This novel has a detached, realistic tone. Its central story consists of a first-person narration of a chronological series of events, from the first Martian cylinder landing on Horsell Common to the narrator's return home after the Martians' demise.
The narrator is observant, and his observations are straightforward and detailed. He remains unnamed, but his consistently descriptive tone lends the story credibility that encourages readers to believe that he has firsthand experience of the Martian invasion. He seems unshaken by the events while retelling the story, but his matter-of-fact tone does nothing to hide his (understandable) pessimism about the hubris of humanity and the possibility of a future intergalactic conflict. Even at the novel's end, when one might expect hopeful speculation, the narrator instead shares his doubt about the future. In Book 2, Chapter 10, he says:
I must confess the stress and danger of the time have left an abiding sense of doubt and insecurity in my mind. I sit in my study writing by lamplight, and suddenly I see again the healing valley below set with writhing flames, and feel the house behind and about me empty and desolate. I go out into the Byfleet Road, and vehicles pass me, a butcher-boy in a cart, a cabful of visitors, a workman on a bicycle, children going to school, and suddenly they become vague and unreal, and I hurry again with the artilleryman through the hot, brooding silence.
This passage implies the extent of his trauma and shows that the narrator will feel its effects far into the future. The fact that he views this statement as a "confession" shows that he prefers to remain objective but feels responsible for admitting that he, too, is as doubtful and insecure as some of the less-responsible characters. He also notes that his new reality has taken on the qualities of vagueness and unreality. However, he never loses his clarity of mind while telling the story.
