The Warm Hands of Ghosts

First off, what a beautiful book cover!

January 1918

Laura Iven is a discharged field nurse who has and returned to her home in Halifax, Canada. She soon receives Freddy’s (her brother) personal effects and a notice that he has died in the war. But she knows something isn’t right and travels to Belgium and while there she volunteers in a hospital and begins hearing rumors….

November 1917

Freddie Iven woke up injured in a trench alongside Hans Winter, a German soldier. The two men form an alliance and soon find shelter with a man with certain abilities…

The Warm Hands of Ghosts explores relationships, the horrors of war, loss, pain, injury, love, family, desperation, death, evil, and hope. I found it to be atmospheric with vivid descriptions, haunting prose, and wounded characters. It explores what one person will do to help another, what one person will do to find another and what one person will do to survive.

This was a blending of historical fiction, fantasy, and magical realism.

I was first introduced to Katherine Arden’s writing when I read The Bear and the Nightingale. I enjoy her writing, imagery, and the imaginative and original books she writes. I enjoyed this book and found many passages to be very astute observations on war, suffering and human nature.

Atmospheric and haunting.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Del Rey and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.