They came to earth—Pestilence, War, Famine, Death—four horsemen riding their screaming steeds, racing to the corners of the world. Four horsemen with the power to destroy all of humanity. They came to earth, and they came to end us all. When Pestilence comes for Sara Burn’s town, one thing is certain: everyone she knows and loves is marked for death. Unless, of course, the angelic-looking … angelic-looking horseman is stopped, which is exactly what Sara has in mind when she shoots the unholy beast off his steed.
Too bad no one told her Pestilence can’t be killed.
Now the horseman, very much alive and very pissed off, has taken her prisoner, and he’s eager to make her suffer. Only, the longer she’s with him, the more uncertain she is about his true feelings towards her … and hers towards him.
And now, well, Sara might still be able to save the world, but in order to do so, she’ll have to sacrifice her heart in the process.
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So, I’m an avid lover of the Heaving Bosom ladies. I listen to them while I fold laundry. I couldn’t help but have my interest piqued since the concept of a romance novel where one of the MCs is the literal plague–and that they enjoyed it, was so hard to imagine. I just had to try it for myself.
The writing is clean, smooth. The main character is engaging and fun. I enjoyed her humor. I will admit, the concept…just didn’t quite stick for me.
I LOVE badass heroes. The darker the hero, the more I adore him. But something about the framework of it…the kids dying, the bubos, I just never quite hit a point where I was like…yeah, this makes sense. He’s the plague, you’re falling in love. It just…I don’t know. The writing is really solid. It just didn’t quite work for me.
That being said, it’s a really unique and original concept.
One of the best fantasy romance books I’ve read!
I noticed this book on a list of favorites and decided to check it out. I’m so glad I did. It’s part fantasy and part post-apocalyptic science fiction with a little romance. This is the first book in a four book series.
Pestilence is one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse who has been sent by God to spread the plague and kill mankind. In an attempt to stop him, Sara kills Pestilence. Or so she thinks. Sara learns the hard way that Pestilence cannot be killed. He takes her as his prisoner with the promise to make Sara suffer and witness his destruction firsthand.
Pestilence is stoic and so matter of fact. He never expected to care about any human and is uncomfortable and surprised by the feelings that Sara awakens in him. Sara is a brave, compassionate and truly good person. She is also hilarious and full of dry humor. I wasn’t expecting this to be a funny book, but she is constantly antagonizing Pestilence and her inner thoughts are comical.
The affection that grows between Pestilence and Sara takes time. There is a lot of death and a lot of suffering that Sara is forced to see. However we need to remember that Pestilence’s sole reason for being on Earth is to bring death. The more time he spends with Sara, the more she helps Pestilence to understand mercy and discover what love feels like. The more time Sara spends with Pestilence, the more she realizes the burden he carries. “Love is the greatest gift we can give or receive.”
This is the first book I’ve read by this author, but it definitely wont be my last. I’m enjoying this series and can’t wait to read what happens next in War’s book. Famine and Death are books three and four.
Wow, what a story. What a concept and what execution! The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (Pestilence, War, Famine, and Death) awaken and come to earth. This book is Pestilence’s story.
Pestilence, personified as a very handsome blond man, comes to Earth, riding his horse, spreading a fatal plague wherever he goes.
Sara Burns is a Canadian firefighter who draws the short straw and tries to kill him to end the plague. She fails (he can’t be killed), but rather than infect her, he takes her captive, intending to make her suffer. She’s forced to ride with him through Canada and then into the United States, spreading the plague and killing people.
But Sara’s goodness begins to affect Pestilence, and he begins to develop human emotions, and his task begins to take a toll on him. But will it be enough to stop him?
This is one hell of a romance. I never would have expected a love story could come out of this type of subject matter, but it’s very well executed (no pun intended). Author Laura Thalassa does a great job developing her characters and the story. A definite page-turner.
This book has legs! This is a story you’ll never forget. It is very grim at times, but not unbearable, and it has a happy ending for the H/h. But then, of course, next comes book 2, War.
“And so it was, and so it shall be, for the Age of Man is over, and the Age of the Horseman has begun. They came to earth, and they came to end us all.”
Pestilence the Conqueror. Horsemen number one.
The one who brings disease and a slow death to all that is near.
This was a neat book about the post-apocalyptic world.
While it had detailed descriptions of deaths and injuries, I’m a little upset their wasn’t any torture porn and abuse like the top one star reviews on Amazon. That why I started to read this! I had to know about this torture porn novel.
