Loss

Loss

by Jackie Morse Kessler

Riders of the Apocalypse, book three

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Fifteen-year-old Billy Ballard is the kid that everyone picks on. But things change drastically when Death tells Billy he must stand in as Pestilence, the White Rider of the Apocalypse. Now armed with a Bow that allows him to strike with disease from a distance, Billy lashes out at his tormentors...and accidentally causes an outbreak of meningitis. Horrified by his actions, Billy begs Death to take back the Bow. For that to happen, says Death, Billy must track down the real White Rider, and stop him from unleashing something awful on humanity—something that could make the Black Plague look like a summer cold. Does one bullied teenager have the strength to stand his ground—and the courage to save the world? (description from Amazon.com)

 

This is such a great series. The author's idea is just amazing.  They are short reads, but they are packed with SO much punch!  Each book not only tackles a teen becoming a Rider...yes one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse(!!!), but also some kind of issue that teens can face. 

 

This book did a GREAT job blending the concept of Pestilence (disease, ick!) and bullying.  Kessler managed to write a phenomenal story about a boy who finally fights back for himself and stops a bully from destroying the world.  We also got some more great hints about what's coming for Death...one of the coolest characters, ever!... and the Horsemen in the final book.

 

Though short, I get so much satisfaction reading each book in this series, and I cannot wait for the big finale! 

Rage - Blog Tour

Rage
by Jackie Morse Kessler
Publication date: April 4, 2011

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 razor blade, 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.

A unique approach to the topic of self-mutilation, Rage is the story of a young woman who discovers her own power and refuses to be defeated by the world.(description from back of book)


Wow. I had been blown away by the first book in this series, Hunger, and I am even more impressed with this addition. This book was not easy to read by any means...cutting is a very hard topic to address...but Kessler is a master. Truly.

This book was raw, gripping...I'm having trouble describing exactly how it made me feel. I have always had issues dealing with blood, gore, that type of thing...so books like this, about cutting, have always kind of been a pass for me. The melding of self-mutilation with the fantasy aspect of becoming War, one of the four Horsemen of th Apocalypse...not passable!

Don't get me wrong. There are descriptive passages in this book that I basically had to skim - and not always just because it was graphic. Sometimes the emotions behind the cutting urge were so dominant and...heartwrending...that I needed to take a step back.

Then, as Missy begins to take control. I became more and more emotionally vested in her success and her triumphs became mine as a reader! When I closed this book, there were tears in my eyes, my throat felt tight...but I was satisfied. As tough as this was to read, I would do it again, and again. I cannot wait to see how Kessler tackles Pestilence in book three!

Definitely a must read for 2011.

Full disclosure: ARC received as part of Book It Forward ARC Tours for review