I was provided an eARC from Netgalley.com and am providing an unbiased review.

This is the type of book I always dread to come along. The artwork is nice, and the story blurb is interesting enough that I anxiously wanted to read it. But it could not grab my attention from the start. I tried to set it aside, and restart a couple days later, but did not make it much further than the first attempt. After a week of tries, my attention just would not hold. For as far as I was able to read, the world building was good, though some of the characters were hard to remember their status, or relationship to others. As long as I have it available to me, I may go back and try after a short time again, and if so, will amend my review.

No! No! No! Where is my happy ending??? This can't really be the ending. Please Timothy Wolff tell me this is just the opening to a series - a trilogy at least.

I did not expect to be so totally taken by this book, but I was! I loved the multiple POV's and I loved the characters. I a world of gods, demons, demoralized men, heroes in the making, and broken kingdoms Zeen, David, Melissa, Serenna and others forge ahead marking the world they live in. I just can't accept that this book is the end of their stories - there is so much more for Serenna, Haide, Marie, the Zephum, David and Zeen. Please tell me there is a continuation. My heart ached as I read the last page, my eyes teared up, my breath caught....then I was frustrated and angry - too many loose ends, too many stories yet to be finished or to be told.

Reader pick this book up knowing that the ending is not your typical happy ending.

(4.5 stars.)

This is an explosive new addition to my incredibly picky favorites shelf.

Platinum Tinted Darkness introduces us to a world of mages, magic, gods, lizard people, and unicorns. I don’t know about you, but I’m already sold. IN this world, the gods are essentially the embodiment of such forces as death, fear, wisdom, strength, etc. A chosen few are chosen/coerced into becoming their Harbingers, turning their mortal bodies into vessels for the god’s power, often at an incredible cost. The most deadly of the Harbingers is death’s, who, unsurprisingly, leaves destruction in his wake and threatens to rip apart the realm at the seams. The only force keeping Death’s and all other Harbingers at bay is the Guardians, six magical badasses that swear to stay out of all politics and disputes between kingdoms in order to be ready when a Harbinger steps out of line. Yet, Guardian Serenna Morgan is tired of watching her people die. She’s tired of doing nothing. Yet, in order to help, she must break her Guardian pact, and face the consequences of drawing Death’s attention.

I have established innumerable times that I am physically incapable of writing a review for a book I love. It usually just results in mean nonsensically screaming via keyboard for a few paragraphs, but I’m going to try my hardest to explain just why I love Platinum Tinted Darkness.

First, the overall vibe reminds me of Brandon Sanderson—who I adore. The voice, stylistic choices/techniques, and characters are distinctly different from one another, but there’s that same fast pace action, high stakes, darker lens, and ragtag group of characters trying to save the world. I will say, though, I think some of the action sequences got a little too technical for me at times. There was so much detail about the specific slash of the sword/why it was made that what should be a fast-paced action sequence turned into something jerky at times. Even with all this being said, the image in my mind was distinct and kept me glued to the pages. The action also had good breaks in between to let me emotionally recover, and the story had an overall solid flow, and—dammit I’m rambling again. I’m just going to jump to my favorite part: the characters.

The first POV character we’re introduced to is Serenna, the crystal mage. Honestly, I loved her from the first page. We’re immediately injected into her watching the aftermath of a battle and chafing against her duty to remain uninvolved. She has a strong empathy for her people, an even stronger sense of responsibility and morality. Serenna is willing to do what she has to do in order to protect those she loves, even if that means defying the rules. She’s immediately proactive and defiant, or maybe I should say determined. Not to mention her owl staff is cool on its own, but then you throw in her ability to basically fight with summoned crystal? Badass. All throughout her arc, she struggles with her sense of responsibility and duty and the call of Death, and I just loved getting to see the absolute powerhouse that she is.

Next, we have David: leader of the Guardians. David has the same crush of responsibility that Serenna has, but it is so much heavier. He has lost so many people under his watch, his seen and done things that drive him to hopelessness and despair. He’s lost his sense of meaning; his belief that he could possibly do something to change his reality. He subsequently rules over the Guardians with a cold, fear-inducing mask, even though you can tell he deeply cares about his Guardians. He’s a drunk, he’s a leader, and he is a man that must face the path he has been traveling down.

Finally, we have Zeen: the newest Guardian. Honestly, Zeen is just endearing. He may not be the smartest Guardian, he may even be a little dopy at times, but he has the kindest heart. He believes in hope and dreams, second chances and forgiveness. Yet, he has been forced into a dark, bloody life as a soldier. That, however, hasn’t stopped him from always being the first to smile; from extending a friendly hand to a captured enemy because he deserves one person to still treat him with kindness. Also, the man loves unicorns. He’s just adorable.

Overall, Platinum Tinted Darkness is an incredible first book. The characters are distinctive and diverse, the plot is well-structured and well-paced for the most part, and the lizard people are ten out of ten. I think I personally just wish the action sequences were more fluid. Also, I think there were two important death scenes, but they weren’t really given the punch to the reader’s face they deserve. (Oh, and side note, but my trend of loving the side characters more than the protagonists continues. Team Tempest all the way.)

This story is amazing. Right from the first page, you can already see how intense it is. It's overflowing with action and there is so much shit happening. Every page will consume you right from the beginning.

First off, I want to say that I was drawn by the overall premise of the book. I liked the world building that the author did with the concepts of dystopian fantasy world where mortals are the playthings of the gods. I also liked the seamless incorporation of other species and the mages. All really great elements to an epic fantasy novel. What really brought it down for me was the dialogue and the romantic elements. It was jarring to see more modern phrase work that really didn’t work for the characters mixed in with more loftier phrasings you’d expect from the genre. Also, the budding love story between Zeen and Serenna seemed kind of rushed and not very believable. I was especially thrown off when Zeen’s fear was revealed and it involved Serenna. It would have made more sense to me if initially she wasn’t a part of it and then maybe added later as his fear evolved with their relationship. Overall, a lot of great elements but put together felt a little clunky and did not grip me the whole way through.

Wow! Major discovery here! I never expected it to be this good! New author for me with an amazing writing and what a story!!

Thank you, Netgalley, and Tim Wolff for this opportunity! This novel was well written, fast pace and had an amazing magic system that intrigued me.. I The writing was so well done and the story draws you in from the beginning.
A very powerful and commanding female lead character.

Would recommend for epic fantasy lovers.

I enjoyed this and was very entertained. This was a great idea and the writing was good. I think the cover is absolutely stunning.
I just reviewed Platinum Tinted Darkness by Timothy Wolff. #NetGalley
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