Jake Barrett's Blog

Hello, readers!

Starting today, all future blog posts related to Trench 1915 and the broader Trench series will now be published exclusively on the official website.

From historical deep dives to behind-the-scenes insights and development updates, everything will be centralized for a smoother and richer reading experience.

🔗 Visit the new blog here: https://jakebarrettbooks.com/#

Thank you for following the journey so far. I look forward to sharing even more with you—right from the frontlines.

—Jake Barrett
Author of the Trench Series

Among the more unusual armored vehicle ideas of the First World War, the Göbel Landpanzerkreuzer stands out as one of the most ambitious — and arguably strangest. Designed by Otto Göbel, this German concept envisioned a massive, walking land cruiser, or Landpanzerkreuzer, intended to cross trenches, climb rough terrain, and terrify enemies with its size alone.

Though never built for combat, the idea spanned several years, with design concepts existing between 1913 and 1917. The project received brief attention — even earning a second look from a member of the German monarchy — but was ultimately rejected.

🧩 What Was the Göbel Landpanzerkreuzer?
Type: Experimental walking land cruiser

Country: German Empire

Designer: Otto Göbel

Design Period: 1913–1917

The vehicle was described as a mechanical walker powered by internal combustion engines, using legs instead of tracks. Its movement was based on a gear-driven leg mechanism, aiming to mimic natural motion to overcome battlefield obstacles like trenches, barbed wire, and shell craters.

Unlike the far-fetched sci-fi mechs of modern imagination, Göbel’s approach was relatively grounded, drawing on real mechanical principles of the time. His machine was to be heavily armored, possibly armed, and crewed like a traditional land vehicle — but with legs in place of tracks.

🧪 Reality Check
Despite the novelty of the idea, the machine was never developed for military use, even after prototypes based on the walking concept were built and tested. A member of the German monarchy gave the project a second chance during the war, but after further testing, it was once again rejected.

Several major limitations were clear:

The walking mechanism, while innovative, was too complex and unreliable for the battlefield

Mobility and stability would be difficult to maintain in combat environments

Germany’s wartime focus shifted toward more practical technologies

📖 In Trench 1915: Volume 2 – Eastern Storm
Although the Göbel machine never made it into military service, it inspired a fictional counterpart within the Trench series. In Volume 2, a modified version of the machine appears as a rescue and recovery vehicle, used to extract a high-value individual from behind enemy lines or in the midst of battle. For example it was mention during an explosive arc in the Book where the K.W.S. Battalion's commander was badly hurt and in danger. Then came the machine to transport him out.

Based on existing patent images and test photos, the author reimagined the Göbel walker as a small-to-medium-sized support unit — not for combat, but for non-combat utility, such as medical evacuation or transport across ruined terrain. This adaptation reflects a grounded approach that respects WWI technological limits while drawing on rare, real-world inventions.

🧾 Final Thoughts
The Göbel Landpanzerkreuzer may not have influenced armored warfare like the British or French tanks of the era, but it represents one of the more inventive — and eccentric — ideas of early 20th-century engineering. In both historical archives and fictional adaptations, it serves as a lasting reminder of how far imagination stretched in the face of industrial war.

As the First World War dragged into the mud and barbed wire of 1915, the British military found itself searching for a solution to the deadlock of trench warfare. Among the earliest contenders to break this stalemate was a small, unusual machine: the Killen-Strait Armoured Tractor.

Though ultimately sidelined in favor of larger, more capable tanks, this compact vehicle remains a fascinating footnote in the evolution of British armored warfare—and a quiet favorite of the Trench series author for its simplicity and car-like design.

🔧 Background and Purpose
The Killen-Strait tractor was originally developed by the Killen-Walsh Manufacturing Company of the United States and imported to Britain. The British War Office saw its potential in 1915 and conducted trials to assess whether it could cross obstacles such as barbed wire and shell craters.

It was never intended to be a frontline battle tank, but more of a support vehicle—something closer to a lightweight armored tractor or armored car that could operate in relatively open terrain.

