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tomstbr's review against another edition
3.0
DNF. Good read and quite unique, but can't get myself through it with the other books I'm reading.
lezreadalot's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars. This was okay. At first I thought it might end up really working for me, because I generally find stories about World War I really horribly fascinating and sad, and easy to get drawn into. And this had a speculative bent, so even better! But I just... idk, I got nothing out of this. I didn't like the characters, the mythology wasn't written in a way that made it mean anything to me, and it felt extremely disjointed. I see that there are three book in this series, and I feel like it would have been better as one long book. Because where it ended... it's not even that it was a cliff-hanger; it was just supremely unsatisfying. As always, I found it interesting to get perspectives of the Great War, especially from men on the ground, but it wasn't enough to make me really enjoy this.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Tim Gerard Reynolds; no complaints there. This just wasn't for me, sadly. I very much doubt I'll continue the series.
Content warnings:
Listened to the audiobook as read by Tim Gerard Reynolds; no complaints there. This just wasn't for me, sadly. I very much doubt I'll continue the series.
Content warnings:
Spoiler
war, death, gore, blood, graphic injuries, etcnikolastoti's review against another edition
3.0
Not a great book, but a fun read. I had trouble with some choices the author made, especially on the vocabulary of the narrator. The characters were not very distinct and a bit boilerplate. But the setting is great and I love the idea of WWI with demons.
jarreloliveira's review against another edition
3.0
A very simple war story about pseudo-German soldiers (so we think) turned to flesh-eating beasts. What made it much more bazaar and frightening is that it took place during WWI; which means trench warfare. Just imagine the darkness, the midnight shrieks of pain, the footsteps, the random sniper taking someone's helmet off and their eyes along with it. It's quite eerie.
The monsters are two-fold. Both the mythical ones that devour men and the ones who wear uniforms and walk on two legs instead of four. In war, all men are monsters. Only the ones who win the battle and make it back get to call themselves "human" again.
The monsters are two-fold. Both the mythical ones that devour men and the ones who wear uniforms and walk on two legs instead of four. In war, all men are monsters. Only the ones who win the battle and make it back get to call themselves "human" again.
richardneary's review
4.0
Dark Fantasy set in the Trenches of WWI. Slight hint of Mythago Wood to this one.
taranana's review
4.0
”A Song For No Man's Land” by Andy Remic [4/5]
This is one of the novellas of tor.com. I read some in the past and I really like that there is a publisher who publishes novellas (without them being part of a popular series) frequently.
I really like historical fantasies and this has a very strong horror aspect to its fantasy elements. Remic delivers a gripping novella in a very dark setting.
War is hell
The setting in this novella is very well done. I like that this is set in World War I and not WW II (because I have read way too many historical novels dealing with WW II in the past) and I think the horror of the trenches, which is in no way romanticised (I kind of feared the author would show the reader a glorified view of war but that is fortunately not the case), added to the supernatural horror elements in this novella. The atmosphere of war is captured perfectly in descriptions of the attacks, death and misery in the trenches, and the (explicit) language of the soldiers.
All of the novella's POVs show the reader how dirty/dangerous/horrendous war is. I don't think there is a chance to say “war is a good/not that bad thing” when you have read this novella. I was very surprised by this as I think fantasy has a tendency to glorify fighting a war.
And you don't have to deal with humans only
The novella's supernatural elements are mythic creatures (I never heard of before reading this. But I asked Google and I think they are very interesting). They are of Scandinavian origin so I don't entirely get what they have to do with a British soldier but as this novella is the first in a series I hope the reader gets to know this in one of the future instalments. It feels like the monsters are pushing in our world and there are some really intense scenes in the flashbacks of the main character. The monsters are terrifying and may send a chill down your spine.
Human characters in an inhuman war
The characters are really important to this novella. There are three important characters and all of them provide three different perspectives on the war they are fighting in. Robert Jones is disillusioned by the reality of war and suffers from the situation he is in. But he is still able to do what he thinks he has to do. Bainbridge is the one soldier you will hear talking positively about his experiences in the trenches. You would probably call him a bit fanatic. But he is loyal to his friends and comrades. Webb is the one who would have preferred not being a soldier in the first place. He is frightened but he does as he is told. All of them seem to be real and are very human. They contrast the inhumanity of the monsters very well.
The POVs are depicted in different ways. Jones's perspective you get through diary entries but the others are 3rd person narration. Sometimes the jumping in the perspectives is a bit annoying and I don't know if three perspectives are not a bit much for such a short story.
A monstrous war
You are interested in a historical fantasy/horror story?
You are interested in a fictive account of the trenches not only with soldiers but also with monsters?
Don't look further. Try this novella.
This is one of the novellas of tor.com. I read some in the past and I really like that there is a publisher who publishes novellas (without them being part of a popular series) frequently.
