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Strange Meeting

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Strange Meeting

By: Susan Hill
Narrated by: Joe Jameson
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About this listen

'Things like this don't happen often in a lifetime...'

John Hilliard, a young subaltern returning to the Western Front after a brief period of sick leave back in England blind to the horrors of the trenches, finds his battalion tragically altered. His commanding officer finds escape in alcohol, there is a new adjutant and even Hilliard's batman has been killed.

But there is David Barton. As yet untouched and unsullied by war, radiating charm and common sense, forever writing long letters to his family. Theirs is a strange meeting and a strange relationship: the coming together of opposites in the summer lull before the inevitable storm.

©2014 Susan Hill (P)2014 Audible Studios Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction War & Military Heartfelt Inspiring Tear-jerking Thought-Provoking

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All stars
Most relevant  
This is well-written and well-spoken. It feels polished yet not necessarily finished. It gives us a nurturing relationship between two fellows that you wish became something more. However, in the times of war and indeed of the time itself, they felt compelled to trudge on and not express themselves fully.
A nice tale but I’m left wanting more.

A warming bromance from the trenches

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1914=1918 must have been hell on earth and all those who fort in were brave beyond ones imagination and this story paints a vivid pictute, well written and narrated.

Sad picture of life in the trenches

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i simply loved this book, so beautifully written by Susan Hill. And the reader made the whole sad story come alive, with sensitivity. Thank you

Strange Meeting

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Any additional comments?

I'll start with the negatives, well, there is only one really and that was the narration. I found it hard to distinguish between characters during dialogue as the narrator did not put much effort into character voices. Otherwise he was Ok.

Right, now on to the positives, for which there were plenty. This audiobook captured the chilling aspects of world war from a trench, while at the same time conveying the magic that only very few of us humans ever get the chance to experience: true friendship.

In the last place possible you would expect to see friendship blossoming, two men with completely different backgrounds came together and it reminds us all that during those harsh years that were taken up by the world wars, there must have been hundreds of men who did strike up these close relationships and comarade. Hilliard and Blake form an irrevocable friendship bond in this moving portrayal which discusses themes of terror, trauma, hardship, endurance and friendship.

I urge you to give this a try. It is a Great story.

Simultaneously heart warming and terrifyingly chilling

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I found this book engaging, incredibly well written and quite unlike any of Susan’s other books in terms of genre. I am not happy however that it made me cry when I was out in public and five minutes later ended without letting us know what happened to a dearly loved protagonist. Although this is a work of fiction, I am worried about him and would like at least an essay to explain what became of him.

But what happened to David?

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I enjoyed this book, I know war is not enjoyable but the camaraderie was portrayed excellently. If you listen to this it makes you wonder why war? really worth a listen.

An extremely moving story.

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The book takes its title from the Wilfred Owen poem of the same name. It is set mainly in the battlefields of the First World War. It is written very poetically and presents a stark contrast between the brutality and meaninglessness of war and the intimate and meaningful relationship between the two main characters, John Hiliard and David Barton. The relationship is one of love though it is not physical.

The book is wonderfully and engagingly read by Joe Jameson, whose reading is always a pleasure to listen to, regardless of the genre.

War and Intimacy

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Its not that original but I enjoyed the story. It was quite moving hearing about these men from their own perspectives. Good, clear narration.

Derivative but a nice read

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I downloaded this book after reading the reviews of others and and after I had listened to that excellent book, "A Covenant With Death" by John Harris. I'm not sure I shall finish listening to this book as I am just not convinced by it. I don't believe in the relationship of the two central characters; it seems to be a modern interpretation of a relationship, how the author feels it should have been in the horrendous circumstances of a dreadful industrialised war, rather than reporting the relationships that soldiers did form in those times. I can't fault the author's research in terms of actual conditions which existed in the front-line and support areas of the Western Front, and some excellent description of what it was like to be under bombardment and the random chances of being killed, wounded or surviving from moment to moment. I think it's that very historical accuracy which makes the relationship between the central characters feel false along with the very casual relationships between the officers and between them the men they commanded, in an army which was stiff with a rigorous approach to discipline, a rigid system of rank, and unquestioning obedience of orders.

I must be missing something

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Beautiful narration of a story that we all should listen to about the sacrifice given by a past generation for our freedoms today

Wonderful, evocative and heartbreaking

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