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skylar_cr_wolf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
“In this war he’s a god, Ellwood.” He put his face into his hands. “You’ve brought the anger of gods upon us.”
First of all, I need to thank two people kindly for recommending this book to me: Kieran and Harvey.
Thank you two for being part of this journey and being okay with me sharing my inner thoughts about this novel while I read and cried about it.
And now to the novel:
It is more than I can express. And I mean it. The entire topic of world wars is something which usually keeps me away from reading a novel, however, I am glad that it didn’t scare me away this time. Because while WWI is a major point in this book, it is not the central part. The main focus is on friendships and complicated romance, especially as a queer person in the 1910s to early 1920s. It is about how you change through being tormented by the ongoing war and how it changes also the connections you have to people. It is about the loss of them as well.
Another point which I liked but also surprised me a bit is the accuracy of languages. At least for the German part I can say that it is incredibly accurate. It was astonishing to see a novel which is mostly written in English to depict a fair share of languages in such an accurate form. As someone who is a bit of a lingual nerd (not as big as I used to) find this extremely marvellous.
I could say so much more. How much I love Gaunt and Ellwood. How much my heart still aches because of Sandys and how much I enjoyed the friendships between Gideon and Gaunt too. How much I will miss their journey and look forward to read it again at some other time.
And maybe this time I will be better prepared with enough tissues for farewells.
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Death, Gun violence, Animal death, and War
Moderate: Blood, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Suicide, Confinement, and Bullying
pnwbibliophile's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: War, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Gore, Violence, Death, and Gun violence
Minor: Homophobia, Classism, and Xenophobia
prachibhutada's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, War, and Violence
Minor: Suicide
katiedyer80's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Gun violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail
zara89's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Grief, Homophobia, Blood, Violence, and War
Moderate: Gun violence, Death of parent, Confinement, Chronic illness, Alcohol, Cursing, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Torture, Sexual content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, Death, Bullying, Suicide, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, and Forced institutionalization
catpolhamus's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: War, Gun violence, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Suicide, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Grief, and Gore
willow_thewisp's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual content, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, War, Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Violence, Colonisation, Confinement, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Alcohol, Body horror, Child death, Classism, Death, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Self harm, and Suicide
lottykarottie's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Classism, Death, Alcohol, Colonisation, Cursing, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Blood, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Homophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Outing, Panic attacks/disorders, and Rape
zjanda's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I was moved to tears several times, more by the friendships developed and change on the frontlines than the central romance..
Well crafted, touching, unflinching, and bleak. Strongly recommend you read the trigger warnings. Reading before bed gave me nightmares.
Graphic: Gun violence, Gore, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, and Violence
cyrus_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Gun violence, and War