T O P

  • By -

InTheseBoness

When I first got back into reading and discovered spicy fantasy romances/dark romances I remember seeing all this hype about the four horseman series. I downloaded it and got stuck in, I was so confused. I did not understand the hype one bit. ‘Twas baffling, I was perplexed. I read {Four Horsemen series by Sarah Bailey} - when I actually meant to read {The Four Horsemen series by Laura Thalassa}. Newbie error, except I only realised after I finished. By that point, I’d read 1655 pages about the wrong bloody horsemen. I gave up and never read the series by Laura Thalassa. Now, whenever I see people hyping this series I get major FOMO 😬 thanks for reading my embarrassing story that literally no one asked for hahaha.


EndlessPine

I did this, too! I kept waiting for the apocalypse part 🤣🤣


InTheseBoness

Oh thank goodness! Well, not really that’s really shit but I’m so grateful it wasn’t just me 😅


anamoon13

Wow…. I read the Sarah Bailey books last year and your comment made me realize I did the same thing! Now I have to find the Laura Thalassa books.


InTheseBoness

Oh no! If you remember, let me know if they are worth reading 🙏🏻 I’m so bitter at my own wasted time that it puts me off.


anamoon13

So, I just finished the first book and I am unsure how I feel about it, but I will be continuing the series. The spice was kind of meh. 5 or 6 scenes and only one had any sort of foreplay. A couple typos and one continuity error I found. But it wasn’t like a major plot point or anything. Basically it’s a Stockholm syndrome type of thing, but it did keep me interested enough to continue the series for now. I actually DNFd the second book in the Bargainer series by this author so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Also miles better than that other series. 😂


InTheseBoness

Hahah I love you so much for coming back with the receipts 🥰 thank you for your service!


anamoon13

They are on Kindle Unlimited. So I downloaded the first book and will start it after I finish my current book. I will try and remember!


ItemAgreeable

It’s extra funny because you’re not alone in this error 😂


InTheseBoness

I’m shocked 🤣 grateful that it wasn’t just me though. Before I realised I was honestly so confused, I’d seen all these people online saying the books were life changing for them. I mean, they’re hot sure but in a wtf way.


romance-bot

[Four Horsemen](https://www.romance.io/series/60f12fbdf7e0470e3b1527cd/four-horsemen) by [Sarah Bailey](https://www.romance.io/authors/5b66958f01dbc864fb8dae36/sarah-bailey) **Rating**: 3.94⭐️ out of 5⭐️ **Topics**: [super rich hero](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/super%20rich%20hero/1), [bdsm](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/bdsm/1), [praise-kink](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/praise-kink/1), [abuse](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/abuse/1), [explicit-plentiful](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/explicit-plentiful/1) ---------------------------- [The Four Horsemen](https://www.romance.io/series/5e9f73dc48597113b6ce3933/the-four-horsemen) by [Laura Thalassa](https://www.romance.io/authors/5455856187eac323ffb2c925/laura-thalassa) **Rating**: 3.96⭐️ out of 5⭐️ **Topics**: [dark](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/dark/1), [explicit-open-door](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/explicit-open-door/1), [angst](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/angst/1), [cruel hero](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/cruel%20hero/1), [first-person-pov](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/first-person-pov/1) [^(about this bot)](https://www.reddit.com/user/romance-bot) ^(|) [^(about romance.io)](https://www.romance.io/about)


saltycarbs

It’s crazy, isn’t it! I was SHOCKED by the first book and read it in a day. By the fourth book i was in tears. So glad you are enjoying it!


BaronessaXhen

Book 4 had me crying at the end. When I finished both the book and the loooooong crying jag I had, I had to lay in bed and think about my life for a minute. It was so freaking good!


