#57: This week on A Novel Bunch, we’re diving into chapters 33–49 of Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros and BUNCHIES… we are officially in emotional warfare.

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

We land on Hedotis expecting wisdom and instead get manipulation, mind games, and XADEN’S MOM?? Yeah… enter Talia. But it also unlocks something deeper—because now we’re not just seeing his power shift… we’re seeing why.

And that shift is getting worse.

From poisoning plots to political alliances, every isle tests the squad in a new way, but the real tension is internal. Xaden is fighting himself. Hard. The control is slipping, the instincts are darker, and when he says he’d rather feel nothing than risk hurting Violet? Yeah. We’re spiraling.

Meanwhile, Violet is stepping UP. Like… full command energy. Strategy, leadership, sacrifice, she’s becoming exactly what everyone needs… even if it costs her everything.

Then we hit Zehyllna and things go from chaotic to devastating. Losses stack up (Trager?? Sila??), the “gifts” feel more like ominous setups, and Violet starts piecing together something massive: fate isn’t random here. It’s calculated.

And then… the Irids.

SIX of them. Watching. Judging. Refusing to help. Confirming our worst fear: there is no cure for venin. Not a clean one, at least. The soul is stripped piece by piece… and once it’s gone? It’s gone.

Except… Violet doesn’t believe that. And neither do we.

Because now the secret is out. Xaden is turning, and Violet finally tells her squad. The fallout? Surprisingly loyal. But the question shifts from if they can save him… to what happens if they can’t.

Back in Aretia, everything starts collapsing. The wards are failing, venin are infiltrating leadership, and the war is no longer coming—it’s HERE. And just when we think Xaden might hold the line… another shadow wielder emerges.

Yeah. Magic is rebalancing. And it’s not in his favor.

But the most terrifying part?

Even after everything—the fear, the distance, the literal countdown on his soul—Xaden still chooses Violet. Still comes back. Still fights it.

73 days without channeling. 73 days of control.

And when they finally give in to each other… he doesn’t lose it.

Which means one thing:

Maybe he’s not too far gone.

We’re breaking down Xaden’s unraveling, Violet’s rise to power, the Irid revelations, the “no cure” debate, and the growing theory that fate, love, and war are all tied to the same irreversible force.

Because if love changes the soul…

What happens when that soul is already breaking?

Let’s get into it, Bunchies!