I had a hard time beginning this story. There was a lot of back-ground that needed to be covered and I was having a hard time keeping all the players straight. Pushing past the first few chapters, I actually started wondering just where Tibby Armstrong was taking us.

Benjamin is the hunter. Tzadkiel is the hunted. Until the tables are turned and Benjamin is forced to work with him to save the only two friends he had. Unfortunately, the attraction that they feel for each other is only complicating matters. Benjamin can’t b believe that he is drawn to the one person who ruined him, killed his family and now wants his power back.

Tzadkiel never wanted to hurt a mere child. He had no choice. Now that he can finally make his way back to his Mora after his kidnapping and torturing, he needs the help of the hunter to get the one thing back that will restore all of his power. He doesn’t know if he could trust him, he doesn’t know if he should hate him but he knows that the attraction he is feeling is totally unwanted and won’t be accepted by his men.

Benjamin starts seeing another side of Tzadkiel and starts questioning everything that he was told. As he finds out what this Vampire is really like, the true story behind the Hunters and the Hunted, he can’t help but start to respect him and have feelings for him. Now, as the supernatural war is started, he has a choice to make … help him or kill him.

As I said in the beginning, I had a hard time at the start of the book. There are a lot of major characters in this story, a lot of supernatural beings. Witches, warlocks, fae, vampires, weres, zombie vampires and the hunter. I did have a hard time sorting them out but, as the story went on, I realized that they all played a huge part in Benjamin realizing how wrong he was through his life and how wonderful Tzadkiel was. And, I have to recognize the writing of Tibby Armstrong. She made the story interesting and intriguing. Just when you thought there was no way that they could not act on their feelings, she threw something in that made it possible. She is a thought-provoking author that knows how to use her words to get important messages across to her readers. The last sentence in this book told me everything that II needed to know about Tibby Armstrong, made me truly respect her and convinced me that she’s an author that I want to read again

Benjamin Fuller comes from a long line of vampire hunters. At age eight, his family captured the vampire War King, who in turn killed his family and left Benjamin blind. Now, along with his friends Nix and Akito, Benjamin continues the family tradition of hunting vampires in Boston.

It has been 20 years since vampire Tzadkiel Dragoumanos was attacked and barely escaped with his life. He has been slowly recovering ever since the attack, and he is finally able to return to his clan and resume his leadership role. But things have changed for the vampires as other supernatural factions have gained control in Boston. Yet Tzadkiel is determined to see the vampires regain their territory and to seek revenge on the hunter who is the last of his line. The fact that Benjamin is blind and can’t see Tzadkiel and, in fact, has no idea that the vampire is even still alive, makes it all the easier to get under the man’s defenses.

Tzadkiel is surprised by his attraction to Benjamin, one that Benjamin shares as he has no idea who Tzadkiel really is. Tzadiel is determined to exact his revenge, but he also realizes that he needs Benjamin if there is any hope of restoring the power balance between the warring supernatural factions in the city. Even when the truth of Tzadkiel’s identity is revealed, the men realize they must work together if they have any hope of stopping the dark forces at work. Of course, Tzadkiel makes it clear he plans to kill Benjamin when it is over, but Benjamin is willing to take that chance in order to save his friends and his city. But as the men fall harder for one another, the animosity between them begins to fade. Now they have to figure out if they can save the city, and if there is a chance that they can actually be together.

Surrender the Dark is the first book in a new series by Tibby Armstrong and she sets up a really intense enemies to lovers plot here, with some detailed world building. This is a rare book where the conflict between the men continues almost throughout the story. Even as they grow to understand one another, and even be drawn together, Tzadkiel sees no other choice but to ultimately kill Benjamin. There isn’t quite that crackle of intensity, that pull between love and hate, that is what normally makes this trope so appealing to me. But I think Armstrong does set up the conflict well and carries it through the story nicely.