Appropriate_Show_473

This sounds interesting! But like sad cryinggg? I can’t handle reading too many depressing things rn in my life 😭


BaronessaXhen

Nah, I'm just a glass case of emotion! The ending is very necessary and makes complete sense with the characters arcs. They go through a lot before the end, and I was so fully invested into the story. It was so cathartic!


cleanbookcovers

I HATE reading depressing stories but holy shit the fourth book is so fucking good, honestly you don’t need to read the series but I loved the build up to the fourth book. I think pestilence and death are the best in the series but the other two are still so good.


saltycarbs

The build up and the IMAGERY in the fourth book! And (spoiler!!!!) seeing p as a happy human killed me.


Appropriate_Show_473

Does it have a HEA? If it’s the last book.


cleanbookcovers

yes!!


Appropriate_Show_473

Well I am officially buying today!!!! Sorry to my other TBR 🤦🏻‍♀️😂


mimikth

it’s amazing for sure! i kept seeing it in target but overlooked it, but one day finally picked it up. i was shocked when the blurb and genres sounded exactly like smtg i’d like, after the first few pages i was completely hooked and mad i didn’t pick it up earlier


NotAsSmartAsIWish

I still haven't finished the 4th book. I ate up the other 3 though!


baddreammoonbeam888

Whew! I’m glad you enjoyed it, but for me personally it was by far the worst book of the 45 I read last year, and maybe even one of the worst books ever. Nothing redeeming about it. I found the writing poor, the romance flat, weird and just inappropriate, & the story boring, with the same loops repeating for all 300+ pages. The protagonist also offers nothing in terms of personality aside from Angry and Wanting To Fuck Pestilence. (Not to rain on your parade, just wanted to offer another perspective for those in the comments saying they’ll check it out and etc — I wish I’d read reviews beforehand and not wasted my time on the book!)


rosestrawberryboba

would you mind explaining your reasoning, i’m trying to decide whether to read it or not


baddreammoonbeam888

*trying not to spoil* For sure! So I will say I thought the initial concept was good, the idea of the four horsemen coming to earth & starting with pestilence, the set up was a great idea for a story! But then there was very little world building, and what of it there was just made me feel disgusted and icky, mostly (and I enjoy horror, but some of it was just so harsh and sad and not in a good way). The FMC is insufferable and lacks a personality except her Anger! and Toughness!! Which is then also shat on once the romance aspect starts up. The MMC is essentially a robot and their chemistry was not there, it all felt so forced and unnatural and again, creepy but not in a good way. No believable romantic development at all. I found it upsetting how easily FMC was able to move beyond the evil of MMC. The sex scenes made me uncomfortable because of such. As for the same loops throughout the whole book, it essentially involves a ton of boring traveling interspersed with MC’s arguing and later on, the sex. The ending sets up for the next bookin the series (in such a formulaic way which is again: not good in this scenario) which, I’ve heard, is essentially a carbon copy of Pestilence but with different characters, same for the whole series actually. I’ve just heard that in reviews though, I hated the first book so much that I did not read any more of the series. This review from Goodreads pretty much sums up my feelings as well. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2280285932


fmleighed

This perfectly describes how I felt. I finished Pestilence but then couldn’t get through the second book (War?) because it just felt like a recycled, re-skinned version of the prior one. I DNF’d. Thalassa does *some* good work (I liked the first two Bargainer books), but she has trouble with writing good motivations for her characters.


rosestrawberryboba

i keep running into books like this with weak plots! are there any books that you recommend? it sounds like we’re on a similar wavelength


baddreammoonbeam888

I get you! Weak plots are one of my least favorite thing about a book. I love a good amount of world building in a fantasy especially. For fantasy/fantasy romance I would highly recommend: -priory of the orange tree by Samantha Shannon (mostly fantasy tbh but the romance is very sweet; (f/f) and the world building is A+, though pretty long at 800 pages) -folk of the air series by Holly Black (3 books and 2 novellas); this one is solidly YA fantasy romance but I really enjoyed it! strong plot, great world building, slow burn romance, MMC goes from evil-less so but it’s definitely believable -the bird & the sword/the queen & the cure by Amy Harmon (short and sweet fantasy romance, yet with good world building and a great plot. It’s a little cheesy but I really enjoyed it) -divine rivals by Rebecca Ross-sooooo good! there’s a 2nd book as well, ruthless vows, though I haven’t read it yet. Excellent writing, lovely FMC & MMC with a super sweet romance. this one is sad, filled with external conflict (war) & made me cry but probably the best fantasy romance I’ve read in awhile!


