Strange Meeting is a classic novel by Susan Hill that explores the power of love amidst the atrocities of war. The story follows young officer John Hilliard as he returns to his battalion in France after a period of sick leave in England. Despite having trouble adjusting to all the new faces, the stiff and reserved Hilliard forms a friendship with David Barton, an open and cheerful new recruit who has yet to be bloodied in battle.

As the pair approach the front line, facing the proximity of death and destruction, their strange friendship deepens. But each knows that soon they will be separated. Hill masterfully communicates the feeling of men under appalling stress at a particular moment in history with uncanny power.

A remarkable feat of imaginative and descriptive writing, this novel captures the essence of human connection in the face of war and is a testament to the enduring spirit of camaraderie.