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Primitive War
A search and rescue team known as Vulture Squad is sent to an isolated jungle valley to uncover the fate of a missing Green Beret platoon. As they hunt through the primordial depths of the valley, they discover ancient horrors that not only threaten to unravel their minds, but to end their lives as well. When the casualties mount, the men of Vulture Squad must abandon their human nature and give in to their savage instincts in order to survive...the Primitive War.DISCLAIMER - This novel is set in the Vietnam War, and as such, it isn't suitable for children. There is graphic violence, adult language, drug use, and many references to war-borne tragedy. All of the dinosaurs within this novel are mentioned by their modern names, regardless of when they were discovered, for the sake of clarity. All references within the work to other existing works are done so for the sole purpose of paying homage to the author's inspirations mentioned on the title page within the book.
425 pages, Paperback
Published April 22, 2017
861 people are currently reading
3469 people want to read
About the author
Ethan Pettus
8 books81 followersEthan Pettus is a didgeridoo-playing degenerate from the green hills of Kentucky. He spends most of his free time day-dreaming.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 235 reviews
August 25, 2025
8/25/25 UPDATE: The movie was awesome. gruesome and military oriented. very well made 👏
THIS IS NOT A DRILL! THEY ARE MAKING A MOVIE OF THIS YESSSSS 3/20
First and foremost, this is a war book. We get a deeper look at many characters from all sides and experience of what truly goes on in wartime, mentally and physically. Think The Things They Carried meets Jurassic Park. The story takes place in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Russians, US, Vietnamese and of course, a crapton of dinosaurs. The gory attack scenes honestly would make me queasy so they did their job! Two of my favorite dinosaurs are in this book. UTAHRAPTORS and QUETZALCOATLUS, seriously, Google them, horrifying. A really really good book if you're interested in miliary warfare and how Vietnam must have been like (excluding the dinosaurs), great war story. Heartfelt, Gory, Exciting, Scary, and overall Awesome book.
THIS IS NOT A DRILL! THEY ARE MAKING A MOVIE OF THIS YESSSSS 3/20
First and foremost, this is a war book. We get a deeper look at many characters from all sides and experience of what truly goes on in wartime, mentally and physically. Think The Things They Carried meets Jurassic Park. The story takes place in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Russians, US, Vietnamese and of course, a crapton of dinosaurs. The gory attack scenes honestly would make me queasy so they did their job! Two of my favorite dinosaurs are in this book. UTAHRAPTORS and QUETZALCOATLUS, seriously, Google them, horrifying. A really really good book if you're interested in miliary warfare and how Vietnam must have been like (excluding the dinosaurs), great war story. Heartfelt, Gory, Exciting, Scary, and overall Awesome book.
October 11, 2025
Not a perfect read by any means, but a fun and quick action book.
I went into this looking for a bit of a different take on dinosaurs. Here we get good old fashioned angry, hungry dinos set in the jungles of Vietnam during the war. While this was a very cool setting, I wish the war played a bigger part in the plot
The characters were very forgettable. I had trouble remembering who was who. Some of them were clearly there just to get killed. The action scenes and the dinosaurs are what makes this book worth reading. Some real intense moments with lots of gore, firefights and dino action
If you're a huge Jurassic Park fan like me and want a fast paced action thriller, you could do worse than reading Primitive War. Even though I had fun reading this, I'm not rushing to pick up book two. I thought this works well enough as a standalone and I may leave it at that. A great pallet cleanser between large dense series. A very fun 4 star read, would definitely recommend this one ;)
I went into this looking for a bit of a different take on dinosaurs. Here we get good old fashioned angry, hungry dinos set in the jungles of Vietnam during the war. While this was a very cool setting, I wish the war played a bigger part in the plot
The characters were very forgettable. I had trouble remembering who was who. Some of them were clearly there just to get killed. The action scenes and the dinosaurs are what makes this book worth reading. Some real intense moments with lots of gore, firefights and dino action
If you're a huge Jurassic Park fan like me and want a fast paced action thriller, you could do worse than reading Primitive War. Even though I had fun reading this, I'm not rushing to pick up book two. I thought this works well enough as a standalone and I may leave it at that. A great pallet cleanser between large dense series. A very fun 4 star read, would definitely recommend this one ;)
February 11, 2020
Really enjoyable book with an interesting premise, but let down by multiple cases of unnecessary dialogue which added nothing to the story or to the development of the characters, as well as action sequences that were difficult to follow and which became repetitive and lacked imagination as the book went on.
March 4, 2025
Jurassic Park on steroids. And probably meth.
January 2, 2021
Great premise, and the author has tremendous potential. I loved the descriptions of the dinosaurs and the jungles of Vietnam (which may or may not be realistic, but I was willing to suspend disbelief). There's a ton of gore, which is fine by me -- the pacing was fast. I really encourage the author to work with an editor next book, though. Typos abound, and he needs some guidance on technical issues like point of view and just general cleanup. Overall, though, I enjoyed it!
October 4, 2024
I liked the overall concept of this story. However, the author needs to hire an editor and a proof reader, throw away his thesaurus and buy a dictionary. A bit of basic research into both dinosaurs and the Vietnam War would not be amiss.
August 20, 2024
*less than 0.5 stars*
This book was actually awful and the only reason I finished it was because it was a gift. Even then I had to force myself to go back to it every time because I had zero desire to read it. I had read 17 books with about two weeks left being half way through the year, I was hoping to finish my reading goal of 18 books by mid year and then this took 5 weeks to get through.
My largest criticism of the novel was that the author had absolutely no idea how to write a full and engaging sentence. Every single action and process was written as its own sentence, for example:
"Logan's sniper rifle shook violently in his hands. He was fighting the voices in his head and the urge to attack. Gerald's agonized screams were an alarm in his head. The air buzzed with violent energy."
