the Chaotic 'Iron Flame' Release, Explained

August 13, 2024

The sequel to "Fourth Wing" by Rebecca Yarros hit bookshelves on Tuesday.
But some readers said they received misprinted copies of "Iron Flame."
Yarros was also in hot water over her pronunciation of Scottish Gaelic words in her series.

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Rebecca Yarros released the much-anticipated sequel to her hit book "Fourth Wing" on Tuesday.

"Iron Flame" is the second installment in her Empyrean series, which follows Violet Sorrengail, a 20-year-old with a physical disability, as she fights to make it at Basgiath War College, where she's studying to become a dragon rider.

The romantasy book became a New York Times bestseller when it was released in April, selling over two million copies to date, and Yarros' publisher, the Entangled imprint Red Tower, released "Iron Flame" just seven months later.

The publication of "Iron Flame" was so anxiously anticipated that it became a massive celebration for Yarros' fans, with bookstores around the world hosting midnight release parties for it in the same way they celebrated popular series like "Harry Potter" and "Twilight." Yarros herself attended a release party at the Barnes & Noble at Union Square in New York City.

But despite the excitement, the publication hasn't been smooth, both because of reported errors with physical copies of the text as well as comments about pronouncing certain words in her books that Yarros made ahead of the book's release.

Entangled declined to comment when contacted by Insider. Representatives for Yarros and Macmillan, which distributes Entangled books, did not respond to Insider's requests for comment.

Readers said there were misprinted copies of 'Iron Flame'

After "Iron Flame" was released, many readers said on social media that their copies of the book were misprinted — in a puzzling variety of ways.

Some readers said they received "Iron Flame" copies with misprinted spines: Fans reported "Iron Flame" books that said "Fourth Wing" on the spine instead of the actual title, copies of the novel that had the title and Yarros' name printed upside down, and editions with spine text that leaked onto the front of the hardback cover.

Other readers said they opened "Iron Flame" to discover the text itself wasn't printed correctly.

TikTokers shared videos of books that appeared printed entirely upside down, copies where the maps at the front or back of the book were flipped, and some showed a chunk of text printed the wrong way in the middle of their books. There were even readers who said their books were both backward and upside down.

Some readers said they got copies of "Iron Flame" with parts of the actual story missing, like one Yarros fan who showed their book jumping from page 34 to page 83. Likewise, others had book jackets that didn't appear to be printed correctly, with the "Iron Flame" text fading or not aligning as it should.

In addition to videos about misprints of "Iron Flame," some people said they found similar errors within special-edition copies of "Fourth Wing" that were released on the same day. For instance, one reader said she opened her book to discover the text started on Chapter 33 instead of the beginning of the book.

Entangled Publishing declined to comment on the misprints when contacted by Insider, but it addressed the issues in a statement to Variety on Friday, saying "a limited number of copies" of "Iron Flame" were "affected by printing errors," which it said was "common" in the publishing industry.

"We know that these misprints, no matter how common in the industry, have caused disappointment among those who eagerly awaited this release," the statement to Variety said. "We understand how frustrating it can be to receive a misprinted book. The satisfaction and joy of our readers is at the heart of what we do, and we stand by our products, our authors, and, most importantly, our reading community."

"In keeping with our values of quality and responsibility, we are committed to making this right," the statement went on to say. "We are actively working with our distribution partner to create a solution for those who wish to exchange their copy but are unable to do so at their original retailer. Our printing company is also working to produce the additional copies needed to facilitate this process."

Entangled said it would provide additional updates on its social-media pages in due time.

Reader reactions to the errors varied. Some said misprints could be viewed as collector items, whereas others said they were frustrated they spent money on a bungled book or distraught they wouldn't be able to read "Iron Flame" as intended.

Red Tower released "Iron Flame" on Tuesday. Red Tower Publishing

Social-media users reported printing errors in books they said were bought from Amazon, Walmart, Barnes & Noble, and independent bookstores, so Entangled's printing errors appear to be widespread. There were also TikTokers who said their "Iron Flame" preorders did not arrive on time for release day.

Representatives for Walmart and Barnes & Noble did not respond to a request for comment. In a statement to Insider, Ashley Vanicek, an Amazon spokesperson, said: "We aim to provide customers with consistently fast and on-time delivery, and have teams and systems that are constantly working to anticipate our customers' purchasing needs."

"Even so, a limited number of customers may have experienced a slight delay in receiving their orders of Rebecca Yarros' 'Iron Wing' due to high demand," Vanicek said. "Order fulfillment is progressing as expected, and we are closely monitoring this to ensure a great shopping experience for our customers."

Meanwhile, other fans grew concerned when confirmation emails regarding copies purchased from Barnes & Noble that had sprayed black edges showed photos of books without them.

Barnes & Noble added a page about the orders to the help center on its website, clarifying that readers who purchased the book before October 25 should receive a copy with sprayed edges.

Yarros also got backlash for her pronunciation of Gaelic words in her series

Before the newest books were released, some people were already unhappy with Yarros as a result of statements she made during an interview with Popverse ahead of the publication of "Iron Flame."

In the interview, Yarros discussed how she intended some words in the Empyrean series to be pronounced. Yarros' books don't include pronunciation guides, which is a common practice in other fantasy novels, and Yarros used several Scottish Gaelic words for titles in her series, such as the college Basgiath or the names of two of the dragons.

Following the interview, some social-media users said that Yarros didn't pronounce the words the way an authentic Scottish Gaelic speaker would. They also noted that Yarros said "Gaelic" the way an Irish Gaelic speaker would rather than a Scottish Gaelic speaker.

Yarros and Red Tower did not respond to Insider's request for comment on the matter, but the author appeared to address her pronunciation of the words in a question-and-answer session during a midnight-release party for "Iron Flame" at a Barnes & Noble in New York City on Monday.

"Guys, I don't speak Gaelic. I'm really sorry that I don't speak Gaelic," she said, pronouncing "Gaelic" as a Scottish Gaelic speaker would. "But I did find a tutor."

"As I butcher these words right now, please have some grace for me because my poor tutor's stuck with me," she went on to say. "Next year, I will have better pronunciations for you."

"So I'm very sorry," she added. "Please give me some grace tonight."

"Iron Flame" still seems to be selling well despite its bumpy release. According to Library Journal, it's the best-selling book of the week in the US, and it was at the top of Amazon's book chart on Thursday. The book also has a 4.56-star average rating on Goodreads, as well as a 4.5-star average rating on Amazon.

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