fourth Wing reading order?
Fourth Wing (2023), then Iron Flame (2023), then Onyx Storm (2025). Publication order is the only path. There is no chronological reshuffle.

How many Empyrean books?
Three numbered novels are published: Fourth Wing, Iron Flame, and Onyx Storm. Yarros has described a longer plan. Untitled later novels are not on the shelf yet, and they are not hiding as a prequel.

Is Threshing Day book 4?
No. Threshing Day (2026) is an Empyrean-related extra, not the next numbered novel. Read it after Fourth Wing if you want more Basgiath texture. Do not use it as an on-ramp.

Is the series finished?
No. Three numbered novels are published. Book 4 will still be book 4 when it has a title.

Can I start with Iron Flame?
No. Iron Flame assumes the war college in Fourth Wing.

Fourth Wing or Empyrean?
Fourth Wing is the first novel. Empyrean is the series name. Searching either should get you to the same book one.

Sources

• Rebecca Yarros, The Empyrean — author series page. Opened 2026-09-13.
• Entangled, Fourth Wing — publisher page for book one. Opened 2026-09-13.