It felt as if there was a full stop every fifth word and it was so unpleasant to read.
Every single character and event was cliche and not in a good way. There was also the use on multiple occasions of homophobic slurs for absolutely no reason which is unacceptable for the year this book was published.
The other major flaw in this authors writing was trying to make every single sentence sound incredible by using large descriptive words that didn't fit well in the sentences. Every single time a dinosaur was mentioned it was a 'behemoth'.
Also every time a character used their gun the specific type of gun was written, multiple times on a page. As well as dinosaur's long complicated names being written over and over again. In not even one full page of text the dinosaur 'Quetzalcoatlus' was written 9 times. 9 TIMES! 6 amount of times in successive sentences:
"Nikita turned and sprayed his AK-47, shredding the quetzalcoatlus's wing membranes. The quetzalcoatlus honked in surprise, staggered in the air, and crashed like a kite. Another quetzalcoatlus took flight and circled over them, ascending higher. The quetzalcoatlus trumpeted and dove towards them, its beak aimed at Sergei's back. Nikita tackled Sergei into the ground and the quetzalcoatlus swept over them. The quetzalcoatlus banked to the left, soared higher, and circled towards them again."
The last big thing that really annoyed me (because there's so much more I can't even be bothered getting into) was that it would just switch back and forth between two character's perspectives without paragraph breaks. I multiple times genuinely had no idea I was reading from a different character's perspective until the original one was named from the new ones POV.
If you're thinking of reading, don't.
This book was actually awful and the only reason I finished it was because it was a gift. Even then I had to force myself to go back to it every time because I had zero desire to read it. I had read 17 books with about two weeks left being half way through the year, I was hoping to finish my reading goal of 18 books by mid year and then this took 5 weeks to get through.
My largest criticism of the novel was that the author had absolutely no idea how to write a full and engaging sentence. Every single action and process was written as its own sentence, for example:
"Logan's sniper rifle shook violently in his hands. He was fighting the voices in his head and the urge to attack. Gerald's agonized screams were an alarm in his head. The air buzzed with violent energy."
It felt as if there was a full stop every fifth word and it was so unpleasant to read.
Every single character and event was cliche and not in a good way. There was also the use on multiple occasions of homophobic slurs for absolutely no reason which is unacceptable for the year this book was published.
The other major flaw in this authors writing was trying to make every single sentence sound incredible by using large descriptive words that didn't fit well in the sentences. Every single time a dinosaur was mentioned it was a 'behemoth'.
Also every time a character used their gun the specific type of gun was written, multiple times on a page. As well as dinosaur's long complicated names being written over and over again. In not even one full page of text the dinosaur 'Quetzalcoatlus' was written 9 times. 9 TIMES! 6 amount of times in successive sentences:
"Nikita turned and sprayed his AK-47, shredding the quetzalcoatlus's wing membranes. The quetzalcoatlus honked in surprise, staggered in the air, and crashed like a kite. Another quetzalcoatlus took flight and circled over them, ascending higher. The quetzalcoatlus trumpeted and dove towards them, its beak aimed at Sergei's back. Nikita tackled Sergei into the ground and the quetzalcoatlus swept over them. The quetzalcoatlus banked to the left, soared higher, and circled towards them again."
The last big thing that really annoyed me (because there's so much more I can't even be bothered getting into) was that it would just switch back and forth between two character's perspectives without paragraph breaks. I multiple times genuinely had no idea I was reading from a different character's perspective until the original one was named from the new ones POV.
If you're thinking of reading, don't.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 24, 2025
Is this an intellectual book? No. Did I have fun? Yes!
August 10, 2025
I really wanted to like this one more than I did. The dinosaur sequences are amazing; proof that scientific accuracy can in the right hands be scarier than what Hollywood tends to show us. The raptors here are the stuff of nightmares.
The human aspect (which by necessity takes up more of the book) is a bundle of cliches that REALLY could have used another pass at the editing table. Pettus at times seems to forget about serious injuries his characters suffer (particularly those on the hands), neglecting a potential source of tension. He also writes Vietnamese people without any real effort to depict their culture, perhaps in a well-intentioned move to not write them any differently than if they were Americans. In practice this comes off as deficit of interest in the people most severely affected by the war, save as props to make the soldiers feel sad.
I’m still interested enough to read the rest of the series, so at least there’s that.
The human aspect (which by necessity takes up more of the book) is a bundle of cliches that REALLY could have used another pass at the editing table. Pettus at times seems to forget about serious injuries his characters suffer (particularly those on the hands), neglecting a potential source of tension. He also writes Vietnamese people without any real effort to depict their culture, perhaps in a well-intentioned move to not write them any differently than if they were Americans. In practice this comes off as deficit of interest in the people most severely affected by the war, save as props to make the soldiers feel sad.
I’m still interested enough to read the rest of the series, so at least there’s that.
August 18, 2025
Man bro this book is more about dinosaurs and focuses about what war does to a person and how fast they change because of it. I did like how whenever they were being hunted by the dinosaurs it was made really vivid and went into detail what the dinosaurs were doing and how they hunt. Pretty good overall book. BUTTTTT I don’t know how to feel about the ending first a lot of cool people died I didn’t want that to happen but ig plot so whatever. But the ending had me like this -_- .
