Pub Date: November 2012
Publisher: Grand Central
Length: 424 pages
FTC: Purchased myself
This month's TBR Challenge theme is holiday stories. And since my definition of holiday novels is as quirky as my definition of holiday movies, I picked the last book in Larissa Ione's Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse series. Because nothing says Merry Christmas like some demons and some bad-ass immortals.
This is a series I've read most of, but it's been awhile. I had this one in the digital TBR and somehow managed to read it in time for the challenge. Woohoo! (I'm late posting, but what else is new? Stupid holiday obligations and all).
Unlike the first few Demonica books, which did NOT work for me, this series has been a winner so far. They have such a strong voice, lots of attitude, and everything works together well. My favorite part, though, is the very beginning. Mainly because the heroine discovers an unconscious, naked, frozen man in her woods and promptly christens him Fish Stick. What's not to love about that?
This book, like the rest of the series, requires a serious suspension of disbelief. Beyond the presence of demons and the fact that the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are mainstays, much of the real life action defies common sense. But as long as you know that going in, this is a fun story with some genuine emotion.
Fish Stick, it seems, has lost his memory. He remembers his name, but not much else. Although it may feel contrived for some, Reseph's amnesia provides a blank slate for him. And given the atrocities he committed while under the control of Pestilence in the last book, that's very much needed. In tune with the vague Christmasy spirit of the story, the book explores the nature of forgiveness and sacrifice on many different levels.
But this is also the story of Jillian, a woman who has experienced great loss in her personal life and is struggling to cope with that along with her own, very recent trauma at the hands of demons. And, since it IS a Larissa Ione book, lots and lots of lust as soon as Reseph/Fish Stick shows up.
This is definitely not the type of book you pick up without having read the others in the series, but I think it's my favorite one so far. There are some spoilery developments I won't go into, but they lead directly into Ione's newest release. Overall, a solid paranormal romance with just the hint of Christmas.
[My one grumble is that this is one of those books which end at 80%. The last 20% is previews of other books. But that blame goes to the publisher.]
My Grade: A-
The Blurb:
Jillian Cardiff came to this remote mountain town to forget the demon attack that almost killed her. Instead, she rescues-and falls for-a gorgeous stranger who has no memory of anything other than his name. Handsome, charming, and protective, Reseph seems like the kind of man whom Jillian can trust. But with hints of a troubling history of his own, he's also the kind of man who can be very dangerous . . .
Reseph may not know why he mysteriously appeared in Jillian's life, but he knows he wants to stay. Yet when Jillian's neighbors are killed, and demon hunters arrive on the scene, Reseph fears that he's putting Jillian in danger. And once it's revealed that Reseph is also Pestilence, the Horseman responsible for ravaging the world, he and Jillian must face the greatest challenge of all: Can they forget the horrors of a chilling past to save the future they both desire?
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