The world Armstrong creates here is detailed and complex. Aside from the backstory and conflict between the two men, we face the bigger picture of the battle going on among the various supernatural factions in the city. I was impressed with how well developed the world building is here and Armstrong shows a lot of creativity. On the other hand, I’ll admit I found it overwhelming at times. There is so much happening, so many details and so much depth, that a lot of the time I had trouble really understanding all the politics, history, etc. The language is also somewhat heavy, which makes it even harder to follow. So I felt like I was missing a lot, and it was a little hard to work through all the various elements of the supernatural world and figure out exactly what was going on in the story.

This is the first book in a series and while we get a basic resolution here, there is clearly a lot more to come. The next book features new main characters, so Benjamin and Tzadkiel’s story seems to be resolved, but the bigger picture of the battle for the city looks to move forward with the series.

I think for fans of paranormal, especially supernatural worlds where there are a lot of different magical creatures, this story will hold a lot of appeal. Particularly if you are someone who appreciates a lot of world building. And if you are a fan of enemies to lovers, I think there is a also a lot to enjoy here, as there is a strong conflict that carries well throughout the book. So this is definitely an interesting story and one that I think will appeal to many readers.

Surrender the Dark is an enemies to lovers story with two characters who are driven by the need for revenge in a paranormal world that is out of control.
Benjamin Fuller is a hunter born and bred. His childhood seems to have been taken over by a vicious uncle who was determined to make this eight year old child as warped and evil as the rest of the family. When a captured and tortured vampire makes his bid for freedom Ben finds himself alone in the world and blind. Jump forward 20 years and Ben and his vampire foe Tzadkiel meet again – revenge is the only thing on their minds but circumstances see them having to work together.
The first half of Surrender the Dark is slow and a lot of the detail is told but not seen. Ben had a solid relationship with only two people in the entire world and I would have liked more detail on how they became such trusted allies. The pace picks up for the second half of the book and I felt the story was less confusing in the latter stages. Ben and Tzadkiel have a difficult relationship and one that is built on a lot of incorrect perceptions. There is a grey area of good versus evil and both men have suffered badly – the main question throughout the book is whether they will be able to move on and trust each other.
I didn’t really connect with Ben – but then I didn’t really get to know him that well. Tzadkiel was easier to like and I think that was because he was so honourable in everything he did even when that honour looked set to cost him his chance at happiness. Tzadkiel would think things through whereas Ben would just get drunk.
Surrender the Dark felt like the start to a new series that concentrated on the world building and introduction of a lot of different paranormal creatures at the expense of any romance between the main characters. It felt like it was setting the stage and preparing us for what was to come whilst giving us a HFN ending for Ben and Tzadkiel and the world they were fighting for.

With extremely intricate writing that makes Boston alive with vivid colors, scents, and sounds, Tibby Armstrong creates a whole paranormal world unknown to humans. Amidst Boston Common and the city's famous streets, Benjamin Fuller and his two best friends hunt vampires and other supernatural creatures. As long as Benji can remember, he was trained to kill the vicious vamps who roam the streets praying on humans for survival. The same kind of beasts as the War King who killed his family and left him blind and scarred. But Benjamin is not helpless. He is blessed with the hunter's second sight that allows him to sense, catch and kill his enemies. All but one. Tzadkiel Dragoumanos has spent the last two decades in exile. After being caught, poisoned and tortured by hunters, he nearly died. It took him this long to return to the streets, but he is not himself yet. He will return to his rightful place as War King, even if his one allied must be the one who once took his throne. The blind hunter with golden curls. The man who stirs his anger and his desires. As a common enemy brings hunter and vampire together, old misconceptions are destroyed when compared to the truth, and then only love and sacrifice will remain. A truly intriguing tale of friendship, loyalty, betrayal, power, and love.

