My god, Katherine is …. A GOD.
This was beautiful, but I had no doubt as I loved the bear and the nightingale trilogy.

This was different compared to that. But the same beautiful writing, prose; and story telling that makes those other stories so beautiful.

4.5/5 ⭐️
Wow. This book was amazing.
At first this book reminded me of Divine Rivals; a fantasy set in World War I. But Warm Hands of Ghosts felt like the older, darker, more serious big brother, while Divine Rivals is its romantic little sister. There were scenes that conjured images in my head reminiscent to the movie 1918. Both so visceral and scary, yet you can’t look away.
I would say don’t walk in expecting this story to be exactly like her Bear & the Nightingale series. That series had more whimsy to it. However, the closest to feeling like that are the conversations between Freddie and Faland. But the author also carries on her obvious passion for research and capturing the world at that time in history as close as she possibly can. You could almost believe it is real. That the mythical, fantastical aspects are her allegories to explaining what the men and women who were a part of WWI had experienced.
This was such a hauntingly beautiful story. I will absolutely be recommending this story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballan for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

When you love a previous book by the author as I did with "The Bear and the Nightingale", it's hard for another book to live up to my expectations. I never connected to the characters and story as much as I hoped to, but the story line was creative and unique. I'll continue to read whatever Katherine Arden writes.

I am a fan of Arden's work so naturally I requested this book. There is a lot to like here, hence the three stars, but I am really really disappointed that it didn't match the author's previous works. You probably will still like this book if you have never read a word by the author, but to be honest, her debut was an absolute smash hit, so it IS hard to keep up.

The Warm Hands of Ghosts
Written by Katherine Arden
Published by Random House Ballantine del Rey
Publish date February 13, 2024


Characters: 5/5
Plot: 5/5
Pace: 4/5
Overall Enjoyment: 5/5

I really enjoy reading books set in historical times and this one did not disappoint. Set in WWI, the story is told in alternating characters from a brother and sister. Laura I’ve is a field nurse who gets wounded and sent home from the medical corps. Leaving her brother Freddie behind to continue fighting the war. She soon receives his uniform and other personal items and told of his death. However, things do not feel right with Laura and so she returns to a hospital in Belgium to volunteer in hopes of finding more information about his death. While there she hears stories about haunted trenches and a hotelier named Faland who runs a very nice hotel and bar and who gives a certain wine to so.died.

Then we are taken back to Freddie and how he wakes up in an overturned pillbox. While looking around he realizes out of all of the dead soldiers everywhere, there is one soldier living. That soldier thought is a German soldier. Even though they are supposed to be enemies, they work together and dig their way out but once they do they must figure out which way is the right way and which way will lead them straight to the enemy.

Can Laura find out what happened to her brother Freddie?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and must say that Arden is a brilliant writer who is able to add sadness and sorrow to a book and still allow the reader to feel a beautiful connection to a story that is a true one. There is so much detail to the historical events that show you that Arden did her research. This is such a beautiful story about how people on opposite sides can come together and find a solution to find where they need to be. This was the perfect mixture of science fiction and historical facts.

5 stars

Thank you to the author and publisher as well as NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Set in World War I, the story centers on two siblings, Laura and Freddie. Laura is a nurse, sent home in Halifax from the war after being injured. Freddie is a soldier. When Laura learns that Freddie disappeared under mysterious circumstances, she manages to find her way back to Europe in the hopes of finding her brother. While Freddie is nowhere to be found, Laura gradually learns he’s somehow connected to a mysterious fiddler a person can only hear once…

This is a beautifully dark, atmospheric read that’s also a heartfelt exploration of identity and war. I absolutely loved it. Highly recommended for fans of historical fiction with a touch of the supernatural.

A fascinating look into the trench warfare of World War I told in alternating chapters by a brother and sister from Halifax, Canada. When Laura Iven receives her brother's uniform and tags, she is willing to accept that he died in Europe, but inconsistencies nag at her. She get a chance to go back to the battlefields, officially as a nurse but with the intent to look for him. Freddie wakes up trapped by an overturned pillbox and only the company of a wounded German soldier stops him from going mad. The two soldiers make it out eventually but a new danger appears in a mysterious violin player who lures Freddie into his strange hotel. The description of conditions on the battlefield and in the army hospitals may be hard to stomach for some but readers of historical fiction as well as fantasy will find this a rewarding read.