February 5, 2018
Ever since I first saw the absolutely gorgeous concept art for this book by Raph Lomotan in The Prehistoric Times Facebook group, I knew that the premise of this book with a special ops team encountering dinosaurs during the hellish conflict that was the Vietnam War was something both original and exciting, little did I know that I was to be treated with something so much more. Ethan Pettus has demonstrated himself to be a terrific writer that knows how to create human characters with complexity, depth, and nuance without any of them being cliched in the slightest. Every named human character has a part to play in this story and Ethan's writing is compelling enough to where it makes you give a damn about each member of Vulture Squad and what happens to them. Everyone from Captain Ryan Baker, to the rest of the squad have their virtues and vices that make each of them human and relateble to the reader. Each of them suffers from some sort of problem or one another, be it guilt from past missions and atrocities they were forced to commit, to battles with alcohol and even mental illness. In the case of the Vulture Squad sniper Logan who battles from schizophrenia, I really have to commend Ethan for how he handles writing such a character with care. Even the Russian characters whom you'd think would be your stereotypical evil bad guys have their good guys and bad guys within their ranks just as much as the Vulture Squad themselves. There are definitely no Mary Sues or Gary Stus to be found here, anyone is fair game for the myriad dinosaur species that inhabit the isolated valley in which the story takes place. The dinosaurs themselves by far were my favorite aspect of the book alongside the many other scenes discussing the hell that was the Vietnam War and characters coping with the regret of past decisions. The dinosaur attacks are some of the most graphic and violent that I've seen in a work of paleofiction since Carnosaur, but here there's added tension given how some of them are depicted. The Utahraptors were by far the deadliest of the predators in the book, hunting in packs and using various tactics to get the drop of both Vulture Squad and other humans that end up on their menu. The Cyclops in particular is one ruthless bastard and was by far my favorite of the raptors in the book. Whenever they are about to kill someone, it reminds me so much of Predator when people get picked off one by one stealthily. From the skies the deadly Quetzalcoatlus also made quite a terrifying impression with their sheer size and terror-inducing attacks on the human characters, with harpoon like beaks and hooked tongues with incredible tensile strength means that their scenes are by far some of the most graphic and disturbing in the book. The Mother and Father Tyrannosaurus Rex also were a delight to watch in the book and in particular the Father in certain chapters. It is from them that we also see another big strength of this book: The dinosaurs are not your stereotypical movie monsters, they are animals first and throughout the book we are treated to scenes of the dinosaurs going about their daily lives impressing their mates, defending their territory, hunting for good, and yes even mating. Deinonychus is also featured and they were quite scary in their ability to launch attacks on their victims from the trees in a manner not too unlike that of a leopard as we see in one chapter as they hunted a herd of Stygimoloch. The other significant non-dinosaurian predator of renown is Kaprosuchus the boar-croc which is depicted as chasing prey down on land into the water and then attacking it savagely in a swarm, the concept art of a Triceratops being savagely eaten alive and torn apart by these crocs is one of the things that got me hooked on the book. All of the prehistoric animals were a delight to read and I eagerly look forward to seeing the new dinosaurs that will be showing up in the sequel. This is a book that screams Hollywood blockbuster with it's premise alone, and I'd definitely love to see a movie adaptation of this done right. I also wouldn't mind seeing this adapted into a comic book as there are so many great scenes that would look wonderful visualized on the page. A book that showcases the darkside of war and humanity along with dinosaurs is one that I cannot recommend enough. Ethan has the potential to become the next Michael Crichton and I am not saying that lightly, this book is really that damn good to justify placing it alongside Jurassic Park and maybe even slightly better than it. This book is an instant five of five star classic and one that needs to be read by all whom enjoy military-action with a healthy dose of dinosaur carnage.
April 25, 2025
I don’t have a lot to say, but I do have many ways to say it. Just like Ethan Pettus. Readers beware: do not be enticed by the tag line “Dinosaurs in Vietnam! How cool!” This book is a slog through a jungle mired in death, torture, and savagery committed by every character in this book.
I would give this book 0 stars if possible. I would have put this book down in the first 100 pages if it were not selected for my book club. There were times this book physically sickened me with its grotesqueness. My revulsion to this book also comes from the mental state of the characters who continue to commit atrocities despite lamenting the horrors of war. They are the perpetrators of their own nightmares.
I would give this book 0 stars if possible. I would have put this book down in the first 100 pages if it were not selected for my book club. There were times this book physically sickened me with its grotesqueness. My revulsion to this book also comes from the mental state of the characters who continue to commit atrocities despite lamenting the horrors of war. They are the perpetrators of their own nightmares.
March 11, 2022
Cool idea, but may have been better suited to a novella/ graphic novel format. Felt a bit drawn out at times.
February 16, 2026
3 stars.
I actually enjoyed this book, and I didn’t think I would. I watched the movie first, so I went into this with a pre-conceived notion, truthfully though the book is waaay more coherent.
The most impressive part for me were the depictions of the dinosaurs; they’re given unique behaviours that make them a formidable force. The way they hunt, the way they treat their prey, etc. And while there are a few new and unique animals here that we don’t often see in dinosaur media, I do feel we could’ve had a a larger gallery of creatures. That would’ve done this book loads more favours, given that we get the usuals here - the raptors, the tyrannosaurs, the pterosaurs. That being said, the raptor species were gruesome, and a treat. I won’t spoil the other creatures.
Also there’s a larger anti-war message here which I’m appreciative of. Barring the dinosaur-related trauma, we do get references to true atrocities committed in the Vietnam War, and I honestly would’ve liked for this setting to play a larger role in the plot. As it stands, we get a slice, and it was satisfying.
There’s parts of this novel I found weak. The reason the dinosaurs are in Vietnam in the first place, for one, is a sort of haphazard bog-standard sci-fi slop explanation. They don’t dwell on the how too much thankfully, and more just focus on the carnage. I’m glad this book didn’t overstep in the physics department - we’re given a barebones reason for these creature’s existence, and that’s that. That also clearly makes this book an action novel for me, rather than a sci-fi. I saw a lot of people comparing this to Jurassic Park or Crichton’s writing; I would say they’re nothing alike. While the inspiration is clear, I just want to iterate that Primitive War reads very differently from Jurassic Park.
