This is a thrilling new military adventure for Captain Jack Crossman.Captain 'Fancy Jack' Crossman has been sent to New Zealand, where the Maori Wars are in progress. His remit is to map the bush country and to set up a network of spies. During conflict he finds that the Maori are an honourable and formidable enemy. However, nefarious Europeans are at work, enriching themselves as land agents.Jack becomes entangled with one of these agents, the brother of his lifetime burden Private Harry Wynter, and is in danger of being sucked down into a morass of evil affairs. When the final revelation comes, Jack realises just how heinous these crimes are, and he must hunt down and destroy these monstrous elements...

Mel and her cousin Harriet couldn't bear the thought of brave Kiwi boys being cared for by some bumbling, poorly trained person while the Great War raged on, half a world away. When these nurses joined the NZ Army Nursing Service and boarded ships headed for Egypt, Anzac Cove and beyond, they had little idea of the horrors they would face, the wounds they would tend to and hearts they would help heal.

'So they went forth, and they were given over to death by the guns.' -Rangipito, of Ngati Rahiri In the two decades before the Treaty of Waitangi, New Zealand was ripped asunder by island-spanning waves of warfare, extreme violence and cannibalism. Great war parties surged the length of the land to avenge historic grievances, killing and burning as they went. Whole peoples were uprooted and found new homes. Despite the name given them by history, one thing we can be certain about is that these dramatic conflicts were not simply 'musket' wars. This was an age of courage, of heroism, of great character and of astonishing deeds. And they are not dead history. Twenty-first-century New Zealand has been profoundly shaped by them, not least in the location of most of the major cities. In Guns and Utu, historian Matthew Wright disputes the many mythologies of these wars, examining some of the whys and wherefores of this generation-long culture collision. 'A spectacular book.' -Don Rood, Radio New Zealand National

The history behind the major battlefields in which New Zealand soldiers fought

Donald McLean. The hard-tempered Scot whose policies shaped New Zealand's colonial-age race relations, and gave rise to grievances that echo into the twenty-first century. The government official who used his position to get land for his personal ventures - and provoked war between Maori along the way. The man who, rumour insists, used his power as our Minister of Defence to order the shooting of his own illegitimate son - the right-hand man of religious leader Te Kooti. McLean's role as the powerhouse behind some of the most heated land controversies of settler-era New Zealand is well known. But the man behind those deeds has remained largely hidden. Man of Secrets, an absorbing new biography by Matthew Wright, goes behind the public persona, revealing the private Donald McLean. A man dogged by his upbringing, wrestling with his insecurities - a devout and fearful man who felt himself inadequate before God and who never recovered from the loss of his young wife.

The term Polynesia refers to a cultural and geographical area in the Pacific Ocean, bound by what is commonly referred to as the Polynesian Triangle, which consists of Hawai'i in the north, New Zealand in the southwest, and Easter Island in the southeast. Thousands of islands are scattered throughout this area, most of which are currently included in one of the modern island states of American Samoa, Cook Islands, French Polynesia, Hawai'i, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga, Tokelau, Tuvalu, and Wallis and Futuna. The third edition of the Historical Dictionary of Polynesia greatly expands on the previous editions through a chronology, an introductory essay, an expansive bibliography, and over 400 cross-referenced dictionary entries on significant persons, events, places, organizations, and other aspects of Polynesian history from the earliest times to the present. Appendixes of the major islands and atolls within Polynesia, the rulers and administrators of the 13 major island states, and basic demographic information of those states are also included.

Is increased defence spending all that Australia needs to ensure its national security? How well placed are we to deal with global shocks and surprises? How should Australia recalibrate its national security settings to deal with global disruption? Drawing on thirty years of experience as a senior government adviser on foreign policy, Allan Behm explores the thinking behind Australia’s security approach and how it’s been shaped by Australia’s cultural and historical experiences. He argues that our mindset is built around pathologies: racism, misogyny, isolation, insecurity, a brashness that masks a deep lack of self-confidence, and the perverse effects of the cultural cringe. No Enemies No Friends doesn’t just show why Australia has become so good at getting things so wrong. Rather, Behm offers practical policy ideas, imbued with optimism, arguing we have every capability to improve. We need to maintain a credible defence force and invest in diplomacy to reduce our dependence on military force and defence alliances. Forward-looking, this is a meditation on how to approach international affairs with sure-footedness in a less predictable world. This is crucial for maintaining Australia’s long-term security and establishing the nation’s confidence to become a significant international actor.

The New Zealand Wars is a powerful revisionist history. Revealing the enormous tactical and military skill of Maori, and the inability of the 'Victorian interpretation of racial conflict' to acknowledge those qualities, this account of the New Zealand Wars changed how the country's history was understood. Belich undertakes a complete reinterpretation of the crucial episode in New Zealand history and the result is a very different picture from the one previously given in historical works. Maori, in this new view, won the Northern War and stalemated the British in the Taranaki War of 1860-61 only to be defeated by 18,000 British troops in the Waikato War of 1863-64. The secret of effective Maori resistance was an innovative military system, the modern pa, a trench-and-bunker fortification of a sophistication not achieved in Europe until 1915. According to the author: 'The degree of Maori success in all four major wars is still underestimated - even to the point where, in the case of one war, the wrong side is said to have won.' Here, Belich sets out to show how historical distortions have arisen over time and revises our understanding of New Zealand history by using fresh evidence and a systematic re-analysis of old evidence.

Annotation Peter Turner presents a rich overview of New Zealand that helps tailor your visit to the time you have and your specific interests. Insider tips are provided on favourite hotspots, practicalities, and more.