Azrail was the Angel Of Death yet he feared the return of darkness. But he refused to lose to lose sight of the fact that to be chosen was the highest honor imaginable. The sacrifice would be great but that was what made being chosen so deeply revered. Azrail could feel the energy changing and the anticipation from the others. As he remained on the edge of one and the descent to another world,he was a being of pure light and now would be reconstructed into earthy flesh and matter. A process that hurt like Hades. Most of his kind didn’t make the full trasition into flesh. Instead they reach out to humans through the veil between the worlds entering human space without actually being human. Some of his kind had been trapped in the earthly realm following their dash with the fallen. The rumor wasd if the most high was calling on Azrail now to actually go to earth that the cosmic clock was ticking. This mission required forces on the ground. It also required an acute understanding and compassion for humans that can only be acquired through human experience. If this didn’t shift the course of humans toward the Light then the planet would be plunged into darkness forever. Humans would be lost and the Source Of All That Is would start over again somewhere else. Azrail predicessions and mentors warned him that this mission was very dangerous. If he failed and the dark side won the balance between the darkness and and The Light would forever be tilted in favor of demonic forces. Azrael hated being vulnerable to the dark. Rebirth into the human world was no different from what Azrail imagined hunan birth to be. Azrail was to search for and find the girl. Celeste came home to find Brandon smoking a joint. Fighting with her had become Brandon’s national past time. Celeste sees demons and had been labeled crazy. Aunt Nicey was Celeste’s guardian - she was there for Celeste - paid her her bills from Celeste’s social security check and Brandon didn’t give her any BS. Celeste is contemplating suicide to just end everything. Celeste is tired of Brandon beating on her and belittling her. Celeste believes Brandon is going to kill her but the demon in Brandon kills him. Celeste goes to a bar and Azrail comes in and precedes to changes her life. Azrail tells Celeste he is an angel sent to protect her.Celeste teaches Azrail what he needs to know about how to live in the human world Eventually celeste believes Azrael's story even her part in it. Then Azrail and Celeste are off to go against evil.
I had mixed feelings about this book. There was too much extra stuff in the theology. I like that Celeste was definitely a different kind of heroine. I don’t think the writing in this book was great. There was also a lot of repetition. But I did like how the author showed the darker side of addiction and poverty. This was too slow moving for me. I felt I was being preached at sometimes. I thought Celeste changed too quickly. So as I said I had mixed feelings on this book.

This one came highly highly recommended.
I wish that I can have the same view point as others. I just..... didn't.
Paranormal. Sometimes it works. And then..... sometimes it just doesn't.

Thank you Loveswept/Netgalley for a chance at this book.

My review will be forthcoming and found over at Library Journal.

I had high hopes for this book. The premise was so intriguing. It's a male/male romance between mortal enemies. One hero is a blind, scarred vampire hunter; the other, is the War King vamp who slaughtered the hunter's entire family. It has two of my favorite tropes rolled into one, a scarred, tortured hero and a forbidden romance. It sounded dark and edgy and fully of sexy angst, and it was all of those things. But it didn't work for me.

I generally enjoy an enemies to lovers story. My problem with this one is that these two wanted to have hate sex and that is not my bag. I'm all about holding on to the idea of hating someone while falling in love with them against your better judgement and those messy feelings --including attraction-- leaking all over the place. That is not the same thing as wanting someone dead and still wanting to give them a blowjob. Does not compute.

I'll give the author credit for turning my expectations on their head a little. I thought Tzadkiel was going to be the villain in this piece, but we learn it's the hunter Benjamin's family that were the real monsters. They were exterminating vampires on a crusade... torturing them. Poor Benjamin was only a child. And though the War King did indeed kill Benji's family, it was because they kidnapped and nearly killed him first. Also, did I mention he's the reason Benjamin is blind?

Benjamin was too young to understand the fault his family played. He made it his life mission to slay vamps after his parents were slaughtered. He has good reason to hate vampires and Tzadkiel has every reason to hate hunters, especially Benjamin. Yet before they get to the part where they see each other's side of things, they already want to have sex with each other.

No.

I hated Tzadkiel's name. This sounds petty, I know, but it was a distraction for the entire book. So were the high end vocabulary words interspersed throughout the novel. I'm not going to stop reading to look up a word I don't know, and it pulls me out of the story every time.

The writer made it a point to acknowledge that she wanted to respect the blindness of Benji's character, yet we cheated it by allowing him to see in Tzadke-whatever's presence. I found Benji emotionally weak, and lacking in self-respect. And I didn't care about a single character in the story.

The sex that I expected to be super-sexy was just meh. There was like one sex scene and some oral.

