Rogue Rider by Larissa Ione

This is Book 4 in the “Lords of Deliverance” series. Some readers might think that it is imperative to read the previous books in this series before reading this one. However, I have always believed that a good book can stand on its own merits – especially when the story is character driven. I feel like this is one of those books. I have not read all of the previous books in this series but I was able to really enjoy this one.

Jillian Cardiff moved to a remote mountain town in Colorado after a brutal attack by demons. She was attacked while working down in Florida. Fortunately somebody came by and the demons scattered, and she lived to tell the tale. It’s while out collecting firewood on a snowy day, that she finds a naked man frozen, yet still alive, in a snow bank. She immediately takes the man home and warms him up. All Reseph manages to remember is his name. Everything else is a blank to him. While staying with Jillian, he helps her out while flirting pretty heavily. Even though there is an intense physical attraction between them, Jillian is reluctant to give in to the feelings for a few reasons. Reseph has amnesia and she doesn’t want to take advantage of him while he’s vulnerable. Also, there is a killer on the loose which doesn’t make the best time to start an affair. The biggest reason is that she has had bad luck with relationships – her ex-fiancé is a prime example. She’s reluctant to get physically involved and risk getting emotionally involved. For me, this is the best part of the story – the two of them getting to know each other and fall in love. Things would be perfect if not for a few things. Something or someone is killing animals and people in the surrounding area. It could be a psycho or it could be the work of demons. Some local suspicion falls on Reseph at first because he is a stranger and nobody, including himself, knows his past. Reseph starts to doubt himself when he senses the presence of evil and suspects that the demons are drawn to the area because he’s there and he has some kind of affinity with the evil. I enjoyed the drama of Reseph trying to control the part of him that was Pestilence and I was very happy how things worked out in the end for Jillian and Reseph since I was totally sucked in by their love story. My heart broke for them at times. I will say that the revelation that connects Reseph/Pestilence to Jillian’s past was almost a little too much, but other than that I loved this story. I look forward to Reaver and Harvester’s story.