This was a re-read for me and I enjoyed it just as much this time and I did when I first read it. I like the new cover.

This book isn't for everyone. And please check trigger warnings.

Pestilence is the first of four horseman to arrive on earth sparking the apocalypse, and he's spreading along a Messianic Flu as he goes. The fatality rate is 100 percent. Sara Burns, a small town firefighter, attempts to kill Pestilence. She learns pretty quickly that he cannot die and let's just say Pestilence is not pleased with her. In true enemies to lovers fashion he takes her hostage and things go from bad to worse for Sara.
However, as time goes on Pestilence heart begins to soften as he witnesses Sara's compassion for others. Soon, he begins to question his very reason for being on earth.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I could not put this down. I haven’t read through an entire book in less than 24 hours in quite some time, but I absolutely could not get the characters and situations out of my head. Every time I had a spare minute, I was picking it back up.

The feelings and situations written in this book feel so real, so graphic. It truly feels like you’re in the world with them.

I will be thinking about this story for years, and cannot recommend it enough!!

Do yourself a favor and fall in love with Pestilence.

This was my first time reading a book by Laura Thalassa and I thought it was pretty great.

I laugh, cried, gasped in horror, felt outraged, helpless, but also warm and gooey; got angry, frustrated, awwed out loud… a whole myriad of emotions basically. But above it all I felt SO. FREAKING. TORN all throughout this dang book!! But I still loved every second of it and would highly recommend it.

If you'd like to read a more in depth review, you can check out my blog: Multicolored Book Reviews.

This is the first book in the captivating Four Horsemen series, and it completely exceeded my expectations. This gripping tale earned a solid five-star rating from me. The unique premise and immersive storytelling had me hooked from the start. The character development was exceptional, with Pestilence evolving from a fearsome figure to a surprisingly endearing character. The chemistry between the characters and the touch of romance was beautifully portrayed. The exploration of immortality and morality added depth to the narrative. I highly recommend this to fans of fantasy romance. Can't wait to continue with the series!

I have read the entire Horsemen series, Pestilence is definitely an excellent one. I feel out of the four this one was definitely close to third place. The storyline was different and intense, I feel the gloomy and serious theme was not dampened by the enemies to lovers trope. The strong female lead was something I enjoyed as she did not submit in the eyes of an attractively intimidating man. I would recommend this book for anyone who loves a retelling of the Four Horsemen.

When I say I loved this book….I LOVED THIS F**KING BOOK. I have always been a huge fan of Laura Thalassa and her bargainer series and I was so excited to get to read the first of her newest series with an ARC! Thank you netgalley and Laura!

Pestilence is set in a post apocalyptic North America in which God has damned humanity and sent the four horsemen to decimate everyone.

The first to condemn man is Pestilence and he spreads a horribly gruesome plague, sparing no one….until he meets Sara.

This book had me hooked from the beginning with Thalassa’s writing and I have never experienced so many emotions while reading. I cried often, laughed moderately, and holy hell did I get spicy 🥵🌶️ while instilling the fear of God in me….and I’m not even religious! Thalassa is one of my favorite writers not only because she has unique stories, characters and adventures, but because the overall themes of the books are ones we can all relate to. Pestilence is no different, a story of loss, courage, determination and love. I’m itching to read the next in this series and I will definitely be adding this to my personal collection!

For those of you who worry that there is too much religion infused into this book, don’t be. There is some preaching (that’s just the nature of the world in this book) but God/horsemen are more like supernatural deities and creatures in any fantasy book. I had no issue with it and was rather intrigued to learn more about it!

A very fun take on the four horseman of the apocalypse story. This book gives us the background. I enjoyed all of the world building. Laura’s writing is so beautiful and I love the way she can tell a story. I can’t wait to proceed with the rest of the series!

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for the arc of this book!

Oh my. The idea of this book was so intriguing and the execution of it fell flat. The characters gave me Stockholm Syndrome vibes, the situations the FMC finds herself in again and again do not really add to the story, and overall the chemistry between the two main characters is non existent. Also I have never read a character saying they "have to go to the shitter" to their captor/love interest before and I don't want to have to ever read something like that again.

I think if the story was reworked some this could be an amazing book. The concept is wonderful.

This was a fun new take on the Foure Horseman of The Apocalypse story. Laura T delivers a beautiful slow narrative that sets up an immersive world. You can tell that book 1 Pestilence is giving us a wonderful background to be ready to introduce the next 3 books and other riders. I really loved the world building and beautiful scenery Laura writes. The story was so gripping I was white knuckled gripping my kindle as I read every word. the Four Horsemen is one of my favorite stories and I absolutely loved this version.


Now for the juicy stuff. If you haven't read the book please scroll away now bc.. well ya SPOILERS...

Omg. I never thought I'd lust so hard for one of the four horsemen but holy crap on a cracker does Laura T write Pestilence as one of the most disturbingly hot asf MMC. Jawlines for days and abs so sharp you could cut a diamond on them. I loved watching the hate between our FMC and MMC grow from hate to lust to love. The way he cared for her against his better judgement and the way he tended to her made me swoon.