To be fair, lots of people loved this on Goodreads. If you don't mind lust drenched in hate, you might like it to. But it wasn't for me.

I loved this new and unique take on a paranormal romance featuring a vampire and a vampire hunter. The enemies to lovers trope is one of my favorites and this went beyond any expectations I had going in. The author excels with world building to completely emerge you into the lives of Tzadkiel and Benjamin as well as weaves an epic romance that is surely one that cannot be rivaled.

A fantastic start to a new series I am more than looking forward to reading more from.

General feel? Surrender the Dark was highly enjoyable as far as the world building. Bravo to the author for finding a new spin to what sometimes can become a bit of a predictable plot. I also really applaud the way the enemies-to-lovers storyline was portrayed. Oftentimes when I read books with that specific premise, I find it lacking in the true hatred and anger that makes them enemies, and instead, find protagonists who are merely annoyed with each other with a underlying attraction that has keep the “feud” going. In this case, the hatred is there in neon lights, and understandably so, thanks to the prologue. I was a little meh about the romance aspect. That’s not to say it wasn’t there, the focus was just elsewhere, and so, when the “romance” portion came into play, it felt a little flat and maybe even a little rushed. Honestly, I was so involved in everything else happening it wasn’t a super big deal for me, though readers who like a lot of steamy on page scenes might be more let down.

Though blind, Benjamin is not completely in the dark, so to speak. Having the ability to read magical auras, he is able pinpoint mystical creatures. Still a hunter “born and bred”, despite his loss of sight, he has his own little rag-tag group that help him out with his fight against the Vampires. His desire to rid the world of the evil creatures that feed on blood and have no honor is strong and keeps him moving forward.

There is one Vampire, Tzadkiel, who has his sights set on taking out Benjamin to settle the score from twenty years prior, and exact his revenge. But, then things change. They are going sideways in the paranormal community, and unfortunately for Tzadkiel, Benjamin is the key to fixing it all. The two foes must pause their own personal vendettas to stop an unforeseen adversary, and actually spend time in each other presence, to figure out what the heck is going on, and how to fix it all. Thus, the beginning of a very complicated plot involving multiple magical factions, old feuds, new enemies, unanticipated allies and so much more. And…this is where my explanation of the rest of the book will stop. There are too many possible ways to accidently give up a spoiler due to the intricacies woven into this complex plot.

This was definitely a book I was not expecting, and am really glad I took the opportunity to snatch it up. It was heavy on the complex plot, filled with suspense and twists and turns, keeping me turning the page. Though similar in some ways to books which revolve around the hunter/vampire, enemies-to-lovers trope, this one definitely had a very unique world building which kept me on the edge of my seat. The epilogue sort of ties up some aspects of the plot, leaving a ton of possibility to continue on into the series. I look forward to finding out what happens next, because I have plenty of questions that I can’t ask here—it would give too much away!

I found this book awesome! I felt that the romantic parts and action balanced each other out since most action packed books and romance books would focus on one another more or at least draw them out through the entire book but this one it was balanced very well! I love the character Nix the most since she has looked after Ben for a good portion of his life and even shown how powerful she can be! I am hoping with the next one the story continues and shows what happened next to Akito and how he will tie in with Ben's and Tiziki's adventure.

3 "War King & Hunter Mine" Stars

Great 3rd person alternating POV world building for the series as it seems there will be 3 books each with its own couple & HEA. It reads like a series standalone. However unless Ms. Armstrong is going to flashback everything Akio goes thru for the next book, I would advocate reading this one first as you will need to see what all he went thru in this book before continuing his story in another.

For those of you who like a Enemies-to-Lovers Slow-Burn, this will be right up your alley. I'm more of an Insta-Love person myself. I was disappointed personally in this book as I had been very excited & had waited patiently to get my hands on it. Truthfully, I saw it taking a more dark turn into the enemy territory or some of those issues being more pronounced in darkening their relationship. I also also not a big angst fan unless there are Dark elements. This was angst all over the place. I was also a little put off by waiting to get to almost 60% b4 even a kiss & up to 70% for the author to get to some Smexy Time.

