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A review by taranana
A Song for No Man's Land by Andy Remic
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.