Sara a female human is set on killing Pestilence by shotgun and fire. No really, she blasts his ass and sets his body on fire.
I mean, he’s killing people with a horrible plague and needs to be stopped.
Only, the Horsemen can’t be killed. So he takes her in as a prisoner. They ride through cities and towns while he unleashes his plague. Sara tries desperately to figure out this god like warrior. And make him stop his ways.
You find out if she can. And even if he does,
What happens when the other brothers wake up?!
That leads to book two.
This book certainly isn’t dark dark. But it’s what would’ve expect from a post apocalyptic novel. And it’s a “dark romance”.
A total HEA for the main characters.
Obsessed! Pestilence can give me fever any time!
Pestilence was unlike anything I’ve ever read before. This book was recommended to me and I’m so glad I read it. The cover is so beautiful and who wouldn’t want to read about one of the sexy Four Horsemen of the apocalypse.
This story was fascinating from the start. Sara finds herself in a bind when she gets stuck as Pestilence’s prisoner but the relationship grows and changes as do their feelings. The character development and writing is amazing. I started reading for the romance but this had so much more to it.
I will definitely be reading War soon!!
Obsessed.
FIRST OF ALL, thank you to every book friend who recommended Pestilence by Laura Thalassa ! BECAUSE I AM JUST SPEECHLESS.
So lets start this book venting journey with a confession. I don’t read fantasy. I hardly read any PNR. So if you are holding out thinking this is not for you..get that idea out of your mind. Forget trope. Forget genre. This is just a piece of beauty crafted by the superpower called human imagination.
A short intro to the story ( no spoiler). The Four Horsemen of Apocalypse was destroying the world before it all stopped suddenly and Pestilence is the one who is back again. Sara, the Canadian firefighter wanted to stop him. And instead she ends up as his prisoner. So starts a profound and terrifying journey through cities and humanity. And somewhere somehow love bloomed. How?
This was an impossible story. The storytelling was so freaking intelligent. I cannot believe I was actually smiling and laughing at some scenes!! Mostly it was an introspective journey for me. Questions. Answers. A thread of religion, philosophy and so many things. And then the basic human emotions came out so freaking brilliantly. I am having goosebumps just thinking about it. A magical mix really. Love. Mercy. Heartbreak. I absolutely mindlessly love Sara. This girl and her courage and her big heart and her sassy mouth. And ok..this sounds so weird..I love Pestilence. It was a complex character to execute and the author nailed it. The ancient gravity. The brooding dark imposing presence. And then the breaking down of the walls…UN-FUCKING-BELIEVABLE. And did I tell you how this story turned into a sexy feast sometimes? With the drama? With the suspense? With the feels? With the MF twists??
Worst thing: I have a book hangover.
Best thing: NEXT BOOKS ARE OUT!
Well, this is certainly different from my usual reading material. But, I found it to be well written, well edited, and something that once started, I could not put down!
I decided to read this book based on another review. I did see some that had pretty high marks, and some with low marks. Some reviewers admitted that the cover was what grabbed them, but when I went onto Amazon to get the book, I had not seen a cover until then. I stuck with the book, though parts were very disturbing and parts made me cry….like Ruth and Rob. Overall, I really liked the book. I don’t feel it was a waste of my time, as there was a message about humanity here, but I get that this book may not be for everyone. There is definitely violence, lots of it, profanity, and graphic sex which may offend some readers.
I more enjoyed the idea of this rather than the execution. Horsman of the apocalypse falls in love with the human who fails to kill him. Sign me up. But it was missing something for me. I can normally pinpoint what that missing element was but in this one I can’t fully. I did love the discussion of Morality vs immorality and how Pestilence and Sara struggle within their respective roles of captor/captee and villian/hero, Because who is who is dependent on perspective.
Having Sara feel empathy for Pestilence as we go on in the journey and simultaneously despising and condemning his actions was a interesting line to see how their relationship grew through that. The interactions with other humans are pretty scarce throughout the book as its mostly Sara and Pestilence riding through and spreading the plague. But they fall into two categories they either try and kill them or offer their deaths up willingly both of which were well placed in the story for pestilences development. I enjoyed Saras inner monologue and found it a perfect contrast to Pestilences rigid demeanor.
The acceptance from the beginning from Sara about Pestilences deeds was a bit hard to wrap my head around. While obviously there is nothing she could do to prevent it, it rubbed me the wrong way. I would think she would spend more time attempting to show him humans were worth redemption to save her fellow man. There is a lot of scenes where she laments about the things he does but until the climax does she actually do much to attempt to stop him.