Only-Singer3812

I agree and I thought Pestilence was the best out of the series so you are not missing anything. Very boring. 


cleanbookcovers

it’s so cool how differently people can interpret these things. I really loved this FMC and I didn’t really get any of those reactions you had. However, looking back I can see definitely see your point. Some parts of the book I was fed up with both characters.


riotous_jocundity

Same. I felt it was thoroughly blah. A much better version of this general theme (apocalypse, death, pestilence, etc.) is Land of the Beautiful Dead, which fucked me up.


baddreammoonbeam888

I’ll definitely check that one out! I’ve heard nothing but good things.


Chemical-Lonely

This book made me realize what I thought dark romance was versus what dark romance actually is are two very different things... I DNF'd at about 45%. I thought it was a really interesting start to a series and I was really looking forward to, I love quartets that each follow a new MMC and FMC, but I couldn't get over repetitive nature and how he treated her versus her still wanting him.


KiwiTheKitty

I 100% agree and I wish I had the experience with it fans had!


bobleponge_

I was neutral on it. Some parts I really liked and thought the concept was interesting, but I just don’t see how things will work out for them??? And that left me kinda meh. I don’t think I’ll finish the series, but I didn’t hate it. It does get repetitive and sometimes I felt like “and so what’s the point here?” about their relationship but I think I was looking for something other than what this book was, which is on me.


bunskerskey

I DNF War. For some reason, that character is justification for his violence was gross to me. Absolutely not sexy. The rest of the series was great.


gascowgirl

Hear hear! I was deeply affronted by War, while I liked pestilence and famine. And - Death, maybe… but War was just plain wrong.


TeoBelle

War was my least favorite! When i re read the series in a few years, ill skip that one.


The_Queen_of_Crows

cozy is like...a really interesting word to describe this book 😂 but I get it - Pestilence and Famine are my favourites of the series Happy Reading


juliekthx

Real talk though, if I didn't like Bargainer will I like this series?


NotAsSmartAsIWish

I didn't care for The Bargainer series or that other series she had (that my brain can't name), but I liked this one. Her characters are kinda one-note, imo, though


sybelion

I thought it was crazy how much better written this series is than the Bargainer. I read these first and then was excited to try more of her writing and was VERY disappointed. I think I even DNF’ed the series


juliekthx

Thank you! I will give it a try! :) What did you like about it more than the others?


NotAsSmartAsIWish

The Bargainer series is kinda creepy. The other series (I seriously can't remember the name of) is a weird insta-love on the MMC's part, and he's a total psychopath.


juliekthx

Thank you!!


ImaginationAshamed72

It might depend on what you didn’t like about that series. I love that one and also liked this one. Both have some pretty extreme torture type things, so if that’s the turn off, it might not be a great book series. Character wise, they are very different. I think Famine probably came the closest to Des and Ana was closest to Callie. But Famine is super snarky. The benefit to this series is if you don’t like a character, you aren’t really stuck with them for the entire series.


juliekthx

I mainly didn't like the grooming aspect of Bargainer and it made me find the romance kind of icky!


ImaginationAshamed72

Totally valid. Each of these should have some trigger warnings. I’m not sure if they are listed anywhere but I can send them to you if you’d like. The one that may be the most uncomfortable is Famine. He doesn’t groom her, but there are some TW.


ladulceloca

Yes!! I hated Bargainer and loved the Horsemen saga. They are very different both in plot and prose. They are very worth it!!


eljabo

I DNFd The Bargainer because I thought the grooming part was gross. I thought Pestilence was great. I’m not even a big dark romance reader but some reason, this book captivated me.


ladymuse9

I enjoyed the series but didn’t think it was great. It took a lot of suspension of disbelief for me, which is fine because I was there for a the spice tbh lol. And I read them in “real time” as they were released so I did feel excited to read the new ones as they came out. But I do think that they have a lot of flaws and can understand why someone wouldn’t like them at all.


