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transportation's review
1.5
The book occasionally said something smart and philosophical, but other than that, the plot was predictable, the characters bland and unexplored and there was mostly telling not showing. The whole plot consisted of the characters going somewhere, accidentally meeting someone who know how to solve their problems or explained a part of the plot twist, the main characters themselves basically didn't do anything useful. Oh and the romantic relationships between the main characters were unnecessary and shallow
veronica_b's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
morgandief13020's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
valedeoro's review
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I took a day off work to finish the book - it's that good.
amongstchaosshereads's review
'You won't find out if you give up. ' Because that is what it comes down to with melancholia and despair: just as other people lie when they tell you things always get better, your mind lies when it tells you that it doesn't. The only way to know is to stay and find out ... as hard as it might be.”
This was SO good .. I absolutely bloody loved it!!
I loved the mix of the horror elements and fantasy. It was the perfect blend of the two!
The world building blew me away - I could literally picture everything so SO vividly!
The plot was interesting and compelling - I have never read anything like it before.
The magic systems and the dream worlds was fascinating.
The characterisation was just utterly brilliant - Dreams of the dying is quite a slow burn, character driven book so may not be for everyone but for me it was just
This was SO good .. I absolutely bloody loved it!!
I loved the mix of the horror elements and fantasy. It was the perfect blend of the two!
The world building blew me away - I could literally picture everything so SO vividly!
The plot was interesting and compelling - I have never read anything like it before.
The magic systems and the dream worlds was fascinating.
The characterisation was just utterly brilliant - Dreams of the dying is quite a slow burn, character driven book so may not be for everyone but for me it was just
popthebutterfly's review against another edition
4.0
Disclaimer: I received this book from the author. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Dreams of the Dying
Author: Nicolas Lietzau
Book Series: Enderal Book 1
Rating: 4/5
Diversity: Many LGBT+ characters
Recommended For...: fantasy, horror, mystery, thriller
Publication Date: October 20, 2020
Genre: Fantasy
Recommended Age: 16+ (romance, violence, gore, mental illness, horror)
Publisher: Indie Published
Pages: 728
Synopsis: Years after a harrowing war experience, ex-mercenary Jespar Dal’Varek has taken to drifting. It’s a lonely existence, but barring the occasional bout of melancholia, he has found the closest thing to peace a man like him deserves. Life is “all right.”
Or so he tells himself. Hoping to turn the page, Jespar accepts a mysterious invitation into the beautiful but dangerous archipelago of Kilay—and everything changes. Plagued by boiling social tensions and terrorism, the tropical empire is edging ever closer to civil war. Kilay’s merchant king may be the only one able to prevent this catastrophe, but he has fallen into a preternatural coma—and it’s Jespar’s job to figure out who or what caused it. As the investigation takes him across the archipelago and into the king’s nightmares, unexpected events not only tie Jespar’s own life to the mystery but also unearth inner demons he believed to be long exorcised.
Battling old trauma while fighting for his life, his sanity, and the fate of Kilay, the line between dream and reality blurs further and further, until only one question remains: If your mind is the enemy, where do you run?
A unique blend of fantasy, mystery, and psychological horror, Dreams of the Dying is a haunting exploration of mental illness, morality, and the dark sides of humanity.
Review: For the most part this was a well done book. The book did well with having an unique plot with many diverse characters. I loved the symbolism and I thought the plot was promising. The book also had well done world building.
However, I did think that the characters weren’t as developed as they could have been and some of them were not as personable as other characters. I also thought the book was a bit too slow and that that the way the story was written was a bit wonky.
Verdict: It’s really good!
Book: Dreams of the Dying
Author: Nicolas Lietzau
Book Series: Enderal Book 1
Rating: 4/5
Diversity: Many LGBT+ characters
Recommended For...: fantasy, horror, mystery, thriller
Publication Date: October 20, 2020
Genre: Fantasy
Recommended Age: 16+ (romance, violence, gore, mental illness, horror)
Publisher: Indie Published
Pages: 728
Synopsis: Years after a harrowing war experience, ex-mercenary Jespar Dal’Varek has taken to drifting. It’s a lonely existence, but barring the occasional bout of melancholia, he has found the closest thing to peace a man like him deserves. Life is “all right.”
Or so he tells himself. Hoping to turn the page, Jespar accepts a mysterious invitation into the beautiful but dangerous archipelago of Kilay—and everything changes. Plagued by boiling social tensions and terrorism, the tropical empire is edging ever closer to civil war. Kilay’s merchant king may be the only one able to prevent this catastrophe, but he has fallen into a preternatural coma—and it’s Jespar’s job to figure out who or what caused it. As the investigation takes him across the archipelago and into the king’s nightmares, unexpected events not only tie Jespar’s own life to the mystery but also unearth inner demons he believed to be long exorcised.
Battling old trauma while fighting for his life, his sanity, and the fate of Kilay, the line between dream and reality blurs further and further, until only one question remains: If your mind is the enemy, where do you run?
A unique blend of fantasy, mystery, and psychological horror, Dreams of the Dying is a haunting exploration of mental illness, morality, and the dark sides of humanity.
Review: For the most part this was a well done book. The book did well with having an unique plot with many diverse characters. I loved the symbolism and I thought the plot was promising. The book also had well done world building.
However, I did think that the characters weren’t as developed as they could have been and some of them were not as personable as other characters. I also thought the book was a bit too slow and that that the way the story was written was a bit wonky.
