BOOK REVIEW 📖

The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden
Pub Date: Feb 13th
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Synopsis: 1918: Laura Iven is a field nurse during WWI who was sent home to Halifax after an injury leaving her brother, Freddie, behind fighting in Belgium. When she receives word that he is missing and presumed dead, she decides to return to Flanders to volunteer at a private hospital and try to uncover the truth about her brother. Once she arrives in the Forbidden Zone, rumors swirl about hauntings and a mysterious entity known as The Fiddler who leads soldiers into madness.

Thoughts: What an incredible story! I was fully captivated right away and could not put it down. Told in dual viewpoints/timelines, we follow Laura’s journey to search for her brother as well as Freddie’s fight to survive amongst the horrors of the battlefield. Both main characters were compelling and felt fully fleshed out. Arden’s writing is evocative and atmospheric, transporting the reader to the front lines of WWI. I could definitely tell that she put a great deal of effort into her research for this book. She manages to portray the harsh reality of the worst of wartime humanity while weaving in themes of hope and survival. The ghostly aspect fits in seamlessly and believably (I can’t imagine a more likely place to be haunted than the battlefields she describes). I can’t stop thinking about this darkly beautiful and haunting story, and I highly recommend picking up a copy asap!

Read this if you like:
🪞historical fiction
🪞speculative fiction
🪞dual pov/timelines
🪞atmospheric setting
🪞ghosts

Thanks to @netgalley and @delreybooks for the advanced copy!

I LOVED the Winternight trilogy and really enjoyed the creepy Small Spaces series so was looking forward to reading this book, especially after seeing the author's social media posts calling this novel "The Fiend" due to its difficulty to write. It is definitely a different kind of book from her earlier works but it has some similarities as it is set during real events with a fantastical twist.

The book follows Laura Iven, a field nurse during WWI who was discharged after being wounded. She is back at home in Halifax while her brother Freddie is fighting in Flanders. She receives a package with his personal effects saying that he was dead but something didn't make sense. Laura returns to Belgium as a volunteer nurse for a private hospital, hoping to gather more information about her brother. Freddie wakes up in an overturned pillbox with a wounded enemy soldier. They form an alliance and dig their way out. They find a man who appears to have some power to make the trauma of the trenches disappear. Can Laura and Freddie find each other again?

The author writes in an afterword that this wasn't an easy book to write and it wasn't the easiest book to read either. The writing is not as flowy as in her other books, but with shorter and choppier sentences. The subject matter is grim and there are plenty of descriptions of the hell of war. It is a book about trauma, loss, love and finding hope in the dark places. Another excellent story from Katherine Arden. I hope that the next book comes a little easier for her.

I’ll start by saying I was already a fan of Katherine Arden going Into this book. Her writing Is so lyrical and poetic, and I found that to be as such for this book as well.

TWHOG takes place during the tail end of World War I (1917-1918) and follows the main character, Laura, an honorably discharged nurse. Laura Is home In Halifax, Nova Scotia when a tragic event occurs. Without giving much away, she finds her way back to Europe In search for the truth of what happened to her brother, Freddie.

I loved this book so much, there were many a times tears welled up In my eyes. Devastating, yet beautiful.

I received a complimentary electronic copy of this exceptional WWI novel from Netgalley, the author Katherine Arden, and Sabrina Shen at penguinrandomhouse.com. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read The Warm Hands of Ghosts of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. I love Katherine Arden's novels and am always pleased to have another of her works. Still, this one is exceptional in this genre, giving us an uninhibited look into the effects of WWI on both troops and citizens in and from all of the affected countries. I highly recommend it to family and friends - this was Grandpa Robert Daniel Ketner's war, he served through the whole thing, from Africa to France. Some of his stories are reflected here, so all my cousins need to read it, as do their children. This war, the Great War, was an atrocity but the War to End All Wars. We know how that went, but you can't detract from the participant's conception that they were ending war as we knew it for all time. And their sacrifices still ring true.
Netgalley
pub date Feb 13,2024
1 like

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy. I am a bit torn on this one. It is beautifully written and it is evident that a lot of research and work went into the book, but something about it didn't work for me even though I generally love historical fiction with some magical elements. I think the characters fell flat and that, combined with a very slow plot, made for a bit of a slog until about 70-75% in. I also think the magical/fantastical element of the story needed more of an explanation at the end to tie everything together.

