Hello dear readers. June is RITA time on Paranormal Unbound and I’m taking this moment to go all Fan Girl over author Larissa Ione. She’s a finalist in the paranormal romance category for her novel, Rogue Rider, the fourth book in her Lords of Deliverance series.

Series Set-Up
The series centers around three horsemen and one horsewoman of the Apocalypse and the two prophecies that govern their actions. One prophecy predicts they’ll fight for Team Good while the other maintains they’ll fight for Team Evil if their Seals break. Well, guess what? Reseph’s Seal breaks and he spends the first three books in the series on a completely riveting rampage for Team Evil.

Rogue Rider Stars
Reseph, aka Pestilence is our hero in Rogue Rider. Stabbed and presumed dead at the opening of this fourth book, we find Reseph in Hell, suffering from the knowledge of the horrors he committed as Pestilence. But someone (sorry, no spoilers here) sets him free back in the human world with his memory stripped. With a real tabula rasa, Reseph has a chance to start over. Until he remembers…

Former air traffic controller and demon-attack survivor Jillian finds Reseph unconscious and naked in a snowdrift in the dead of winter on her property in Colorado. She takes pity on him and drags him home (literally). Reseph awakens with amnesia and Jillian wonders what on earth she should do with the most gorgeous man on the planet who knows nothing but his name?

The answer is, of course, fall in love. And deal with the fall-out when Reseph gets his memory back.

PTSD, Horseman Style
Ione does a masterful job painting Reseph as the tortured hero. When Reseph’s switch was set to Evil and Pestilence ruled him, he committed some jaw-dropping atrocities. My mind went “he’s not going to…no, way…he just didn’t…oh yes, he did. OMG…” So you can imagine how Reseph feels when he gets his memory back and has to deal with his past actions, and face everyone that he wronged, including his brothers and sister. His post-traumatic stress – both physical and mental – broke my heart and kept me rooting for his HEA.

Redemption Road
Reseph’s journey to redemption is a rocky one. And Ione crafts his struggle so well that I felt every iota of his agony as he tried to forgive himself, and then sympathized with him while watching his family struggle to forgive him, too.

But, as much as the story is about righting wrongs and forgiving oneself and others, it’s also about the healing power of love. Can two damaged people overcome their respective pasts and trust enough to find happiness together?

Yes, they can.

The Bright Side
Okay, enough about the torture. Let’s talk about The Happy. 🙂

Jillian is smart, independent, wary, loving, and brave. Her selfless acts in the story got me all misty-eyed (again, sorry, no spoilers here).

Reseph is funny, says whatever is on his mind (seriously, the man has no filters), protective, powerful, thoughtful, and off-the-charts gorgeous. He’s also freakin’ enormous yet emotionally vulnerable. Ultimately, it’s his vulnerability and his intense drive to make things right that make you root for him and for his HEA with Jillian.

Reseph and Jillian have great chemistry and share many intimate moments both sweet and sexy. The story also provides well-crafted action scenes. And true to Ione’s style, the narrative is dotted with humorous bits and the right amount of snark that had me smilin’ and/or laughin’ out loud.

For example:

“He’s mine,” Thanatos roared.
[…]
“Wraith’s gonna be pissed!” Kynan shouted […] “He ordered Lance for dinner.”
[…]
Thanatos flashed a set of wicked fangs. […] “I’ll take him a doggie bag of leftovers.”

So, yes, dear readers, there is brightness. 🙂

The Lords of Deliverance
Rogue Rider is a must-read for series fans. For new readers in the audience, I recommend starting with the other three books. You’ll witness first-hand just how horrible Pestilence is and it will add to your awe and amazement over Reseph’s path to redemption in this fourth book.

LOD Reading Order

• Eternal Rider – Ares
• Immortal Rider – Limos
• Lethal Rider – Thanatos
• Rogue Rider – Reseph

Join the Discussion
How about you? Have you read Rogue Rider or the LOD series? Who is your favorite character in the series?