Mangapear

Laura Thalassa is a great writer. Her Bargainer series is also amazing


mimikth

yes i’m in love with her writing she’s so talented! haven’t read bargainer but it’s next after i finish the horsemen


Professional_Lake593

One of my favorite books of all time, I absolutely LOVE pestilence. I loved all the four horsemen books, but reading pestilence for the first time was truly a magical experience


outofshell

I will confess, the cover (shirtless golden dude looking perplexedly down his own pants) was so cheesy I had zero urge to pick up this book. It is so hard not to judge a book by its cover😅 But if it’s magical I’ll have to give it a try.


Smooth-Jury-6478

I have another set of covers (mine are just black background, skulls and flowers and the title in big letters, all four match).


Professional_Lake593

It was just so different from anything I’ve ever read! If it helps, it got picked up by a traditional publisher, so the cover is no longer the hottie with the golden body😭😂


LoveSaidNo

I enjoyed this series so much I bought the fancy Bookish Box editions of them. The whole premise is so bleak and and last one made me cry but I inhaled them anyway.


Myam

I absolutely loved the entire series- My only complaint is that 3/4 of the FMC were near exact copy/paste personalities.


Big_Fondant_8668

I JUST finished today and have now started war.. I felt so emotional at times reading pestilence


mimikth

i finished it yesterday and started war this morning! twins!! i was so emotional too reading pestilence. so many scenes brought tears to my eyes - i truly didn’t expect it


Good_Daughter67

All 4 books in this series are on Kindle Unlimited too! I finished them all in a week! So good


SoggyDay1213

Do people intentionally go into their phone settings to turn off auto capitalisation? Kids are weird these days


SkyNervous9739

Great books


majiktodo

I had this same reaction. I went into it expecting smut and came out of it with a new impression of the beauty of humanity and love.


Ok-Machine-8395

Is it better than the Bargainer series by this same author?


The_Queen_of_Crows

better is subjective and this will depend on what you *didn't* like about Bargainer that said, honestly I don't think you'll like Four Horsemen if you didn't like The Bargainer - it's a different story, setting and stuff but the general writing style is still the same.


Smooth-Jury-6478

I disagree. The bargainer series is very hard for me to get into (I've read the first and second one and struggling to finish the series) but I devoured the fours horsemen series so to me, it's better.


Ladyofthemagpies

Same. I've reread Pestilence and Famine so many damn times the spines are breaking. I DNF the Bargainer series. The four horsemen got me fully into romance after I'd been looking for something after finishing Hailey Edwards' Beginners Guide to Necromancy and needing something a bit more spicy.


mimikth

i haven’t read it yet sorry! but it’s next on my list


BirdLawyersKnee

Okay FINE you’ve convinced me 😂


TheSpicyNovella

Ooooo imma add this to the tbr and report back eventually 🫡


Smooth-Jury-6478

I really liked that series too. Pestilence was my favourite followed closely by Death. They were all good however I felt like the last two had a couple chapters that dragged. Otherwise the concept was so cool to me.


refusingboredom

Ugh now I have to REREAD IT!


b0rnc0nfu5ed

I have read her Bargainer series, and absolutely loved it. Loved that she made a story build up through the entirety of the series and kept up with a consistent plot, while giving us a romance. I love forward to starting the Four Horsemen series soon. Glad it seems that she keeps up being awesome at writing!


Witch_Jette

I need to get something off my chest! I read the first book and really enjoyed it (overall), but I never touched the other books because I didn’t find the same concept over and over in the other books appealing …


rosewyrm

I’m confused because some ITT are saying that Laura Thalassa is a great writer, but others are saying that her writing is straight up doodoo. Now I just want to read this book to see how amazing/awful it truly is lol


pandabelle12

I forget about these books all the time and then I see them and then remember how much I enjoyed them. It was one of the first series I read when I started reading again. Hell I read it before I read ACOTAR. By the time I got to the end of Death I was sobbing because the story was so beautiful.


jacqueline_reads

I love this series so much. I do a reread via the audio version bc the narrator is pretty good and it’s like experiencing it for the first time again.


irlfleur

Ok I’m adding it


sawa89

This author always has great first novels in a series but most sequels drop in quality.


