Amazing reimagining of a strife-ridden period by stellar authors. These short stories and poems will not only keep you engaged, they will make you pray for a follow up anthology. Highly recommend.

(Thanks to its editor, Henry Herz, for allowing me to read an advanced copy of the anthology.)
"Combat Monsters" is a collection of extremely creative stories about WWII, each with a supernatural twist. Each author blends fantasy (and in some cases horror) with the gritty reality of war. One aspect of the collection that I particularly enjoy is the meticulous care the authors took to accurately depict actual events from WWII with mind-bending supernatural twists. While each story contains tons of action, many of them also provide rich characters and the exploration of big themes through the situations these characters find themselves in.
Every story in the collection is entertaining, and a couple are brilliant. Solid 5 stars!

First, thank you, NetGalley & Blackstone Publishing, for approving me to read this ARC and share my thoughts!

Let me TELL you! This historical/horror fiction anthology is one of my absolute favorites & I am buying this for my brother! I know he would go crazy for it!
It is set to be released on February 11, 2025! I HIGHLY recommend it!

A total of 20 excellent writers have developed stories/poems that offer a twist to the history of World War II that involve the supernatural filled with monsters, mystical creatures, and magic! It is a collection of stories that ask the big "What If?"

I loved how the majority of the stories center around cultural myths & legends specific to different nations. Also, the book highlights the involvement of strong women who fought alongside the men during those times.
A lot of these are similar & remind me of the story of The Kandahar Giant in Afghanistan that the U.S. Special Forces uncovered in 2002. Although everything is fictional... anything is possible!
Every single piece in this book was brilliant, but if I had to choose my top 5 (in no particular order)
Wolf Remains by Jane Yolen (a poem about a werewolf soldier)
The Night the Moon Burned by Mary Fan (The quilin fighting against Japanese invaders in China)
Nachthexen by Bishop O'Connell (Russian/Ukraine aviators called the Night Witches)
God's of the Sea by Tori Eldridge ( Ryūjin, Japanese God of the sea versus Kanaloa, Hawaiian God of the sea)
The Scenic Route by Jeremy Robinson (mutated killer croc hunting both American & Japanese soldiers)

I believe this book has a lot to offer readers. It can also start new conspiracy theories to float around the internet!
Even if you don't know much about the history of WW2, Henry Hertz provides genuine historical notes for each story to understand the significance & the events that took place. Overall, an excellent read!

World War II was a terrible time. Now revisit some of those tales with authors who add monsters to the mix. A dragon at Kursk. Japanese sea monsters versus Hawaiian sea gods at Iron Bottom Bay. Norse sea monsters striking HMS Hood. Vampires aiding the Dutch resistance. These are among the interesting stories that can be found in Combat Monsters. So if you enjoy World War II tales mashed up with some familiar horror heroes or villains, pick up this book and indulge yourself!

Thanks Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the chance to read this title!

Some favorite authors of mine, a fascinating topic, stories where the monsters is not always who you think it could be
Loved it, thought provoking

I have a soft spot for short story anthologies. Don’t get me wrong -- I love an epic fantasy or a sprawling sci-fi space opera as well -- but there is something special about a book with a few handfuls of small little narratives. Each tale has its own writing style, its own perspective, its own flavor. And if you don’t like one of the stories -- Good News! There’s plenty more to dive into. And these anthologies are easy to read in chunks…putting it down after a few stories without needing to worry about where you were in the book.

I was thrilled to get an early copy of Combat Monsters: Untold Tales of World War II in exchange for an honest review. I had a blast with the anthology and I know I’ll be thinking about some of the stories for a while to come.

Combat Monsters takes a wide and ranging look at World War II from the early years to the final nail in the coffin with the bombing of Nagasaki. As a history teacher in my daytime job, I really connected with this book. There was so much to appreciate about this well-edited book. The stories were put in chronological order; the stories can just about exist on their own even without the monster and supernatural elements; there is a great variety with stories featured from each theater of the last great war.

Whenever I review an anthology, I like to point out a few of my individual favorite stories, so here are the ones that really resonated with me:
The Fourth Man by Jeff Edwards
For me, this was the best of the bunch. Wow. This is a story that really leaned into all the prompts. World War II - check. Supernatural beast - check. Something that shows that perhaps the horrors of war are not the only horrors in this life or beyond - check. I loved the framing device with the main character looking for absolution in the present day for the “sin” he committed during the war, crossing a line that helped the Allies win. There was a great combination of action, and ideas that are going to keep me thinking for quite some time, I think.

