Listen free for 30 days

  • Pestilence

  • The Four Horsemen, Book 1
  • Written by: Laura Thalassa
  • Narrated by: Susannah Jones
  • Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (144 ratings)

1 credit a month, good for any title to download and keep.
The Plus Catalogue—listen all you want to thousands of Audible Originals, podcasts, and audiobooks.
$14.95 a month plus applicable taxes after 30 day trial. Cancel anytime.
Pestilence cover art

Pestilence

Written by: Laura Thalassa
Narrated by: Susannah Jones
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $31.27

Buy Now for $31.27

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

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.

©Laura Thalassa Laura Thalassa (P)2018 Laura Thalassa

What listeners say about Pestilence

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    85
  • 4 Stars
    35
  • 3 Stars
    12
  • 2 Stars
    6
  • 1 Stars
    6
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    100
  • 4 Stars
    19
  • 3 Stars
    6
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    76
  • 4 Stars
    29
  • 3 Stars
    14
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    7

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Pronunciation is key

I really enjoyed the story but what I really struggled with was the narrator saying Pestulence instead of Pestilence. It may seem like a tiny issue but when it's said several times a chapter, it begins to drive one crazy.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

don't even bother

terrible writing, only half bad narrator, seriously childish pre teen writing for an "adult" lacks passion and honestly just made me cringe.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding story and performance

What an incredible world Laura Thalassa has created. I don’t really know what to call it. Is apocalyptic romance a thing? In any case, this incredible story is crafted around Pestilence, one of the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and Sara Burns, a firefighter, who pulls the short straw, (burnt match) and is the chosen one from her town to try and kill him. Normally I would write something like ‘I devoured this book’, but in truth, I think this story devoured me. I was absolutely held captive, much life FMC Sara, by the post-apocalyptic world that Thalassa creates, the insurmountable choices Sara must make, and the character of Pestilence, himself, whose depths were seemingly boundless.

I believed the world she describes in this book. She does an incredible job bringing this world to life, and placing both Sara and the reader within it. And I immediately loved Sara: her prose-loving, compassionate and incredibly conflicted self. Sara is the the perfect mix of fierce, good and vulnerable as she tries to reconcile Pestilence the being with Pestilence and his deeds. And what a presence he is as well. He is both old as time and as naive as a child. The scene where she teaches him to eat spaghetti was especially tender, and of course, the scenes where he learns other things…well those were unforgettable too. But he brings a whole new conversation to morally grey, and this, too, is deftly and expertly rendered in this story.

The first book in the series, Pestilence is heartfelt, captivating, exciting, funny, incredibly hot and absolutely worth it. I’m looking forward to the next book in this series. If you are audio-inclined, this story is read by Susannah Jones, who does an amazing job capturing both Sara and Pestilence. Both Thalassa’s words and Jones’ performance will stick with me for a while.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

5 Stars

The character development was amazing. The tension was extremely well written. The entire concept was mind blowing. Excellent slow burn romance and excellent performance.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Very good story.

Not really a erotic romance but it has its spicy moments. It drags some but it’s all about the apocalyptic world building. It woks though, I was sucked right in and saw the whole image. Good series, I just wish the male character had a male narrator.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

was a good listen

I enjoyed this book. I truly did.... it went by so quickly, I hope the other series does this book some justice

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great Story

I finished this 59 chapter listen in less than 24 hours. I couldn't put it down. This one was quite different than many of the others in this category that I've enjoyed.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Couldn’t stop

A unique story with a main character I liked. Sara is funny and raw and real.
The reader pronounced a few words incorrectly which was a bit distracting, but overall her performance was good.
Will be purchasing the rest of the books

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wow

I really liked this book. I could not stop until the story was done.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

way better than expected!

i was surprised of how much i enjoyed this i even teared up in certain scenes. A great mix of romance, passion, and conflicting debates abour humanity. loved it!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for KT
  • KT
  • 2018-05-30

what is this?.

so, this was a struggle for me. so much so that I ended up returning it by chapter 6.
the plot is just 100% unbelievable and the heroine was.. something else
first, we start out with 4 people drawing lots to determine who will stay behind and kill Pestilence. our heroine loses. and then we learn from her, she's a terrible shot. what? and she killed a pheasant once and it haunted her. why was she even in the running? honestly! if we're planning to sacrifice someone (which they were) why are we considering someone who will most likely fail in the mission
but, of course, she doesn't. she somehow hits him but it's not enough to kill this guy! so she heads back to her camp, grabs lighter fluid and matches, comes back, has a freak out, douses him, throws up, freaks out more, and finally gets him burning and then just sits there to watch. thankfully, this immortal was cool to just wait there for all this happen.
next, he finds her, binds her hands and makes her run behind his horse. and she does. for miles. thank God she's a well trained marathon runner! oh wait, she's not.
besides the plot infuriating me with just how unbelievable it is, the dialogue was grating and unnatural.
also, she's checking this guy out pretty much off the bat. I think it would have been better if she slowly realized he was good looking, like after he starts being nice or something? I'm not sure if that happens because I returned it but I'm just trying to consider what would really happen if I was captured by a bringer of the apocalypse
anyway, I guess if you're in the mood for this type of thing, with what I feel is a super Mary Jane heroine, go for it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

127 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for irishred507
  • irishred507
  • 2018-07-27

Unbearably bad

She doused him in gasoline and burned him alive. He dragged her body from a rope tied to his horse. This is how they fell in love. Awww💩🤮

Oh, and speaking of barf, Sara literally pukes her guts out and 5 seconds later is the glorious moment the author decides to give her and Pestilence their first kiss. 🤮 Mmm, yummy! And that level of disgust right there sums up how I feel about this entire book.

