Dreamwhisper

Information

Status

Hiatus

Year

2024

Author

csantner

• Chapter 25
  Nov 22, 2024
• Chapter 24
  Nov 16, 2024
• Chapter 23
  Nov 12, 2024
• Chapter 22
  Nov 10, 2024
• Chapter 21
  Nov 4, 2024
• Chapter 20
  Oct 28, 2024
• Chapter 19
  Oct 23, 2024
• Chapter 18
  Oct 20, 2024
• Chapter 17
  Oct 19, 2024
• Chapter 16
  Oct 15, 2024
• Chapter 15
  Oct 11, 2024
• Chapter 14
  Oct 6, 2024
• Chapter 13
  Oct 2, 2024
• Chapter 12
  Sep 29, 2024
• Chapter 11
  Sep 25, 2024
• Chapter 10
  Sep 19, 2024
• Chapter 9
  Sep 16, 2024
• Chapter 8
  Sep 11, 2024
• Chapter 7
  Sep 6, 2024
• Chapter 6
  Sep 3, 2024

Reviews

Community Reviews(7)

• longwindedone1Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  This review comes after reading the prologue and the first ten chapters of Dreamwhisper. I apologize for the numerous spoilers.
  Story:
  This story follows the MC, Silas. He encounters a Grimoire that grants him access to the powers of a Warlock. With the imp Xavi, they encounter all kinds of threats, as there is some political intrigue going down in Holmberg, but Silas must also be careful of his own ambitions. The backdop of the world is really deep, as is the development of Silas' power and relationships.
  Style:
  The overall tone of the story is fairly dark. There is a lot of focus on dark magic and the internal struggles of the MC. The author does a nice job trying to balance the story with world building, which isn't always easy. The point of view is third person, mostly focusing on Silas and his moral dilemmas regarding his growing powers.
  Grammar:
  The grammar is very clean, though I don't always notice the little errors as I listen to all of my RR content using the app. But this was well written with nary an error to be found.
  Characters:
  Silas is the MC, as I've said. I dig reading about his transformation into a Warlock. His relationship with Xavi the imp is the highlight of the story (IMHO). Xavi is funny and his humor is great to break up the darkness of the world. There is a fighter named Kara who aids Silas, a Baron and a Councilman mentioned. Kara, I think, will become integral to the story. Her role deepens in chapter 9.
  My favorite parts are, of course, Xavi’s humor. I love it when he mocks Silas. My other favorite is their battle with the Elder Kniphorn. Read this story for the magic and cool creatures that the author has in store for you. Read this story for Xavi's humor. You won't be disappointed. 5/5
• Gus WhitehallRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Style:
  The style shown in the writing is without a doubt one of the strong suits of this story. The author is punchy where they need to be, but they also know when and how to bring out the long descriptions to paint a vivid picture of the setting or flesh out the magic system/mechanics. Overall, very well written, to the level that I would expect a traditionally-published novel to be.
  Grammar:
  I'm only five chapters in, but I haven't encountered any spelling or grammatical errors so far. Even if they didn't say it in their author's notes, I would've been able to tell that they spent some quality time editing these chapters.
  Story:
  I'm just getting started, but I think the story has a lot of potential. There's nothing revolutionary going on (yet), but there's a solid foundation in these first few chapters that can easily be built on to create something special.
  Character:
  The closest thing I have to a critique is that some of the dialogue feels a bit flat in these early chapters. No big deal -- many characters start out fairly one-dimensional and then depth is added as the story goes on.
  Overall:
  Overall, it's a really solid start, and I look forward to seeing how it continues.
• geekkingRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I love this book so far. From the get-go I was hooked. It completely sucks you in and you want more and more from the first chapter. I don't normally write reviews because I'm a habitual lurker, but I had to for this one.
  -Style-
  The writing style is fun and unique. It is very well written and full of exciting twists. The magic and skill system has a slight twist on traditional which makes it interesting and fun. The amount of detail is perfect, just enough to give you the picture but not too much like you find sometimes.
  If I had to say a negative, I would say there are some phrases that are used frequently at first but that doesn't last long.
  -Grammar-
  Grammar is grammar. I'm no writer but I found no issues that I picked up on other than a couple typos.
  -Story-
  The story builds quickly and holds the line. You get dropped into a world full of magic and mystery and it keeps you on the edge chapter to chapter. I haven't read a warlock-based book before, and I don't know why more aren't written. It's a class that is completely missed and I'm so happy I found something I didn't know I was looking for. I love how well the foreshadowing is blended in and even though only 23 chapters have been posted, it kept up the whole time. I can't wait for more.
  I don't understand the mind wiping thing that has been brought up a few times but with the author's abilities with foreshadowing, I'm sure it will play a big part later.
  -Characters-
  Now this was my favorite part. The characters and relationships are well designed and well written. I really like how you can see the relationship and respect between Silas and Xavi growing as they progress. The subtle ways you see their bond building shows a great attention to detail and forethought. Even the side characters are well throughout and have backstories.
  -Overall-
  Overall, I love the story, I love the characters, I really like the humor and the bloody battles. I can't want to see how the story unfolds.
• C.M.M.IdyllwildRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 4.5