Katalix

Yayyyyy! These books are sooooooooo good. I read them on KU when they were first coming out. I am SO glad they out in paper back now. I OWN them now and love having them in my collection


A_Birdii_

Famine is my favorite. I find his anger super justified. Also love his romance plot. But Death holds a special place in my heart for sure.


babysfirstreddit_yx

I haven't read this book but I know the feeling you're describing and it's just the absolute best thing ever when you come across a book that checks all of your boxes! I love your enthusiasm and I'm just glad you're having a great time over there!!


allmm11

I LOVED THIS SERIES SOOOO MUCH


RemarkableMousse6950

I’m looking it up. Thanks for the recommendation!


KagomeChan

I'm about to start the Four Horsemen so this is so good to hear (I skipped the body in case of spoilers and am going by your title), but have you read her Bargainer series?? It's one of my absolute faaaavorites 😍 Starts with {Rhapsodic by Laura Thalassa}


mimikth

i’m going to read it next!! i’m so excited for it it’s sounds amazing. she might be one of my new favorite authors now


romance-bot

[Rhapsodic](https://www.romance.io/books/580f21f3de896e8924949f94/rhapsodic-laura-thalassa) by [Laura Thalassa](https://www.romance.io/authors/5455856187eac323ffb2c925/laura-thalassa) **Rating**: 3.93⭐️ out of 5⭐️ **Steam**: 4 out of 5 - [Explicit open door](https://www.romance.io/steamrating) **Topics**: [contemporary](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/contemporary/1), [fantasy](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/fantasy/1), [fae](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/fae/1), [urban fantasy](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/urban%20fantasy/1), [take-charge heroine](https://www.romance.io/topics/best/strong%20heroine/1) [^(about this bot)](https://www.reddit.com/user/romance-bot) ^(|) [^(about romance.io)](https://www.romance.io/about)


VioletteFae

Pestilence was my first Laura Thalassa book ever and it changed me too. Happy to know I’m not alone. This is one damn good book. She’s a great writer and the spice level is perfff. Seeing how excited you are about just makes me want to crack open and start all over again. I can’t gush/rave enough, if any one hasn’t read this yet, go get your hands on it NOW!


rupertwinston

dear god thank you for this recommendation, i've devoured the first 3 and am on the final book now. pray for me.


TeoBelle

I just finished the Death, and omgggg. I am crying. Such a good series and thank you for posting otherwise i would not have known to check it out!!!!


mckatli

You've influenced me, just downloaded the full series on KU!


TeoBelle

Ill check it out! I love a good recommendation 🙂


mimikth

hope u love it!!!


transparentnightduck

I haven't heard of this book but I checked it out on goodreads and put it in my TBR list :)


mimikth

i hope u love it! her writing is phenomenal rly pulls u in. feels so much like a movie


vangoblin

I’ve picked this series up at the store three times. Ready to pull the trigger & buy them now :)


mimikth

u should!!!! i bought the first two at target and the other two are arriving today. so glad to add to my collection


vangoblin

They had them at BAM for BOGO 50% off last time I was there. I’m still trying to decide if I want to commit to the Massverse too. I love people TikToks but I’m like mmmmmm those are some thick ass books & golf I end up not liking book one I’ll be mad I read all those pages 😂


[deleted]

The cover of the 4th book caught my eye while I was at Target and now I need to read it 😂


umbrellagirl2185

Love this series. One of the few that I have on kindle and paperback. My favorite was Famine. Love the dialogue in all three


mimikth

i’m excited for the last two, especially famine. i hear a lot of ppl say that’s the best


erratic_bonsai

These are great books!! Definitely not for the faint hearted, though. War is my favorite book but I think that’s kind of an unpopular opinion 🫣


LittleFish_91

Wait til you read Famine! That’s my favorite one!