Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros

"...instead we entered battle with an enemy I'd thought were only folklore last week, and now we're... well, we're here..."

Violet Sorrengail returns to Basgiath War College after surviving a war game that turned real and cost her friend his life. Her and the other survivors must pretend like everything is normal to protect themselves and the rebellion and she's miserable lying to her friends. Xaden has graduated and is at the warfront, still smuggling weapons in his spare time, while Violet tries to survive her second year of school without him.

I actually thought this book was better than the first. Rebecca Yarros just assumes no character intros are needed if you made it to book two, and with introductions out of the way the adventure intensifies. Like the first book, this story included a few plot twists but these ones I didn't see coming. I enjoy it so much more when a story is unpredictable, it's easier to sink into it. 

When not worried about school, she caters to the bond that ties her and Xaden and their dragons together, while searching for information that could aid in the rebellion and get ultimately her killed. Xaden and Violet spend much of their time being furious with one another; Violet fed up with his lies and Xaden upset that Violet isn't laying as low as he'd like. But the romance isn't dead, for as much as Violet tries to distance herself from him, she gets pulled back in... And smut ensues...

Now I don't hide that romance usually isn't my thing, but I make exceptions for a little romantasy now and again... What can I say, I wasn't missing out on a story about dragons. It really didn't need the smut (wildly graphic btw) the story stood on its own, but I'm no prude... What two fictional adults do while starting a revolution can be every readers' business if the author so chooses which she did, multiple times. I'm just saying, this book isn't for children even if you think the idea of dragon riders isn't a mature enough subject for adults. Although why some people think dragons can't be for adults is beyond my comprehension.

At the beginning of the story I got the impression that the plot may have read exactly the same without the romance as it did with it, seeing as Xaden spent so much time away. But the end of the book suggests heavily that what is going to drive book three is Violet's unyielding love for Xaden and I'm deeply curious to see where it goes. And yes, this book pretty much ends on a cliffhanger, so if you want to know more you have to continue on to book three.