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In New York Times bestselling author Karen Robards’s latest heart-pounding thriller, a woman must uncover a murderer—or risk being the next victim of a vicious killer. The story employs a non-linear plot that alternates sequences in the trenches in 1918 and the bulk of the story, set in 1919. I love non-linear plotlines. I think they are particularly effective for mysteries because it allows the reader to learn the story’s details bit by bit and gradually connect them to the main plot. It was satisfying in this case because the ‘truth’ the main plot uncovered changed many times, and the vision into the past gradually allowed me to make up my own mind about what happened. But I should say a bit more that that just to be honest. Philip Gray has written a novel about WW1 , and it’s aftermath, it’s effects on soldiers and those who love them that once read will linger in the reader’s memory. So a bit about the novel, without any spoilers so as not to ruin the pleasure of discovering a completely satisfying novel. Yes, I will admit that it gave a bit at the end, but the story is very strong. And then, I’ve read an ARC. There’s a chance the end will be revised again before publication. In 1919, on the desolate battlefields of northern France, thousands of soldiers undertook the immense and dangerous task of gathering up the dead for mass burial.
Two Storm Wood follows the stories of three British people whose lives have been affected by war in very different ways: a young woman who boldly sets out to find out what happened to her fiancé, who went missing in action; a soldier tasked with co-ordinating the retrieval of the dead; and a detective sent to investigate what appears to be a series of murders in the empty, devastated landscape. My father had two uncles who fought at Ypres, one was discharged with trench foot , one of which had to be amputated and the other returned home very briefly after the war and emigrated to Australia and no one heard from him again.
On the desolate battlefields of northern France, the guns of the Great War are silent. Special battalions now face the dangerous task of gathering up the dead for mass burial. Amy turned away again. ‘The things I’ve seen… they’re unforgivable. Who could live with the guilt?’ You don’t know why you were sent. Why should Whitehall care about a few dead Chinamen? Isn’t that what you said?’
An absolutely superb book! Engrossing, compelling, and evocative, revealing to me an aspect of this truly terrible piece of relatively modern history that I had been unaware of. Yet it is also a social commentary of that time. Class and gender are measured against the conflict, and the impetus to change a divided, unequal society. In his historical novel Two Storm Wood, Philip Gray portrays the reality of World War I mostly from the perspective of a young British officer, showing everything from the gruesome and harrowing details of war to lesser-known facts of everyday life for those serving in it. This reality includes substance use and abuse among troops. Drugs that are now heavily controlled, notably cocaine, were not only sought after by soldiers during the war but even encouraged and distributed by militaries, including the British Army. British author Gray lays bare the horrors of World War I through an Englishwoman’s battlefield search for her fiance.
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There’s a lot to love about this book, but I think the characters will be what will remain with me longer. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque was a standout novel in my teenage reading and beyond the need for English Literature set exams I have always been drawn to the poets from Wilfred Owen to Siegfried Sassoon. Insightful first hand accounts like Robert Graves’ “Goodbye to All That.” After a single turn the road straightened out, vanishing into the distance like a strap pulled tight across the land. Scars of wire and chalky earth criss-crossed the terrain on either side. If there was anything living, man or beast, it lay hidden below the line of sight. And then there are some kind of men for whom violence brings clarity. They embrace the elemental force of it. Rules and other abstractions… Well, I couldn’t expect you to understand.’
Philip Gray's writing style and descriptions are powerful, and sometimes graphic, so you can almost feel the goosebumps and sodden discomfort of the cold downpour of rain, or the frightening echoes of those that were lost in the brutal trench warfare (Mary F). One thing that piqued my interest was the fact that Edward became addicted to cocaine and opium during his military life… This and other aspects of the book will prompt many discussion areas for book clubs (Virginia M). Having read many novels based on WWI, I had never read any dealing with the subjects raised in this title. I won't mention those that are spoilers, but I honestly had never thought about who was responsible for retrieving the thousands of soldiers lost in the war (Renee T)... continued The remarkable life and work of the trailblazing Anglo-Nigerian writer Bernardine Evaristo Bernardine Evaristo: Never Give Up One of the most evocative thrillers I’ve ever read.… Haunting, cinematic, and utterly gripping." D. B. JohnAtmospheric and meticulously researched, Two Storm Wood sheds light on the horrors and the trauma that continued even after the Armistice. It is that most wonderful of creations—a novel that informs while keeping you on the edge of your seat." Abir Mukherjee The incredible journey of Marian Keyes, from hard-partying waitress to best-selling author Marian Keyes: My (not so) Perfect Life
Inspired by David Copperfield, Kingsolver crafts a 21st-century coming-of-age story set in America’s hard-pressed rural South. It took me a while to realise. Then I saw the shape of one and it hit me: what was under the canvas.' Amy was a fantastic character and I loved seeing her come to life throughout the book, I very much doubt I could do half of what she achieved in this one.
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Ji Lin, an apprentice dressmaker, moonlights as a dancehall girl to pay her mother’s debts. One night, Ji Lin’s dance partner leaves her with a gruesome souvenir that leads her on a crooked, dark trail. For some unknown reason, I don’t normally gravitate towards WW1 books when I’m reading, but that may change after reading this one. It was the perfect blend of thriller and historical fiction that had me on the edge of my seat more than once while reading it. Literature and library chat with Irenosen Okojie, Simon Savidge and Dan Smith Turn Up for the Books Hellfire, this is seriously good! It is well researched, with accurate descriptions , not only of the horrors of trench warfare, but very sympathetic to the family members left in limbo, where are their loved ones? If reported missing, that doesn’t give closure, if dead, where has the body been buried, was there enough body to identify, is there a marked grave or was it left to rot on the battlefield. quiet girl wanders off into the choir loft of a minor church out of curiosity to see the great organ in the loft. There she meets Edward Halsam, organist , choir leader and teacher. .There is an instant attraction between the two young people that soon grows into love. Edward is anti-war , a pacifist and as, a teacher , exempt from the draft. For Amy, who has already knows of many young women left widows , Edward’s views are also hers. But he is poor, not of good family and “ Unsuitable” for Amy to marry, according to her family.. Then Edward’s exemption is lost. He goes to France .and is soon listed missing in action. It is from here that the novel develops into something unexpected , totally absorbing ,moving and , at times , horrifying.
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