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Path of the Horseman

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The Four Horseman are trapped in the world they desolated. Their only purpose now is to exist amongst the ruins. All of that changes with a small group of survivors...

The seal was broken, and Hell was unleashed. Pestilence, Famine, War, and Death rode over the earth, creating a super-virus that turned humans into bloodthirsty monsters, opening a path for demons, decimating nearly all natural life, causing chaos and death throughout the world.

Now that their duties have been preformed, the Four Horsemen have disbanded, reduced to human bodies and trapped in the world they destroyed. No longer the Horseman Pestilence, Avery wanders through the waste he created, slaying any undead monsters and demons that cross his path. But when Avery comes across a group of survivors looking for a safe haven, his priorities begin to change. Not that the demons are going to let him stand in the way of their plans.

Avery ended the world once, and he refuses to see the demons end it again. But to protect the last of the living, he must seek the help of his brothers, all of whom are content with sitting back and watching the world burn…

244 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 25, 2015

55 people want to read

About the author

Amy Braun

36 books350 followers
Amy is a Canadian urban fantasy and horror author. Her work revolves around monsters, magic, mythology, and mayhem. She started writing in her early teens, and never stopped. She loves building unique worlds filled with fun characters and intense action.

When she isn’t writing, she’s reading, watching movies, taking photos, gaming, struggling with chocoholism and ice cream addiction, and diving headfirst into danger in Dungeons & Dragons campaigns. Amy can be found online on Facebook (www.facebook.com/amybraunauthor/) Twitter (@amybraunauthor) and Instagram (@amybraunauthor)

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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
Profile Image for Eva Millien.
3,115 reviews45 followers
May 3, 2016
Path of the Horseman by Amy Braun  
The Seal was broken, the four horsemen unleashed to cause chaos and death throughout the world but once their duties were performed they were reduced to human bodies and trapped in the waste they created in this fascinating urban fantasy.
 
Avery ended the world once and he refuses to see the demons end it again and the readers can’t help but get caught up in the suspense and excitement as he sets out to get the help of his brothers in order to protect the last of the living. The story immediately grabs readers attention with its post-apocalyptic setting and the intrigue of the Four Horsemen, it is full of suspense that continuously draws readers deeper into the story with exciting battles between the demons, the last of humanity and the Four Horsemen with additional anticipation building due the animosity between Avery and his brothers especially since they are at odds what with his brothers being content to sit back and watch the world burn and all.
 
The characters are strong, compelling and certainly attention grabbing in this fast paced and smooth flowing plot full of suspense and excitement with the well written scenes providing lots of great details that paint vivid images of this post-apocalyptic world so much so that I could practically feel Vegas burning. But the story has another side, which has some pretty strong emotional turmoil flowing from the pages as well and believe me when I say that the Four Horsemen put out some very strong emotional vibes which would be just how it I think it would really be. Avery grips readers by the heart with his determination to set things on a better path and his unfamiliar feelings for one of the survivors who of course doesn’t know who he is…at first.
 
The author created a fascinating post-apocalyptic world, mixing mythology in with some of her own creative twists and like I said some very vivid characters that draw you in and refuse to let go, so I was glued to the pages until the very end.
 
