Reviews with content warning for War - The Light Brigade

it really was a solid 3 or 3.5 until the last few pages. i could feel how meticulously planned this book’s plot was — if anything, it was almost too convoluted to follow. my critique of the first 90% of the book is that i had to spend quite a bit of my brain cells just figuring out the timeline, which means i couldn’t get invested in the characters. but for the last bit, the plot (and specifically the mechanics) just made no sense to me. the book presents itself as a harder sci-fi book, but then it completely glosses over any explanation of the ending? i get the poeticism of it and everything coming full circle, but like — i’m still a bit annoyed that after wracking my brain over this plot for 300+ pages, it doesn’t even make sense in the end.

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athnyx230's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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pearlbird's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes

4.5

A tight time travel plot fuck yeah. Hurley apparently had complicated spreadsheets to keep track of everything and it paid off. It's exactly what it says on the tin: a sci-fi time travel war novel

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sproutly's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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lizzielemon's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious tense medium-paced

Loveable characters? No

3.0

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shellbellbell's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Update: Listened to this on audiobook for a reread and it was even better the second time. Cara Gee (actress who played Camina Drummer on The Expanse) does an amazing job as the narrator. There's so much I love about this book: the thrilling pacing, the first person POV, the character stuff, the desperation and trauma and intensity. It is an intense book - I'd put major TWs on it for war violence, death, body horror. But it was thrilling to read the first time and to read again.

Great military sci fi read. Has a thriller mystery vibe with a harsh critique of fascist capitalism along the way. I can't describe it too much more without giving away the plot, but I really liked the ending. Looking forward to exploring more of Kameron Hurley's works.

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tato_gremlin's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

An absolutely riveting ride - I read this in two sittings, unable to put it down. The

time travel timeline

broke my brain a bit before I fully grasped what was happening, so I'm hoping to revisit it soon to savor the prose and pick up on details I might have missed.

Hurley's ultra-capitalist dystopia is a terrifying vision of an imagined future, and the novel doesn't flinch away from everything that entails. There's a powerful anti-capitalist, anti-imperialist critique here, and the book is better for it.

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