This book had the right amount of spice and I loved how it didn't overshadow the plot. I think that the way the relationship slow built was beautifully written. We see our FMC go from being his prisoner to being the queen at his side. And her caring for him and heart breaking for him everytime he protected her and died.

Also can we discuss the pre chapter we got of War?. I'm so excited for her next book.

From one Laura(it's me! The reviewer) to another(author), you have my undying loyalty now and I am enamored by your writing. You my dear get all my stars!

An interesting take on the four horsemen of the Apocalypse, Pestilence follows the story of the first of the horsemen to arrive on Earth. He brings plague that threatens to destroy all of humankind. Sara is the brave woman who tries to kill him. When she fails and he takes her prisoner, both of them go on a journey they did not expect. Will Sara have to sacrifice her heart to save the world?

I really enjoyed this one a lot. It is a super interesting premise, and I thought it was done really well. If you’re a fan of enemies to lovers, this is definitely for you! I am interested to see the progression with the rest of the series. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was really disappointed with this book. The initial premise was so interesting, and I was so excited to see how the romance was going to play out, but instead, I found myself literally shouting my disgust at my Kindle.

Sara, at least at a couple of points in the story, seems like a badass firefighter with her head screwed on right. Unfortunately, that is not the case as she seems to be content with forgiving Pestilence for abusing her in some of the worst ways possible just because he's attractive.

As someone who enjoys a dark romance, I have found that there's a fine line between having a love interest whom you can understand the protagonist falling for, and someone who is basically unredeemable. The mental and physical abuse Sara is put through is vile, yet somehow she still falls for Pestilence just because he shows a few moments of regret (which is a common abuse strategy).

This was not the book for me.

With Pestilence begins the urban fantasy / paranormal romance series for adults written by Laura Thalassa starring | Four Knights of the Apocalypse.

The novel is self-conclusive, but in the epilogue the protagonist Knight of the next volume is introduced, so the ideal is to read the volumes in the correct order.

I had high expectations from this book, I had heard about it very well and I must say that I was satisfied with it.

Imagine a post-apocalyptic reality, where even electricity is rare, because since the Four

Knights have arrived on Earth riding their steeds the technologies we know have stopped working. It is not known exactly where they came from, but when they started riding around the various cities everything went haywire. Just as they arrived, the Knights also left, until a few years later Plague reappeared, which now gallops from one place to another sowing a Fever that leaves no escape to anyone.

The female protagonist and first-person narrator of the novel is Sara, a young firefighter from a small Canadian town.

Designated by fate as a sacrificial victim to try to hinder the imminent arrival of Pestilenza in her area thus allowing the other inhabitants to escape, Sara tries to kill him in one of the worst possible ways, and she also succeeds, except that Pestilenza is immortal and she is one of the many human beings to have tried to eliminate a divine being who cannot be killed.

Instead of returning the gesture, Pestilenza decides to keep her alive and make her his prisoner.

And this is how Sara joins the Knight's journey, witnessing firsthand the tragic consequences of her passage city after city. Because Plague is exactly what it is, it knows no mercy.

I don't want to gild the pill, certain scenes are really sad and heartbreaking, just as it is to witness the cruelty of people towards the Knight and his 'Prisoner'.

The relationship between Pestilenza and Sara goes through various phases and conflicting emotions such as disgust, curiosity and attraction. Day after day they start taking care of each other and the prisoner becomes more of a travel companion.

The two protagonists are very well characterized and so different from each other.

He is taciturn and detached while she loves to chat and is a very compassionate person.

Plague is described to us through Sara's eyes as a beautiful angelic-looking man, but he is not a man, he is a biblical creature sent to sow the plague and kick off the Apocalypse. And consistent with his character and purpose. He is clearly disgusted by the man and his actions and knows very little about emotions, at least until Sara starts showing him some and making him feel some.

Being the first Thalassa novel to be published in Italian, I didn't know what to expect exactly, but I'm happy that his prose turned out to be so smooth, engaging, particularly focused on the emotional level and on what is right and wrong.

If you love adult fantasy with divine creatures it's a recommended read, Pestilenza I liked it and I can't wait to read the next one on Guerra!

Point of view: first person
Sensuality: hot scenes present
Features: urban fantasy, paranormal romance, biblical creatures, emotional
Narrative style: flowing, engaging
Type of ending: self-conclusive with epilogue that opens the door to the next
Rating: 4+ stars

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with this ARC!!

I jumped into this story having no idea what to expect. I usually don't vibe with stories with heavy apocalyptic themes, especially ones that lean heavily on christian or related religious theology. But this story posed some very interesting questions about humanity that made this a very compelling read beyond the romance aspect.

The FMC (who is human) is kept as a prisoner by the MMC who is essentially an angel tasked with bringing about the end of humanity due to their wickedness. But the way this story conveys these themes relies very little on strained reimaginings of scripture and the apocalyptic christian worldview that I personally grew up with (and loathed). So it wasn't nearly as uncomfortable to read as I assumed it would be. The MMC, Pestilence, ended up being a very interesting character and I found myself a little bummed out by the end that I still had a lot of questions about his nature and his mission and his reasons for making the decisions he did. In the end though, this is an enemies to lovers tale with some heavy themes (mind the trigger warnings) that ended up taking me by surprise with how much I really enjoyed it.

