REVIEW: 'Surrender the Dark' by Tibby Armstrong
Title: Surrender the Dark
Series: The Dark #1
Author: Tibby Armstrong
Published: May 23, 2017
Cover Artist: Lynn Andreozzi
Genre: Erotic Romance; Paranormal Romance
Length: 251 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Suspense; Angst: Light; Paranormal: Vampires, Fairies, Zombies, Witches; Disability: Blindness; Enemies to Lovers; Tattoos/Piercings; HEA
About Surrender the Dark
As a provocative series of paranormal temptation begins, a vampire king seduces the supernaturally gifted man hunting him. But when the stakes are literally life or death, their struggle for control is no game. Benjamin Fuller is a hunter, born and bred. Blinded as a child by the vampire who slaughtered his family, he’s blessed with a second sight that allows him to catch and kill his quarry. What his gift can’t help him see coming is his fierce, almost carnal attraction to the mystery man who claims to be a fellow hunter and whose touch triggers both lust and revulsion. When he gains the upper hand, Benjamin vows to bring his enemy to his knees. After many years spent in exile, the only one who can help restore Tzadkiel Dragoumanos to his rightful place as War King is a blind hunter with golden curls, a lithe dancer’s physique, and distinctive facial scars—scars Tzadkiel gave him two decades ago. The mere scent of Benjamin Fuller provokes an unwelcome rush of insatiable desire. Yet to win an all-out supernatural war, Tzadkiel must resist the ravenous hunger to possess his prey—for now.
5 HEART READ
REVIEW: I must say I was absolutely drawn into the opening of Surrender the Dark by Tibby Armstrong, the first book in her new Dark series. A young boy, so playful, torn between his desire to be a child and a lineage which requires him to be thrust into something he wants no part of. Armstrong sets the stage so well you can feel Benjamin’s struggle, his confusion when pit against the beautiful creature that heartbreakingly forces him to accept his fate. Move forward 20 years . . . and the representation of that same boy, as a blind man who has lost so much, couldn’t be more vivid. With picturesque writing that makes you “see” what the blind man can’t:
"Akito’s voice always reminded Benjamin of the scent of warm leather gloves and the taste of Earl Grey Tea. Nyx’s was more like shiny wrapping paper and tart-sweet Pixy Stix."
And in a paranormal world where his extra sensory perception (plus the help of some magical friends) allows him “some” visual of those with supernatural abilities Armstrong never forgets that Benjamin is still blind: “It had been so long since he’d read anything but braille that it took him longer than it should have to sound out a section in the article…” The authors visual doesn’t stop there either.
Her details are so sharp it’s as if the reader is the one whom is blind and she is painting you a picture so vivid you can see every detail in your mind’s eye.
Creating a world steeped with history, tradition, suspense . . . and deceit.
Broken, Benjamin is tired of being tormented by his past and when he lets down his guard he finds himself in the grasp of the vampire War King again. But this time is different and Tibby creates this air of mystery, intrigue and desire between the two adversaries. Oh, the War King. Immediately there is this keen sense about him and, believe it or not, a sadness for what he and his Mora have lost during the same moment in time Benjamin lost his sight. Because they are not the vampires Benjamin’s lineage believed they are.
Here is where the story gets tricky and you really have to pay attention because these vampires hale from Gods. The world building mixes history with deities and rituals and the paranormal in a present day setting. Very intriguing to say the least.
Benjamin and Tzadkiel are a hunter and a vampire with more in common than a fated meeting two decades past.
Tibby Armstrong’s elegant, precise, beautiful writing (absolutely fit for this piece) takes you on a thrilling, suspenseful, mesmerizing journey of two worthy adversaries brought together by history and revenge, who build on loss, guilt, understanding, compassion, need . . . and forgiveness.
The sexual tension ratchets up with every animosity laced conversation between the two men and you burn with as much desire as the characters do. Tibby addresses it well, “animosity’s passion” makes this book sizzle!
Armstrong creates a compelling story full of twists and turns that find these men needing each other, in more ways than one, and leaving the reader hopeful with every turn of the page that the past can be overcome by the newfound present and a future unlike any other can be built.
Surrender the Dark is a story about how what we may be taught as children shapes our beliefs.
How if raised with bigotry or bias, hate or fear, our vision can be clouded and prevent us from seeing the good in people. “Whoever said love was blind, was right . . . Once you closed your metaphorical eyes to misunderstandings and imperfections, conceits and prejudices, then, and only then could you see the strength and beauty that had been there before you all along.” I can’t even begin to convey how exciting, fun, fresh and inviting this tale is. The use of Benjamin’s lost sight to display all the wonder is just magical. In fact I don’t think the story would be the same without it. And god’s the endings buildup, fantastic! The internal struggle: How ones heart can overpower tradition and make the ultimate sacrifice.
“There is no bravery in hate. Only in kneeling to that which frightens you most.”
Not since J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood have I been so captivated by a paranormal series and to have it be male/male is the icing on the cake. Surrender the Dark has made me a goner and I’ve already added the follow-up, Taste the Dark, to my TBR.
An advanced reader copy of Surrender the Dark was provided to Kimmers’ Erotic Book Banter, by Tibby Armstrong, at no cost and with no expectations in return. We offer our fair and honest opinion on behalf of our readers.
Meet the Author
Tibby Armstrong is a Romance author living in Northern Georgia with two cats and an unmentionable number of books. Her work includes the upcoming Surrender the Dark (Dark Series) by Random House / Loveswept, and the Hollywood series. Tibby's favorite reads are by a diverse array of Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, and SciFi authors like Maria V. Snyder, Charlaine Harris, Connie Willis, Elizabeth Moon, Jane Austen, C.S. Pacat, and Lois McMaster Bujold. You might wonder at such a long list, until you consider that Tibby is also a librarian. Please say hello and share what you love. She's always looking for a new book to devour!
For more from Tibby visit her website.
