For me there isn't enough WW1/post-war stories in the LGBTQ genre so when I find one, I immediately 1-click it and read it, well circumstances got in the way so even though I purchased The Larks Still Bravely Singing in November 2022 I didn't get a chance to read until now as I was preparing for my Veteran's Day blog post.

I was not disappointed. Aster Glenn Gray is a new author to me which for some can be scary but for me I find it a bit exhilarating, that unknown gets the blood pumping. I was well rewarded and the author is definitely going on my authors-to-watch-for list.

Many of the WW1-era stories in LGBTQ that I have read often have an element of shell shock or what we know today as PTSD, lets face it you can't have a true-to-the era story and not have veterans dealing with the aftereffects of what they faced. Some stories may focus on it deeper, there are a variety of ways shell shock effected the returning men but very few actually have MCs as amputees(at least of the ones I've read), some but not many. So to have both MCs as amputees I found the author handled it wonderfully, from David's refusal to wear a prosthetic to Robert's tiring on long distance walks. I can see where some readers might see David's lack of thinking of Robert's mobility issues as selfish but I don't see it that way. Perhaps it's my love of the era, both in fiction and fact, it can be hard to see past one's own limitations and that doesn't make them selfish, it makes them human. As a caregiver, people have to come to acceptance of themselves and others in their own time. Which is exactly what David and Robert do and that is what makes them tick.

I want to wrap them both up in Mama Bear Hugs and tell them everything is going to be all right but as I said above, we have to accept and find our place in the world on our time. David and Robert deal with these issues in a believable and entertaining way. The author says at the end of the blurb, "period-typical homophobia and ableism (probably less than is strictly period typical, but this is a romance novel, not a historical essay)" and I would say it's a pretty accurate description. There is enough truth to know the author didn't just try and write history by today's standards(which I truly hate) but gave enough fictional leeway to not be bogged down as a school lesson(which I also hate). The Larks Still Bravely Singing is a near perfect blend of fact and fiction to create a very entertaining and heartwarming tale of friendship, romance, and living again.

For me when reading fiction many beliefs can be suspended, its fiction afterall, but there are some elements that need to be addressed at least semi-accurately if not completely spot on, that can't be left at the sidelines. In Larks I was able to tick so many of these boxes:

WW1 ✅

Historical ✅

Post-war ✅

Caregiving ✅

Friendship ✅

Disability ✅

Romance ✅

Larks may not make my annual re-read list but it is definitely not a one and done read either.

Boarding school friends Robert Montagu and David Callahan reunite years later while convalescing during WW1 and their unrequited passions do, too. This tale is more of a literary read than the usual romance. It is also a slow-burner, with a melancholy ambiance. Some may find this story too slow or meandering but for others that want something deeper, more story and character development, take a chance on this read.

Too short! Lovely! Lyrical! When it was over, I was so depressed. I’m new to Gray, but more of this please!

Tentatively, unsure whether it is all right to sniff, or better to arch up and hiss, the protagonists of this World War I -era romance signal mixed messages, prevaricate and beat about the bush until the reader is almost eager to beg them just to get on with it already. We were confused in this day of directness and open sexuality by the shyness, diffidence, even the fear of saying the reality.

Then we remembered what life was like before Stonewall: how we smiled to cover how hard it was to stay in the closet; the coded language and protective camouflage. Tiptoing up to the guy with the come-here bedroom eyes, the faulty gay-dar that could lead to disaster and the ambisexuals who would deny everything as they raced back to their girls. Author Glenn Gray has captured that and the tension of finding a reciprocal sentiment when there were no models. She has also captured upper class British language and mores of a more formal time with strict boundaries.

In these days of prolix word processors, we usually recommend an editor prune vigorously in the thickets of words to open out the view. But in this case we missed some chapters of development as the young men worked through barriers of PTSD and disability. How does Robert ever convince his landed gentry pāter to fund his move to London? How could anyone who didn't have a guaranteed income ever have been able to afford to live so freely, to hope for a home and a career, or even to pretend not to know that Oscar Wilde had only just been let out of Reading Gaol?

This book romantically elides all that social context. This book did not set out to depict the hardships overcome but rather the twinning of the halves of this loving soul. It does that quite well.

This author is new to me and I really enjoyed this read. The characters voices sounded real and the placing felt natural. The historical details were perfect, enough setting to feel grounded but not so much that you’re buried in details. I can’t speak to experiences of disability but I felt they were respectful and I like reading about people who aren’t 6 foot tall Adonis’s.

Former school friends David and Robert are brought together again after they have been injured in the Great War. They renew their friendship, bonding over a shared love of books and stories, and eventually act on their mutual attraction.

Both David and Robert are such great characters, and I adored how playful they were together, brought together by the act of storytelling and their shared imaginative worlds. Their relationship is one where they both have to meet in the middle, overcoming their insecurities and their post-war traumas. They're very tender and good to each other, and they work through their problems in a way that I found so satisfying.

The main characters are both amputees and I thought this was dealt with well, showing how they adapt to their changed circumstances in simple, everyday ways like learning how to open a thermos or going up stairs.

Their schoolboy friendship feels very much of a piece with classic Tom Brown's School Days and similar stories - I love how the book captures the feel of that period and genre, firmly locating the book in a time and a place while very much being an original story.

The book also features some charming cats. Nothing further to add on that point except that if you enjoy cats as supporting characters, they are delightful.

Note: I was provided with an ARC with no obligation to review.

This book begins in a convalescent home for amputees during World War I and both main characters are disabled and traumatized by the war. It’s such an unusual historical moment and premise, but Aster Glenn Gray does such a beautiful job developing the characters. I always appreciate how often her characters connect through reading and discussing the same books, and this book is no exception. Her historical characters in particular feel very shaped by their era, with outlooks on happiness and sexuality that diverge from how most of us now think about those things. This is a very quiet, intimate, emotional book, and it was perfect to read with a cup of tea while it was pouring rain outside.

I have thoroughly enjoyed all of this author’s novels. They have an understated charm which suffuses you as you read. In this book, two traumatized soldiers from World War One gradually learn to love each other, despite the need to remain pretty closeted and even deny their attraction/sexuality for the first half of the book. The title is taken from one of the most famous poems from the war, which is both haunting and lovely.

From the moment I picked this book up I couldn't put it down. It was engaging right from the start. The characters were believable and I felt incredibly touched by their journey. This will definitely be a book I return to.

My second book from the author and it did not disappoint. A sweet enjoyable book.