382 pages of Sara’s unbearable inner dialogue stuck on repeat. “I hate him, he is an evil murderer, but god is he beautiful. What is wrong with me? He is such a despicable evil creature and I hate him so much but I think I’ll just have sex with him anyway for fun and oh my gosh we’re in love!!! But I still hate him. Sometimes we are riding the horse, and sometimes people try to kill us but we kill them, and sometimes people are nice to us even though they are dying because of us and I feel sooooo bad I can’t shut up about it for the entire book. And all the while he is such an evil merciless inhuman creature! But god is he gorgeous- those lips!- so I’ll overlook his evil because we’re in love because, well I don’t know why, we’re just suddenly so in love that nothing else matters. Not my life or anyone else’s. Just our undying love that is built on... well I have no idea what our love is built on since we were originally trying to kill each other and then spent the rest of our time getting to know each other by trying to punish each other and continuously arguing like immature brats and then being all broody forever. But we’re so in love!!!! Never mind all these rotting corpses surrounding us because he just murdered them all for refusing to save my life, just kiss me and tell me again that you love me!!!

But wait, while I was in bed recovering he went and killed millions of people! How could he do this, he loves me! Even though he has killed everyone everywhere he’s ever been I’m suddenly shocked he continues to kill all these people!!! He must not love me! He makes me sick so I’m leaving. Wait, what? He came back for me? I’m shocked! He does love me! And now, yay! We’re getting married! Everyone will be so happy for us!”

...oh wait. How is that going to work out since the whole world knows his face and wants to kill him? I guess we’ll never know, but at least there was time for one last pornographic scene right at the very end to tie up the story.

So you can take all of that plus chapter after chapter of Sara mulling over and over her very misplaced guilt, and you got it... I just saved you from having to read the book because that was pretty much it.

Oh yeah, and she’s supposedly a firefighter! Not a chance in hell such a foolish, whiny girl could ever be the badass that is a female firefighter and first responder. Nope. It’s not even trying to be believable!

It’s been a long time since I’ve had such a low opinion of a book. I think a high schooler could have written a more interesting book with far more creativity and depth.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

80 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Ray
  • Ray
  • 2018-06-28

Sorry but this was an awful storyline.

I loved the writing style, but this main guy is unredeemable. A kidnapped woman who started out being a hero is fine joking around with and becoming attracted to a beautiful man who has tortured her and kills children slowly with disease in front of her.. sorry that's a little too far.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

40 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for NekodeGomen
  • NekodeGomen
  • 2018-06-27

Stockholm Syndrome

This books is what Stockholm Syndrome looks like, "Do what I say or you be severely punished". There's a point where she has the chance to run from him but is terrified that once he recovers he's just going to find her and punish her even worse than he already has, but convinces herself it's out of concern for his immortal recovery. I honestly don't understand how it has such high ratings. The plot was interesting and I thought it would be more of a 'Beauty and the Beast' theme, but it was so horrible with its plot holes, lack of character development aside from sexual attraction, and dialogue was so forced. If it weren't for the narrator, who helps jazz it up, I would have dumped this book sooner.

Supremely disappointed.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

34 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for GMa
  • GMa
  • 2018-06-02

Brilliant concept ruined...

Was so excited to see how this unique concept played out in the story but it did not impress me. The female main character was so emotionally frivolous in opposition to the serious subject matter that I wanted the male main character to know he could do better.

The telling could have been so much richer but we kept returning to flippant and immature inner dialogue of the female character. They were facing end of world circumstances for heaven's sake! We never got any details about the main character's mission. He was there, he was doing his thing, and that was that.

I gave it 2 stars for concept and narration which were both very good but not enough.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

29 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Kindle Customer
  • Kindle Customer
  • 2018-06-19

Narrator Pronounces It “Pestulins”

The narrator kept pronouncing “Pestilence” as “Pestulins.” Like a combination of “pustule” and “pestilence.” I know that sounds really nit picky of me, but the word comes up 845 times in the book (I looked it up on Kindle), so it really grated on my nerves.

The story itself was unsettling. Pestilence really does seem cruel, but then for no apparent reason he changes. I didn’t see him reach any moment of epiphany, he just stops killing. There didn’t seem to be much character development.

I’ve really enjoyed Laura Thalassa’s books in the past, but I won’t bother any more with this series.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

26 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Lydia
  • Lydia
  • 2018-06-24

Ridiculously good!

I am utterly in love with this book, and the excellent job done reading it. I honestly don't know who did the better job. Get it. Listen to it. It's so worth it. It was funny, it was tragic, it had an amazing ending. I'm so happy I subscribed to the romance package or I may never have found this!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

17 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Jennifer
  • Jennifer
  • 2018-06-04

If you like cheesy sexy and constant reminders..

of his body. This book is for you..for the rest of us that was looking for a plot...move along. end of world? no problem...he has sexy body....all good. meh.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Clayton & Michelle
  • Clayton & Michelle
  • 2018-06-04

one of my favorites....

This was an incredible story and I'm so looking forward to book. Thrilling, romantic, exciting are the words that describes Sarah's journey.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Nila L
  • Nila L
  • 2018-05-15

AMAZING AS ALWAYS!💖💖💖

I have been in love with Laura's work for ages and was over the moon when I heard what the new series was going to be about since it's one of my favorite themes. I'm so happy with the way Jones portrays the characters and how her melody adds to the story. I read it first a few months back but she adds a different time than I had in my head but it works perfectly.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

9 people found this helpful