Specifications
Weight: ~6 tons

Engine: 25 hp petrol engine

Speed: Approx. 5–6 mph (8–10 km/h)

Crew: 2-3 (driver, commander, gunner)- depending since it was a prototype. An educated speculation if adopted and modified by the King's military

Armament: One .303 Lewis or Vickers machine gun, mounted centrally

Armor: Thin plating, estimated to resist small arms fire only

The vehicle had a tri-track layout, with two forward tracks and a single rear track used for steering—making it relatively agile for its size. However, this also made it unstable on uneven terrain.

🧪 Trials and Performance
The Killen-Strait was demonstrated publicly in 1915, notably at Horse Guards Parade in London, where it succeeded in cutting through barbed wire and maneuvering in tight spaces. It impressed some military officials and even members of the British royal family.

However, it quickly became apparent that while it could handle wire obstacles, it could not cross wide trenches, nor did it have the firepower or armor to survive in the thick of No Man’s Land. In short, it was outmatched by the scale and brutality of trench warfare.

📚 Legacy and Influence
Though it never saw combat or mass production, the Killen-Strait Armoured Tractor did help shape British understanding of mechanized warfare. It influenced ongoing discussions within the Landships Committee, which would later oversee the development of the Mark I tank in 1916.

In the Trench series, its clean, functional look and small profile made it a design the author quietly admired—something that, if the war had taken a different shape, might have found a support role in a more mobile campaign. But against the trenches of the Western Front, it simply wasn't enough.

In the Historical fictional world of the Trench series, the Regiment of Britannia (R.O.B.)—Britain’s elite fighting force—are the only unit to deploy the Killen-Strait Armoured Tractor. Its rarity and design are honored with its appearance on the cover of Trench 1915: Volume 3. As with other special equipment featured in the series, the reasons for its exclusive use are explored in the story itself, preserving the historical timeline while adding deeper intrigue through the elite unit’s unique operational needs.

Long before tanks rumbled across the battlefields of Europe, one design quietly emerged from the Austro-Hungarian Empire — a machine that could have rewritten the mechanics of warfare before the First World War had even begun. That machine was the Burstyn Motorgeschütz.

Developed on paper in 1911 by Günther Burstyn, this design represents one of the earliest recorded concepts for a tracked armored fighting vehicle. Although it never saw combat, it remains a crucial part of early tank history and is featured prominently as the cover art for Trench 1915: Volume 2 – Eastern Storm in recognition of its innovative legacy.

Origins and Purpose
Burstyn of the Austro-Hungarian Army envisioned a vehicle that could support infantry assaults by overcoming terrain obstacles like trenches, barbed wire, and uneven ground — something traditional cavalry and wheeled vehicles could not manage. His "Motorgeschütz" (motorized gun) was essentially a self-propelled, armored gun carriage built to combine mobility, protection, and firepower.

The goal was to provide direct-fire infantry support, not through speed or mass, but by moving a single cannon across hostile terrain under armored protection.

🧰 Design Overview
Burstyn’s vehicle was intended to be compact and mechanically simple — using existing technology in new ways.

Dimensions: 3.5 m long, 1.87 m wide, 1.9 m tall

Weight: Approx. 8 tons

Armament: One fixed 37 mm cannon, mounted in a semi-rotating turret

Turret Traverse: Only 180 degrees — not a fully rotating turret as seen in later tanks

Armor Thickness: Estimated 8 mm of steel plating

Crew: 3 men — one driver, two gunners and loader.

Mobility: Tracked chassis with four auxiliary stabilizing arms (front, and rear) to help with trench-crossing.

Armament Details
According to Burstyn’s original plans and confirmed by the Tank Encyclopedia, the main armament was a 37 mm quick-firing cannon, placed in a lightly armored housing. While the turret’s traverse was limited to 180 degrees, this still provided reasonable field coverage for its intended support role.

🧨 Was It Supposed to Have a Machine Gun?
Yes — there are notes and marginalia in Burstyn’s sketches that mention the possible inclusion of a machine gun. While this wasn’t part of the primary proposal, later interpretations suggest it may have been planned as a secondary armament, possibly for anti-infantry defense. No confirmed model or mount position was included, but it’s believed it would have been a Schwarzlose MG — standard for Austro-Hungarian forces.

