I really enjoy dystopian romance, so I was really excited to start reading this book! I hadn’t read any books that utilized the Four Horsemen, so that was a unique aspect to this book for me. It was a good read!

This book was so so good. Laura Thalassa has written an enemies to lovers story that is both dark and beautiful. This is not your typical romance. I would call it dystopian or light fantasy. There’s not a ton of world building but I also feel it isn’t needed. I can see some people having a hard time with the concepts in this book but when I tell you it’s worth it. It’s so worth it. The way this book handles the very hard subjects of religion and death while still being a love story is still something I can’t wrap my head around. There is depth to these characters and I really enjoyed their witty and thought provoking conversations. When I found out this series was complete I immediately bought them all.

I love this book and I love this series. Laura Thalassa is one of my auto buy authors!

The plot: We follow Sarah, who is a firefighter, as she attempts to kill the first horseman Pestilence. She quickly finds out he is unkillable. He takes her hostage to pay her back for trying to kill him. Thus starts their journey across America so that Pestilence can spread his plague.

Things I like: This is truly an enemies to lovers story. Sarah tries to kill Pestilence the first time she sees him in a pretty painful way. Pestilence then ties her to his horse and essentially tortures her. I’ve seen some criticism towards this aspect but here’s the thing: Pestilence is quite literally a force of nature. He hasn’t had a human form before he came to earth to end it. And he’s seen nothing but the worst of humanity. Not that I don’t blame people for trying to kill him but after it happens so much that’s the only frame of reference he has for a human.

I love Sarah. She is an empathetic strong FMC and it’s heart breaking to see her trying to help or at least comfort the plague ridden people they come in contact with.

I won’t get too detailed since it goes into spoiler territory but the overall theme of this series is the question of if humanity is worth saving.

I’m also a huge fan of post-apocalyptic stories and when you add in the spice? Amazing.

I will always recommend this series. It got me out a very long reading rut.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

I keep loving this author more and more! Love the action, adventure, and it was absolutely thrilling to read.

This the first book of The Four Horsemen series. This is the first time reading this author's work. Let me say BRAVO. This story is epic. It has everything, action, enemies to lovers, heroine teaching the villainous main character about humanity and love. I couldn't put the book down. I promptly read the other books in the series. I truly enjoyed the take on the four horsemen of the apocalypse. I highly recommend this book and this series.

I always love a good Four Horsemen retelling. PESTILENCE is the first book in Laura Thalassa's The Four Horsemen series and tells the story of Pestilence...obviously.

The Four Horsemen have come to Earth and there is major death and destruction. Every person Pestilence encounters is infected with disease...awful disease and they DIE. Until Sara attempts to kill Pestilence, when she fails, he takes her captive and continues his route of death and destruction. But somewhere along the way, Sara proves to Pestilence that not all humanity is bad...and there's somehow a happy ending for Pestilence and Sara! No spoilers!

There's lots of gore and repetition...and a handful of trigger warnings for some people. Also, not as smutty as I was lead to believe. I still enjoyed it... A guilty pleasure for sure.

This book was absolutely fantastic! It's been on my list ever since I read the Bargainer series and it did not disappoint. It had just the right amount of action, drama, and spice, and I can not wait to read the rest of the series!

I have been a fan of Laura Thalassa's books for years now, and this was a reread for me.
"Pestilence" has such a messed up story and I absolutely love it.
It keeps amazing me that Thalassa manages to write heroes - in this case Pestilence - who are completely despicable, but in the end I as a reader always root for them.
So yeah, this is a great book and I highly recommend it to every fantasy romance fan.

This new cover for Pestilence, the first installment of the Four Horsemen series by Laura Thalassa is giving me everything I need in life- and more. Pestilence is undoubtedly my favorite of the Four Horsemen, and Laura Thalassa's writing never ceases to amaze me. Her characters and world building is out of this (dare I say it... world). She has created incredibly flawed characters, that you cant help but love. I highly recommend Pestilence to anyone who loves fantasy romance, a bit of spice, and tough Hero's who are secretly a cinnamon roll on the inside!

I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this book.

It was okay. Average, I'd say. The plot is nearly non-existent and relies heavily on the romance and its main characters, because besides Sara and Pestilence, there are no secondary characters to the story.

I liked Pestilence enough and also found his character growth to be one of the best aspects of the book. Sara was also a likable enough character. The book had some moments I enjoyed (mainly the beginning, the dynamics and bickering between Sara and Pestilence was great) but unfortunately, that fizzled out rather quick.

This was a reread for me.

After completing the series last year, this reread hit a little different. It’s still just as heart wrenching to read. I mean, humans messed up bad and the horsemen have now come.

It hurt so much to watch Pestilence and Sara again fight each other. 😭
Just remember that he is NOT human, he is disease in a human form. Therefore, human emotions are new to him.