 
Profile Image for Leiah Cooper.
766 reviews95 followers
June 28, 2015
Path of the Horseman - Pulls No Punches - Exceptional “Poor Humanity, crazed with fear, was fleeing in all directions on hearing the thundering pace of the Plague, War, Hunger and Death.” ― Vicente Blasco Ibáñez, The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse“Amazing inventions, colossal failures, and countless wars. We watched it behind the scenes. Watched the monkeys from beyond the glass. We were intrigued, Hell was amused, and Heaven was losing patience.Finally, the monkeys threw too much s^^t on the windows. They sparked a third World War, one that the Big Boss upstairs knew would obliterate the world.So he sent us instead. We were much more effective. We were much more eager.” – Avery, The Rider PestilenceIt’s all great fun, clearing the world’s population for the “Next Coming”. But when the Coming doesn’t Come, what are the Four Horsemen to do with the rest of their human-ish lives? Stuck in the hell of their own creation, life decays to warding off the Plagued, those left over from Avery’s clever little specialty, and the Soulless, those left after trading their souls to the devil to live (and how is that working out for you?) This whole “life as a nearly-full-human is a pain in the proverbial backside. Especially when Simon’s specialty dried up all the water and poisoned all the food. S^cks when you got stuck the aforementioned human-ish body when you were dropped onto an unsuspecting world to do your worst. And then there are the demons."After killing every human on the planet– or so we thought– our job became kill the demons and the Soulless. The Second Coming didn’t belong to those power-hungry freeloaders.""They showed up out of the blue within the first week, right around the time Simon started starving people. They had probably showed up earlier, but I didn’t think they would be an issue. It wasn’t like we had to worry about Lucifer or Azazel or Abbadon. From what the Bosses Upstairs told us, Hell’s Biggest Bada$$es were constantly at war."OK, so that whole “The Second Coming apparently isn’t coming” thing is a total downer. As Avery puts it, “Simon will probably die of starvation, Kade will burn himself out, and Logan will be the last man on earth before he commits suicide.” Kade is the specialist in all things warrior, so he amuses himself with killing off the leftovers for fun. Logan? Well, he really didn’t do all that much. Just carried out his orders. But he really, truly, hated his job. Logan’s job, you see, required the personal touch – not simply throwing out plagues and rotting food. He saw them all. Touched them all. Unlike his brothers, who got a huge kick out of playing with their toys, killing from a distance. Well, until it was over, and there was no flourish of trumpets, white carriages from the sky and blessed lights.Well. That $ucked.What didn’t $uck? There were actual living, breathing people still alive on earth. Not many, and mostly starving, but they were there. And Avery would be damned (har har) if he allowed the demons to take their souls. That whole ‘guilt’ thing is hard on the soul – especially if you are the one responsible for the death of a whole world. Of course, it could have been the little boy eating his parents alive that really twisted the knife. So, when seven people in a beat-up old school bus appear one day, survivors of the Tribulations, Avery is thrilled. If the a$$holes Upstairs couldn’t be bothered with a Second Coming, maybe the Horsemen might pick up the slack?“Running like this makes me feel like an animal. We’re stuck in a world of monsters we can barely fight, and can only kill if we’re extremely lucky. If we don’t stop and find a place to restart and remember what we are, then we’re no better than the creatures trying to eat us.” Yep. That whole 'burning yourself out while burning out the world till you are nearly human thing' isn't all that much fun.Path of the Horseman is a truly amazing book. This is, and yet isn’t, a dystopian book. It is more than that. It brings up questions of redemption and hope, of horrors and fresh beginnings. Of what it is like to know that you are the last few on the face of the earth, and only those who destroyed the world may be able to save you. It is a thoughtful book – it took me quite a while to read it, as I kept putting it down and actually taking time to think about what I had read. It wasn’t a book, like so many, that I devour in one gulp. Instead, I truly considered everything – not only about the book itself, but what it meant to me, as a human. It was marvelous.I received Path of the Horseman from the publisher in exchange for a realistic review. All thoughts are my own. I highly encourage you to pick it up if you are in the market for a serious, thoughtful book filled with ideas that are incredibly pertinent to today. Global warming, unending wars, religious hatred, the list goes on and on. . .
Profile Image for TM.
63 reviews
January 2, 2016
Avery is not a bad protagonist, just that he felt a little Gary Stu in the beginning (super powers, badass fighting skills, sarcastic and attractive) so I wasn't too fond of him at first.

Thankfully he developed into someone with more distinct characteristics of his own, together with the rest of his brothers. Speaking of his brothers, I think Simon's my favorite. He's got flaws that make him seem like a relatable person, Horseman of Famine aside.

I liked Avery's empathy, and well, his heart, especially how he feels he must help his brothers even though he doesn't like them at times. I think I've got a thing for people with hearts like that. My favorite parts were actually Avery interacting with people (except when he's killing them).

This also brings me to another point. I honestly can't decide if it's a good thing that Avery seems so human. Because on one hand, I keep feeling like he doesn't seem all Horseman-like, especially when he fell in love. Then again, maybe it was the author's intent for him to seem like a poor guy who got used and thrown, Horseman or not.

The writing's pretty good. It's engaging and fun, although I feel that the author sometimes goes overboard with the fighting scenes. They're nicely written, but sometimes they can end up being repetitive and I end up skimming over them.

Oh, and one of my biggest pet peeves when reading is having underdeveloped, cardboard characters who serve no other purpose other than to be sacrificial lambs. I am not fond of characters whose raison d'etre was to die and try and shock the reader. Seriously, there's no meaning to that. I couldn't even remember the names or the race (there were some POCs I think) or even the personality of those people, and when some of them died (this isn't even worthy of being a spoiler - one could see their deaths coming twenty miles away), their names were mentioned like once or twice, and I'd be like, "Huh, who again?"

Even the main cast seemed to have forgotten about them by the end of the story. ._.