🛑 Why It Was Rejected
Despite the vision and practicality of the Motorgeschütz, both the Austro-Hungarian and German military authorities rejected the concept outright.

Reasons included:

Lack of understanding about the tactical potential of such a vehicle

Peacetime military conservatism

Perceived complexity or lack of necessity

No official military requirement for such technology in 1911–1912

Thus, it remained nothing more than a proposal on paper — one that would only gain historical attention decades later.

📕 In Trench 1915: Volume 2 – Eastern Storm

Though the Burstyn Motorgeschütz never saw action in reality, it features as the symbolic cover vehicle for Trench 1915: Volume 2, chosen for its stark design and its place as a "what could have been" in the evolution of armored warfare. Its inclusion reflects the tension of early WWI — a time when old doctrines clashed with modern war machinery, often too late.

Within the fictional narrative of the Trench series, the experimental vehicle was not lost to history. The elite Kaiserliche Waffenspezialisten (KWS) Battalion—a covert German unit specializing in prototype weaponry—secretly built, tested, and deployed the Burstyn Motorgeschütz to meet specific operational needs. Despite its successful limited use, its existence remained classified and unknown to the wider world, buried beneath layers of wartime secrecy in the universe of Trench 1915.

In other words, the KWS kept the design entirely to itself, never sharing it with Germany’s allies. This decision reflects the author’s commitment to maintaining the broader historical timeline of World War I, while weaving in new strategic elements through the lens of fictional special operations and experimental warfare.



🧾 Final Thoughts
The Burstyn Motorgeschütz remains one of the most important unrealized inventions in early tank development. While later designs — like the British Mark I or French FT-17 — made history, Burstyn’s 1911 prototype showed that the idea of mechanized armor existed well before the trenches even formed.

It wasn’t just a concept. It was a warning — and one the Austro-Hungarian Empire ignored.

When people think of Russian firearms, their minds often jump straight to Mosin-Nagants or, later, the iconic AK series. But long before World War II and the Cold War defined the Soviet Union's global arms image, Imperial Russia was already deep in the race to develop self-loading rifles.

Like many world powers in the early 20th century, Russia sought to become the first to successfully adopt a semi-automatic rifle for military use. And while few of these rifles reached mass deployment, their designs were far ahead of their time — and remain largely forgotten by history.

🔧 The Fedorov Legacy

Most enthusiasts recognize the Fedorov Avtomat M1916, often cited as one of the world's first true assault rifles. Though limited in number and role, this weapon saw combat during World War I, particularly with elite troops. Chambered in the Japanese 6.5×50mm Arisaka cartridge (due to logistical necessity), it was lightweight, select-fire, and fed by a 25-round detachable magazine — features unheard of in most standard infantry rifles of the time.

But the M1916 wasn’t Fedorov’s only contribution. His earlier work included:

Fedorov M1912 Self-Loading Rifle – An early semi-automatic design that helped lay the groundwork for later models.

Fedorov M1913 (7.62mm and 6.5mm) – Experimental rifles in both Russian and smaller calibers, along with a compact carbine variant. These prototypes showcased the growing interest in balancing firepower with weight and recoil.

🧪 Tokarev's Experiments

Before his name became known in Soviet weapons development, Fedor Tokarev was already pushing boundaries. His contributions include:

Tokarev M1909 & M1910 Self-Loading Rifles – Early attempts to break away from bolt-action limitations.

Tokarev M1918 Rifle & Carbine – Intended to offer semi-automatic firepower for standard troops, these models were notable for improved gas operation systems.

Several Mosin-Nagant conversions by Tokarev also tested semi-auto functionality using modified receivers and gas systems.

🔍 Other Rare & Forgotten Designs

While Fedorov and Tokarev led much of the charge, several other experimental designs deserve recognition:

Kalashnikov M1916 Automatic Rifle – Not related to Mikhail Kalashnikov of AK-47 fame, this rare piece featured full-auto capability and remains an obscure but fascinating entry in Russian development, utilizing a crescent magazine similar to the Chauchat LMG.

Rochepei M1905 Self-Loading Rifle – An unusual but important part of early Russian semi-auto research.