Verdict: It’s really good!
pandakitties's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
noldorin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
To start this review I think it's important to note that I seem to have the first version of this book, before the author had to change the series to "Twelfth World". From what I understood, as I'm unfamiliar with the community linked to Enderal and the book in itself, this means my version is far less polished than the newest one.
This means my review is probably not accurate to the current edition of Dreams Of The Dying.
I absolutely loved it and that's a fact, from the very first chapter I was hooked and just kept reading and reading without ever feeling bored once.
What contributed to this is the worldbuilding and the disturbing details, especially in the dreamworld.
I did like the characters and how they were written however it did feel like, aside from Jespar, everyone was just there.
I really enjoyed the way the book talks about mental health as well as the general political setting of the plot. When it came to the extreme guilt, PTSD and depression, it didn't paint any of it softly and it was to me a pretty raw description of the uglier side of it which was great.
That being said, near the very end, Jespar was getting on my nerves a bit, obviously his whole character has heavy problems resting on his shoulder but the sudden extreme break with pages of him self deprecating just felt a tad too much.
I did feel the writing to be slightly messy on some parts, mainly with an overload of informations on the world. It was hard to keep up with absolutely everything that was sometimes thrown out at the reader.
It also sometimes had some expressions that were very out of place considering the setting of it all and it was breaking the writing and "immersion".
To add to this I do think the way the bit of romance is written was falling too much into instalove and while this can be seen as Jespar's indecision and rashness or such, it just was a bit too underwhelming.
As far as the ending is concerned I was feeling disappointed with how things went with Kawu while I can understand it to some degree it just wasn't that fulfilling of an ending and left me confused and underwhelmed, again.
This means my review is probably not accurate to the current edition of Dreams Of The Dying.
I absolutely loved it and that's a fact, from the very first chapter I was hooked and just kept reading and reading without ever feeling bored once.
What contributed to this is the worldbuilding and the disturbing details, especially in the dreamworld.
I did like the characters and how they were written however it did feel like, aside from Jespar, everyone was just there.
I really enjoyed the way the book talks about mental health as well as the general political setting of the plot. When it came to the extreme guilt, PTSD and depression, it didn't paint any of it softly and it was to me a pretty raw description of the uglier side of it which was great.
That being said, near the very end, Jespar was getting on my nerves a bit, obviously his whole character has heavy problems resting on his shoulder but the sudden extreme break with pages of him self deprecating just felt a tad too much.
I did feel the writing to be slightly messy on some parts, mainly with an overload of informations on the world. It was hard to keep up with absolutely everything that was sometimes thrown out at the reader.
It also sometimes had some expressions that were very out of place considering the setting of it all and it was breaking the writing and "immersion".
To add to this I do think the way the bit of romance is written was falling too much into instalove and while this can be seen as Jespar's indecision and rashness or such, it just was a bit too underwhelming.
As far as the ending is concerned I was feeling disappointed with how things went with Kawu while I can understand it to some degree it just wasn't that fulfilling of an ending and left me confused and underwhelmed, again.
reliures's review against another edition
5.0
Such an incredible read !
I loved the tropical island setting with elements of Polynesian and Mesopotamian culture. One of the most original world building I’ve seen.
The magic system was also very original, especially the dreamwalkers. All the moments taking place in the dreamworld were particularly great to read, the creepy and otherworldly atmosphere of it were superbly written.
The MC Jespar himself was really well written, he did some shitty things yet had gone through some bad things himself; he had so many self hate yet there was something pathetic about him. He’s a complex character but I’m happy the way his arc ended.
Judging by the authors acknowledgement at the end, mental illness was a theme he really wanted to address in the book. I’m not a specialist so I’m not sure how correctly this book portrays mental illness but I think it’s really nice thing to see it being talked about especially in a genre like fantasy.
I also liked the fact that Jespar is bi, because it’s not something you come across regularly in fantasy books.
The other characters were all very interesting and fleshed out! I loved Lysia, Kawu, Maadira and Agaam especially.
The writing was really good too and the plot was well structured I didn’t feel bored or overwhelmed with info dumps.
I’m looking forward to read future books from this series!
I loved the tropical island setting with elements of Polynesian and Mesopotamian culture. One of the most original world building I’ve seen.
The magic system was also very original, especially the dreamwalkers. All the moments taking place in the dreamworld were particularly great to read, the creepy and otherworldly atmosphere of it were superbly written.
The MC Jespar himself was really well written, he did some shitty things yet had gone through some bad things himself; he had so many self hate yet there was something pathetic about him. He’s a complex character but I’m happy the way his arc ended.
Judging by the authors acknowledgement at the end, mental illness was a theme he really wanted to address in the book. I’m not a specialist so I’m not sure how correctly this book portrays mental illness but I think it’s really nice thing to see it being talked about especially in a genre like fantasy.
I also liked the fact that Jespar is bi, because it’s not something you come across regularly in fantasy books.
The other characters were all very interesting and fleshed out! I loved Lysia, Kawu, Maadira and Agaam especially.
The writing was really good too and the plot was well structured I didn’t feel bored or overwhelmed with info dumps.
I’m looking forward to read future books from this series!
phaedraismyusername's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
As much as I enjoyed this one I found some of the language choices extremely immersion breaking as they seemed misplaced compared to the general setting of the book. I also wanted to swap back and for between the ebook and the audiobook to help break up the length a little but the two versions were super different in both lore and content which was disappointing