Threshing Day

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At Basgiath War College, the dragons do the choosing. On Threshing Day the first-year cadets walk out to meet them. Some come back bonded to a dragon and become riders. Some do not come back at all. There is one rule, and it is to stay alive.

Threshing Day returns to that trial thirteen times. Each story follows a different cadet from Rebecca Yarros's Empyrean series on the day a dragon picked them. Xaden Riorson is here, along with Rhiannon, Dain, Liam, Ridoc and eight others. Violet Sorrengail tells most of the main novels, and she is not one of the thirteen. The idea is to see the day through everyone else's eyes.

The cadets are not all the same age, so this is the same day in different years. Violet's older siblings Mira and Brennan get their turns. So does Sloane Mairi, who reaches the college later than most of the others. Rivals cheat, dragons judge, and one choice decides whether a cadet flies or burns.

Thirteen short stories, not book four

It helps to know what this is before you press play. Threshing Day is a companion collection that sits between the third and fourth novels. Yarros said so herself when she announced it, adding the words "not book four" to the news. The story of Violet and Xaden does not move forward here.

Some fans grumbled about that online, and at least one early commenter called the book a cash grab. Many more were simply glad to go back, and Xaden's bonding with his dragon Sgaeyl is the story people were most eager for. Reviews from readers who have finished the collection are still scarce, so it is too early to speak of a consensus.

The whole thing runs just under six hours. That leaves less than half an hour per story on average, so do not expect the slow build of the novels. Expect quick portraits, each built around a single decision.

Fourteen voices for thirteen riders

The audio edition from Recorded Books is unabridged. It has a full cast, with a different narrator for each cadet. Some of the voices:

• Xaden: Teddy Hamilton, who also voices him in the main series audiobooks
• Imogen: Justis Bolding, from the Onyx Storm cast
• Rhiannon: Jasmin Walker, also from the Onyx Storm cast
• Mira: Frankie Corzo
• Brennan: Zion Jang

There is also a fourteenth narrator. John Skelley reads a character named Thadeus Palme, who is not one of the thirteen cadets.

A collection like this suits audio well. A new voice marks each new story, so you always know whose day you are in. The stories are also short enough to finish one on a commute. Note that a separate dramatized adaptation with music and sound effects exists. This edition is the plain reading of the full text.

Who should listen, and when

The publisher says the collection can work as an introduction, but it also warns that it contains spoilers and is best read after Onyx Storm. That second piece of advice is the one to follow. Much of the appeal lies in knowing what becomes of these cadets later. Newcomers should start with Fourth Wing, then Iron Flame, then Onyx Storm, and come here afterward.

From military romance to dragon riders

Rebecca Yarros began writing while her husband was deployed in Afghanistan. She has published more than twenty novels, and for years she was known for contemporary romance, including The Last Letter. Fourth Wing changed the scale of her career in 2023. By the time Onyx Storm arrived, the series was selling millions of copies in a single week.

The Empyrean series is planned as five novels, and Yarros is still writing the fourth. A television adaptation is in development at Prime Video. Threshing Day is a way to spend a few hours back at Basgiath while the wait goes on.

For fans, that is reason enough. The Audible free trial covers the full recording.

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