From the post-blast shores of Halifax to the frontline of the trenches of WWI, Katherine Arden paints a vivid picture of the world in 1917/1918, and then skillfully adds a dash of the supernatural to this dark and uncertain time. The Warm Hands of Ghosts follows two siblings, Laura and Freddie, one a nurse and the other a frontline fighter, who are caught up in the destructive impact of the first world war and eventually must face an unnatural force that preys on desperation. The amount of research and careful character work Arden does here to bring this work to life is clearly evident, and fans of her earlier work will see that her skills have not faded since her last book. There are some parts of the book that can drag on a little bit, and I wasn't sure how sold I was on the finer details of the supernatural elements of the story, but I loved the way everything came together in the end and came away impressed.

Fans of Katherine Arden's Winternight trilogy will need to adjust their expectations to this more grounded setting of war, but very few people will be walking away from this novel disappointed.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I always enjoy historical fiction. On the other hand, I couldn't quite get into this story/characters. It was a little unclear of the supernatural component and this just wasn't a favorite.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC.

I adore Katherine Arden's writing and I'll read any adult novel she writes even if I'm not particularly interested in the subject (i.e WW1 historical fiction). I'm admittedly not a historical fiction girly and struggled a little bit though this story wondering when the Fantasy part would show up. Which is about the 50% mark as the ghosts and devils that haunt the front. The last 20% of this book I was sold, crying my eyes out.

An overall fantastic portrayal of the hell that is war and how love can pull you through without leaving you whole.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I’m so torn about this rating after finishing the author’s note, as it offers a poignant reflection of why the Great War and how meticulous Arden was in her research: how it stands less remembered in the shadow of WWII, generals in chateaus as soldiers languished in the rotting trenches, its undercurrent of influence in fantasy works like Tolkien's, and as the turning point of modern history. The premise was promising, but the pacing really challenged me until maybe the 70% mark of the story.

The Warm Hands of Ghosts follows distinguished nurse, Laura, and her quest to unravel the unusual circumstances of her brother’s disappearance in the trenches of WWI. The narrative interweaves the siblings’ plot lines, but I found Freddie’s story far more developed and engaging than Laura’s, and it made the first half of the book a slog. Speculative elements also occur later, making it read as a regular historical novel for longer than I’d like. Which is a shame because when pacing picks up at the end, the themes and character relationships become compelling: on the horrors of warfare and remembering, and the way love impacts our ability to keep on.

By the end, I really appreciated the characters, but wished there was more time spent going deeper on their relationships and truly getting to know them. In addition, I wish the speculative elements and religious overtures had culminated in something greater and more overt (not in a preachy sense, but in the apocalyptic sense); instead it’s more light atmosphere when it could’ve enhanced thematic impact. Overall, it’s like the parts were all there, but they just hadn’t completely come together yet. Other reviews have mentioned the writing style is different from Arden’s other works (I found the prose weirdly clipped and at times unclear), so I’m eager to see how the Winternight Trilogy goes or other future works.

However, I want to be clear! This isn’t a bad read by any means and Arden is vastly talented as a writer. I just think this narrative’s pacing didn’t work with me and I had high expectations given the author’s reputation.

