Profiles of twenty US military leaders—unsung heroes whose accomplishments have been too little acknowledged and too seldom celebrated. The military history of the United States is replete with examples of leaders whose singular leadership is now little remembered or forgotten completely. This volume covers more than twenty leaders “in the shadows” during the four major conflicts the United States engaged in from the end of the nineteenth century to the middle years of the twentieth: the Spanish-American War, the Philippine Insurrection, World War I, and World War II. To enable readers to put these exploits into proper context, each chapter traces the roots of the conflict covered and discusses the paths that led to America’s involvement. Throughout the book, examples are also noted of leaders whose major renown is associated with a specific war—John J. Pershing, America’s towering military figure during World War I, for example—who also rendered exemplary though largely forgotten service during a different conflict—in Pershing’s case, the Philippine Insurrection. Of special interest to many audiences may be the commentaries regarding the World War I services of officers such as Eisenhower, Marshall, Patton, and Bradley—an aspect of their long military careers overshadowed by their World War II renown and too often minimized in consequence. The book also features brief biographies of officers whose contributions, while perhaps a bit less consequential than those of colleagues chronicled elsewhere in these pages, are deserving of far more recognition than has thus far been accorded them. “A worthwhile read for anyone interested in military leadership.” —The NYMAS Review

The Mesan Alignment is revealed, and, for Honor Harrington and the Manticoran Star Kingdom, this means war! Unintended Consequences Sometimes things don’t work out exactly as planned. The Mesan Alignment has a plan—one it’s been working on for centuries. A plan to remake the galaxy and genetically improve the human race—its way. Until recently, things have gone pretty much as scheduled, but then the Alignment hit a minor bump in the road called the Star Empire of Manticore. So the Alignment engineered a war between the Solarian League, the biggest and most formidable interstellar power in human history. To help push things along, the Alignment launched a devastating sneak attack which destroyed the Royal Manticoran Navy’s industrial infrastructure. And in order to undercut Manticore’s galaxy-wide reputation as a star nation of its word, it launched Operation Janus—a false-flag covert operation to encourage rebellions it knows will fail by promising Manticoran support. The twin purposes are to harden Solarian determination to destroy the Star Empire once and for all, and to devastate the Star Empire’s reputation with the rest of the galaxy. But even the best laid plans can have unintended consequences, and one of those consequences in this case may just be a new dawn of freedom for oppressed star nations everywhere. About Shadow of Freedom: “This entry is just as exciting as Weber’s initial offering . . . The result is a fast-paced and action-packed story that follows [our characters] as they move from reaction to command of the situation. Weber builds Shadow of Freedom to an exciting and unexpected climax.”—Daily News of Galveston About Mission of Honor, #13 in the Honor Harrington series: “Weber combines realistic, engaging characters with intelligent technological projection and a deep understanding of military bureaucracy in this long-awaited Honor Harrington novel . . . Fans of this venerable space opera will rejoice to see Honor back in action.”—Publishers Weekly “This latest Honor Harrington novel brings the saga to another crucial turning point . . . Readers may feel confident that they will be Honored many more times and enjoy it every time.”—Booklist About David Weber and the Honor Harrington series: “. . . everything you could want in a heroine . . . Excellent . . . plenty of action.”—Science Fiction Age “Brilliant! Brilliant! Brilliant!”—Anne McCaffrey “Compelling combat combined with engaging characters for a great space opera adventure.”—Locus

In wartime New York City, budding reporter Jenny Ryan is chasing the biggest story of her life. Everyone said the death of her beloved research scientist father was an accident, but she knows it was her fault. When an anonymous phone call puts the blame on wealthy industrialist Marcus Forrester, Jenny doesn't hesitate to act. Armed with absolution and a tenacious drive for justice, she will stop at nothing to bring him down. She didn't count on falling for the key to her plan ? Forrester's mistress. On the surface, Kathryn Hammond has it all: a successful nightclub singing career, elegant grace, and stunning good looks that draw all eyes to her when she enters a room. No one can see her tragic past, or the demons she battles daily as she toils stateside, carrying out what she considers dead-end missions for the OSS while the real war rages in Europe. She knows nothing short of her death in service to the greater good will redeem her for the lives lost on a mission gone bad. All that changes when Jenny Ryan becomes her latest dead-end mission and awakens long dormant concepts like hope, redemption, and the worst thing that could happen to an agent toward their subject: desire. These two women, on very disparate paths, are caught in a reluctant, slow burn that will save them, but at what cost, and are they willing to pay the price?

Although The People's Republic of Haven believed Honor Harrington to be already dead and announced her execution, she returned from the prison planet called Hell, ready to aid the Allies' cause in the war.

The Mediterranean theater in World War II has long been overlooked by historians who believe it was little more than a string of small-scale battles--sideshows that were of minor importance in a war whose outcome was decided in the clashes of mammoth tank armies in northern Europe. But in this ground-breaking new book, one of our finest military historians argues that the Mediterranean was World War II's pivotal theater. Douglas Porch examines the Mediterranean as an integrated arena, one in which events in Syria and Suez influenced the survival of Gibraltar. Without a Mediterranean alternative, the Western Allies would probably have committed to a premature cross-Channel invasion in 1943 that might well have cost them the war. Brilliantly argued, with vivid portraits of Churchill, Montgomery, FDR, Rommel, and Mussolini, this original, accessible, and compelling account of a little-known theater emphasizes the importance of the Mediterranean in the ultimate Allied victory in Europe in World War II.

At the beginning of the eleventh century, Catalonia was a patchwork of counties, viscounties, and lordships that bordered Islamic al-Andalus to the south. Over the next two centuries, the region underwent a dramatic transformation. The counts of Barcelona secured title to the neighboring kingdom of Aragon through marriage and this newly constituted Crown of Aragon, after numerous failed attempts, finally conquered the Islamic states positioned along its southern frontier in the mid-twelfth century. Successful conquest, however, necessitated considerable organizational challenges that threatened to destabilize, politically and economically, this triumphant regime. The Aragonese monarchy's efforts to overcome these adversities, consolidate its authority, and capitalize on its military victories would impose lasting changes on its governmental framework and exert considerable influence over future expansionist projects. In Victory's Shadow, Thomas W. Barton offers a sweeping new account of the capture and long-term integration of Muslim-ruled territories by an ascendant Christian regime and a detailed analysis of the influence of this process on the governmental, economic, and broader societal development of both Catalonia and the greater Crown of Aragon. Based on over a decade of extensive archival research, Victory's Shadow deftly reconstructs and evaluates the decisions, outcomes, and costs involved in this experience of territorial integration and considers its implications for ongoing debates regarding the dynamics of expansionism across the diverse boundary zones of medieval Europe.

After the success at Normandy, the Allied commanders are confident that the war in Europe will soon be over. But in December 1944, in the Ardennes Forest, the Germans launch a ruthless counteroffensive that begins the Battle of the Bulge. The Führer will spare nothing to preserve his twisted vision of a “Thousand Year Reich,” but stout American resistance defeats the German thrust. No Less Than Victory is a riveting account presented through the eyes of Eisenhower, Patton, and the soldiers who struggled face-to-face with their enemy, as well as from the vantage point of Germany’s old soldier, Gerd von Rundstedt, and Hitler’s golden boy, Albert Speer. Jeff Shaara carries the reader on a journey that defines the spirit of the soldier and the horror of a madman’s dreams.