A few trigger warnings to consider: death, violence, fire injury, sexual content, torture, animal abuse/death, illness with vivid descriptions of something akin to the black plague

Going into this book, I was expecting a spicy apocalyptic romp. What I was not expecting was a deeply moving, riveting, humorous, loving, sad, slow-burn, all-encompassing love story for the ages. Sara Burns draws the short stick from what remains of her firefighter crew to stay behind and attempt to take out Pestilence, one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse. After finding out the hard way that he is very much immortal, she is kept as his prisoner and the only one immune to his plague while everyone else around them perishes because "suffering is for the living." But, the more time they spend together, the more humanity she brings out in him and the more she starts to wonder if perhaps he is capable of mercy for the whole human race he despises so much.
Honestly, this book was just BEAUTIFUL. It was SO well written and you can tell because you can FEEL what its like when Pestilence is feeling things for the first time. The uncertainty, the doubt, the fear, the lust, the pain. Questioning why humans are the way they are. It makes you take a look inward and outward to the world around you and pray to whatever god you so choose that the apocalypse doesn't come any time soon because we'd all be screwed. And hopefully by a horseman named Pestilence ;)
Check out this book if you're into:
*Its the end of the world as we know it
*enemies to lovers
*Snarky FMC
*Broody MMC who learns to feel the feels
*Forced Proximity
*One horse
*He falls first

Pestilence is such a unique experience for readers. The writing captivates the reader through a story that is unlike any other. Because of the nature of the book, only two characters are primarily followed, with other minor characters throughout. However, Sarah and Pestilence are such dynamic characters that it is hard to notice the lack of other relationships. The way that each minor character also impacts their relationship is beautifully written. Pestilence's naivety is also entertaining as it leads to a lot of banter between the him and Sarah.

There were parts that I felt the pain or the happiness, which demonstrates the ability of the writing. Also the ending... I absolutely had to run and start the next one immediately.

This was not for me. I love a dark romance but I don’t always like the falling for the villain trope. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book is just shocking. Shockingly amazing. Real life unites with myth? Yes please. The female hero is first looks as gullable but then gains momentum. The male hero.. is beyond words. Writing was up-to-date yet elegant. I can read ten sequels at least (please?)

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬:
4/5⭐️
1.5/5🔥

𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬, 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐖/𝐓𝐖:
MF/single FMC POV/HEA/dystopian/paranormal/enemies to lovers/slow burn/violence/death/plague/torture/gore

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰:
Book one of the Four Horsemen. Each book follows a different set of characters and can be read as a stand-alone but to get the most of the story it is suggested to read the books in order.

𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰:
The blurb does a phenomenal job of giving an over view of this book so there’s not much I can add to it with out giving anything away.

Sara was such a strong and resilient character and I loved her little quirky inner voice/dialogue. She was very entertaining. I would have loved getting Pestilence’s POV just because there was so much he was unfamiliar with and the feelings that were so new to him… I would have loved to know what he was thinking and learning.

I will say that while this was fairly fast paced plot wise, I was not expecting it to be such a slow burn, (like 80% in) and there’s not a thing wrong with that. I tend to enjoy a faster burn book, but this slow burn felt necessary. Watching their relationship change was really rewarding, for all they not only went through but what they put each other through also.

The world building and plot laid out in this book have me ready to binge the rest of this series! I look forward to seeing if this world may flourish… or if they will perish under the wrath the rest of the horsemen will bring.


𝐐𝐮𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬:

There’s got to be some rule against ogling the guy you tried to murder.

“I cannot decide if you are a toxin or a tonic,” he says, lifting a hand to my cheek. “Only that you plague my thoughts and fill my veins.” Pestilence really could work on his compliments.

“This is not lust I feel, dear Sara. And I hope you are half as frightened of it as I am.”

He’s my oxygen and I haven’t been able to breathe for months.

I read this story initially in 2019 and while I gave it a 4 stars I never reviewed it. Then I requested various books through Net Galley recently and this was one of them so picked it up again as I did enjoy it and looked like it was being re-released again. Thank you to Bloom Books and Net Galley for the opportunity to review an ARC of this book.

Pestilence who starts out the series for the author, Laura Thalassa of the Four Horsemen will grab your heart. This book is about Pestilence who came to earth with the plague that can destroy the world. He runs into Sara Burns who's a mere human and she tries to kill him. As you can read from the back cover, she can't but something about her makes Pestilence keep her. I was hooked into their story.

While I was definitely vested in how these two would turn out because there just didn't seem a fitting end for them, this book was also much deeper and made you think about humankind and decisions you'd make in an apocalyptic type society. The chapters presented new issues not only with them but with the world as they went through it. It's a slow burn that heats up at moments and I really felt connected to the circumstances of each character. I don't want to share more than this but I definitely recommend it as a romance with a deeper storyline.

I get falling for the villain trope, but this was too much Stockholm syndrome for me. Dude physically dragged and almost killed you and is killing the world and still! 👀 No, just no. This trope is just not for me, but might be for others.