Platinum Tinted Darkness

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.

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

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.

(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.)

I was so excited to read Platinum Tinted Darkness!! The cover and the description were captivating!! Just LOOK AT THAT COVER!!!! STUNNING!!!

The story itself is a slow to medium build (in my opinion), so you want to stick with it because the story is very descriptive, the character and world building in phenomenal, and I really loved the action!!

I also love the darkness you read throughout the story; it grasps you and doesn’t let you go even through to the end of the book!!

It’s the kind of magical book that I love reading, and I was glad to get my hands on it!! Definitely give it a read!! I feel you won’t be disappointed!!

Damn beautiful fantasy!!

I can’t wait to have more in my hands!! But, gotta be patient, HAHA!!!

This book had delightful proverbs and bits of wisdom. The characters, including the amusing villains, were well-crafted, and the book was fun. However, the romantic subplot was a bit cheesy and unrealistic, detracting from the plot. Despite this, the story was a decent first installment in a series. Despite minimal world-building, the characters were solid. I think Sardonyx and Nyfe are my favorites. Overall, I recommend this book to fans of epic fantasy with a fun twist.

So, it takes me a while to get into a book. Like one or two chapters long. If I can get in it by then I’m in it for the long haul. This book falls in the first chapter category. I really liked it. It sucked me in and I soaked up every word. That being said… Being honest here, it was a book that took me forever to read. Maybe it was because the writing was phenomenal and the characters drug me along on this great adventure that it had me needing to let it soak in for a day before going on.
I loved the romance subplot, as well as the battles and different types of people. It was very different than what I usually read.

Should you read it? If you like hard core fantasy…. Yes!!
For me, I’m in it for the long haul!! Too bad the next book isn’t on my kindle so I can dive right in!! Hopefully it won’t take as long to read as this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Timothy Wolff for allowing me to read this book!!

This was a fascinating world! As strange as the premise sounds, I could not get enough. We have three POVs that are all well defined and unique. The story is full of action and the pacing is quick. Well done!