Katherine Arden’s books are always so hauntingly lovely, so I was excited to receive an early copy of this one, and it did not disappoint.
Set in WWI, it follows a war nurse, Laura, who has just lost her parents in a horrific accident, and also received word that her brother, Freddie, is presumed dead in the trenches of Belgium. Despite this news, Laura feels that something is amiss, and goes to Belgium to try and uncover any more information about Freddie. What follows is a twisty tale involving haunted trenches and the ghostly specter of a violinist who entraps soldiers with the promise of oblivion.
Arden’s writing style is absolutely beautiful and the story itself is intriguing. I did really enjoy it, but also felt like it was missing something to make it a five star read for me.

This an emotional and harrowing story about World War I, the physical and emotional toll it took on individuals as well as the changes it wrought on civilization itself. In some ways, this war marked the end of the world--and the start of a new one.

The chapters of this book alternate between following combat nurse Laura in 1918, and her brother Freddie beginning the year prior, before the army sent her his effects saying that he was missing and presumed dead. Laura decides to return to the field to attempt to discover what happened to her brother.

Freddie's chapters are heart wrenching, and the bond he forms with another soldier when the two have only each other left was very touching. The nightmare these people are living is what allows the author to introduce her signature mythological/magical realism seasoning to the story. It begs the question, "Was remembered agony better than feeling nothing at all?" and allows Arden to address the idea she puts into words in the Author's Note: "What would a devil of the old world do if he found himself in the hell of a new one?" War stole away the pleasure of shattering human hearts.

This story was full of great characters, from the indomitable Laura herself, to German soldier Hans Winter, and the genteel woman whose "bright sweet nature" may be hiding the true darkness of her own grief. (I'm not sure I found Freddie that LIKEABLE, but the whole point is that after the things he's been through, there's not much left to like or not).

The book ends with things wrapped up a little too pat for Laura, but overall I was pleased with this historical fantasy with its heavy and moving themes.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this ARC! My review is live on Goodreads now, and I will post it on my blog (jessicacrawfordwrites.com) and my Bookstagram account (shelfesteem101) at the time of the book's publication.

Wowowowow what a book. Arden’s writing is beautiful and haunting, and the story managed to be both gritty and dark while also being lush and emotional. It is definitely a unique book, I feel like I’ve never read anything like it. However it is definitely not a perfect book. It’s a bit slower paced so it felt like it took a while to read despite it being a little over 300 pages. There were also some weird plot points that weren’t really explained or felt very convenient. This is more evident towards the end of the book as things were wrapping up. That being said, the good in this book absolutely outweighs the not so good and I really enjoyed this.

ARC provided by NetGalley.

𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐍: 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐓 ‼️

I was transfixed by this beautifully haunting speculative novel about a combat nurse searching for her missing brother during the Great War. Through atmospheric and gripping prose, Arden transports readers into the surreal and shattered landscape of the western front.

Though slow to start, the book’s exploration of the themes of trauma, grief, love, and identity is deeply profound and evokes raw emotion.

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞:
🥀 dual POV
🥀 character-driven stories
🥀 WWI history and/or combat nurses
🥀 atmospheric, eerie settings
🥀 beautiful literary prose
🥀 historical fiction with a side of magical realism

Though many have recommended the Winternight Trilogy, I have yet to read it. After finishing The Warm Hands of Ghosts, I’m officially moving it to the top of my tbr pile.

Heads up to all of my friends, I will now repeatedly recommend that you read this book. I can easily count this among the best books that I’ve ever read.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Ballantine Del Rey Books for the advanced reader copy. Opinions are my own.

Katherine Arden is one of the best Fantasy and Horror authors I've had the pleasure to read. When I picked up this book, I was not expecting what was to come.

This was an amazing historical fiction, with twists and turns that pushed the story forward in a delicate way, but entertained with ease. Not a genre I would have expected from Arden, but more proof that she can write whatever she puts her mind to.

WW2 stories tend to have a sadness that breaks the heart, but Arden has weaved a wonderful tale of hope in a time of great pain.

The story is split between Freddie Iven and his sister Laura. Freddie is knee deep in the trenches of war when a disaster happens. By all counts, he should be dead, but by sure luck he is alive, but trapped. In the darkness, there is another sole with him, a German soldier. Their lives are now intwined for better or worse.

When Laura hears of her brothers fate, she doesn't believe it. In her quest to find the truth about Freddie, she forms bonds that cannot be broken, but the truth might be harder to swallow than Laura had hoped.

