Review: Riders

Riders by Veronica Rossi
Series: Riders #1
Rating: ★★★★☆

For eighteen-year-old Gideon Blake, nothing but death can keep him from achieving his goal of becoming a U.S. Army Ranger. As it turns out, it does.

Recovering from the accident that most definitely killed him, Gideon finds himself with strange new powers and a bizarre cuff he can’t remove. His death has brought to life his real destiny. He has become War, one of the legendary four horsemen of the apocalypse.

Over the coming weeks, he and the other horsemen–Conquest, Famine, and Death–are brought together by a beautiful but frustratingly secretive girl to help save humanity from an ancient evil on the emergence.

They fail.

Now–bound, bloodied, and drugged–Gideon is interrogated by the authorities about his role in a battle that has become an international incident. If he stands any chance of saving his friends and the girl he’s fallen for–not to mention all of humankind–he needs to convince the skeptical government officials the world is in imminent danger.

But will anyone believe him?

Actual rating: 3.5

You’re an incarnation of War. You’ve been given War’s abilities to carry out a mission.”

“So, this guy,” I said. “Conquest. The other horseman. Wait—girl?”

“Guy.” Daryn was looking through the front windshield like we were still driving. “You’re all guys.”

“So, no horsepersons?” It sounded ridiculous, but it was an honest question.

This book was a lot better than I thought. For example, when I found out that the main character was a male, I worried that he would behave and think in a way that’s more feminine ideal than realistic. You guys know what I’m talking about. The guys in books who wax poetically about the color of a girl’s cornflower blue eyes or the way she turns her head so that the light hits her raven-black hair, bringing out the golden/red highlights in them and the heliotrope scent of her intoxicating perfume. Fuck that shit, man.

Thankfully, this book was quite macho, with the exception of a few rather descriptive passages. The main character is intelligent and reasonable.

By the time I got out, my head felt clearer and I had a plan. I’d attack the situation like I’d been trained to do in the Army. Gather intelligence. Create a strategy. Execute on it. I’d figure out what was happening to me, then go about reversing it.

This book is about an 18-year old man (barely out of boyhood) in the military after high school. After an accident that should have killed him, Gideon suddenly discovers weird things happening to him, so like any reasonable person, he Googled it.

Unexplainable rapid healing
Manipulating rage in others
Mystery metal bracelets

Just about everything turned up the same result: superhero websites.

That was enough intelligence gathering for me.

I shut the laptop, sat back, and laughed my ass off.

This book was just fun.

I really do like the main character. He’s a nice guy, he isrespectful, and he has no problem taking orders from a woman.

Because I had no problem taking orders from a girl. I’d been doing it my whole life, for one. My mom was the strongest person I knew. And if you were capable, I personally gave no shits what you were. For me character was character, end of story.

There’s a lot of machismo and fighting and swaggering and stupid guy fights in the book, but I found them pretty amusing, lol.

He extended his arm to the side like Looky here, asshole. I’ll see your sword and raise you a scythe.

A cautious man would’ve backed off. Not me. Yielding would basically have told him he’d won. I was tougher and I’d prove it. If it cost me a limb, screw it.

“You really want to take on War?” I shrugged. “All right.”

“What did you say? You’re War?”

“Yes, he did.” Daryn said. “Now put your weapons down. Both of you.”

There’s a lot of action, the writing isn’t flowery and shit, it’s straightforward and serves to drive the plot. It served its purpose of making the book a very easy read.