  1. STYLE: The style is a strong point of this story, balancing action, humor, and moments of introspection. As soon as we get a few chapters in, the story develops a cinematic quality, with vivid descriptions of both the fights and the settings in which they occur. The pacing does a good job of keeping the reader engaged, and there is a good balance between dialogue and description. My one recommendation for future work might be to put internal monologue in italics rather than single quotation marks, as visually it can be hard to catch one tick versus two, leading to an inadvertent, "Saying the quiet part out loud," situation.
  2. STORY: This is another strong point. The premise is not only interesting, but well-executed in the particulars. The tropes are there, but not in a cliche way, but rather a satisfying, "Yes, this feels right," sort of way. The magic system is straightforward without being boring. Most importantly, no suspension of disbelief had to be deployed at any point in the plot given the existing premise! That's indicative of very solid plotting and worldbuilding.
  3. GRAMMAR: Grammar is this story's Achilles' Heel. There are systemic quotation mark and comma errors throughout the text, and it kept jarring me out of what was otherwise really excellent dialogue. I was confused as to how this could occur in an AI-assisted story, so I ran it through ChatGPT. Lo and behold, ChatGPT does not catch these errors. This is still a task for humans, it seems. Color me surprised, I figured AI would be great at it.
  4. The characters, and the dialogue they have with each other, are the strongest part of the story. None of them are cliche; their motivations are unique and well-conveyed. The anti-hero protagonist has a compelling rationale for doing what he is doing; his actions are understandable even when they aren't excusable, and nobody is giving him a free pass for it. What other reviewers have read as "blank slate" I am reading as "subtlety" and I like it.
  Overal
• BlueShearRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 4.5

  TL;DR Version:
  Ever wonder what happens when a society that hasn’t seen a battle-mage in centuries is suddenly greeted with a green fire slinging, word of power speaking, god damn motherf@#%ing warlock? Utter mayhem, that’s what!
  ———————
  Character: A bit of a blank slate, though this was clearly done on purpose. Stripped of his memories when he was excommunicated from his family, our main character is driven by one thing and one thing only—the dreams of power that’ve been haunting him for years. And while parts of the main character’s past remain a total mystery, not only to us, but to the character himself, it only leaves me more excited for what’s to come. Wondering just what noble house let this warlock in the making go. And what exactly might happen were they to be reunited...
  Story: The sacrifice of an “innocent” soul in exchange for power instantly sets the tone of this story. And the introduction of a cheeky little imp companion out, not only for blood, but for mass casualties, immediately puts the plot into gear. Making enemies, no matter how unintentionally, with the Baron of the region basically on sight doesn’t help matters any, made all more concerning given the power and influence he wields. And while all the main character really wants is to settle down and get a handle on his newfound magic, it’s clear that he will not be given such a luxury. Not if the Baron has anything to say about it.
  Style: Concise and to the point. I particularly enjoyed the fight scenes. I thought they were well choreographed and detailed. Apart from that, I’d say it unobtrusively gets the job done.
  Grammar: Unfortunately, I did note a number of errors and discrepancies. Likely the result of autocorrect, if personal experience is of any indication. There were instances of a mistake in word choice—no doubt looking like the intended word but making no sense in context. As well as a few minor things here and there. If I could, I would suggest the author put their chapters through
• Resigned DilettanteRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 4.0

  Starting with what I liked best, which would fall under style/ story. In the first chapter I really got a feeling of being deep underground with tons of rocks over you with no one around except an eldritch horror. Great stuff, hard to do.
  There was a few things regarding style that brings it a little down. Like a moment in the first chapter that rapidly shifted viewpoints and left me a bit disorientated. However that seems to be a one off thing. Also there is room to improve in word choice and occasionally obvious ways to have more impactful sentence structure, but otherwise it's fine.
  Story is good, though I don't really know where it's heading. The most interesting stuff is in the place he just left. I'm certain things will loop around and the plots will meet up, but right now it seems like the protagonist is doing everything he can to move away from the plot and I don't get a sense that he'll care much once he goes back to it. There is also a sense that the main character was a very proactive character before the story, but now is being very reactive. Though that isn't that big of deal.
  Grammar has some problems, but nothing too bad. A few shifting tenses or awkward word choices, but nothing persistently annoying.
  Characters are a mixed thing. There is a strong sense of at least some of them, but sometimes it seems like there's a sudden shift of personality for a scene. Which in a way is a good sign since that is only noticeable because there was already a well established notion of who the character was, but it is also jarring. Especially the villain. Between the two times we see him he goes from a reasonable, understanding and highly insightful mastermind just playing the game like everyone else, to a crazed killer who throws away an asset in a fit of pique.
  On a whole though it's pretty good and I'll be following along for at least a while
• PlusiaRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 3.5

  This story absoleutly sucks you in from the beginning! Its layered with mystery and intrigue, magic and plots, and blended together incredibly well.
  From a style perspective, it is strong. It stands on its own as something versatile well-written and immersive. It's something that completely elevates the story! My only issue is some jokes or phrases are repeated a little frequently, but it’s not a bad thing — far from it, actually.
  Speaking of story, this piece is paced-well, blending cutthroat characters and tempting powers all into one. Its actually very impressive how well it balances its tone and establishes foreshadowing, and, frankly I can't wait to read more because of it.
  Next, onto grammar. The grammar was well-done and had no flaws I picked on.
  Finally, onto characters. The section where I gush the most. These characters are great and by the far the strongest part of the piece. From Xiva, the fiendish little imp, to Silas himself — long-suffering for being mistaken for a mage and mangled up in affairs he doesn't understand — ever character brings so much to the narrative, however briefly.
  Overall, this story is compelling, funny and action-packed, full of wit and heart and humor. With an incredibly developing plot and equally interesting characters, I can't wait to see where it goes.