The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley is a military science fiction novel set in a dystopian future where Earth is at war with Mars, fought by corporate armies. The story follows Dietz, a young soldier who enlists in the military after a devastating attack by Martian colonists. The soldiers are sent into battles by breaking into light particles, causing them to experience time displacement and uncover the truth about the war they are fighting. The narrative is non-linear, with elements of time travel and a focus on the protagonist's journey to understand the real motivations behind the conflict.

Characters:

Characters are well-developed, representing a range of identities and experiences as they navigate a brutal war environment and grapple with personal and political questions.

Writing/Prose:

The writing style is intense, brutal, and thought-provoking, utilizing first-person narration to enhance the protagonist's experience of disorientation.

Plot/Storyline:

The plot revolves around soldiers who are transformed into light to be sent to battlefields, resulting in disjointed experiences and time jumps that complicate their understanding of the war.

Setting:

The setting is a dystopian future characterized by corporate dominance, war between Earth and Mars, and stark class divides.

Pacing:

The pacing is initially disjointed but picks up as the narrative unfolds, mirroring the protagonist's journey.

I wanted to be counted among the heroes who gave us this better world. That’s what I told the recruiter. That’s what I told my first squad leader. It’s what I told every CO, and there were . . . a cou...

Notes:

The Light Brigade is a military sci-fi novel about soldiers being turned into light to teleport to battlefields.

The protagonist is known as Bad Luck Dietz and faces chaotic experiences during missions.

The story critiques corporate control and explores the relationship between the working class and ruling class.

It combines themes of time travel with disjointed narratives, leading to unique storytelling.

The novel is filled with moments of confusion that mirror the protagonist's experience in war.

It carries anti-war messages and comments on the futility of combat.

Readers appreciate the complex character development and thought-provoking themes.

The book has been compared to classics like Starship Troopers and The Forever War.

Kameron Hurley drew inspiration from stories about war told by her family and research on women in combat.

The structure of the book challenges traditional narrative forms, requiring attentive reading.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Content warnings for The Light Brigade include themes of war, violence, corporate exploitation, and traumatic experiences related to military service.

From The Publisher:

NAMED BY PUBLISHERS WEEKLY AS A BEST BOOK OF 2019

"Passionately brutal, fierce, and furious in voice and pace. It's a particularly cinematic experience of war, Full Metal Jacket meets Edge of Tomorrow." -The New York Times

From the Hugo Award---winning author of The Stars Are Legion comes a science fiction thriller about a futuristic war during which soldiers are broken down into light in order to get them to the front lines on Mars.

They said the war would turn us into light.

I wanted to be counted among the heroes who gave us this better world.

The Light Brigade: it's what soldiers fighting the war against Mars call the ones who come back…different. Grunts in the corporate corps get busted down into light to travel to and from interplanetary battlefronts. Everyone is changed by what the corps must do in order to break them down into light. Those who survive learn to stick to the mission brief-no matter what actually happens during combat.

Dietz, a fresh recruit in the infantry, begins to experience combat drops that don't sync up with the platoon's. And Dietz's bad drops tell a story of the war that's not at all what the corporate brass want the soldiers to think is going on.

Is Dietz really experiencing the war differently, or is it combat madness? Trying to untangle memory from mission brief and survive with sanity intact, Dietz is ready to become a hero-or maybe a villain; in war it's hard to tell the difference.

Ratings (7)

Loved It (5)
Liked It (2)

Reader Stats (17):

Read It (8)
Want To Read (7)
Did Not Finish (1)
Not Interested (1)

What can you read after
The Light Brigade?

See the list (100 books)

About the Author:

Kameron Hurley is the acclaimed author of the novels God's War, The Mirror Empire, and The Light Brigade. Hurley has been awarded two Hugo Awards, the Kitschies Award for Best Debut Novel, and has also been a finalist for the Nebula Award, the Arthur C. Clarke Award, the British Science Fiction and Fantasy Award, and the Locus Award. Visit the author online at KameronHurley.com or on Twitter at @KameronHurley.

Meet New Books is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a way for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products and services on amazon.com and its subsidiaries.
When you click the Amazon link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commision, at no cost to you.

The Light Brigade

Kameron Hurley