One quick positive- I saw a lot of reviews saying the characters were cliched, and they were. But I don’t think cliches or tropes are bad, they sort of provided a backbone here. A narrative glue of sorts. I did find myself rooting for these young soldiers cast into a war where it quickly becomes vague what they’re fighting for. Some of their deaths are gruesome.
I realised very quickly into the first few chapters that this would be a guilty pleasure for me, and it was. I tore through second half of the book over the course of a day, and I’m gonna pick up the next few books to see where it goes.
I actually enjoyed this book, and I didn’t think I would. I watched the movie first, so I went into this with a pre-conceived notion, truthfully though the book is waaay more coherent.
The most impressive part for me were the depictions of the dinosaurs; they’re given unique behaviours that make them a formidable force. The way they hunt, the way they treat their prey, etc. And while there are a few new and unique animals here that we don’t often see in dinosaur media, I do feel we could’ve had a a larger gallery of creatures. That would’ve done this book loads more favours, given that we get the usuals here - the raptors, the tyrannosaurs, the pterosaurs. That being said, the raptor species were gruesome, and a treat. I won’t spoil the other creatures.
Also there’s a larger anti-war message here which I’m appreciative of. Barring the dinosaur-related trauma, we do get references to true atrocities committed in the Vietnam War, and I honestly would’ve liked for this setting to play a larger role in the plot. As it stands, we get a slice, and it was satisfying.
There’s parts of this novel I found weak. The reason the dinosaurs are in Vietnam in the first place, for one, is a sort of haphazard bog-standard sci-fi slop explanation. They don’t dwell on the how too much thankfully, and more just focus on the carnage. I’m glad this book didn’t overstep in the physics department - we’re given a barebones reason for these creature’s existence, and that’s that. That also clearly makes this book an action novel for me, rather than a sci-fi. I saw a lot of people comparing this to Jurassic Park or Crichton’s writing; I would say they’re nothing alike. While the inspiration is clear, I just want to iterate that Primitive War reads very differently from Jurassic Park.
One quick positive- I saw a lot of reviews saying the characters were cliched, and they were. But I don’t think cliches or tropes are bad, they sort of provided a backbone here. A narrative glue of sorts. I did find myself rooting for these young soldiers cast into a war where it quickly becomes vague what they’re fighting for. Some of their deaths are gruesome.
I realised very quickly into the first few chapters that this would be a guilty pleasure for me, and it was. I tore through second half of the book over the course of a day, and I’m gonna pick up the next few books to see where it goes.
August 1, 2025
A group of United States soldiers far behind enemy lines is tasked with finding a missing group of Green Berets. What they find instead is far more horrific and prehistoric!
Dinosaurs during wartime? What could possibly be a better recipe for a story!
Wow, this book took me on a wild ride! I was hooked from the very first page and eagerly devoured each chapter! The story was filled with tense action and surprisingly well-rounded characters. I felt thoroughly immersed in the setting and could vividly picture things as they were happening. And the dinosaur scenes? Whew! I wish there were even more featured in the book! (Though there were definitely plenty!)
My main, and only, gripe with this book was that the point of view switching from character to character felt choppy at times. You’d be reading about one character and a paragraph later, you’d be following another in an entirely separate location. I wish it had been spaced a bit more to show that differentiation!
If you’re looking for an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride featuring some really awesome action scenes and terrifying dinosaurs, this is the book for you! I absolutely loved this book!
Dinosaurs during wartime? What could possibly be a better recipe for a story!
Wow, this book took me on a wild ride! I was hooked from the very first page and eagerly devoured each chapter! The story was filled with tense action and surprisingly well-rounded characters. I felt thoroughly immersed in the setting and could vividly picture things as they were happening. And the dinosaur scenes? Whew! I wish there were even more featured in the book! (Though there were definitely plenty!)
My main, and only, gripe with this book was that the point of view switching from character to character felt choppy at times. You’d be reading about one character and a paragraph later, you’d be following another in an entirely separate location. I wish it had been spaced a bit more to show that differentiation!
If you’re looking for an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride featuring some really awesome action scenes and terrifying dinosaurs, this is the book for you! I absolutely loved this book!
August 26, 2025
This is epic. As a lover of all thing dinosaur, this is up there with Jurassic Park.
Vivid details, an epic storyline and characters so real it feels like you know them.
It had me by the balls the entire read. Thank you Ethan, im glad I got to read this
Vivid details, an epic storyline and characters so real it feels like you know them.
It had me by the balls the entire read. Thank you Ethan, im glad I got to read this
July 29, 2025
DNF @ 60%
Look, I actually really really enjoyed this book. People should be warned that it is gruesome and really depicts warfare over anything here. It’s gory, gruesome and realistic and I appreciated this. Ethan’s writing was fantastic and engaging and I feel accurately gave you the feelings of warfare, and don’t be fooled by the dinosaurs either, this book is first and foremost about war.
But mentioning the dinosaurs - they were cool! I love a dinosaur book and when this was pitched to me as the Vietnam War mixed with Jurassic Park, I was so interested. I love the use of the dinosaurs here and they add a really horror element to the book which was absolutely brilliant !!
HOWEVER !!!!!!!! I want to scream from the top of my lungs because why did the plot take such a twist that it totally lost me? What do you mean dinosaurs crawled out of a worm hole you created and ended up in the valley? The science really took me out of this and sounded so stupid. I immediately had to stop reading and I was so disappointed to have felt like I was totally removed from the story line now.
Anyway, great book! Some flaws, but overall, a well done novel.
Look, I actually really really enjoyed this book. People should be warned that it is gruesome and really depicts warfare over anything here. It’s gory, gruesome and realistic and I appreciated this. Ethan’s writing was fantastic and engaging and I feel accurately gave you the feelings of warfare, and don’t be fooled by the dinosaurs either, this book is first and foremost about war.
But mentioning the dinosaurs - they were cool! I love a dinosaur book and when this was pitched to me as the Vietnam War mixed with Jurassic Park, I was so interested. I love the use of the dinosaurs here and they add a really horror element to the book which was absolutely brilliant !!
HOWEVER !!!!!!!! I want to scream from the top of my lungs because why did the plot take such a twist that it totally lost me? What do you mean dinosaurs crawled out of a worm hole you created and ended up in the valley? The science really took me out of this and sounded so stupid. I immediately had to stop reading and I was so disappointed to have felt like I was totally removed from the story line now.
Anyway, great book! Some flaws, but overall, a well done novel.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 29, 2025
I’m sorry Mr Pettus, but I would’ve DNFed this book if I could’ve.
*more thorough review pending*
*more thorough review pending*
August 3, 2025
Lite för mycket fokus på krig och droger, give me more dinosaurs!!!
September 15, 2025
This is the greatest book of all time. The action and plot are good and the dinosaurs are described great to anyone who likes dinosaurs READ THIS
August 18, 2025
The overall concept is doing a lot of the work on the rating here. I expected the book to be more fun as it's dinosaurs vs soldiers in Vietnam but, probably because it was dinosaurs vs soldiers in Vietnam, it ended up being pretty darn dark.
So, the biggest thing holding me back in enjoying this was the formatting and some very weird word choices. There's unnecessary line breaks in a lot of areas and other areas where PoV changes mid paragraph that made the flow of action unclear.
And with the word choices, early on there's a point where the environment is described as "mist filled the air like cement." I'm guessing that means the mist was really thick but 'like cement' thick? Being opaque is not in the first five things I think of when I think of cement. Later a fig tree is described as "swollen with lecherous vines and parasitic ivy." What on earth are "lecherous vines"? Why is that the adjective used?
There's other points where word choices are just strange but those are the two that stand out most. At some point I got over it and learned to filter out the occasional odd word choice.
Plot and character wise, this book was heavy on the plot and a lot of the characters came off as variations of flat character. They're generally somewhat basic archetypes, like the haunted commander, the alcoholic, the religious guy, the rookie, etc. who don't have a lot of depth beyond that. Then there's the Russians who lean a lot more jingoistic and kill happy, though not universally.
The book feels disjointed with its characters, they're dealing with PTSD and the effects of what they've been through and done in Vietnam. And then there's dinosaurs. The dinosaurs don't really fit thematically with the characters. Though there is some element of the protagonists' Vulture Squad already being preeminent jungle operators and then encountering the dinosaurs as a completely unexpected thread.
Then I was disappointed by the dinosaurs being I guess in the end, the dinosaurs still felt like movie monsters rather than animals. I was hoping for a more even fight where in the open, modern firepower prevails but in the close confines of the jungle the balance switches to the prehistoric predators. That was a disappointing aspect of this but I don't know enough about dinosaurs or weaponry to say if this is an inaccuracy or if I'm underestimating dinosaur toughness.
So, the biggest thing holding me back in enjoying this was the formatting and some very weird word choices. There's unnecessary line breaks in a lot of areas and other areas where PoV changes mid paragraph that made the flow of action unclear.
And with the word choices, early on there's a point where the environment is described as "mist filled the air like cement." I'm guessing that means the mist was really thick but 'like cement' thick? Being opaque is not in the first five things I think of when I think of cement. Later a fig tree is described as "swollen with lecherous vines and parasitic ivy." What on earth are "lecherous vines"? Why is that the adjective used?
There's other points where word choices are just strange but those are the two that stand out most. At some point I got over it and learned to filter out the occasional odd word choice.
Plot and character wise, this book was heavy on the plot and a lot of the characters came off as variations of flat character. They're generally somewhat basic archetypes, like the haunted commander, the alcoholic, the religious guy, the rookie, etc. who don't have a lot of depth beyond that. Then there's the Russians who lean a lot more jingoistic and kill happy, though not universally.
The book feels disjointed with its characters, they're dealing with PTSD and the effects of what they've been through and done in Vietnam. And then there's dinosaurs. The dinosaurs don't really fit thematically with the characters. Though there is some element of the protagonists' Vulture Squad already being preeminent jungle operators and then encountering the dinosaurs as a completely unexpected thread.
Then I was disappointed by the dinosaurs being I guess in the end, the dinosaurs still felt like movie monsters rather than animals. I was hoping for a more even fight where in the open, modern firepower prevails but in the close confines of the jungle the balance switches to the prehistoric predators. That was a disappointing aspect of this but I don't know enough about dinosaurs or weaponry to say if this is an inaccuracy or if I'm underestimating dinosaur toughness.
July 25, 2022
Spoiler free.
You are considering Primitive War because it’s the Vietnam War with dinosaurs. It is that exactly, but I cannot believe how good it came out! I was not expecting characters with depth, an unflinching take on warfare, and the most realistic dinosaurs I have experienced in a piece of fiction yet. Crichton, whom the book is dedicated to, would surely be impressed.
The characters of Primitive War have unexpected individuality, surprising given that almost everyone is either an American soldier, Russian soldier, or Vietnamese soldier. Nearly every character is dealing with some sort of personal inner turmoil, and although usually related to the war, these conflicts are appropriately showcased. I was surprised to find myself as captivated by their inner conflict as I was the outer, a dinosaur-ridden warzone.
Pettus’s take on Vietnam is honest to a point of possibly offensive (which is more than appropriate for the Vietnam War). His commentary on human nature and America’s doings in Vietnam are evident from the start. His message is nothing new, but must be repeated: war is hell, war is a narcotic, and war turns men into monsters. All brutality committed by combatants is realistic for the setting and written unflinchingly, paralleled only by the actions of dinosaurs.