Mosin-Bräuning M1907/M1911 – Developed by FN Herstal, this Mosin-Nagant conversion used Karl August Bräuning’s Dutch operating system, reflecting a unique blend of Russian and European firearm engineering.

🌍 Influence from Abroad

Russia also received small quantities of foreign weapons through their alliance with the Triple Entente. Before America formally entered the war, some U.S. and Allied semi-automatic rifles were shipped east, further influencing Russian designs and field testing.

Notably, American-made Remington Model 8 and Winchester Model 1907 self-loading rifles may have found their way into Russia through military aid or private sales. Though limited in number, these rifles may have seen use not only during the First World War but also in the Russian Civil War, where both White and Red forces relied on any available arms. These imports helped broaden Russian exposure to semi-automatic platforms and contributed, in small part, to the design experimentation of the time.

🕰️ A Legacy Buried by Time

Unfortunately, much of Russia’s early semi-automatic rifle development was clouded by the outbreak of the Russian Revolution, the collapse of the Tsarist regime, and the transition to Soviet rule. Many prototypes were lost, shelved, or quietly buried beneath the dominant weapons and ideologies of World War II.

As a result, online forums, museums, and documentaries often focus on Soviet-era designs — leaving the bold experiments of Imperial Russia forgotten in the shadows.

But as research continues and old letters, patents, and battlefield records resurface, we’re reminded that Russia’s self-loading rifle journey began far earlier than most realize — with ambition, innovation, and a vision of modern warfare far ahead of its time.

When people read Trench, they often notice right away that it doesn’t follow the usual path. It’s not another Western Front story told from the British or French perspective — though those voices are not ignored. I chose to write from the German point of view as the primary lens, and at times from the Russian side as well, because those fronts offer a rich, often overlooked narrative filled with innovation, struggle, and tragedy. But my intent has never been to exclude others — far from it.

This war was not the property of one empire, one army, or one ideology. It was a global event that dragged in people from every corner of the earth. That’s why I’ve made it a point to include as many voices as I can — whether it’s a Saxon machine gunner, a Russian scout from the Caucasus, or a Fijian rifleman attached to a British unit.

📍 Regional Voices Matter
In Trench, I go out of my way to reflect accents, speech patterns, and cultural nuances from specific regions within these larger nations. A Bavarian doesn’t speak or think like a Prussian. A French soldier from Brittany may not sound like someone from Paris. A Russian peasant from the Volga doesn’t share the same worldview as a Cossack from the south. These details matter. They give the story texture and authenticity — not stereotypes, but character.

🌍 Everyone Gets a Turn
While the German and Russian fronts lead much of the main story, no nation is forgotten. Fijians, for example, appear in Book 1 — not just as historical footnotes, but as characters with agency and depth. Yes, they didn’t see much front-line action in real history, but they were present, and their inclusion reflects that.

Once the main Trench saga is complete, you’ll see more stories told from other perspectives: the French, the British, the Americans, the Italians, the Austro-Hungarians, the Ottomans, the Bulgarians. Each one will get their moment — through spin-offs, short series, or focused side stories — all set within the same Trench universe.

🕯 The War Was No Glorious Adventure
I also don’t shy away from the difficult truths — that many soldiers knew this war was a mistake, or at the very least, a catastrophe. Characters in Trench are not mindless patriots. They are skeptical, conflicted, and human. Many know they are being fed half-truths. Propaganda was everywhere, and so was misinformation — just like in real history.

Some things you read in history books are true. Others are curated to tell a cleaner story. I don’t claim to present an “alternate history” — I present fiction set within real history, shaped by real-world tension, fear, innovation, and doubt. If a character questions the war, it’s because many real soldiers did too.

📚 Breaking the Silence Around the German Perspective
One major reason I chose the German perspective is simple — it’s the one people actively avoid. For decades, the tragedy of the First World War has been clouded by the legacy of what came after — namely, a certain Austrian and his party of fanatics who hijacked German history in the worst way possible. That horror should never be forgotten, but it should never erase what came before it either.

World War I Germany was a complex, tragic, and industrially transformative empire. The amount of innovation, resistance, and unseen conflict on their side of the war — especially after 1915 — is staggering. That’s why I began the series with Trench 1915, and not 1914 like everyone else. It allows me to honor and explore a part of history that’s been distorted or buried under “German guilt.” I have no interest in playing into that guilt. I aim to destroy it — not with excuses, but with stories that tell the full picture.

Whether you agree with me or not, I have my mission.

🎖 The Mission
My goal has always been to make Trench more than just war fiction. I want it to be immersive, educational, and entertaining. Not by rewriting history, but by giving voice to the shadows in between. For those who truly love history — or are just starting to explore it — Trench offers something deeper. Like an appetizer before the full meal, it encourages you to ask questions, to research more, and to discover the forgotten corners of the Great War.

And to those who say “that never happened” — remember: this is fiction. But it’s fiction grounded in reality, written for those who want to imagine what might’ve happened in the cracks between the recorded facts.

When I embarked on the Trench series, I aimed to follow the Great War as closely as possible, tracking its course month by month, week by week, and even day by day. I started in 1915 because, while 1914 had its share of significant events, the full scale of combat really took shape in the following year. By February 1915, the Tsar Tank, for instance, had begun its testing phase — marking a pivotal point to dive into the story.

I chose to write this way to capture the sheer scale and complexity of World War I. The war was immense, and the events were numerous and chaotic. Early on, I realized the enormity of the task: covering these historical moments while weaving in personal stories was more demanding than I had anticipated. But this challenge also sparked the creation of spin-off series, short stories, and countless new ideas that I plan to explore in the future.

There were moments in the Great War that were incredibly chaotic and intense. For example, in my first book, Maxis and Lothar were split up — one sent to the fortress of Przemyśl under Russian siege, and the other to the tail end of the Champagne Offensive against French forces — all within a five-day span. Managing these overlapping, intense timelines was challenging but crucial to capturing the scope of the war.

As I write the tenth book, it’s clear the war only grows in scale and scope. This expansion brings forth not just historical battles, like the Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive or in the future books covering the Somme, but also the personal stories of characters like Maxis, Arina, and Lothar. These characters navigate through the chaos, offering readers a human connection to the monumental events. The series will continue this approach through Trench 1917 all the way to 1920 historically. Covering major engagements like the Third Battle of Ypres, Passchendaele, and more.

Not everyone chronicles the war in this granular fashion. Many resort to broad strokes or cookie-cutter narratives. But the enormity and significance of World War I — truly a "world war" — deserves a deeper, more immersive exploration. That's what I strive to deliver: a detailed, personal, and relentless journey through the tumult of the Great War.

The missions and fictionalized events, as I emphasized in my last blog, help tell these stories in powerful and unforgettable ways. They act as narrative bridges, linking real-world events with speculative operations and secret missions that never change history — only deepen it.

And at the end of each arc — whether it's Przemyśl, Champagne, or the Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive — I include a historical fact section to ground the reader. These moments aren’t for the ones who slept through history class and will never understand; they’re for those who want to learn, who appreciate history told in bite-sized, engaging forms — like an appetizer that sparks curiosity. These notes serve not only to inform, but to inspire deeper research and understanding.

I’m not here to retell the Great War in dry nonfiction form. I do it the best way I know how — by making it fun, entertaining, educational, and most of all, immersive.

⚔️ Before the Term “Special Forces” Ever Existed...

The Great War had already laid the foundation for elite, unconventional warfare. In the Trench series, this reality is expanded and stylized — not as alternate history, but as fiction within historical truth. These fictional elite units — from Germany’s K.W.S. to Russia’s I.T.B. — represent a world of classified missions, hidden technologies, and prototype warfare that was always one decision or deployment away from being real.

🧠 The Origins of Specialized Warfare in Trench
The inspiration for these groups comes from real-life historical counterparts:

British colonial veterans and raiding units

French Chasseurs Alpins (Blue Devils)

Russian Shock Troopers

German Sturmtruppen

These were the precursors — the raw material.

But Trench imagines what could’ve happened if nations had fully embraced the tactical evolution of war in 1914–1918.
Each elite faction in Trench is tasked with handling prototype weapons, vehicles, and gear — items too unreliable or experimental for regular armies.