Grigoriy’s Army by Catherine Stine
One of the fun things I like to teach about is Hannibal trying to invade Rome with war elephants. Catherine Stine takes the ideas of animals in war and takes it a step further. Through a tragic childhood that left Grigoriy abnormally bright but also stunted socially, he used his and his father’s research to genetically engineer an army of bears to defeat the Nazis. I would have loved for this story to keep going and to see what else poor Grigoriy has up his sleeve after the war ended.

Bockscar by David Mack
The closing story in this collection is about the crew of the plane heading to Nagasaki and the ethical dilemma they find themselves in. I really don’t want to spoil this story, but there is a lot more to see in this story beyond the “should we?” or “shouldn’t we?” questions the crew asks in the moments before they reach Japan. Even without the twist in this story, I was enjoying this one for the simple ethical questions that we are still asking today, but the hidden reasons for the bombing make it all the more juicy.

I would love to write something about each story -- in fact if I wrote this review tomorrow, I’d probably pick two or three different stories to highlight. I found a few new authors to be aware of in the future and enjoyed a new work by some writers I already loved. I really did have a great time with this book and will definitely be checking out other works edited by Henry Herz in the future.

"Much happened during the war that wasn't recorded, that no one will remember except those who lived it."

Who is to say that isn't reality. Wars are atrocious. Reading about real events rooted in reality so unfathomably cruel, is heartbreaking. It would make sense or alliviate some of the horrors perpetrated back then if some unspeakable terror worse than humanity needed to be stopped.

Henry Herz gathered an impressive variety of award winning authors to write a story rooted in World War II. So much happened during the war that I researched the events I didn't know about. If you take the time to do so you not only get an interesting story ranging from Africa, to China, to Italy, to America, and and array of sea battles, but you also get what could be explanations to the astounding feats against impossible odds.

The stories are as varied as the several Emmy award winning Love, Death & Robots series on Netflix. So if you like the Netflix series you are going to love this anthology! Minus the robots, though.

5 stars

An absolutely fantastic short story collection! Combat Monsters provides a superb mix of World War II and the supernatural with each story tied to actual historical battles/events with a healthy dollop of the supernatural on top. Herz assembled a solid list of contributors who did not disappoint in the mission. Many of authors took some of the best "stranger than fiction" World War II events as the basis of their "revised" histories, presenting an entertaining "explanation" for these amazing incidences.

I must admit, I am a huge fan of short story collections, especially as a way to find new authors, but even though I was familiar with the majority of these writers, I loved every minute of this book. Bishop O'Connell's "Nachthexen" and Jeff Edwards' "The Fourth Man" were two of my favorites -- both great examples of how a little supernatural "influence" could explain such odd, statistical anomalies from history. It was also fun to get a little taste of "Deacon"/Mr. Church from Jonathan Maberry's Joe Leger series of books.

Combat Monsters
Untold Tales of WWII
Henry Herz
02/11/2025
Blackstone Publishing

Books about World War II, both fiction and nonfiction, are a major reason behind my reading obsession. So, when Henry Herz’s compilation of authors landed in my hands, I couldn’t help but do a double take, eager to discover what I’d be diving into, This anthology boasts an impressive lineup of authors, each contributing their unique perspective.

The stories are set against the backdrop of real battles and key locations that were pivotal during the war, adding depth and authenticity to the narrative. First, imagine being in the middle of a battle and having the chance to wrangle a Kraken as your ally, using its power to help you take down enemy submarines. How incredible would that be? Or picture having a witch on your side, casting spells that put the enemy to sleep, giving you the perfect opportunity to strike. What an advantage that would be in the chaos of war!

COMBAT MONSTERS is an absolutely gripping anthology, packed with thrilling moments, spine-chilling suspense, and an abundance of fun. It’s an absolute blast to read!

"COMBAT MONSTERS" takes a fairly straight forward theme of World War 2 + Monsters, and the resulting anthology is a whole greater than the sum of its parts. The list of contributing authors is staggering. Editor Henry Herz has built a collection of stories as varied as the historical battles and events that inspired them. No story feels like a rehash or retread of another as the locales, creatures, and characters span every theater of World War 2 imaginable. Each inclusion reads like a snapshot into an entirely different location which keeps the entire anthology engaging from beginning to end. One minute you're in a desert in Africa facing down monstrous mythological serpents, the next you're being hunted by unnatural creatures born of the infamous Unit 731 in the Pacific theater. "COMBAT MONSTERS" is as rock-solid an anthology as you can get. Plenty of thrills, a plethora of chills, and just a ton of fun to read!

This was a gem! I really enjoyed this stories. The indepth story was so engaging and the characters were fantastic!