Please tell me I wasn't the only one who fully expected this to be a love story?! After coming to terms with Blasted Things not being as romantic as I thought, I easily appreciated it for its polished writing, character work, and, well, beloved WWI setting, which is just so for me. I do love Clem - and I even appreciated good-for-nothing Vincent. These characters have something so seriously wrong with them, you can't help but empathize throughout every mistake they make. Reading this novel felt like watching two cars collide in slow motion.

This just wasn’t for me. Took me forever to get through. I was really looking forward to it, because WWI is my favorite. But it’s structured in an odd way, which really threw me off. The beginning WWI scenes were great, but after that it lost my interest..mostly due to the general oddness of it all. I don’t think it was badly written, but it wasn’t what I was hoping for. Less historical, & more literary-ily strange? 😅

I began this book with high expectations, intrigued by its premise and potential. While there were moments of genuine insight, I found the narrative challenging to follow, as it occasionally lacked cohesion and seemed to wander in focus. Although some readers may appreciate its unconventional structure, I struggled at times to stay engaged. However, the book does contain some thought-provoking ideas that could resonate with others looking for a unique reading experience.

This was not what I expected at all and definitely not my cup of tea. More literary fiction than historical. It started out really interesting with the World War I scenes, but as soon as Vince was introduced, I struggled to stay engaged because I didn't like him at all. I didn't like any of the characters, to be honest 😅

The audio narration was fine, nothing special.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ARC of this audiobook for my honest review

yeahhh, this was well written and it was fascinating to be in a different time period but the constant lying really bothered me and the way it ended was like okay come on. Not that it was bad but just nottt my plot at all. I didn’t like the main characters at all and I felt really icky listening to it.

I'll be publishing my review on Goodreads and StoryGraph 20th October and on Tik tok most likely will add to a monthly wrap up post with review the beginning of November.

Thank You for the opportunity to listen to Blasted Things by Lesley Glaister.

This was a difficult and uncomfortable read but beautifully written.

It makes me want to stop Clementine from committing one folly after the other so that she wouldn't be taken advantage of.

It is as much a historical novel as one which shows the psychological wounds on people due to wars and their aftereffects.

Definitely worth a read.

The book had potential but didn’t quite meet my expectations regarding depth and complexity. The details about the era, like the language, dress, and suffragette movement, resonated with me, though the story itself might have felt a bit predictable. I wish we had more in-depth knowledge of her PTSD struggles and more about his as well.

Blasted Things by Lesley Glaister is a beautifully written novel. I listened to the audiobook version, and Danielle Cohen (narrator) did a fabulous job bringing the characters to life. As Clementine, a frontline nurse, tries to navigate her post WWI life, she struggles to understand herself while also trying to settle into the woman she’s expected to be as a wife. Meeting a damaged sergeant changes everything and brings new complications to her life. This audiobook was powerful and emotional with flawed dynamic characters. I did find the pacing a bit slow, but I do think it is worth the read for lovers of WWI era historical fiction and complicated romances. Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an ARC of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.