The Warm Hands of Ghosts Audiobook By Katherine Arden cover art

The Warm Hands of Ghosts

A Novel

Preview
Get this deal Try for $0.00
Offer ends April 30, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Warm Hands of Ghosts

By: Katherine Arden
Narrated by: Michael Crouch, January LaVoy, Katherine Arden
Get this deal Try for $0.00

$14.95/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends April 30, 2025 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $20.25

Buy for $20.25

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel
Limited time offer. Just $0.99 a month for the first 3 months. Get this deal.

About this listen

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • During the Great War, a combat nurse searches for her brother, believed dead in the trenches despite eerie signs that suggest otherwise, in this hauntingly beautiful historical novel with a speculative twist, from the author of The Bear and the Nightingale.

“A wonderful clash of fire and ice—a book you won’t want to let go of.”—Diana Gabaldon, author of Outlander

“Spectacular—a tour de force, wonderful and deep and haunting.”—Naomi Novik, author of A Deadly Education

ONE OF BOOKPAGE’S TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR

January 1918. Laura Iven was a revered field nurse until she was wounded and discharged from the medical corps, leaving behind a brother still fighting in Flanders. Now home in Halifax, Canada, Laura receives word of Freddie’s death in combat, along with his personal effects—but something doesn’t make sense. Determined to uncover the truth, Laura returns to Belgium as a volunteer at a private hospital, where she soon hears whispers about haunted trenches and a strange hotelier whose wine gives soldiers the gift of oblivion. Could Freddie have escaped the battlefield, only to fall prey to something—or someone—else?

November 1917. Freddie Iven awakens after an explosion to find himself trapped in an overturned pillbox with a wounded enemy soldier, a German by the name of Hans Winter. Against all odds, the two form an alliance and succeed in clawing their way out. Unable to bear the thought of returning to the killing fields, especially on opposite sides, they take refuge with a mysterious man who seems to have the power to make the hellscape of the trenches disappear.

As shells rain down on Flanders and ghosts move among those yet living, Laura’s and Freddie’s deepest traumas are reawakened. Now they must decide whether their world is worth salvaging—or better left behind entirely.

©2024 Katherine Arden (P)2024 Random House Audio
20th Century Action & Adventure Fantasy Historical Historical Fiction World War I Heartfelt Tearjerking

Interview: "The Warm Hands of Ghosts" captures the apocalyptic vibe of WWI, with a supernatural twist

'You haven't really considered something until you've found a way to say it in fiction...'
-0.00
  • The Warm Hands of Ghosts
  • 'You haven't really considered something until you've found a way to say it in fiction...'

What listeners say about The Warm Hands of Ghosts

Highly rated for:

Poetic Storytelling Vivid Character Portrayals Heartbreaking Emotional Depth Immersive Historical Setting
Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    130
  • 4 Stars
    56
  • 3 Stars
    18
  • 2 Stars
    10
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    146
  • 4 Stars
    41
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    6
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    128
  • 4 Stars
    40
  • 3 Stars
    21
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    6

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

3.5 stars. Excellent narration.

I rated this book 3.5 stars. It was a good well-researched story, but I found it dragged in the middle. The imagery of WW1 was compelling, and the characters were well developed. I was happy with how the author ended the book, and the narrators were perfect. I would have rated it higher if it was less repetitive in the middle.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The Whimsy of War

Arden’s authors note at the end of the book perfectly summarizes the macabre enchantment of the era, as does her story as it unfolds with beautiful horror. That said, know that there is plenty of heart and love and hope holding this poetic, historical tale together.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Dark and Creepy and Fabulous

A dark and creepy tale from a master storyteller. Like others, I’d read Ms Arden’s to do list and be thoroughly enthralled. This story was heartbreaking. The two perspectives were intertwined and I knew (knew!) when they merged I would have to brace. How funny (or is it iconic?) is it that a devil (not the devil), Faland, was a fiddle player?! Well done, Ms Arden.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing narration by the two readers and an incredibly heartbreaking story of love and loss and sacrifice.

This story is so stunningly, heartbreakingly beautiful. The horrors of war and the unimaginable loss people experienced during this time are palpable in this book. However, the theme of love is a strong and steady heartbeat throughout it. What wouldn’t I do for my brothers? I’d fight like hell to bring them back too.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Journey through time..

An amazing story of one of the horrific of mankind history. Today, some try to erase it. But our author tenderly yanks us back to face the mirror of the past. Wonderfully written. Bravo and Brava to the narrators. They breathed the characters to life for me. Thank you.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful book

This book was so good. I am so glad that I used a credit for this listen.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

A Good Introduction to WWI in a Modern World

The supernatural pieces did not work as well for me, which I suspect is generational. But as a story of this awe-filled and terrible war, it is a wonderful place for a modern reader to begin.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Best Book I Read in 2024

Absolutely spectacular, one of my favorite authors and a place in period in our time that I know nothing about.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A valuable reminder of what humans can do in war and love

I felt this book captured quite a lot of the visceral feelings of being in a conflict. Fair warning to those who struggle with that kind of imagery. I loved the dual perspectives and the notes of painful hope that pulled through the narrative. One of the fastest listens I’ve had in awhile.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Creeps into your bones

It’s impossible for a story about WWI not to linger a bit. As Arden says, it’s not something that gets nearly enough attention (particularly in the US) for how much it shaped the trajectory of the modern world. Arden really took the time to show how people are wounded by war and how not all suffering is surface level.

The pacing is somewhat slow but it doesn’t drag. The story builds over time, and as the pieces come together, it’s easier and easier to see exactly what the author is hoping to accomplish. The end in particular it subtle but powerful.

I love January LaVoy as a narrator but for the purpose of this particular book, Michael Crouch was just okay. It was well told though and I was never taken out of it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful