Breath by Jackie Morse Kessler REVIEW

Four Riders of the Apocalypse: Book Four

Summary:

Contrary to popular belief, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse aren't just harbingers of doom--they actually keep life in balance. But what happens when their leader and creator, Death, becomes suicidal?

Before the first living thing drew its first gasping breath, he was there. He has watched humanity for millennia. And he has finally decided that humanity is not worth the price he has paid time and again. When Death himself gives up on life, a teenager named Xander Atwood is the world's only hope. But Xander bears a secret, one that may bring about the end of everything.

My Thoughts:

This book was SO much better than the last one. I mean it. *yay*

But a lot of it was really confusing--mostly Xander's story and Death's sudden goodbyes.

I feel as if it would have been fine as just a trilogy, or if there was a book about Death becoming Death as the first book in the series would have been better.

My Rating: 3 stars

Loss by Jackie Morse Kessler REVIEW

Four Riders of the Apocalypse series: Book Three

Summary:

Fifteen-year-old Billy Ballard is the kid that everyone picks on. Things change drastically when Billy learns that years ago, he'd been tricked by Pestilence, the White Rider of the Apocalypse. Now it's Billy's turn to wield Pestilence's Bow and spread sickness through the world. He uses his new power to lash out at his tormentors . . . and accidentally causes an outbreak of disease. Horrified by his actions, he wants nothing more than to be rid of the Bow. For that to happen, Billy must track down the previous White Rider, who is hiding in a place where even Death cannot go.

By the time Billy finds the man who had tricked him so long ago, the White Rider is completely insane and is poised to unleash a plague that would make the Black Death look like a summer cold. And only Billy can stop him. Does one bullied teenager have the strength to stand his ground and the courage to save the world?

My Thoughts:

This book was actually really terrible. Maybe it's the character, or maybe it's the storyline, but I did not like this book at all.

A lot of it was boring, and what wasn't boring was confusing.

I hope that the last book will be better than this and exceed my high expectations. Because I hated this one.

My Rating: less than 1 star

Rage by Jackie Morse Kessler REVIEW

Four Riders of the Apocalypse: Book Two

Summary:

Missy didn't mean to cut so deep. But after the party where she was humiliated in front of practically everyone in school, who could blame her for wanting some comfort? Sure, most people don't find comfort in the touch of a razorblade, but Missy always was . . . different.

That's why she was chosen to become one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: War. Now Missy wields a new kind of blade--a big, brutal sword that can cut down anyone and anything in her path. But it's with this weapon in her hand that Missy learns something that could help her triumph over her own pain: control.

My Thoughts:

The first like 50 pages were strange. But the rest of it was pretty good. In some ways, it was even better than Hunger.

But it wasn't that amazing.

Most books sound appealing--but less than half of them end up disappointing or just ok.

That's what I felt with Rage.

My Rating:  3 stars

Hunger by Jackie Morse Kessler REVIEW

Four Riders of the Apocalypse series: Book One
Summary:

“Thou art the Black Rider. Go thee out unto the world.”

Lisabeth Lewis has a black steed, a set of scales, and a new job: she’s been appointed Famine. How will an anorexic seventeen-year-old girl from the suburbs fare as one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse?

Traveling the world on her steed gives Lisa freedom from her troubles at home: her constant battle with hunger, and her struggle to hide it from the people who care about her. But being Famine forces her to go places where hunger is a painful part of everyday life, and to face the horrifying effects of her phenomenal power. Can Lisa find a way to harness that power — and the courage to battle her own inner demons? 

My Thoughts:

This book was really good but also very confusing.
And the end was strange.
Lisa gives up her power as Famine at the end, which is strange and surprising.
Overall, this book was pretty good, but not amazing.
*I met the author at TeenReaderCon*

My Rating: 3.5 stars
The author's website is here: www.jackiemorsekessler.com