I really like historical fantasies and this has a very strong horror aspect to its fantasy elements. Remic delivers a gripping novella in a very dark setting.
War is hell
The setting in this novella is very well done. I like that this is set in World War I and not WW II (because I have read way too many historical novels dealing with WW II in the past) and I think the horror of the trenches, which is in no way romanticised (I kind of feared the author would show the reader a glorified view of war but that is fortunately not the case), added to the supernatural horror elements in this novella. The atmosphere of war is captured perfectly in descriptions of the attacks, death and misery in the trenches, and the (explicit) language of the soldiers.
All of the novella's POVs show the reader how dirty/dangerous/horrendous war is. I don't think there is a chance to say “war is a good/not that bad thing” when you have read this novella. I was very surprised by this as I think fantasy has a tendency to glorify fighting a war.
And you don't have to deal with humans only
The novella's supernatural elements are mythic creatures (I never heard of before reading this. But I asked Google and I think they are very interesting). They are of Scandinavian origin so I don't entirely get what they have to do with a British soldier but as this novella is the first in a series I hope the reader gets to know this in one of the future instalments. It feels like the monsters are pushing in our world and there are some really intense scenes in the flashbacks of the main character. The monsters are terrifying and may send a chill down your spine.
Human characters in an inhuman war
The characters are really important to this novella. There are three important characters and all of them provide three different perspectives on the war they are fighting in. Robert Jones is disillusioned by the reality of war and suffers from the situation he is in. But he is still able to do what he thinks he has to do. Bainbridge is the one soldier you will hear talking positively about his experiences in the trenches. You would probably call him a bit fanatic. But he is loyal to his friends and comrades. Webb is the one who would have preferred not being a soldier in the first place. He is frightened but he does as he is told. All of them seem to be real and are very human. They contrast the inhumanity of the monsters very well.
The POVs are depicted in different ways. Jones's perspective you get through diary entries but the others are 3rd person narration. Sometimes the jumping in the perspectives is a bit annoying and I don't know if three perspectives are not a bit much for such a short story.
A monstrous war
You are interested in a historical fantasy/horror story?
You are interested in a fictive account of the trenches not only with soldiers but also with monsters?
Don't look further. Try this novella.
telegramsam's review
2.0
The writing in this book was good, though it was very much in the style of Hemingway, Joyce, or Stein, so your mileage may vary. It does reply on a lot pf profane language both in dialog and descriptions.
The story did not do a lot for me and did not engage me at all. I felt like there was nothing challenging the characters except WAR, which is a given. The narration also relies on war is horror, which we know. The story felt like it have anything new to it that I haven't read before.
The characters didn't engage me either. The two men were clearly written but there was nothing endearing or entertaining about them. It's also of note that no female character is given a name until the middle of the book when the main character becomes interested in one.
The one thing that interested me about this movie was the promise of something paranormal or supernatural and that didn't become clear until the last hour of the book. Through out the book, the story leans against the wall of Welsh mythology and maybe edges a toe in the door, but it isn't until the end of the story that it bothers to open the door. In this regard, it really felt like it should have been a .05 of a series and not the beginning of it.
I doubt I will be reading any sequels, although I may check out the author's other books as despite all the problems I've noted above, I kept reading the book.
The story did not do a lot for me and did not engage me at all. I felt like there was nothing challenging the characters except WAR, which is a given. The narration also relies on war is horror, which we know. The story felt like it have anything new to it that I haven't read before.
The characters didn't engage me either. The two men were clearly written but there was nothing endearing or entertaining about them. It's also of note that no female character is given a name until the middle of the book when the main character becomes interested in one.
The one thing that interested me about this movie was the promise of something paranormal or supernatural and that didn't become clear until the last hour of the book. Through out the book, the story leans against the wall of Welsh mythology and maybe edges a toe in the door, but it isn't until the end of the story that it bothers to open the door. In this regard, it really felt like it should have been a .05 of a series and not the beginning of it.
I doubt I will be reading any sequels, although I may check out the author's other books as despite all the problems I've noted above, I kept reading the book.
tregina's review
3.0
What I need to say upfront is this: this was not a book for me. I can recognise that it is well written, and that it has something to say, but it is essentially a soldier's tale of WWI with marginal speculative elements and that is just not a book for me. If that is a book for you, then I'll say that the descriptions of warfare, of the trenches and of the psychology of war, are very compelling, but the novella does feel a bit like a prologue for something yet to come.
jamesflint's review
1.0
some choice quotes:
The ground trembled like a virgin.
More of the dead, ejaculated into dreamless darkness.
No more women for Jones, no more whisky and willing, open legs.
basically the author is obsessed with sex metaphors. freud would have a field day.
The ground trembled like a virgin.
More of the dead, ejaculated into dreamless darkness.
No more women for Jones, no more whisky and willing, open legs.
basically the author is obsessed with sex metaphors. freud would have a field day.