Speaking of dinosaurs…
For too long we have sat through monstrous dinosaurs that loudly scare away their prey, then outsmart humans with a crazy plan minutes later. I can’t take it anymore! Do wolves howl at buffalo to elicit fear before an attack? Do cats stalk prey head-on while hissing?
This is where Pettus shines most. His dinosaurs are feathered, fearsome, biologically driven animals. I will not spoil anything further, but if you have ever observed wild animals (firsthand or from a documentary) you will notice countless parallels in his dinosaurs’ behaviors. These dinosaurs are not simple bloodthirsty monsters; they fill an environmental niche and are as scary as modern apex predators. There were a few physical traits which I assume Pettus imagined, though they are biologically realistic, making his dinosaurs even more horrifying.
Oh yeah, and there’s plenty of gore.
I could go on and on about how much I loved this. Just buy a copy so we can incentivize more quality dinosaur content ambitious enough to follow modern science! A graphic-novel / comic book adaptation is already in the works.
You are considering Primitive War because it’s the Vietnam War with dinosaurs. It is that exactly, but I cannot believe how good it came out! I was not expecting characters with depth, an unflinching take on warfare, and the most realistic dinosaurs I have experienced in a piece of fiction yet. Crichton, whom the book is dedicated to, would surely be impressed.
The characters of Primitive War have unexpected individuality, surprising given that almost everyone is either an American soldier, Russian soldier, or Vietnamese soldier. Nearly every character is dealing with some sort of personal inner turmoil, and although usually related to the war, these conflicts are appropriately showcased. I was surprised to find myself as captivated by their inner conflict as I was the outer, a dinosaur-ridden warzone.
Pettus’s take on Vietnam is honest to a point of possibly offensive (which is more than appropriate for the Vietnam War). His commentary on human nature and America’s doings in Vietnam are evident from the start. His message is nothing new, but must be repeated: war is hell, war is a narcotic, and war turns men into monsters. All brutality committed by combatants is realistic for the setting and written unflinchingly, paralleled only by the actions of dinosaurs.
Speaking of dinosaurs…
For too long we have sat through monstrous dinosaurs that loudly scare away their prey, then outsmart humans with a crazy plan minutes later. I can’t take it anymore! Do wolves howl at buffalo to elicit fear before an attack? Do cats stalk prey head-on while hissing?
This is where Pettus shines most. His dinosaurs are feathered, fearsome, biologically driven animals. I will not spoil anything further, but if you have ever observed wild animals (firsthand or from a documentary) you will notice countless parallels in his dinosaurs’ behaviors. These dinosaurs are not simple bloodthirsty monsters; they fill an environmental niche and are as scary as modern apex predators. There were a few physical traits which I assume Pettus imagined, though they are biologically realistic, making his dinosaurs even more horrifying.
Oh yeah, and there’s plenty of gore.
I could go on and on about how much I loved this. Just buy a copy so we can incentivize more quality dinosaur content ambitious enough to follow modern science! A graphic-novel / comic book adaptation is already in the works.
December 24, 2020
I’ve been a huge dinosaur enthusiast my entire life, and Michael Crichton’s novels really resonated with me, he wrote Characters and dinosaurs flawlessly and made it seem real. I’ve read so many books featuring dinosaurs since then, and I’ve been disappointed everytime, nobody can write dinosaurs properly, they always seem like monsters and not animals.
That all changed when i heard people discussing Primitive War on a podcast, I immediately went out and bought the ebook, and about three chapters in, I stopped and ordered the paperback. This book is incredible, i wasn’t that bothered about a Vietnam setting at first, I’ve never been a war enthusiast. But the characters are incredibly well written, each person has so much emotional depth, I found myself just wishing that they could all go home and just be safe.
Ethan is also incredible at setting the scene, he conjours an atmosphere that makes you just lose yourself and feel like your in a jungle, he creates such a visual experience much like Neil Gaiman, and now I remember scenes from the book like I’ve seen them in a high budget tv series.
And now onto the dinosaurs....
Not only are the species a fantastic and unique selection (featuring my favourite dinosaur, Utahraptor) , they’re also fairly accurate , and he writes them like real animals! Especially the attack scenes...which are some of the most gruesome and horrifying I’ve ever read, and definitely hark back to Crichton’s novels.
The story was gripping and I honestly found it refreshing & original! Ethan ignores the usual tropes found in these types of books, and carves his own story, with an ending that sets up so much more.
The dinosaurs are terrifying (and I mean terrifying)
The characters are so real and well written , I found myself caring more the characters than I did the dinosaurs, and often tearing up at moments. Not only are the protagonists so well written, the human antagonists are so well written, that I found myself rooting for them just as much, and finding myself devastated when any character met their fate.
This book is an absolute must,and I don’t give out praise often, the fact I’m
Taking the time to write a review here is testament to how good it is.
Ethan Pettus is an author that is certainly heading for great things and I cannot wait for his next creation! 10/10
That all changed when i heard people discussing Primitive War on a podcast, I immediately went out and bought the ebook, and about three chapters in, I stopped and ordered the paperback. This book is incredible, i wasn’t that bothered about a Vietnam setting at first, I’ve never been a war enthusiast. But the characters are incredibly well written, each person has so much emotional depth, I found myself just wishing that they could all go home and just be safe.
Ethan is also incredible at setting the scene, he conjours an atmosphere that makes you just lose yourself and feel like your in a jungle, he creates such a visual experience much like Neil Gaiman, and now I remember scenes from the book like I’ve seen them in a high budget tv series.
And now onto the dinosaurs....
Not only are the species a fantastic and unique selection (featuring my favourite dinosaur, Utahraptor) , they’re also fairly accurate , and he writes them like real animals! Especially the attack scenes...which are some of the most gruesome and horrifying I’ve ever read, and definitely hark back to Crichton’s novels.
The story was gripping and I honestly found it refreshing & original! Ethan ignores the usual tropes found in these types of books, and carves his own story, with an ending that sets up so much more.