I wanted to love this so badly. The idea is so good but the execution lacked. I very much didn’t care about Laura or her group of girlfriends. I found myself slogging through her chapters and skimming full paragraphs just to get back to Freddie and Winter’s storyline, which was a delight. In the end I enjoyed it but would’ve loved it if Laura wasn’t even in it and it solely focused on Freddie. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5/5 stars rounded up. Katherine Arden became one of my favorite authors last year after I read the Winternight Trilogy and The Warm Hands of Ghosts was one of my most anticipated releases of 2024. Katherine Arden did not let me down. This book is an absolute tour de force! Now, if you are looking for something similar to The Winternight Trilogy, this is definitely not that. The Warm Hands of Ghosts is a historical novel set during World War I with speculative twist. Ghosts and a mysterious man named Faland haunt the front lines, turning men mad. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and was completely engrossed in the setting which Katherine Arden expertly describes in a way that makes you feel as if you are there. I loved these characters and felt so much angst while reading, desperately wanting them to be safe but seeing the danger around every corner. I did have a hard time getting immersed into the story for the first few chapters but that was probably a me thing. Once I did get engrossed though, this book was hard to put down! This is a deeply emotional read and a story that has stayed with me since I finished the last page. I highly recommend this book!

4.5/5
Thanks to Del Rey Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

"But there was nothing detached about his music. It reached a clawed hand right inside Freddie's forgotten heart, alive with things he was too wounded to feel anymore. Regret, tenderness. It was beautiful, and it hurt so much."

This is a story that will stay with you long after you finish. As a fan of Katherine's other series and after following the long, difficult process for her to get this written, it is so, so worth the wait. This is a visceral, achingly beautiful story of a woman's search for her missing brother during WW1. And because it's Katherine, there is a supernatural element to the story. Laura is a former combat nurse who had returned home to Halifax, Nova Scotia after an injury, when she receives a chest with her brother's effects and is told that Freddie is missing. Laura is sure in her heart that Freddie is not dead and finds a way to get back to the front on her mission to find out what happened to him.

Set in 1917 during the push to defend Passchendaele Ridge, the story does not flinch from the horrors of what the soldiers faced during this war that changed the world. I really liked that the story also focused on combat nurses and how they also put their lives and health on the line to help the wounded. I don't want to go into detail about the supernatural element as I think it would spoil the discovery of what is actually happening in the story. Just know that these characters, their journey and how they learn to live with what they have been through is beautifully written, captivating, heart-breaking and so worth taking the time to read.

Wow - this was so great and I cannot recommend it enough.

I was not personally a huge fan of Arden's Winternight trilogy - very much could have been a wrong book, wrong time moment for me. This, however, was hauntingly beautiful and masterfully done. The book is much more speculative fiction than it is fantasy - so get that expectation gone if that matters to you. I would compare the story of this to Divine Rivals, swapping out romantic love for sibling love, and the war aspect done *so* much better (no shade to Rebecca Ross - I loved Divine Rivals). Arden's writing is gorgeous, and she does an incredible job or understanding how an experience from over a century ago would have impacted human beings. Her author's note made me realize just how passionate she is for this era, and it gave me a new perspective on it, as well.

I initially gave this book five stars, but another review for this made me realize that Arden does a lot of hand-waiving plot-wise. While they were not things that bothered me while reading, it was a bit underwhelming to think about after the fact. Regardless, this story gave me so much to think about and contemplate, and I think this would be a fabulous book to discuss with friends or classmates.

Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I’ve put off writing this review, because this is such a beautiful story I’m not sure I can do justice to, and while it wasn’t perfect for me, I love this author and think this will be perfect for the right readers. Ever since I read THE BEAR AND THE NIGHTINGALE and the rest of the Winternight trilogy, I’ve been eagerly awaiting her next adult novel, so I barely needed to even read the description before requesting this book.

THE WARM HANDS OF GHOSTS is a stunning WWI novel with magical realism, strong writing, and a strong brother/sister relationship at its core. Like IN MEMORIAM by Alice Winn, it does not shy away from showing the brutalities of WWI. The author’s note makes it clear how much of herself Arden poured into this book. I haven’t seen this on many 2024 lists so far, but I’m hoping it gets more attention on release!

