Xaden Riorson

Xaden Riorson is the powerful, enigmatic Wingleader in Rebecca Yarros's Empyrean series — a dragon rider of exceptional ability and the son of a man who led a failed rebellion against the ruling power of Navarre. As the son of a rebel leader, Xaden carries a relic — a distinctive mark that condemns him and other rebel children to the War College, where they are expected to die in service to the kingdom their parents tried to overthrow. His complicated position — capable soldier for a system that despises him — drives his characterization.

Yarros writes Xaden as a slow-reveal character: his initial coldness toward Violet Sorrengail is explained by circumstances rather than nature, and the gradual revelation of who he actually is — and what he knows that she does not — is one of the first novel's primary narrative engines. His dragon Sgaeyl's bond with Tairn connects him to Violet in ways the mythology of the series makes significant.

The romance between Xaden and Violet is developed with the slow-burn patience that Yarros handles consistently well, grounded in genuine mutual respect and complicated by the secrets Xaden carries about the world Violet thinks she understands.

Begin with Fourth Wing (2023) and continue with Iron Flame.