Nevertheless, Path of the Horseman (it's a nice and apt title, I must say) was a good read. I still liked it, because the story actually is pretty unique, and the development of the main cast was well done. The four brothers were really cool and had distinct personality (not to mention powers), even the psychopathic one.

My favorite line was probably this quote by Logan:
So you lie to yourself too, is that it? We're all lying about something, it seems. You, thinking you're invincible, Simon thinking he's strong enough to fight on the front lines, and Avery for believing Heaven's lies.

I had to go scroll through the book again to find it ahaha. Logan is amazing. :D

And the ending! I liked the ending. :)

Before I forget, I received this book for free from Story Cartel in return for an honest review. If you're in need of good action and a fun adventure, not to mention a protagonist with a heart, this one's for you.
Profile Image for Cassandra (Thebookishcrypt).
589 reviews58 followers
April 11, 2016
*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*
"That's when I knew we were going to have to live with the mess we made."
One word: BADASS. Through and through. Six stars!
AHHH!!!!!! AVERY!!!!!! Ugh, he is one incredible hero. He is now definitely one of my all time favorite male lead characters of all time! From the first page I already knew I was a goner. This was my first time reading about an apocalyptic world and I could envision it as clearly as if I were watching it on screen. Oh, how I would die if this was made into a movie. I wouldn't blink in fear of missing a single detail.
The action scenes in this book were non-stop, intense and glorious! I loved every character and their developments were magnificent too. Did I dislike anything in this? No.
Amy has a way of bringing characters to life that I have yet to see anywhere else. I love this woman so much! This is my second book from her and her writing just keeps getting better and better. From now on, every time I read one of her books, I know she will own my heart from the start. Especially since she writes about one of my all time favorite things to read about: Angels Vs. Demons. Who doesn't want to witness a war between the two?
This is one of my top reads this year for sure. Everything this woman writes about, I devour it like a prisoner taking it's first bite of fresh food. I bawled like a baby more than a couple times and I'm not ashamed. It's hard not to get attached to Avery okay?
This woman is officially an auto-buy author for me!
51 reviews2 followers
April 1, 2016
I have long been interested in demons, vampires, zombies, and of course the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. I managed to find a well written, entertaining, keep me up all night novel that had all of those components in it! From the first page to the last I was totally wrapped up in the storyline. The characters were believable and written in a way that I cared about what happened to them. I was actually rather happy that the bad guys were bad and the good guys were good it is sometimes tiring when you have to try to figure out if someone is really bad or really good. This was fairly cut and dry, from the start a fact that I appreciated immensely. I am hoping that maybe we will get to see more of this story although as of now it is a standalone novel. The pacing was excellent it never stayed in one place to long, the tone was right for the setting and purpose.

*I received a digital review copy for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*
Profile Image for N.N. Heaven.
Author 6 books2,128 followers
August 28, 2017
The Four Horsemen have destroyed the world and find themselves stuck here. Path of the Horseman shows the aftermath from the perspective of one of the Horseman. Such a unique story and one that grabbed me right away. While it is quite gory and not my usual type of reading, I really enjoyed it! The zombies were what I image zombies to be. Avery is my favorite character. Will there be more in this world from Amy Braun. A girl can dream...

My Rating: 4.5 stars
Profile Image for Autumn.
2,366 reviews47 followers
April 21, 2015
I received this book via Story Cartel to give an honest review.
I love stories that deal with the horsemen I think this may have been the second book I have read in total about them. The horsemen are something magical and deadly but it makes them more mysterious.
With this story we are mostly focusing around Pestilence or as he is known now as he is in the body of a human Avery. As we learn the horsemen if they use their powers way too much it can end badly for them.
This horseman plus his three other brothers Famine, War and Death were set to destroy the world and make it read for the Second Coming sounds just about right. That is until there was not seeming to be a Second Coming. Avery still holds on that it is coming it is just a matter of time. After he set the plague that took over man kind his brothers and himself went their separate ways. The way the world ended seems to weigh heavily on Avery and he takes his anger out on the plagued and the soulless.
When Avery sees a demon named Vance and learns that a very bad demon wants humans and the horsemen Avery sets out to find his brothers. When he finds Simon who is known as famine he ends up being in a predicament of finding some humans who need saving. This all leads up to there possibly being more humans alive than Death let on. Avery is on a quest to save those to make up for what he has done, but will it work?
What does this demon and Vance want with the humans and the brothers?
The story is filled with plenty of action, very descriptive when needing to be. I loved how the author did all of the horsemen in a way that you got to known them, they just weren't simple characters. There was depth involved. It is hard to say which horseman was my favorite I liked all of them in their own way but I think Death might be on top of all of them because of what he has to carry on his shoulders.
I had a lot of favorite parts, but I think the one thing that got me to where I was like WHOA!!! Was then the Soulless threw up. I know sounds sicken and it is, but it was AMAZING. The Soulless took a drink from Avery and his blood is not good.
"I stood there and smiled, watching the monster turn the color of a slug.The Soulless took one more heavy grasp, then bent double and vomited up all of his internal fluids. His chest bulged as his stomach heaved up a disgusting rainbow of slimy red, piss yellow, shit brown, and my personal inky poison. He didn't stop to breath, because he couldn't. The body fluids splattered into a pool in front of him as his skin turned a solid grey."