I’m not a huge historical fiction reader, so this was a bit too slow for my tastes, but I will continue to follow Arden wherever she takes me. I think this has vibes of THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF ADDIE LARUE (which I DNFed) and THE NIGHT CIRCUS (which I should have DNFed), if that tells you anything!

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey Books for the free copy in exchange for my honest review!

I was incredibly lucky enough to be invited to take part in a secret read along with Katherine herself and a group like minded bookworms.
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This book truly took you to another time, as someone that doesn't know a lot about war. It was an experience being taken in to the trenches, to see from the point of view of the medical staff and the soldiers themselves. It was a story of mixed emotions so powerful that at times I felt like I was there on the sideline watching.
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Katherine did such an amazing job of researching this time to truly give it the respect that the story needed, while also adding her own person writing flair. Her cast of characters are like none other.
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The story takes place during WW1, we follow Laura a nurse that has returned home after being injured and her brother Freddie who is a soldier still fighting.
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Laura received news that her brother is MIA and presumed dead. She needs to know what happened to him and returns to the war in order to find answers.
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While Freddie and Laura take us on their journey, we met Winter a German Solider and Jones an American doctor. These characters are my absolute favourite in this book. Without these characters the book would not have the impact on the reader that it does.
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Of course, all books need to have their villains. This is where Faland comes in. He is an interesting character to say the least.
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Two timelines that intercept to complete a beautiful and heartbreaking story.

Thank you Del Ray and NetGalley for sending me an advanced copy of The Warm Hands of Ghosts.
I simply adore this book with my entire heart and soul! The characters, the time period, the heartbreak, the entirety of this book was phenomenal. I was at the edge of my seat and never anticipated what was next!
If you enjoy historic fiction, family looking for lost loved ones, a bit of suspense, and a dash of supernatural, this is the book for you

I read a trilogy a few years ago by Katherine Arden and loved it. The Russian mythology woven into the story made it all so compelling.

However, I am not really that into WWI (or II) stories so this one was a little less interesting to me. I liked the writing very much. But the story itself seemed slow and not the sort of thing that grabbed my interest.

I wavered between a 3 and 4 rating. I think my interest is a 3 but the story might be a 4.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. I struggled to decide what to rate this one. If you have read Arden's Winternight trilogy, I urge you not to go into this novel expecting it to be anything like her previous works. I came in with the wrong expectations entirely and because of that was quite thrown off by the writing style. This honestly feels like an entirely different person wrote this novel and that is not inherently a bad thing, however, I struggled to adjust. I was bored for almost seventy percent of this novel, I want to say. I didn't think I was very attached to the characters and the plot was not holding my interest. But then after seventy percent with a climactic ending, I found myself really enjoying the novel as a whole and the journey it took from beginning to end. I do think this one takes a long time to pay off because the pacing is so extremely slow, but I did think it was worth the read in the end. I also very much appreciated the author's note at the end. This one will not be for everyone and I can see some people not wanting to give it a chance because of it's pacing but I am glad that I had the opportunity to read it and it is a story in which I will think about later.

Canadian war veteran Will Bird believed his younger brother, Steve, had saved him from harm and death several times, and at each of Steve's appearances his flesh still felt warm. Bird's memoir, and the memoirs and letters of many other participants or witnesses to the first world war gave inspiration to Katherin Arden's The Warm Hands of Ghosts. It is a story of survivors seeking love and whatever fragments of their past selves can be rescued from the horrors of war.

Our tale centers on three figures and those they encounter. First are the siblings Iven, Laura and Wilfred, from Halifax Canada. Laura is a nurse who was injured by artillery and discharged in time to survive the deadly Halifax Explosion of 1917, she wants to go back to Europe to find Freddie/ Wilfred, the only one left of her family left alive(?). Wilfred joined the Canadian army and is fighting in the Battle of Passchendaele a savage slog through mud and rain. During an attack on a bunker he is trapped underground alongside a German Soldier, Winter our third central figure. They are both assumed dead, and in order to survive must rely on each other as they seek to escape No Man's Land and the strictures of a military life.