I also felt it was a little wordy for me. Ms. Armstrong is quite the Wordsmith & I'm ashamed to admit I had to look up a couple of words to get their meaning. I had to switch my brain from Plain Ole Regular Vampire to something totally new. There was also alot of magical elements to this story which led me further to confusion as I don't read that paranormal version very often.

So now let's get down to the Brass Tacks. I didn't totally enjoy this book but didn't hate it either. Kinda a Meh. I do think some of the reasons for my feelings may be that I looked forward to this book for awhile. Once I started instead of reading in a couple of days @ the most it took me 4 days to finish. I might read the next book, but not sure I will search & seek it out. I highly doubt I would ever read this again & it will not go down as a favorite in the least!

I received a free copy of this book on behalf of NetGally & voluntarily chose to post a review.

Book was too scattered and jumped around too much.

I had not read anything by this author before reading this book.

I read the back cover and was hooked.... How could the author manage to make Ben the vampire hunter and Tzadkiel the vampire that killed his family and blinded him go from enemies to lovers?

Ben's a hunter, from a long line of hunters, when Ben was eight, his parents and uncle were slaughtered by a vampire and he was blinded. Ben had to learn quick and he did..... For the last 20 years, Ben has hunted and killed as many vampires as he could find in his home town of Boston. He hunts with his two best friends, Nyx, who is part witch and part fae, and Akito, who has always wanted to be a superhero.

The vampire in question has been walking the earth for thousands of years, but the last 20 years Tzadkiel has been in hiding, trying to heal from his injuries that were inflicted by Ben's family. He has a plan, though, to get his strength back and also strengthen his mora (his vampire family) once again, he will need to take out the hunter in Boston.

Tzadkiel sets out to teach Ben a lesson before he ends his life, so he pretends to be a hunter like Ben, and to reeducate Ben in the art of vampire killing. He makes Ben's previous teachings from his family a sham, he puts doubt into Ben's mind. He makes him question his own background.

Ben and Tzadkiel and are very attracted to one another and neither of them can seem to stop it. But there is so much between them, that it takes a while before any real feelings emerge. There is a lot of hatred and mistrust.

But there is a power struggle going on in Boston that puts everyone in danger, there are zombies and strange goings on, so Ben and Tzadkiel decide that it's better the devil you know basis and form an uneasy alliance between them.

So will they have a happy ending? It was hard to believe they would, there was so much hatred and bad blood between them, I couldn't see how. So I won't tell you 😉you'll have to buy the book and find out yourself.

Post goes live 8 JUNE

This was a difficult book to give a rating too. I had to look at it in 2 different aspects – the overall plot and the chapter-to-chapter story.

I loved the overall plot. Tzadkiel is an ancient vampire, and what his mora does and who they are, is far different and yet also very similar to what we think of as vampires. I enjoyed his and Benji’s mutual attraction & antipathy. And the book came to a satisfying conclusion.

However, getting to that satisfying conclusion felt like crossing the Sahara desert without a camel, food, or water. I had a hard time caring what happened to either character for almost half the book. It was only when they agreed on a course to save Nyx & Akito that the story felt like it started for me. But even with seeing where the story was headed, I found moving on from each chapter almost too much. My attention kept wandering.

So while I loved the concept and the world Armstrong created, most of the time I had to push myself forward to finish.

Sadly this was a DNF and we will not be posting a review

This blurb really drew me, as this is the first in a new paranormal series. It’s m/m and it set up an enemies to lovers story:

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.

This book starts with showing a very young Benjamin, being taught that vampires are the most evil and vile of creatures, and because of his lineage – being a hunter – Benjamin must learn the steps of torturing and killing his victims. As his parents are out hunting, his uncle hands him a knife and tells him to kill the chained vampire. But through a series of events, Benjamin loses hold of his knife and the vampire breaks free. During the scuffle, acid is splashed onto Benjamin’s face, leaving him scarred and blind.

It’s a pretty brutal set-up, especially since the vampire that fought Benjamin is Tzadkiel. I couldn’t wait to see how these two were going to go from ultimate enemies, to lovers. As an adult, Benjamin is blind, but has a second sight of sorts due to his hunter blood line. His two best friends, one a witch and one human, help him hunt vampires and keep people safe. When Tzadkiel approaches him one night in a bar, Benjamin doesn’t realize who it is. Tzadkiel poses as another hunter….and things progress from here.

