Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - In Memoriam

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In Memoriam by Alice Winn

14 reviews

shotsy15's review

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dark emotional sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

4.5

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zreadz's review

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dark emotional funny informative tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

“I cannot heave my heart into my mouth”

I picked up In Memoriam by Alice Winn on a whim after saving it some time ago. As a self-admitted history buff, the combination of WWI and rarely acknowledged romance stories intrigued me. The novel follows Ellwood, Gaunt, and a group of well-off English boys attending a private school, who find themselves suddenly thrust into the harsh realities of the First World War. We witness their transformation from adolescents fantasizing about battle to young men on the frontlines, growing up in the span of months—or even days.

The love story between Ellwood and Gaunt is beautifully written, capturing not only the romance but also the complexities of the world they inhabit. Despite the societal constraints of the era in regards to the LGBTQ+ community, at their core, they are just young men figuring out love and their place in a world that doesn’t seem to fit them—both before and after the war. At times, I found myself frustrated with their decisions and dialogue, but then reminded myself that they are not seasoned soldiers but young men grappling with a gut-wrenching reality.

My only critique lies with the portrayal of female characters, who felt underdeveloped and often reduced to being "easy" and overly emotional. This may be more a reflection of Winn’s ability to capture the mindset of young men of that era rather than a flaw in the writing itself. On the other hand, the secondary characters, especially fellow soldiers, were well fleshed out, adding richness to the narrative.

The vivid descriptions of war were both harrowing and immersive, pulling you deeper into the story. It’s evident that Winn extensively researched the historical backdrop, which brings authenticity to the fictional narrative. This novel played out in my mind like a film. Without giving away too much, I’ll just say that the use of poetry, emotion, and prose was masterfully done. Overall, In Memoriam was a fantastic read, and I would highly recommend it.

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razialise's review

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challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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anj's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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milliefitz's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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hannahduda's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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paulawind's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

To be perfectly honest, I expected more of a

kill your gays type of a situation

, especially considering time period,

but I’m so happy I was wrong! The more I think about it, it was the happiest ending that would be realistic in this situation.

We’ll always have Brazil, fuck the Old World.
This book was harrowing. I thought I was ready for the horrors of war after reading All Quiet on the Western Front, but this book only awoke my memories. Why do leaders decide to go to war when it is universally acknowledged that it is only bringing pain and suffering? And we do it all over again, for millennia. Maybe the Greeks got it more, when the war was more about man vs man rather than automated machines against civilians.
Coming to characters, side from them dropping like flies every other chapter, I think the author made us care about every (or almost every) death. The character development for both MCs was absolutely breaking my heart but

I’m so glad they found each other back in the end and are learning to love each other again

An almost complete emotional flip Gaunt and Ellwood did throughout the book hit me like a whiplash, but it was done in a way that it made sense. After all

Gaunt’s prisoners of war camp chapters were the most peaceful and cheerful of the entire book, whereas Elwood was facing bloodbath every day, seeing an orchestrated massacre on a daily basis

One of my favourite moments is when Elwood is screaming poetry at Gaunt, very blatantly professing his love in all meaning but the straightforward one, and Gaunt is so deep in denial that even thought he loved him desperately too, he can’t believe it’s really happening. Those characters in a nutshell. At least for the first part of the book. Later it would be Gaunt being gentle and endlessly patient with Elwood when he struggles to say anything at all and bursting in anger, fighting his ptsd. Gosh, I love those boys so much. Going to pretend that the book ended with “And they lived happily ever after”

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