Military Academy

2015 · Jonathan Renshaw · 710 pages · Epic Fantasy

Jonathan Renshaw's debut is a coming-of-age epic fantasy that earns its 710 pages through gorgeous prose and a protagonist whose emotional wounds feel as real as his physical ones. The academy training sequence dominates the book and will test the patience of readers who want the plot to accelerate, and the supporting cast doesn't receive anywhere near the same depth as Aedan himself. But when Renshaw commits to a scene, whether it's a moment of terror or a flash of wonder, the writing operates at a level most self-published fantasy never reaches. It's a slow burn that rewards patience, even if it demands more of it than most readers expect.

2015 · Sabaa Tahir · 446 pages · Fantasy

Sabaa Tahir draws on ancient Rome's brutality to build a military empire that runs on fear, and then drops two young people into it from opposite sides of the power divide. Laia is a Scholar whose brother has been arrested and who goes undercover as a slave to save him. Elias is a Mask, an elite soldier who wants to desert the military academy that made him into a weapon. Their alternating chapters create a dual perspective on oppression that works from both the inside and the outside. The world is brutal and vivid, the action sequences are sharp, and the tension rarely lets up. The romance elements feel premature, some plot turns rely on coincidence, and the ending sets up the sequel more than it resolves this book. A compelling start to a series that earns its darkness.

2023 · Rebecca Yarros · 528 pages · Fantasy Romance

Rebecca Yarros smashed together a military academy, deadly dragons, and a romance built on mutual hostility, and the result became one of the bestselling fantasy novels of the decade. Fourth Wing is propulsive and addictive, built to be devoured in a single weekend, and it delivers exactly what its audience wants: danger, desire, and dragons. The pacing is relentless, the dragon bonding sequences are thrilling, and the central romance generates the kind of intensity that keeps readers up past midnight. The world-building is thin, the prose is functional at best, the military academy logic doesn't hold up under scrutiny, and the supporting cast is largely disposable. None of that matters to the readers who love it, and the readers who love it are legion.