Ben Elton, The First Casualty Review

Overall Rating

A brave attempt at historical fiction.

The author's use of language such as 'horrendous' and 'window of opportunity' which I found out of place. A clich -ridden piece of work - every WW1 clich is here, with some unbelievable turns in the story.

Don't expect anything like the taut and finely-tuned writing style of Sebastian Faulkes or the depth and horror of Pat Barker. Expect, instead, an average read of an average story averagely told. I approached The First Casualty with an open mind never having read any Ben Elton, was impressed by the dedication to his grandfathers, but ultimately disappointed in the read. Although I felt he'd researched his subject quite well, there was very little new here and I found him self-conscious in his integration of historical fact.