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars. It was a wonderful story. Heartwarming, hopeful and amazing. I can't wait to see what Arden brings to the table next.

The Warm Hands of Ghosts is a novel set near the end of WWI, told from the perspectives of siblings Laura and Freddie Iven, with a touch of magical realism. Laura is a decorated nurse, sent home to Halifax from the war after suffering a debilitating injury to her leg. Freddie is her younger brother, missing but presumed dead from the battlefields of Belgium. Upon the opening of the book in early 1918, Laura is dealing with the aftermath of an explosion in the harbor that claimed the lives of both her parents. When she receives the box of her brother's possessions and is told he is missing, the women she is living with, who moonlight as mediums tell her that her brother is not dead and that she must save him. With the help of two new friends, Pim and Mary, she returns to Belgium under the guise of working as a nurse in Mary's private field hospital, but truly has the intentions of searching for Freddie.

From Freddie's perspective, we are taken back to the late fall of 1917 when Freddie becomes trapped during a fierce battle inside a pillbox with a German soldier, Hans Winter. Together, they work to escape the pillbox and, in the process, save each other from death. Both men become determined to make sure the other survives, and in the process of saving Hans, Freddies ends up giving himself over to a mysterious figure, Faland, known by the other soldiers as "The Fiddler".

This is a relatively short novel, the prose and characters quickly pulled me in, and I read it from start to finish in one day. WWI was a horrific time and this book hints at a darker purpose for the war and Faland's involvement in it. I found it to be an interesting premise and very much enjoyed this book.

Thank you to Random House Ballantine and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.

I loved the Winternight trilogy, and have been eagerly awaiting Katherine Arden’s next project. I am happy to report it was worth the wait.

In this standalone, Arden steps away from the warmth and cheer of the Medieval Russian winter into the warmth and cheer of Flanders 1918. The protagonist, Laura, is a nurse who was wounded by artillery fire, given a few medals, and sent home to Halifax where her parents (and half of Halifax) were killed when a ship carrying munitions exploded in the largest detonation to that point in history. While there, she receives the effects and dog tags of her brother Freddie - but no word of his death. Determined to learn what happened to the only family she (maybe, possibly) has left, she sets out to return to Europe with a few friends.

Meanwhile, we travel back in time several months to Freddie’s point of view, trapped in an overturned pillbox with a number of dead soldiers and a living German one. It’s not a spoiler to say that the two of them manage to work together to dig their way out. But by that point they’re no longer enemies in any real sense, and they’re in the middle of no-man’s-land with no way of knowing which direction is the Canadians and which is the Germans.

They also - Laura and Freddie both - meet a strange man named Faland, running an inexplicably cozy hotel/bar right behind the lines, where the wine flows freely, the music is wonderful, and the war feels much further away than it should be.

This book is *excellent*, but it’s not fun. It’s a thorough exploration of trauma, different kinds of love, and the connections that people can make under unimaginably bad conditions. Other themes include the futility of industrialized war and the callousness of the generals in their châteaux sending men off to die by the thousands and thousands (the “lions led by donkeys” notion isn’t *entirely* fair, but it’s not unfair either). From everything I know of WWI history, Arden has done her homework.

Something Arden paid particular attention to capturing was the almost *science-fiction* aspect of the First World War. More than any other war that I can think of, it marked a sea change. You had flying machines dropping bombs and chemical weapons and artillery raining death from tens of miles away. You also had messages being sent by pigeons and that same artillery moved into position by mules. And you had men and boys fighting a war that wasn’t at all what they were told war was supposed to be, and men and women doing their best to keep them alive.

As I said, this book is *excellent*, but I’m very glad I’ve got something lighthearted on hand to follow.

I would read Katherine Arden’s Grocery lists. The live and care that goes in to how carefully she researches her work shows. This was different than her past works, and stands on its own in a wonderful way. I can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy of this book, it belongs on bookshelves.

I have been having a good time with the crop of historical fantasy novels that have come out recently, and this is no exception. This story is very atmospheric and vibey, which made the setting and overall cast of characters really come to life and feel pretty lush. I initially struggled to connect to our main character a bit, but after the first quarter of the book, the style of the narrative seems to change a bit which made me enjoy it a lot more. This story walked an interesting line between showing the atrocities of war but also balances that with acts of humanity and kindness. The fantasy element of this is not absolutely fundamental to the story, but adds a fun and sort of unexpected beat to the story. My only real issue with the story was the first quarter being a bit hard to really sink my teeth into, but overall I really enjoyed this historical fantasy!

