REVIEW: Immortal Rider (Lords of Deliverance #2) by Larissa Ione

Author: Larissa Ione

Series: Lords of Deliverance

Pages: 414

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Amazon: Immortal Rider

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

The signs are everywhere...disastrous world events. Evil rising up, unleashed upon the innocent. The prophecies were there...but no one listened. Until now. The time has come for those who can either usher in Doomsday...or prevent it. They are here. They ride. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Arik Wagner, a soldier with the U.S. Army's paranormal unit, the R-XR, kissed a girl and liked it. And then he went to hell as punishment. Where he's spent weeks being tortured...and plotting revenge.

Limos, Horsewoman of the Apocalypse, isn't your average girl. She's immortal, dangerous, and her fiancé is Satan himself. In a moment of weakness, she gave in to her desire and kissed Arik, triggering her fiancé's wrath - and his claim on her. In order to save Arik, and the world, Limos must make a dangerous pact with her recently turned evil brother, Pestilence. A deal that might just cost her her soul...and her heart.

REVIEW: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Immortal Rider is the second book in the Lords of Deliverance series by Larissa Ione and was kindly provided to me by Netgalley for Grand Central Publishing.

Ms Ione is an auto-buy for me; her writing is perfection and draws me in from the first to the very last page.

Immortal Rider is Limos’s story, the third Horsemen of the Apocalypse and the bearer of Famine should her seal break. She is also Satan’s betrothed and is unable to succumb to any feelings she may have to any male, including Arik Wagner, a soldier with the U.S. Army’s paranormal unit, the R-XR who paid the price of torture and near death in Hell for a whole month just by kissing her and making the king of pure evil jealous.

Satan can't have Limos as his bride/wife until either her seal breaks, she is captured in Sheoul or a male who incites Satan's jealousy says her name whilst in agony which will result in her being dragged back into the demon realm. She wears a chastity belt which inflicts serious pain to anyone trying to get too close as well as to herself.

I absolutely loved Arik! The poor guy had no idea why he was being tortured but continually protected Limos and endured the pain and healing only to have it all repeated over and over again. He is a character that was noble, caring and still held on to his sense of humor. His past was fascinating and is what has shaped him into the man he has become – I loved his strength and sheer determination; his protective streak was also really sweet, I give him credit for standing up to the horsemen!

Limos has a fascinating past and many secrets she keeps from her brothers, Ares (War), Death (Thanatos) & Pestilence (Reseph) – Reseph’s seal is broken and he is wreaking havoc, he is also aware of what Limos is hiding and blackmails her into helping him. I enjoyed Limos as a character, behind her colourful exterior hides a true warrior, she struggles with the deceptions from her past and there are many lies she protects that will hurt those closest to her if they are revealed but with Arik by her side she feels the strength to reveal them despite the consequences.

The world building in the Lords of Deliverance series as with all series by Ms Ione is absolutely unique and amazing, the spin she has put on the four horsemen of the apocalypse history is creative and entertaining. There is a lot going on in this book so I won’t even begin to go into the finer plot points but it was pure enjoyment.

Immortal Rider is well paced and engaging and Larissa Ione’s amazing writing allowed me to become completely engrossed in the story – which is something I love, I literally couldn’t and didn’t want to put this book down. Each of the characters are well developed and interesting.

There is one scene in particular which I was really quite saddened by, it involved Thanatos and Aegis Warrior Regan who are the main H/H in the next book – it was written very well but it is a topic which is never easy to read about (I wont reveal what it is to avoid spoilers). I am also quite eager to see the outcome of Reaver after what he had to endure; I love him as a character and hope all pans out well.

Immortal Rider is certainly not for the faint of heart, there are a number of detailed torture scenes which are quite graphic as well as violence and blood shed.

Immortal Rider is another wonderful installment to this amazing series, Lethal Rider has an anticipated June 2012 release date.

Lords of Deliverance books in order:

1. Eternal Rider - March 2010

2. Immortal Rider – November 2011

3. Lethal Rider – June 2012

4. Untitiled – December 2012

5. Untitled - 2013