If you are a fan of fantasy and other worldly beings definitely check this series, and author, out! It is extremely hard for me to put into words how Laura Thalassa makes me feel whenever I read one of her books. Ever single one of her characters emotionally moves me to ever single point on the 1 to 10 simley face scale.
With her book Pestilence, we are introduced to the very first rider who is to end all humans. Along his journey, with his trusty steed Trixie, he encounters one brave young woman who stays behind in her hometown to end his life. But unknown to Sara, is the fact that Pestilence cannot be killed. With her failed attempt, Pestilence takes her as his prisoner and forces her to endure inhuman environments in addition to injuring her when she tries to escape him. On their journey they begin to understand each other and see the world through both of their view points. Pestilence who has only known human cruelty and Sara who has seen human compassion.
Okay, let’s talk.
As most of you know, I don’t get around to doing a whole lot of reading these days. I’m too damn busy writing for you all. But, it just so happens that a week or so back I was making the rounds in the PNR groups for promoting my own books over on the Book of Faces when I came across this gorgeous cover.
Huh, let me take a look at this. I click the link, and head on over to the almighty Zon, read the description and one-clicked so fast I nearly broke my phone screen.
I settled in to read it that night and let me tell you, with 2020 being what it was this read was HEAVY, but So. Amazingly. Good! Pretty sure I cried through the whole blessed thing, but that’s amazing. It takes a lot to move my cold dead heart with literature anymore.
I finished this book a day or two ago, still can’t stop thinking about it, bought WAR as soon as I finished leaving my review and just barely started THAT last night. I’m already hooked.
If you like PNR and darker reads YOU NEED TO CHECK THIS AUTHOR OUT.
And come on, this is me we’re talking about here. Have I _ever_ steered you wrong? I didn’t think so.
I really liked this book. Sara was a great MC, she wasn’t particularly strong, smart or fast but she had sass. Most importantly though was her high level of empathy and kindness. It was fun how she slowly but surely got underneath Pestilence’s skin and humanized him. It was an interesting twist to a post-apocalyptic story with some steamy bits. A good book and I can see why it kept popping up as a recommended read for me. Looking forward to reading the rest of the books in this series
Death.
Intrigue.
And an unexpected romance.
This is a page-turner of epic proportions as the Apocalypse descends on a corrupt world and one woman must find the balance between free will and a world destroyed by Devine intervention.
Oh wow I am captivated! The Four Horsemen series has such a unique, intriguing and fantastical storyline and I am officially hooked. Pestilence starts the series off with a bang. The settings and details of this post-apocalyptic world are vivid, and the story and deeper connection between Sara and Pestilence develop slowly…anything other than this slow burn wouldn’t fit! There are some very dark, hard to stomach scenes, but I think Thalassa’s writing navigated them very well. What else can I say except 5 stars for the first horseman!!
Such a addictive book and the action keeps you on the edge of your senses. The breathtaking story goes from one of the four Horseman creating havoc, death and destruction wherever he went. People tried to kill Pestilence, but he wouldn’t die. A fire department decided to draw straws to see who would stay in town and try to kill him Sara drew the match. Everyone then left town. Here comes the Horseman and Sara does her best but things are about to change. This is a exciting book and the storytelling is amongst the best!
This first book of the Four Horseman is amazing!
Laura Thalassa really knows how to write elegant love stories, with tragic, twisted beginnings and make characters who hate and loathe each other while struggling to survive in a world of chaos and continual battle, actually have to “walk in the other persons shoes” and show love may conquer all, but the world will still have it’s injustice.
This is my first book by the author, but it won’t be my last.
I wasn’t sure if this was the right book to read during a worldwide epidemic, but I was glad I did. I enjoyed the book and the relationship between Pestilence and Sara. It was dark at times, but there was also hope, love, wonder and understanding. Full of hard choices.
I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
It does not get anymore enemies to lovers than this. My gosh. And I will fully accept the irony of me reading a book about a plague during a pandemic. When I picked it up I wasn’t thinking and then honestly I almost put it down for another day, but after only two chapters I was already hooked enough and curious that I just couldn’t seem to stop reading. So I compartmentalized the real life pandemic from the fictional plague. And let me say, Thalassa knows how to write an addictive book. I couldn’t put this one down. It’s not easy to write a story like this, the love interest is very much a villain, but she somehow pulls it off. She doesn’t shy away from the bad but still also sells it. It was just really intriguing and hard to look away from. Just all in all a good and addictive read.