The Warn Hands of Ghosts
Publishing February 13, 2024

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Warm Hands of Ghosts is a historical fiction novel set in World War 1, with a splash of magic added. It follows a Canadian brother and sister, Laura and Freddie, who both fight in the war. Laura is a nurse, and Freddie is a soldier.
Laura spends the book searching for her brother, who went missing. The story flips ack and forth between Laura’s search and what actually happened to Freddie.

If you have read the Winternight trilogy, then you should be familiar with Katherine Arden’s writing style. The Warm Hands of Ghosts has her same style of writing. It’s so immersive, and also disorienting. The writing is very strange, but amazing. It is very hard to explain, but I am a big fan. 😂

I really enjoyed reading this. It was a slow, but we really see and feel what the characters are going through. Arden did her research, and she really worked to incorporate people’s real experiences and stories from WW1. As someone who has not read much about WW1, I found it very interesting (and horrifying, too).

Overall, I would recommend this book to fans of Arden and those who enjoy historical fiction!

I extend my heartfelt gratitude to NetGalley and publisher for generously providing me with a digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

This book touched my heart in ways I never expected. I lost my grandmother a few years ago, and the way Arden wove together the themes of grief, memory, and the power of the past resonated deeply with me. As I read about Lucy and her ghostly presence, I felt like I was experiencing my own emotions all over again.

The writing is beautiful, like a warm embrace on a cold day. Arden's words transported me to a world that felt both familiar and unknown, like a dream you can't quite shake off. The characters are complex and multi-dimensional, with their own unique struggles and secrets.

What struck me most was how the book made me feel. It's like Arden reached into my chest and gently unwrapped the layers of emotions I'd been carrying around since my grandmother's passing. I felt seen and understood in a way that's hard to explain.

The supernatural elements added a fascinating layer to the story, making me question what's real and what's just a product of our imagination. It's a reminder that there's more to life than what we can see and touch.

"The Warm Hands of Ghosts" is more than just a book - it's an experience. It's a reminder that we're all connected, even when it feels like we're alone. It's a hug from a loved one who's no longer here, but whose memory lives on in our hearts.

Read this book if you're willing to confront your emotions, to feel seen and understood, and to experience the beauty of the human connection. It's a journey that will stay with you long after you finish reading.

Oh, man. Where do I even begin?? I don't think I've ever hit "request" so fast as when I saw this on NertGalley. Katherine Arden's **The Winternight Trilogy** is in my top 3 books of all time. The Bear and the Nightingale is a masterpiece in my opinion and I cannot even begin to tell you how many times I have read it. So, when I saw this was written by Arden, I truly did not care what this book was about because I fully trusted her to respect my time as a reader and provide me something that worth reading. Somehow I still managed to underestimate her because this book absolutely blew me away and I actually enjoyed it far more than The Bear and The Nightingale. Actually, "enjoyed" would not be the correct word to use. This book was more of an experience. It was a book that has kept me up at night since I first finished it.

The way Arden used the horrors of war as a vehicle to explore themes of love, loss, grief and letting go was expertly crafted.

This was NOT a fun book to read, that's for sure, but it is certainly a book that I'm glad I read . If I could sum up this book in one word, it would be HAUNTING..

But this book was far more than just that. It was beautiful, unsettling, frustrating, melancholic, and just so many other things that my head and heart are still grappling with. This book has etched a permanent mark on my heart and mind and I know this sounds cheesy, but I honestly feel like a better, more emotionally "intelligent" person having read this.. Like, I feel my empathy level has been boosted.

This book is truly special and needs to be read by everyone, and this comes from someone who NEVER EVER reads or recommends books that have to do with war/being in the trenches, etc, because I read to escape reality and the horrors of real life, but this book is too important, and in my honest opinion I hope becomes required reading one day.

I am so happy to say that this is getting 5 million stars from me, however I would like to know who will now be paying for my therapy bills. ; )

Another gorgeous story from one of the best authors out there today and I am so grateful that not only was I given an opportunity to read this arc, but that I will soon have another Katherine Arden book to add to my personal library.

I will be thinking about this book for a very, very long time. This book will no doubt stand the test of time and I can easily seeing it becoming a classic.

Thank you Netgalley, author, and the publishers for allowing me the opportunity to read this e-arc. I look forward to reading more.