I have to admit that I would probably have tried to kill him if I ran across him. Never mind, who do I kid, I would be one of the first to die in an apocalyptic environment 😂

I love this series. But check trigger warnings if you are sensitive to things.

Pestilence by Laura Thalassa is a captivating, heart-wrenching story that reimagines the four horsemen of the apocalypse in a thrilling and darkly romantic way. The first of the horsemen, Pestilence, comes to Earth with the power to destroy all of humanity, and when he arrives in Sara's town, she is determined to stop him. But she quickly learns that Pestilence can't be killed, and he takes her captive in retribution for impeding his mission.

What follows is a gripping tale of survival, sacrifice, and unexpected love. As Sara travels with Pestilence and his plague, she begins to see a different side of him and comes to understand the complexity of his mission. Thalassa does an incredible job of developing the characters and their relationship, making it believable and deeply moving. Sara's bravery and compassion are admirable, and Pestilence's internal conflict between his duty and his growing affection for her is heart-wrenching.

Thalassa's writing is stunning, creating a vivid and darkly beautiful world that draws the reader in and doesn't let go. The tension and stakes are high throughout the book, making it difficult to put down. The concept of the horsemen of the apocalypse as romantic heroes is unique and intriguing, and Thalassa executes it with skill and nuance.

Overall, Pestilence is a must-read for fans of dark romance, apocalyptic fiction, and imaginative world-building. It's a book that will stay with you long after you've turned the final page.

I saw someone named Chan say "take me away, plague daddy" and instantly cackled. That is exactly what I would say if I were Sara. I'm one of those gals who is going to dive headfirst into the pool of red flags and morally grey. What's the worst that could happen?! haha! Prime candidate for Stockholm Syndrome.. Especially when its with a handsome, immortal, plague daddy.

I can see this being too dark for those with an intact moral compass, but if you are a little dark and realized that it's just a book, like me, you'll be fascinated and riveted by this story. Thalassa is amazing at composing dystopia/fantasy, new adult fiction novels. I was glued to this book and completed it in one sitting! I can't wait to consume the rest of the series. I can only hope that if we end up in an apocalyptical time, I can find a Pestilence. 😍

Thank you NetGalley, Laura Thalassa and SourceBooks Bloom Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.


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WOW. i liked this a lot. i love the world ending aspect. Definitely enemies to lovers vibes with mortality being a huge theme. I think a lot of people who like smut and romance with fantasy would love to read this book. i am looking forward to the sequel! I love this new cover the other ones are so outdated and unmaterialistic.

This was a fun, unique story - a woman falls for a horseman of the apocalypse - who she tried to kill to stop the end of the world. They're natural enemies, and yet they had oddly excellent chemistry. This was also my favorite of the series.

LOVE THE CONCEPT!! Sexy, heartbreaking, and riveting! New author for me and was happily surprised with how much I liked this genre! Would recommend!

Pestilence is the first horseman to wake up and is determined to destroy the human race by spreading a plague. Sara knows that Pestilence is heading to her town and stays behind to stop him so he can't kill anymore. However, Sara soon learns that Pestilence can't be killed. Pestilence takes Sara prisoner and promises to make her suffer as he continues spreading his plague. Even as Sara is shown the evils of humanity, she's still determine to show Pestilence all that's great.

I really enjoyed this book and the introduction to the post-apocalyptic world. Pestilence was easy to hate in the beginning but as the book progressed you start to see that he has never been shown the good side of humanity. He was always treated with hate (granted he is Pestilence) so he thought people were terrible creatures that were destroying the Earth. Once he meets Sara and sees how she cares for the victims even though she knows they're going to die, he starts to realize that maybe there's some good out there. Maybe not all humans are bad.

I loved Sara and how she worked to humanize him. We see that Pestilence doesn't necessarily enjoy what he does, it's just a task he was assigned. I cried for Sara and what she went through but I loved watching Pestilence evolve. I really enjoyed this book and it's definitely one of my favorites.

If you enjoy
-post-apocalyptic
-forced proximity
-enemies to lovers
-one horse
I highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Bloom Books for the ARC!

Good story. Loved these characters. Set a whole new world for the one we live. Wouldn't call it much of a romance but i really enjoyed it.

I received an adance readers copy and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you to NetGalley for the free copy.

Laura knows how to make disease and death in a post covid world sexy!
I absolutely LOVED Pestilence. The characters were interesting, the love story was at times sweet and also sizzling. I loved getting to know them better and enjoyed seeing them come together.
However, this story is not for the faint of heart. It is DARK! And Violent.
Overall, this storyline is unique and tries to highlight how humans can show their worst or best in the face of death and destruction. On to the next book!

3⭑
„because naming things humanizes them. and once you humanize something, you are essentially recognizing it‘s existence.“

this was the first laura thalassa book i read. it was so fun and easy to read. some of sara‘s action’s were really relatable which made me like her so much. the building of their relationship was amazing written & pestilence character development was so great to follow through out the book.