The dinosaurs are terrifying (and I mean terrifying)
The characters are so real and well written , I found myself caring more the characters than I did the dinosaurs, and often tearing up at moments. Not only are the protagonists so well written, the human antagonists are so well written, that I found myself rooting for them just as much, and finding myself devastated when any character met their fate.
This book is an absolute must,and I don’t give out praise often, the fact I’m
Taking the time to write a review here is testament to how good it is.
Ethan Pettus is an author that is certainly heading for great things and I cannot wait for his next creation! 10/10
Read
April 9, 2025When Father T-rex and his family are the only "characters" you're rooting for... 🙃
May 6, 2025
How big is that flask? Goddamn.
October 15, 2025
That was a wild ride! Very intense and so good!
September 20, 2025
So while I was reading this book, I started complaining to a coworker how there have been TWENTY-EIGHT named male characters but not a single female named character. In fact at that point, of the only two women shown on page, one was dead and the other was screaming for her life.
My coworker asked for the setting of the book, when I told him (of course a guy) he was like "well, that's just accurate to the setting."
.. Sir, we are talking about DINOSAURS coming through a WORMHOLE in 1968. So apparently we can suspend that logic rationally I guess, but having more than one named female character is just apparently too unbelievable. (But at least we know what type of gun every male character has! And are reminded of it MULTIPLE times!!)
While we're on the topic of names and accuracy, did ya'll know the utahraptor wasn't discovered until 1991 and wasn't named until 1993? Though I did just see the author had to include a disclaimer for his use of the names of the dinosaurs regardless of historical accuracy.. which I can only assume was done out of laziness instead of reworking the book.
Speaking of dinosaur names and laziness, lets talk about some various laziness also throughout the book:
• How convenient one of the Vulture Squad members JUST HAPPENED to remember the name of a type of dinosaur (that wasn't named btw until the 80s) from a book that his squad member had.
• How the author jumps in at one point to explain what dinosaur it is.. "Xavier didn't know the name but the animal was a deinonychus, a small pack-hunting animal." Cool thanks. See we hadn't met the character who actually knows about all the dinosaurs yet so.. once we meet him, that character does that for us instead..
• How the dinosaurs are basically bulletproof.. (you mean to tell me that you can shoot dozens of bullets at the wings of a flying dinosaur and they can still fly?)
• How throughout most of the book, the POVs stick to various people within the group that chapter focuses on. It hops between them which is fine. But then at some point it just goes off the rails and we're jumping POVs between characters all over the place with no type of transition or warning or anything. It'll give you whiplash. But don't worry! You'll always know you're with a Russian character because...
• How author has to make sure we know certain characters are Russian because he includes the word "comrade" within their dialogue repeatedly. And motherland.. lol..
Oh that brings me to a whole other thing this author does.. What's a dinosaur's favorite type of book that this author also desperately needs? A Thesaurus!! Bro used the word "behemoth" 30 times. So many things are repeated over and over and over again.. How many times do we need a character using his gun as a cane to stand up.. and like we get it, you really like intestines but I'm pretty sure they were mentioned in this book so much that I'm desensitized from any other book mentioning them from here on out.
And then just the cherry on top of the whole mess, is that obviously the Vietnamese people are going to be treated horribly in this book (and boy howdy the racism is RIFE).. but I guess we had to throw in some casual Native American racism for fun? And also the one named female character we're introduced to like 60% of the way in dies almost immediately from a wound the rest of these idiots probably could have survived considering some of them literally had intestines falling out and they were all good. So.. that's cool.
Needless to say, I'm passing on the sequel and I low key want my $4.99 back lol. The only reason I read this is because my giant dinonerd best friend is really excited to watch the movie (and honestly I love the JP franchise and love giant animal/monster movies). He's cautiously optimistic that the movie smooths out some of this book's massive pitfalls so I guess I will be too.
My coworker asked for the setting of the book, when I told him (of course a guy) he was like "well, that's just accurate to the setting."
.. Sir, we are talking about DINOSAURS coming through a WORMHOLE in 1968. So apparently we can suspend that logic rationally I guess, but having more than one named female character is just apparently too unbelievable. (But at least we know what type of gun every male character has! And are reminded of it MULTIPLE times!!)
While we're on the topic of names and accuracy, did ya'll know the utahraptor wasn't discovered until 1991 and wasn't named until 1993? Though I did just see the author had to include a disclaimer for his use of the names of the dinosaurs regardless of historical accuracy.. which I can only assume was done out of laziness instead of reworking the book.
Speaking of dinosaur names and laziness, lets talk about some various laziness also throughout the book:
• How convenient one of the Vulture Squad members JUST HAPPENED to remember the name of a type of dinosaur (that wasn't named btw until the 80s) from a book that his squad member had.
• How the author jumps in at one point to explain what dinosaur it is.. "Xavier didn't know the name but the animal was a deinonychus, a small pack-hunting animal." Cool thanks. See we hadn't met the character who actually knows about all the dinosaurs yet so.. once we meet him, that character does that for us instead..
• How the dinosaurs are basically bulletproof.. (you mean to tell me that you can shoot dozens of bullets at the wings of a flying dinosaur and they can still fly?)
• How throughout most of the book, the POVs stick to various people within the group that chapter focuses on. It hops between them which is fine. But then at some point it just goes off the rails and we're jumping POVs between characters all over the place with no type of transition or warning or anything. It'll give you whiplash. But don't worry! You'll always know you're with a Russian character because...
• How author has to make sure we know certain characters are Russian because he includes the word "comrade" within their dialogue repeatedly. And motherland.. lol..