The narrative alternates between Freddie and Laura, not strictly chronologically, but from their two perspectives from 1917 through the end of the war. Both Freddie and Laura encounter a mysterious figure named Faland who is a supernatural devilish character who seems to being playing all the angles for his own benefit. Can our more human trio find each other and the love they so desperately need?

For those not familiar with the First World War One, this book critiques the main hypocrisies of the war, mainly those in power enjoyed a sheltered, privileged position while the common man experienced great physical and mental hardship.

Overall it is okay? For me the best part was the afterword where the author described their influences and why this setting. But as a story it relies heavily on a nebulous supernatural no place and even though it is a war story, has a very small cast.

If you like romance, if you like seeing the testing of the bonds of love and what can bring people together this work might appeal, but for those approaching this from a historical or military perspective much is left wanting as the critiques and points have been more deftly handled elsewhere. Not recommended.

I would like to preface this review with some clarification. The Warm Hands of Ghosts only loosely resembles fantasy. Loosely. I would more accurately categorize it as paranormal with a hint of magical realism. The paranormal elements don’t factor into the story until about 30-40 percent of the way into the narrative, and even then, many are subtle enough to be chalked up to hallucinations. On the other hand, for a low fantasy set during a war, I’ll have to give props to Arden for keeping my attention. I typically like my fantasy high, and I don’t follow war dramas well. Arden manages to make a war story entrancing while delicately weaving the supernatural into the narrative. If you’ve missed Arden since The Nightingale Trilogy, The Warm Hands of Ghosts will definitely satiate your appetite.

Character-driven stories always make the best stories. Arden’s characters have such depth and nuance, I felt a magnetic pull to every one of them. The only successful way to tell a war story, in my opinion, is to write compelling characters. Arden has definitely mastered character development here. Laura, a sulky, embittered and heartbroken nurse pushes through pain and grief in order to help others. Mary and Pen, though side characters, could easily be mains. Freddie and Winter work together and show the human aspect of the trenches, much like the events of Joyeux Noël, which I highly recommend readers watch for a bit of context on the exasperating cost of WWI and how it took such a toll on the humans fighting, they began to refuse to do so. One could also watch Wonder Woman; I feel there are some similarities with Diana’s quest to find Ares and stop the killing and Arden’s characters striving to find each other on the battlefield.

I only had a couple of drawbacks for this one. The first would be the romantic relationships in the book; they felt forced in terms of the characters’ attraction to one another, which might have been more compelling if they had been platonic, as the sense of obligation to one another as members of humanity in general instead of someone for whom there was a more visceral attraction would have made for a more inspiring story. I haven’t seen a lot of characters who stay connected because a sense of non-sexual loyalty lately, and literature could really use more of those. The book market right now is highly driven by romance stories, so I can see why that would be a narrative choice. I just wish maybe there would be more great books with great storytelling that show books can be good even if they aren’t romances. For this one, in both instances, the romance felt like an afterthought.

Additionally, the author’s note at the end makes a point of explaining and showcasing the amount of work and research on World War I Arden underwent while crafting this story. The effort really shows. I have a nurse in the family, and all of the dialogue and habits were familiar to me. What I found lacking, however, was the misinterpretation and misuse of Scripture references, especially the verses from Revelation. A bit of eschatological research would have really tied a nice bow of complementation with the accuracy of the war story. I do appreciate the nuances of the supernatural character(s) and the subtle references to the musical aspect of the violinist hotelier (I’m being deliberately vague so as not to spoil for those who have not read the book).

Overall, I give it a 4-star rating. Well crafted story overall, but some minor stuff that really detracted from how the book could really shine as literature.

My thanks to Netgalley for the eARC, for which I willingly give my own, honest opinion.