When the blurb mentions “his fierce, almost carnal attraction to the mystery man” there is no fierce, carnal attraction. There is a more “shrug of the shoulders” attraction. There is no “ravenous hunger.” What there is, is a lot of set-up and a story that fell too flat for me. I didn’t feel any danger or passion. And I wasn’t invested in either hero. I DNF’d at 35%.

Unfortunately, for me to connect with a PNR book, I have to enjoy the character's and it needs to grab my attention from the word go. This book, for me, was not one that did this. I could not get into this story so this one, for me, was a DNF.

This is an interesting start to a new series. It took me some time to get into this but I thought the story was engaging with well developed and creative characters, and a good story if you are a fan of paranormal books.

Benjamin is the last of the hunters, a family of people who kill vampires. Tzadkiel is the vampire leader who managed to escape from Benjamin's family but it was an escape that left Benjamin bereft of family and scarred for life, and not just physically.

Years later Tzadkiel recovers from his wounds to discover that Benjamin has continued his family's tradition of hunting and killing vampires and Tzadkiel vows to kill Benjamin and he nearly does so only to realise that there is a bigger enemy out there, one who is creating monsters that even Tzadkiel cannot control.

Hunter and vampire then become reluctant allies, united in their quest to defeat a common enemy but as they work together they begin to learn about each other and truths and lies are uncovered, but beyond their past and the present challenges is the growing desire that they have for each other.

I thought this was an interesting story with some good world building but some times the language used was just unnecessarily flowery. I managed to wade through those parts and they didn't spoil the book but I think less of these flowery descriptions enable the reader to engage with more of the story. I liked the way the story felt dark with shadowy characters from an unseen world, and twists and turns which emerge during the story.

I also enjoyed the way both the main characters were physically strong but had vulnerabilities and past hurts in their lives. This made their coming together quite difficult as each of them battled with his preconceptions and beliefs, only to see them crumble. The supporting characters are also interesting and some of them feature in the rest of the series which will provide an opportunity for us to spend more time with these characters. I liked the way the story uses the well know traditions of vampires, but creates something different from it. I also enjoyed the way the setting of Boston overlaps with the invisible parallel paranormal world.

It is a good story, with engaging characters and good guys who have been bad, and bad guys who are incredibly dark and verging on evil. A good start for a new trilogy.

Copy provided by Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Benjamin Fuller is a hunter, born with supernatural gifts to destroy vampires. He was blinded by the vampire king as a child, but the magic in his bloodline allows him to still see auras. This is one way he gets around Boston, and the other is that he had lived there all his life and knows the cadences of the city. The tragedy that blinded him led to his family's deaths and dealing with the trauma left him rather bitter and scarred. It doesn't stop him from feeling lust for the strange man that showed up at the bar he frequented, claiming to be another hunter. The stranger is actually the vampire king Tzadkiel himself, healed enough from the damage Benjamin's family had inflicted and hoping to regain the power he lost. Part of Tzadkiel's problem is that he desires Benjamin as much as he hates him, and needs him alive.

The story is characterized as a romance and is part of the Loveswept line. This isn't a romance in the classical sense, however. There isn't an exchange of heartfelt and tender moments, coy glances, or a misunderstanding that ultimately they overcome in order to be together. Ben and Tzadkiel are both headstrong and capable of being vicious. The two men have a lot of trauma to work through, and there is little enough trust once Tzadkiel's identity is revealed.

It's definitely an interesting take on vampirism in this book, as well as the inevitable conflict with werewolves, witches, and the fae. The plot is very involved and sucks you right into it. The relationship between the two men is a sharp, prickly thing, and nothing comes easily for the two of them. Ben's two best friends have their own issues and are just as well fleshed out as our two main characters. The same can't be said of the other vampires mentioned, or even The Morgan, who leads the coven of witches. Still, that goes largely unnoticed because of how much tension and action the plot carries.