Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros Summary
📚 Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros – Book Summary (Taken Directly from Transcript)
This book picks up exactly where book two left off. Zaden is now a venin, but still 90% himself. He saves Basgiath from a venin attack using his shadows, becomes the Duke of Tyrr, and is also made a professor—which complicates things, as he and Violet must pretend to be broken up. Zaden's second Signet, inik, allows him to read intentions, making him unbeatable in training.
Violet is trying to manifest her second Signet and eventually discovers she’s a dreamwalker. Meanwhile, she’s also trying to find a cure for Zaden’s venin state and locate the seventh kind of dragon—Andarna’s kind.
Dane and Violet’s friendship is somewhat mended, and he helps her retrieve her father’s journal. Violet decodes riddles left by her dad and finds more journals with help from her team. Jack Barlowe, still imprisoned, is kept alive with serum in exchange for venin-related info.
There are significant deaths: Ara (from earlier books) accidentally kills Captain Grady and dies herself. Violet later assembles a team (including her ex Halen, Zaden, Cat, Dane, Rhiannon, and Ridoc) to travel to the magicless land of Tchis. There, Zaden experiences peace, and Violet gains more of her father’s journals from a woman named Nurella.
In Tchis, Violet and Zaden sleep together for the first time.
They then go through a series of Trials:
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Deverell: Halen is captured, and during the rescue, Zaden loses control and kills everyone with shadows. Erik (Prince Cam) steps in to replace Halen in royal matters.
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Umberia: Violet fights and defeats the Queen in a three-on-three battle. Zaden and Dane also fight. Violet saves Zaden mid-fight. They win but fail to secure an alliance because Umberia demands dragons.
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Hodda: Zaden reunites with his estranged mother. Her husband poisons the crew, and Violet suspects it just in time. Garrick almost dies but is saved using antidote knowledge from her dad’s journal. Ridoc is wounded but survives.
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Zahra: Everyone draws a card representing a “gift from the gods.” Trager (Cat’s love interest) dies after drawing an arrow card. Violet is devastated but must accept the death without complaint.
Then, the team visits an island to burn Trager and his Griffin. There they encounter the eids, the seventh kind of dragon, but they reject Andarna and all human connections. Andarna chooses to sever her bond with Violet to stay and learn their ways. Violet is heartbroken.
Theophany, a venin who wants Violet to join their side, kidnaps Mira. Violet saves her, but Mira’s throat is slit. Brennan heals her with help from Sloane. Tarn flies Mira to safety, leaving Violet alone. Violet outsmarts Theophany and stabs her with a special dagger from Erik, killing her.
Meanwhile, Zaden uses venin magic to save his dragon, causing a massive “onyx storm”—where the book gets its name.
The final chapters switch perspectives:
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Rhiannon shares battle experiences.
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Imogen mourns Quinn, who dies.
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Zaden gets his own chapter.
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Violet wakes up married to Zaden with a ring and a message: “Don’t look for me. It’s yours now.”
Andarna returns but does not reforge the bond—yet. Deaths: Ara, Trager, Quinn. Mira had a close call.
Key Revelations & Interpretations
Zaden & Seale’s Cryptic Conversation (Chapter 65)
Zaden lowers his mental shields (“lowers the ice”) to let Seale into his mind. She's shocked and says: “You cannot mean to…” which hints at a morally questionable plan.
He confirms Violet will help because “she loves me.” Seale argues that no one would perform the marriage ceremony, but Zaden says “someone owes me a favor.”
This favor comes from the High Priestess of Dun’s Temple, who owes Zaden after he helped save the temple during an earlier attack. In the final chapter, Violet finds a missive in her pocket that is the official blessing of their marriage, confirming Zaden called in the favor and they got married.
Why Violet Was Married
Marrying Violet makes her the Duchess of Tyrr, allowing her to rule the province in Zaden’s likely absence.
Seale ultimately agrees to help Zaden, shown in her line “Our Fate,” suggesting she won’t sever their bond. Despite the darkness of the plan, she accepts that it may be the only way to win the war.
The Ward Protection and Draus
At the end of the Imogen POV chapter, a major effort is made to create magical wards over Draus.
Two cases of daggers are brought in, and Imogen’s last actions involve giving commands to distribute the alloy daggers to boost the wards.
It is implied that they used a similar mechanism as in Basgiath to extend Arisha’s wards and now protect Draus.
This move may have been subtly guided by Aric, who possibly foresaw all of it.
Zaden’s Larger Plan
Zaden’s plan likely includes:
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Marrying Violet to give her power.
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Making morally grey decisions to win the war.
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Possibly orchestrating events during Violet’s 12-hour memory gap, wiped by Imogen.
What Happened During the 12 Missing Hours?
Deaths After the Battle
Wison reports to Brennan that 4 Riders, their dragons, and 3 Elders were killed in the valley during those missing hours.
There are also five missing Riders (including Violet and Zaden), and suspicion falls on Zaden for these deaths.
This strongly suggests Zaden is tied to the continued deaths, possibly part of his plan.
Zaden’s “New Brother”
Zaden mentions gaining a “brother”, suggesting someone else turned Venin and joined him.
Only a few characters knew Zaden was Venin for months:
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Garrick
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Bodhi (Bod)
Aric, though possibly aware, is unlikely to be the brother. -
Garrick has a moment of emotional breakdown and talks about not being strong enough.
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Bod is shown vomiting mysteriously and emotionally overwhelmed during battle.
Many hints, including character development and emotional conflict, suggest Bod is the most likely candidate to be the new Venin “brother.”
All prior foreshadowing of Zaden and Bod being “brothers” could now refer to this dark bond.
Six Missing Dragon Eggs
Wison also reports that six eggs are missing from the hatching grounds.
Initially assumed to be unrelated or stolen by rogue Venin, there’s a possibility that Zaden took them as part of his plan.
This adds a darker, more twisted layer to Zaden’s character — though more may be revealed later that explains it.
🧩 Final Takeaways
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Zaden likely married Violet via the High Priestess’s favor to make her ruler of Tyrr.
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Seale agrees to help, strengthening their bond.
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Zaden has a Venin “brother”, possibly Bod.
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Multiple deaths, missing eggs, and erased memories point to a complex and morally grey plan.
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The wards over Draus were extended through coordinated efforts involving alloy daggers, possibly linked to Zaden’s strategy.
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