Official Review: In Lost Dreams the Four Were Bound

[evraealtana]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "In Lost Dreams the Four Were Bound" by Bradley R. Blankenship.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Nerin Delvori is certain that his bloodline was meant to rule. His humanoid alien race has degenerated into frailty, but with the help of an ancient, trapped evil which has promised Nerin power in exchange for its freedom, he plans to seize planet-wide control and restore his race to glory. The only wrinkle in his plan is the existence of the Virage, an infamous, humanoid monster who has the power to stop Nerin in his tracks. When the Virage is suddenly located, injured and unconscious, Nerin moves to kill him and secure his own victory. It’s too bad for Nerin that it is his sister who is placed in charge of the Virage’s medical care and that the two of them share intimate past history. Now it is Nerin’s own sister who stands in his way, protecting the one man who could mean his downfall. And behind it all, the malevolent spirit entity still lurks, seeking dominion for itself.

In Lost Dreams the Four Were Bound, written by Bradley R. Blankenship, is the first volume in The Genean Chronicles. It is best described as an alien fantasy novel, although there are touches of true science fiction.

The author’s writing style is ornate, with abundant description and little explanation. This creates a story that is felt rather than read, with passages washing over the reader and providing emotion with few concrete events. The first third of the book contains very little plot, consisting mostly of elaborate dreams and descriptive exposition. I appreciated the depth of feeling Blankenship conveyed in his writing, although it did sometimes make the plot feel slow.

The storytelling could use some refining. The first and last chapters, as well as one chapter in the middle, concern the president of a highly advanced, technological society reporting to a hearing committee about a hacking incident. The remainder of the book tells the story of a medieval-level fantasy race grappling with evil magic being released from its cursed binding. I combed back through the seemingly out-of-place chapters in search of a connection to the remainder of the book, but found nothing. It felt as though the author was trying to tell two separate, very distinct stories at the same time, not even of the same genre. Other details, such as the tragic story of one character’s murdered fiancée, are also left hanging, with little to no connection to the remaining events. It is likely that this will be corrected in later books in the series, but in the meantime it makes for a jarring read.

Errors existed throughout the book, from misspelled words to missing punctuation and homophone confusion. The author’s writing is good, but that does not exempt the book from requiring the attentions of an editor.

There is gore and profane language, but no more than would be expected in a medieval fantasy novel. Sex, meanwhile, was abundant to an almost ludicrous degree. There was some sort of sexual content, if not a full-blown sex scene, in very nearly every chapter; this is impressive, given that the book contains a whopping 66 chapters. The content of these scenes was described alternately in flowery euphemism and in modern, vulgar slang. Prostitution, incest, pedophilia, and rape all featured prominently, each being displayed on multiple occasions. Additionally, most of the sex seemed entirely unrelated to the plot, existing merely for its own sake. I don’t mind reading sex scenes as a rule, but the extreme surfeit of it felt gratuitous to the point of obscenity.

In Lost Dreams the Four Were Bound earns a score of 2 out of 4 for its imaginative world-building and dramatic flair, even if it still needs refinement. It loses one star for its errors and a second for its incomplete storytelling and excessive lewdness. It would most appeal to lovers of alien fantasy who are willing to muddle through the confusion of a world created but not explained. It is absolutely not appropriate for children or teenage readers.

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In Lost Dreams the Four Were Bound
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[Faithy_Goody_Star]

Some of the themes explored here will make me not to enjoy this book but people who enjoy these themes will definitely find this book worthy to be read.

[Cynthia Olyy]

An author could be a good writer and could establish good storylines but if his work is riddled with errors, readers will never flow. I see such case in this book. Thanks for the honest review.

[Olabode Joshua]

Although I am a lover of sci-fi/fantasy stories, I can see why you rated this book the way you did. It needs another round of proofreading. Thank you for your review, Evraealtana.

[evraealtana]

Some of the themes explored here will make me not to enjoy this book but people who enjoy these themes will definitely find this book worthy to be read.

Yes, I felt the same way. I would have appreciated the warning. Thanks for reading!

[evraealtana]

An author could be a good writer and could establish good storylines but if his work is riddled with errors, readers will never flow. I see such case in this book. Thanks for the honest review.

Very true. Thank you for your insight

[evraealtana]

Although I am a lover of sci-fi/fantasy stories, I can see why you rated this book the way you did. It needs another round of proofreading. Thank you for your review, Evraealtana.

You are very welcome. Thanks for stopping by!

[NetMassimo]

This novel has a good potential, but it needs some more editing to attract readers, especially considering that it's the first book of a series. Thank you for your honest review!

[Hazel Arnaiz]

I appreciate the adequate warning about what to expect with the book. I hope the author addresses the concerns you mentioned and eventually finds an appropriate audience. Thank you for the balanced review.

[Jonathan chikwanda]

The novel is interesting.
It could have been even more Interesting if a movie was made about it.
Am a Christian and I have a feeling that this novel is predicting the future..


The novelist is trying to pass a massage to people on what demons or aliens are planning to do on Earth.
They have already created an army of humanoids using artificial intelligence that are going to work against God and humanity...
The created army of humanoids where made in such a way that they are twice as smart as humans..

This can be confirmed in the book of revelation chapter 12:16...

A movie about this would have been even more interesting to just give a clear picture about what is about to happen in future. Christians will understand exactly what I mean.

But great content

[Mirwalker]

The author could use some work on his grammar skills. However, I did appreciate that I can picture the story. Good job!

[JustineSophia2]

There seemed to be really interesting imagery used throughout the book. There were a number of errors which makes it a frustrating read at times. I really enjoyed the original storyline and descriptions in the book.

[HannahsReads]

These sounds like an extremely salacious scifi book. Thanks for your honest review.