Just reading that how can you be nothing but into the story by then and that was only 5% into the book.
Now if you are squeamish then just beware of what is in here. Other than that I LOVED it. I plan on reading more from this author.
Profile Image for Itsy Bitsy Book Bits.
699 reviews50 followers
April 29, 2016
"Of the four horseman, Pestilence is the ultimate catalyst.  Sure, it's probably the others that will get you.  Famine starves you and War makes you insane before Death finally tracks you down.  But Pestilence is the reason things go straight to he'll."
The brothers have been set upon earth to destroy humanity. 
Pestilence; (Avery) His plague wiped out most of humanity, the ultimate catalyst
Famine; (Simon) He starves you
War;(Made) Makes you insane
Death;(Logan) Finally tracks you down
"When the seal was broken, and we were set free.... Light seeped over our heads in a warm glow.  We continued to stare as a single beautiful voice descended through the light and melted into our ears, It is Time." 
I was asked to create a virus that would wipe out every living soul on the planet.  Then is was Kade's turn.  Kade set everything on fire.  Logan didn't do as much, sure he did his job and killed everyone he touched, but there was always a heavy sadness around him when he's did it.  Simon snuck into grocery stores and made the food inedible with my help.  He starved the animals and evaporated all the water in the lakes. 
The brothers have been set upon the earth to destroy humanity.  Once they have succeeded they are stuck on earth in their human form, alone with no purpose, abandoned by Heaven and don't know what comes next.  They are each dealing with the aftermath of what has happened and how to deal with it.
All that changes when they come across a small group of survivors looking for a safe haven.  Avery's priorities begin to change.  But the demons are not going to let him stand in their way of their plans.  Avery ended the world once, and he refuses to see the demons end it again.  But to protect the last of the living, be must seek the help of his brothers, all of whom are content with sitting back and watching the world end as we know it. 
I could not help but think about the show the Supernatural while reading this.  It was like the book came to life and all the horror that could be inflicted upon the earth.  It was exciting and moving to watch the brothers, even though they were set upon the earth to destroy it, they came to realise how wrong they were and their conscious was weighing heavily on what they have done.  So they set out to make things right by helping the survivors.
"The question shouldn't be is there life after death, but is there life before Death. Each man is the architect of his own fate." 
Profile Image for Paige.
21 reviews39 followers
June 22, 2015
I absolutely loved this book I was hooked from the moment I started reading. Avery is such a likeable character with a brilliant witty personality. This is a story about true family bonds and how far you would go to not only right your mistakes but also to protect those you love. The vocabulary, detail and imagination that went into this story is just phenomenal. It’s unlike any other book in its genre and I think Amy Braun has just become one of my favourite authors. She has created a one of a kind masterpiece like no other that I seriously recommend you read if you’re a zombie fan.
This is a story about true family bonds and how far you would go to not only put mistakes right but also to protect those you love and it is genius.

Path of the Horseman by Amy Braun is about four brothers each with a unique gift, one for disease, one for famine, one for war and one for death bring about a zombie apocalypse on earth in order to cleanse it for a new life, at least that is what they were told. Once they had done their jobs they split up going separate ways. Avery the brother who started the disease is very guilty and angry about what he has done and he wants to desperately make it right but he can’t as everyone now has the disease so he goes round killing the Plagued (zombies) and Soulless (people who trade their souls to demons to become essentially vampires). When Avery crosses paths with a Demon he is told that not all life succumbed to the disease, with a new hope of finding survivors he can protect, Avery tracks down his brothers and any remaining humans left in order to head for the Haven – a place that is said to have food and all the protection you want. But is it real or is it a trap? And why is it everyone who says they’ve been comes back looking for protection? Full of hardcore battles, demons, zombies and love Avery and his brothers must find out what is going on before the Demons open the Gate of Hell and kill everybody.
Profile Image for Eva Millien.
3,115 reviews45 followers
May 3, 2016
The Seal was broken, the four horsemen unleashed to cause chaos and death throughout the world but once their duties were performed they were reduced to human bodies and trapped in the waste they created in this fascinating urban fantasy.