Whether it’s storming an armored train in Romania, disabling a prototype tank, or sabotaging a chemical weapons lab in Persia, these forces don’t rewrite history — they add another layer to it.

🏷️ Fictional Units in Focus
Kaiserliche Waffenspezialisten Battalion (K.W.S.)
“Immer mit Präzision” (Always with Precision)

Germany’s elite, multi-theater strike force using advanced equipment across land, sea, and air.

Imperskiy Tayna Brigada (I.T.B.)
“Tsar i Bog” (Emperor and God)

The Tsar’s hidden hammer — operating with brutality and foreign-funded equipment in defense of the Empire.

Spéciale Hasardeux Division (S.H.D.)
“Toujours prêt” (Always Ready)

France’s secret doctrine experiment — forging new weapons, new tactics, and elite units far from the public eye.

Regiment of Britannia (R.O.B.)
“Advance, we dare!”

An Empire’s hybrid task force. Loyal and battle-hardened but challenged by politics and control struggles.

A.T.O.G. – American Tactical Operations Group

A ghost division. Covert, intelligent, and operating more like black-ops than boots-on-the-ground.

Each group acts with full autonomy and a chilling understanding:
☠️ If you’re caught or killed… you never existed.

🗂️ Classified Operations, Forgotten Fronts
In Trench, you’ll see phrases like:
🕵️‍♂️ “This mission never happened.”
📜 “This is a classified operation.”
⛓️ “Today never existed.”

These aren't throwaway lines — they define the identity of these units.

The missions in Trench run parallel to real events, threading fictional black-ops and sabotage through true historical campaigns.

Examples:

📌 In Book One, a covert mission surrounding the sinking of the Lusitania introduces a fictional false flag operation — without rewriting the historical fact.
📌 In later volumes, operations run during major offensives like Gorlice–Tarnów and the Somme, adding secret sabotage and infiltration without erasing the real battles.

These are not alternate history missions — they’re hidden history.
The whispers. The sealed records. The stories that never made the front page.

🧬 Why Specialized Units?
Because WWI was more than trench warfare.
It was a crucible of innovation — and chaos.

These elite units allow Trench to:
✅ Introduce real experimental weapons
✅ Explore weird armored vehicles like the Tsar Tank and Burstyn Motorgeschütz
✅ Depict covert missions that could’ve realistically happened in the fog of war

They exist because the regular army couldn’t risk fielding untested technology — but in the shadows, anything is possible.

🧾 Final Thoughts
These factions, while fictional, stay grounded in World War I reality.
They give voice to the forgotten weapons, the impossible operations, and the classified soldiers who might have fought behind the lines — their names never recorded.

They show that in the Great War…
📍 not all battles were fought in daylight,
📍 and not all stories were ever told.

Welcome to the shadows.
Welcome to Trench.

When most people think of World War I, they picture muddy trenches, bolt-action rifles, and the slow grind of attrition warfare. What they don’t picture — and rarely hear about — are the experimental weapons, self-loading rifles, early submachine guns, and armored vehicles that were being tested, deployed, or theorized before the war even ended.

That’s exactly why I chose to include them in the Trench series.

🔫 Because They Existed — Even If Forgotten
This isn’t a fantasy. Weapons like the Mauser Selbstlader M1916, Luger 1906 Rifle, Frommer’s early automatics, and even the Burstyn Motorgeschütz were real. Some made it to trials, some saw limited field use, and others lived in blueprints and arsenals until the war was over.

I’m not inventing new weapons — I’m resurrecting ones that were on the edge of deployment or completely overlooked.

🛡️ Same Goes for the Machines
You’ve seen the Tsar Tank if you’ve followed this series — a lumbering giant of metal and ambition that never got its moment. You’ve heard about the early half-tracks/ fulley tracked trucks, the Killen-Strait armored tractor, and multi-turreted landship concepts that made even generals scratch their heads.

Vehicles like these appear in Trench not to change history, but to honor what was possible during that time. They make the war feel alive, unpredictable, and more nuanced than the usual textbook take.

🎮 Creative Freedom Isn’t New
This isn't the first time this concept has been done — even Call of Duty: Black Ops used experimental weapons from the Cold War to deepen its world. It made the story more engaging while keeping the tone grounded. I’m doing the same for WWI — with the benefit of ten years of personal research, not just imagination.