Oh that brings me to a whole other thing this author does.. What's a dinosaur's favorite type of book that this author also desperately needs? A Thesaurus!! Bro used the word "behemoth" 30 times. So many things are repeated over and over and over again.. How many times do we need a character using his gun as a cane to stand up.. and like we get it, you really like intestines but I'm pretty sure they were mentioned in this book so much that I'm desensitized from any other book mentioning them from here on out.
And then just the cherry on top of the whole mess, is that obviously the Vietnamese people are going to be treated horribly in this book (and boy howdy the racism is RIFE).. but I guess we had to throw in some casual Native American racism for fun? And also the one named female character we're introduced to like 60% of the way in dies almost immediately from a wound the rest of these idiots probably could have survived considering some of them literally had intestines falling out and they were all good. So.. that's cool.
Needless to say, I'm passing on the sequel and I low key want my $4.99 back lol. The only reason I read this is because my giant dinonerd best friend is really excited to watch the movie (and honestly I love the JP franchise and love giant animal/monster movies). He's cautiously optimistic that the movie smooths out some of this book's massive pitfalls so I guess I will be too.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 16, 2025
Dinosaurs, mmm, yes, quite right.
TL; DR: A gory, bloody, wild, unforgiving and rip-roaring ride through the violent mid-war jungles of Vietnam is made all the more terrifying and chilling by the inclusion of Mesozoic terrors at every turn.
I almost DNF’d this after the prologue, which is made all the worse when I think that was like 4 pages. After checking the back of the book and realizing this was basically a community created story, I really did almost shut it down. Now, I’m glad I read it. I think I’ll probably read the second as well, though it isn’t my favorite dinosaur book. I wish there were more Dino books around, even with some of the content being rather lax.
Characters: This proves to have a bunch of characters that were all very real and relatable. I appreciated the different points of view, even if oftentimes there was no rhyme or reason to the shifting present in the story. The dialogues too were a little bit listless and often repeats of other things already said. I was a little dissatisfied with some of the endings for the different characters but, it’s war. It happens.
Setting: Great work with the terror and unknown of the jungle. Everything felt tense, but believable with the stories lain out before us. So many of them started or ended long out of the timeline I expected and all at the mercy of the jungle and war. Excellent.
Story: A war story, just stick in a couple dinosaurs instead of stealth soldiers and here we are. As I said, lacking in some of the dialogues and interactions, but it is what it is and I was glad to have read it.
Writing: Pretty good if not for that prologue. The biggest weaknesses lay in repeated storylines and frames of monologue. It is what it is. Tis serviceable.
I was glad to get another dinosaur story and pray to get more good ones this year; I do so miss enjoying dinos in my stories.
3.6 🌟
TL; DR: A gory, bloody, wild, unforgiving and rip-roaring ride through the violent mid-war jungles of Vietnam is made all the more terrifying and chilling by the inclusion of Mesozoic terrors at every turn.
I almost DNF’d this after the prologue, which is made all the worse when I think that was like 4 pages. After checking the back of the book and realizing this was basically a community created story, I really did almost shut it down. Now, I’m glad I read it. I think I’ll probably read the second as well, though it isn’t my favorite dinosaur book. I wish there were more Dino books around, even with some of the content being rather lax.
Characters: This proves to have a bunch of characters that were all very real and relatable. I appreciated the different points of view, even if oftentimes there was no rhyme or reason to the shifting present in the story. The dialogues too were a little bit listless and often repeats of other things already said. I was a little dissatisfied with some of the endings for the different characters but, it’s war. It happens.
Setting: Great work with the terror and unknown of the jungle. Everything felt tense, but believable with the stories lain out before us. So many of them started or ended long out of the timeline I expected and all at the mercy of the jungle and war. Excellent.
Story: A war story, just stick in a couple dinosaurs instead of stealth soldiers and here we are. As I said, lacking in some of the dialogues and interactions, but it is what it is and I was glad to have read it.
Writing: Pretty good if not for that prologue. The biggest weaknesses lay in repeated storylines and frames of monologue. It is what it is. Tis serviceable.
I was glad to get another dinosaur story and pray to get more good ones this year; I do so miss enjoying dinos in my stories.
3.6 🌟
June 17, 2025
it’s not jurassic park. there are a few lines in here that seemed to be plucked right from the books or the movies, and if you told me this was a jurassic park fan fiction with all the names changed i’d believe you. but it wasn’t jurassic park. this book was so much scarier and gnarlier and had some pretty gruesome kills that you could feel in your stomach. really enjoyed the dino’s in here and felt that they accurately reflected what dinosaurs are the most popular right now in the same way JP did when it was written. soldiers are really not my favorite protagonists and the vietnam war is not my favorite setting but the characters were still interesting and felt very human. not sure if i’ll read the next one but if i do i’m sure yall will see it on here.
October 15, 2025
dinosaurs in the jungle during the Vietnam War and the most unbelievable parts of this book is how much dialogue is had and how many sounds are heard inside of a helicopter...
the noise inside the Hueys was about 100 decibels and without protection, would cause permanent hearing damage in minutes.
>as the heros fly away, the men sat entombed in the helicopter hearing the rain fall and songs of the dinosaurs in the valley "and the men listened in peace."
anyways, this isn't for the faint of heart. more horrifying than the terror of the T-Rex family, the kaprosuchus hords, or the deadly silent Utahraptors, is the traumas each man of vulture squad carries with them due to the brutal and inhumane nature of the Vietnam war.
the noise inside the Hueys was about 100 decibels and without protection, would cause permanent hearing damage in minutes.
>as the heros fly away, the men sat entombed in the helicopter hearing the rain fall and songs of the dinosaurs in the valley "and the men listened in peace."
anyways, this isn't for the faint of heart. more horrifying than the terror of the T-Rex family, the kaprosuchus hords, or the deadly silent Utahraptors, is the traumas each man of vulture squad carries with them due to the brutal and inhumane nature of the Vietnam war.
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