Pestilence by Laura Thalassa Also in this series: War, Famine, Death
Series: The Four Horsemen #1
Published by Laura Thalassa on March 20, 2018
Genres: Fantasy Romance
Narrator: Susannah Jones
Length: 11 Hours and 22 Mins
Pages: 383
Format: Audiobook
Source: Self Purchased
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 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.
*May Contain Spoilers*
Pestilence is the first book in a new series by Laura Thalassa “The Four Horseman” which features a series surrounding the legend and myths of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. I will be honest, that what drew me to this book was the cover because dang isn’t it gorgeous??!! I just love just about everything about it. (But for those that don’t know, there will be a new cover soon –so sad–but the cover artist used a copy righted image but her latest update is that her new cover artist is one that has done some of Armentrout’s book and many others so *crossing fingers* its just as gorgeous) And then I saw a raving review at Beware of the Reader and her review convinced me that I needed this book in my life. So I grabbed it in audio. I first wanted to mention this wonderful narration. The narrator is Susannah Jones and I hadn’t listened to her before. She did a fantastic job in working this story so well and adding the right level of emotion when it was needed. She, did a superb job in making this story come alive for the listener, so if you love audiobooks…I highly recommend grabbing this one in audio if you can. 🙂
Pestilence is a book that might not work for everyone considering this is a book on the Apocalypse and our beloved hero is Pestilence, the first horseman. So if you aren’t a fan of anti-heroes I am not sure that this book would work for you. However, if you adore Anti Heroes, enemies, to lovers trope, a slow burn romance and a apocalypse-mythological fantasy type setting, grab it because I promise you will love it just as much as I did.
Pestilence begins when the four horsemen of the Apocalypse arrive, where every battery and electrical and digital device goes down, their own version of an EMP. But then they disappear for five long years, while the human race is holding their breaths wondering what the future will hold for them. But now the first horseman “Pestilence” has been riding through Canada, spreading the plague, and every town or city he rides in, the plague spreads to everyone and no one is safe. Our heroine, Sara is a firefighter and she is one of the last few to help get their town evacuated to a northern settlement. But the last four firefighters draw straws on the one who will stay behind, and attempt to kill Pestilence but it doesn’t work and he comes to her and captures her wanting her to “suffer” not only for trying to kill him but also for not granting him mercy when he asked for it.
Getting angry at one of the horsemen of the apocalypse for bringing about the end of man is like getting angry at ice for being cold
At first, she thinks she will be dying soon, but she doesn’t get sick like everyone else does. She is forced to travel with Pestilence wherever he goes, from town to town and she tries to give aid to those that are sick whenever she can. But the more time they spend together, a connection between Pestilence and Sara starts to develop. Pestilence, is an avenger on an errand from God, to deliver his errand. He only has one purpose, he doesn’t understand human emotions or compassion. But Pestilence is capable of these emotions, and slowly Pestilence begins to understand human a bit more. He begins to understand what it means to grieve, to have loss, to enjoy the simple things in life such as a good meal or a passionate kiss. We see Pestilence struggle with his “duty” on an emotional level, and with each chapter, the bond between Pestilence and Sara deepens.
The kiss has only barely begun when it goes from sweet to wild and desperate. He’s my oxygen and I haven’t been able to breathe for months
Sara doesn’t want to be attracted to Pestilence or start to have feelings for him. Because he is her enemy, and she feels like she is betraying the human race just by having these feelings for him. Their relationship takes a new turn when they come across a home with an elderly couple, that instead of being violent towards Pestilence, they welcome him with open arms. They understand his mission, and that the human race has a chance to redeem themselves if they choose to do so. And Sara begins to realize that she can help Pestilence understand that the human race is redeemable and can be saved. But will her love for Pestilence be enough to save those she loves?
GAH!! I LOVED this book so much, there is so much goodness in here and I couldn’t put it down. I adored everything about it, and it worked my emotions so badly. This is NOT an easy romance, especially in the beginning. As this is a enemy to lovers trope, there is some angst obviously and at first, our hero has no feeling or emotions. Pestilence is definitely an Anti Hero, but so much character growth he goes through. We see how emotions begin to slowly build in him, and we see how he hates what he has to do, but in his mind….its needed and necessary. But once he captures Sara and begins to be drawn to her and understand her more, seeing her compassion and the way she grieves over the losses of the plague, he slowly becomes more aware of what it means to love and that there is goodness in the human race.
When you find someone worth spending that time with, you don’t want to share those minutes with anyone else
The bantering between them though is hilarious, I just love the way they go back and forth. Sara loves to talk and think about things and Pestilence prefers his solitude and so seeing such opposite personalities brings about some fun interactions because they are so different from each other and the way they talk with each other is delightful and guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.
“What’s God like?” I ask. “That is not a subject I can discuss with mortals.” Of course it isn’t. “Well, then can you at least tell me what it’s like?” I ask. “What what’s like?” Pestilence’s grip has moved so that he’s now cupping my arm, his thumb rubbing circles into my flesh. “I don’t know—death. The Great Beyond.” I hold out my hand to catch a flake of snow “It would be easier to explain sight to the blind,” Pestilence says. “It can’t be understood by description alone; it must be experienced.” What is the use of having a horseman around if he won’t answer any of the fun questions?”
Seeing Sara and Pestilence fall in love is painful at times, and each of them tortures themselves over it. Because they are enemies, and they believe they are betraying themselves and their beliefs by having feelings for each other. We see them come to the point where they give into what they are feeling and admit that they love each other and seeing them fight for each other. The hero though he really surprised me in the end though, he makes such a change where he has to make a decision over his mission or the woman he loves and their sweet ending…..*sigh* just about made me cry.
Love is the greatest gift we can give or receive
This is definitely not a romance for the faint of heart, there is so much character development and seeing them fight for each other and learning what loving someone is truly about. And then the worldbuilding for the Apocalypse is AMAZING, so intense at times and I loved the way that this author wrote this book because it really opens the series just right and I can’t wait for WAR….wish it was out like NOW!! hehe
Overall I found Pestilence to be a heart engaging, thrill you to your toes exciting, so romantic and emotionally engaging it tugs at the heartstrings and delivers an outstanding story that you can squee in excitement over….A DELICIOUS LOVE TALE!!!
About Laura Thalassa
Found in the forest when she was young, Laura Thalassa was raised by fairies, kidnapped by werewolves, and given over to vampires as repayment for a hundred year debt. She’s been brought back to life twice, and, with a single kiss, she woke her true love from eternal sleep. She now lives happily ever after with her undead prince in a castle in the woods.
… or something like that anyway.
When not writing, Laura can be found scarfing down guacamole, hoarding chocolate for the apocalypse, or curled up on the couch with a good book.
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