📖 Why It Matters
I’m not writing for gatekeepers who think only one version of WWI is allowed — the one with British narration, black-and-white footage, and nothing beyond a Lee-Enfield and a whistle.

I’m writing for people who want to learn and be immersed. People who never heard of the Mauser M1902, the Bergmann M1897 carbine, or the Mannlicher semi-autos Austria-Hungary flirted with. I’m writing for readers who want something historical, but also human, bold, and alive.

And if someone didn’t read the Author’s Disclaimer at the beginning of my books — where I state clearly that this is a historical fiction series with creative freedom — then that’s on them. I can't fix willful ignorance.

🔥 This Is Just the Beginning
Maybe one day this project will expand beyond books — into film, animation, games, who knows? But it all started here: by giving WWI the spotlight it deserves, and showing that there’s so much more to this war than mud, gas masks, and clichés.

You don’t have to rewrite history to make it compelling. You just have to tell the parts no one else bothered to look at.

All these weapons were accurate for the time period and existed. If you're bitter about it not being historically accurate then you came to the wrong place or need to chill out since this suppose to be an epic adventure and action style book series.

-Jake Barrett

The Review That Sparked This Post-

“I really wanted to like this book, but unfortunately it's just not good. The writing style changes constantly, the author uses different languages mid sentence, which leads to confusion for the reader, and there are numerous print issues like triple spaces sentences. The characters' dialogue and behavior is so disconnected from the situations they're in, making them look like psychopaths (not in a good way). The author is also scared to write character deaths. There are multiple points in which characters should be dead but the author is afraid to lose characters. There is only one good character, and it’s not the main character (the author’s self-insert), it’s the secondary main character. This book feels like a rough draft. Save your money.”
— Verified Amazon Reviewer, April 2025

Everyone’s entitled to an opinion — even bad ones. But throwing in a smug line like “Save your money” doesn’t make you insightful. It just proves you missed the point entirely.

Let’s break it down.

“The writing style changes constantly.”

It’s called range. The war isn’t one mood, one tone, or one pace. Quiet tension in a bunker, frenzied movement in a sabotage op, and emotional breakdowns in the mud aren’t written the same — because they shouldn’t be. That’s not inconsistency. That’s realism.

“The author uses different languages mid-sentence, which leads to confusion…”

World War I wasn’t an English-speaking affair. It was German, French, Russian, Serbian, Hungarian, and more. If a soldier shouted "Verdammt, they're coming!" I kept the Verdammt. Why? Because it matters. Because language tells you who they are. And if a translation is provided — and it always is — then it’s not confusing. It’s immersive.

“The characters look like psychopaths.”

This war didn’t produce polished, poetic protagonists. It tore men apart and rewired their minds. Some soldiers laughed after killing. Others hesitated and watched friends die. My characters reflect that. They crack under pressure, lash out, freeze, bleed — and survive. If that makes them look unstable, then I’ve done my job. War isn’t clean.

“The author is scared to kill characters.”

No. I choose when and why they die. Characters aren’t tokens to throw away to please someone’s craving for Game of Thrones-style body counts. My characters bleed, suffer, and carry scars — physical and mental. And when death comes, it matters.

“The main character is just a self-insert.”

Maxis is not me. But he is the product of thousands of hours of historical research, military insight, and cultural heritage. He embodies the burden of command, the bitterness of survival, and the complexity of war. If that feels “too real” to some readers, maybe they’ve only been fed sanitized, trope-ridden fiction.

“This book feels like a rough draft.”

Funny. A rough draft doesn’t take ten years of study, three published volumes, and input from historians, editors, and readers around the world. But sure — keep telling yourself that.

Final Word
In the end, I wrote Trench 1915 the way I wanted. With grit. With detail. With intent. I didn’t write it to cater to people looking for a sanitized version of war. I wrote it to reflect what the Great War really was — month by month, mission by mission, bullet by bullet.

If that makes some people uncomfortable — good. It’s not meant to be easy. It's meant to be real.

To those who understand that — I’ll see you in the next volume.

— Jake Barrett