Avery ended the world once and he refuses to see the demons end it again and the readers can’t help but get caught up in the suspense and excitement as he sets out to get the help of his brothers in order to protect the last of the living. The story immediately grabs readers attention with its post-apocalyptic setting and the intrigue of the Four Horsemen, it is full of suspense that continuously draws readers deeper into the story with exciting battles between the demons, the last of humanity and the Four Horsemen with additional anticipation building due the animosity between Avery and his brothers especially since they are at odds what with his brothers being content to sit back and watch the world burn and all.

The characters are strong, compelling and certainly attention grabbing in this fast paced and smooth flowing plot full of suspense and excitement with the well written scenes providing lots of great details that paint vivid images of this post-apocalyptic world so much so that I could practically feel Vegas burning. But the story has another side, which has some pretty strong emotional turmoil flowing from the pages as well and believe me when I say that the Four Horsemen put out some very strong emotional vibes which would be just how it I think it would really be. Avery grips readers by the heart with his determination to set things on a better path and his unfamiliar feelings for one of the survivors who of course doesn’t know who he is…at first.

The author created a fascinating post-apocalyptic world, mixing mythology in with some of her own creative twists and like I said some very vivid characters that draw you in and refuse to let go, so I was glued to the pages until the very end.
Profile Image for Kel (Faerie-bookworm).
773 reviews62 followers
August 17, 2017
Title: Path of the Horseman
Author: Amy Braun
Genre: Fantasy/Apocalyptic
Format: Ebok
Pages: 224
Rating: 4
Heat: 0

Main Characters: Maddy, Avery

Supporting Characters: Simon, Kade, Logan

Thoughts: Wow, just wow. This is quite a gory future after the four horseman of the apocalypse have decimated everything. I really enjoyed reading this; it has a little romance and a ton of adventure. Great writing made the story flow with just enough detail to make the world seem real. I liked the relationship between the brothers, almost like they hated each other but still cared since they are family, like I can kill you since you’re my brother but no one else can. With all the twists and turns this story will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end.

I received a free copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for ☆Joycedale☆.
928 reviews38 followers
May 25, 2016
This is a really cool idea. The apocalypse from one of the horseman's POV.
Avery is Plague. He came up with a believible diease to start the kickoff for the second coming, but it never starts. Now him and his 3 brothers are in human bodies wondering the empty Earth, or so he thought.
He spends his time killing demons that escaped to Earth and the souless they created.
He decides he's tired of being alone and goes to find his brother and discovers that there are still some humans.
I loved this story. The characters were great and I really got wrapped up in their lives. There was plenty of twists that I never really knew what was going to happen.
And the ending! Just wow and unexpected.

I was given an ebook from Book Review Buzz in exchange for a honest review.

This review can also be found on my page The Fiction Fanatics.
Profile Image for Amanda Sautbine Clemmer.
12 reviews1 follower
May 26, 2015
The Path of The Horseman is an adventurous story that takes place right after the biblical apocalypse. The four horsemen, Avery (Pestilence), Simon (Famine), Kade (War) and Logan (Death) are abandoned by heaven after fulfilling their purposes and are left to dwindle around on Earth in human bodies, fighting demons and scrounging for living supplies. Things change when they run into a band of humans that has somehow survived the apocalypse and that is now the target of one of the toughest demon leaders around.

This was a very fun read. The abandoned Las Vegas setting, the touching and memorable characters and the decisions they are forced to make drew me in much more than I was expecting. I laughed. I cried. It's seriously the most emotional I've been over a book in a long time.
Profile Image for latybug.
157 reviews
June 27, 2015
I received a free download of this book from Story Cartel, thank you!
This book was entertaining for me. I really liked the theme that anyone, no matter who they are, can have a change of heart and want to do what's right.
I thought the book was a little too long. Personally, I am not fond of the cuss words and gory descriptions, and cutting those out would have made the book just about the right length for me. That is not a knock against the author, as the book itself was well written. It's just my own personal preference. Other than that, I did enjoy the story.
I would read more by this author.
Profile Image for Sean Northage.
47 reviews
July 11, 2015
i was fortunate to recieve and advanced copy of this book through story cartel and it drew me in and kept me hooked right to the end.

this is an example of what if everything u knew was a lie
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