A prize-winning, magisterial history of World War I from the perspective of the defeated Central Powers For the Central Powers, the First World War started with high hopes for an easy victory. But those hopes soon deteriorated as Germany's attack on France failed, Austria-Hungary's armies suffered catastrophic losses, and Britain's ruthless blockade brought both nations to the brink of starvation. The Central powers were trapped in the Allies' ever-tightening Ring of Steel. In this compelling history, Alexander Watson retells the war from the perspective of its losers: not just the leaders in Berlin and Vienna, but the people of Central Europe. The war shattered their societies, destroyed their states, and imparted a poisonous legacy of bitterness and violence. A major reevaluation of the First World War, Ring of Steel is essential for anyone seeking to understand the last century of European history.

The perfect Father's Day gift Tolkien's works are punctuated by dramatic and explosive battles. Men versus Orcs, Elves versus Sauron, Goblins versus Dwarves - the history of Middle-earth has seen some of the greatest characters pitted against each other time and time again. From the iconic battle of Helm's Deep to the Destruction of Isengard, The Battles of Tolkien analyzes each battle in depth, with clear maps showing the lay of the land, and exactly how and where the armies attacked. This is essential reading for anyone who loves Tolkien's works and wants to explore the wars within them. This work is unofficial and is not authorized by the Tolkien Estate or HarperCollins Publishers.

Wars of the Ring is a pictorial celebration of half a century of unforgettable fights. It commemorates an array of legendary boxing matches held between 1970 and 2020. From the heavyweight tussles of Ali, Frazier and Foreman in the 1970s to the wars waged by Duran, Hearns, Hagler and Leonard in the 80s, to the celebrated British middleweights of the 90s and the rise of current stars Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, Wars of the Ring takes us on a thrilling journey through some of boxing's most exhilarating matches, experienced through stunning and dramatic images. Each decade comes with a written overview as key moments from the careers of your favorite boxers come to life - in eye-catching color and atmospheric black and white. Relive the amazing feats of Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Canelo Álvarez, Gennady Golovkin, Joe Calzaghe, Carl Froch, Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis, Nigel Benn, Marvin Hagler, Sugar Ray Leonard, Naseem Hamed and many more.

The final part of The History of The Lord of the Rings, Sauron Defeated: The End Of The Third Age is J.R.R. Tolkien's enthralling account of the writing of the Book of the Century which contains many additional scenes and includes the unpublished Epilogue in its entirety. In the first section of Sauron Defeated Christopher Tolkien completes his fascinating study of The Lord of the Rings. Beginning with Sam’s rescue of Frodo from the Tower of Cirith Ungol, and giving a very different account of the Scouring of the Shire, this section ends with versions of the hitherto unpublished Epilogue, in which, years after the departure of Bilbo and Frodo from the Grey Havens, Sam attempts to answer his children’s questions. The second section is an edition of The Notion Club Papers. These mysterious papers, discovered in the early years of the twenty-first century, report the discussions of an Oxford club in the years 1986-7, in which after a number of topics, the centre of interest turns to the legend of Atlantis, the strange communications received by other members of the club from the past, and the violent irruption of the legend into the North-west of Europe.

Corbin Gablona brings Alexander the Great into the future in order to fight Kubar Taug, an alien, and establish Corbin's own empire

Starship captain Han Solo and his copilot Chewbacca run into trouble when they are hired by Jabba the Hutt to pick up a cargo container at Fornax Station.

'The Fellowship of the Ring' is the first part of JRR Tolkien's epic masterpiece 'The Lord of the Rings'. This 50th anniversary edition features special packaging and includes the definitive edition of the text.|PB

The extraordinary history of Middle-earth, edited by Christopher Tolkien The Book of Lost Tales stands at the beginning of the entire conception of Middle-earth and Valinor. Embedded in English legend and English association, they were set in the narrative frame of a great westward voyage over the Ocean by a mariner named Eriol (or Ælfwine) to Tol Eressëa, the Lonely Isle, where Elves dwelt; from them he learned their true history, the Lost Tales of Elfinesse. In the Tales are found the earliest accounts and original ideas of Gods and Elves; Dwarves and Orcs; the Silmarils and the Two Trees of Valinor; Nargothrond and Gondolin; and the geography and cosmology of the invented world. Praise for Book of Lost Tales 1 “In these tales we have the scholar joyously gamboling in the thickets of his imagination. . . . A commentary and notes greatly enrich the quest.”—The Daily Telegraph “Affords us an almost over-the-shoulder view into the evolving creative process and genius of J.R.R. Tolkien in a new, exciting aspect . . .The superb, sensitive, and extremely helpful commentary and editing done by Christopher Tolkien make all of this possible.”—Mythlore

Is peace an aberration? The New York Times bestselling author of Paris 1919 offers a provocative view of war as an essential component of humanity. NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW “Margaret MacMillan has produced another seminal work. . . . She is right that we must, more than ever, think about war. And she has shown us how in this brilliant, elegantly written book.”—H.R. McMaster, author of Dereliction of Duty and Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World The instinct to fight may be innate in human nature, but war—organized violence—comes with organized society. War has shaped humanity’s history, its social and political institutions, its values and ideas. Our very language, our public spaces, our private memories, and some of our greatest cultural treasures reflect the glory and the misery of war. War is an uncomfortable and challenging subject not least because it brings out both the vilest and the noblest aspects of humanity. Margaret MacMillan looks at the ways in which war has influenced human society and how, in turn, changes in political organization, technology, or ideologies have affected how and why we fight. War: How Conflict Shaped Us explores such much-debated and controversial questions as: When did war first start? Does human nature doom us to fight one another? Why has war been described as the most organized of all human activities? Why are warriors almost always men? Is war ever within our control? Drawing on lessons from wars throughout the past, from classical history to the present day, MacMillan reveals the many faces of war—the way it has determined our past, our future, our views of the world, and our very conception of ourselves.

In Germany engulfed by war and hatred, the beautiful wife of an influential banker fell in love with a German author. His Jewish heritage led them both to death. The husband who survives her lives on to protect her memory, and their children. And the ring he passes on to his daughter, Ariana von Gotthard, remains a bond of love between them. Separated from her family, and unable to escape Germany, Ariana is finally arrested. A young Nazi officer offers her survival and hope for the future. Tragedy and a sudden twist of fate carries Ariana to America, to a chilling deception, and a new life of unfamiliar terrors. Her past seemingly lost forever, her future uncertain, the ring she still clings to is all she has left of her father and brother. And in time it will become the bridge from her past to her future.