Historical accounts of major events have almost always relied upon what those who were there witnessed. Nowhere is this truer than in the nerve-shattering chaos of warfare, where sight seems to confer objective truth and acts as the basis of reconstruction. In The Smell of Battle, the Taste of Siege, historian Mark M. Smith considers how all five senses, including sight, shaped the experience of the Civil War and thus its memory, exploring its full sensory impact on everyone from the soldiers on the field to the civilians waiting at home. From the eardrum-shattering barrage of shells announcing the outbreak of war at Fort Sumter; to the stench produced by the corpses lying in the mid-summer sun at Gettysburg; to the siege of Vicksburg, once a center of Southern culinary aesthetics and starved into submission, Smith recreates how Civil War was felt and lived. Relying on first-hand accounts, Smith focuses on specific senses, one for each event, offering a wholly new perspective. At Bull Run, the similarities between the colors of the Union and Confederate uniforms created concern over what later would be called friendly fire and helped decide the outcome of the first major battle, simply because no one was quite sure they could believe their eyes. He evokes what it might have felt like to be in the HL Hunley submarine, in which eight men worked cheek by jowl in near-total darkness in a space 48 inches high, 42 inches wide. Often argued to be the first total war, the Civil War overwhelmed the senses because of its unprecedented nature and scope, rendering sight less reliable and, Smith shows, forcefully engaging the nonvisual senses. Sherman's March was little less than a full-blown assault on Southern sense and sensibility, leaving nothing untouched and no one unaffected. Unique, compelling, and fascinating, The Smell of Battle, The Taste of Siege, offers readers way to experience the Civil War with fresh eyes.

An Amazon Best Books of the Year selection BookBub Breakout Debut Novels of Winter 2018 The Verge―18 Science Fiction and Fantasy Books to Read in February Barnes & Noble—One of 25 Sci-Fi/Fantasy Debuts to Watch for in 2018 Nerdmuch—Best New Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books of 2018 Bookish—Winter 2018’s Hottest Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books Library Journal: Spring/Summer Best Debut Novels “Interesting quirks and divided loyalties flesh out this first novel in which sf and mystery intersect in a well-crafted plot...Pedreira’s science thriller powerfully highlights the human politics and economics from the seemingly desolate expanse of the moon. It will attract readers who enjoyed Andy Weir’s lunar crime caper Artemis.” -- Library Journal, starred review A realistic and chilling vision of life on the Moon, where dust kills as easily as the vacuum of space…but murder is even quicker—a fast-paced, cinematic science fiction thriller, this debut novel combines the inventiveness of The Martian, the intrigue of The Expanse, and the thrills of Red Rising. The Moon smells like gunpowder. Every lunar walker since Apollo 11 has noticed it: a burnt-metal scent that reminds them of war. Caden Dechert, the chief of the U.S. mining operation on the edge of the Sea of Serenity, thinks the smell is just a trick of the mind—a reminder of his harrowing days as a Marine in the war-torn Middle East back on Earth. It’s 2072, and lunar helium-3 mining is powering the fusion reactors that are bringing Earth back from environmental disaster. But competing for the richest prize in the history of the world has destroyed the oldest rule in space: Safety for All. When a bomb kills one of Dechert’s diggers on Mare Serenitatis, the haunted veteran goes on the hunt to expose the culprit before more blood is spilled. But as Dechert races to solve the first murder in the history of the Moon, he gets caught in the crosshairs of two global powers spoiling for a fight. Reluctant to be the match that lights this powder-keg, Dechert knows his life and those of his crew are meaningless to the politicians. Even worse, he knows the killer is still out there, hunting. In his desperate attempts to save his crew and prevent the catastrophe he sees coming, the former Marine uncovers a dangerous conspiracy that, with one spark, can ignite a full lunar war, wipe out his team . . . and perhaps plunge the Earth back into darkness.

In 1819, kidnapped chef Owen Wedgwood transforms meager shipboard supplies into sumptuous meals at the behest of his kidnapper, pirate queen Mad Hannah Mabbot, while she pushes her exhausted crew to track down a deadly privateer.

Frank Thompson, a recent widower and aging Vietnam veteran is down from Maine visiting his nephew, Bill, and his family in New Jersey. While at a trap range, he and his nephew have a chance encounter with a strange man who claims to remember Frank from the war. That night, the windows in Bill’s home are shattered along with the quiet peaceful lives the two men had been living. Three veterans from a special combat unit directed by the CIA during the Vietnam War have gathered to discuss what they are going to do about a man they claim killed one of their own over forty years ago. Jasper, Birdie and Pogo were part of a team that called themselves the National League All Stars. They were a squad of psychopathic killers trained by Special Forces to cause death and mayhem during the war. Now, they have banded together to hunt down and kill the professional soldier who led them all those years ago. Drawing on his military training and a resurgent bloodlust from his tortured past, Frank prepares for a final, violent reckoning that will bring him full circle with the war that never left him. Praise for THE DEAD DON’T SLEEP: “The Dead Don’t Sleep is a skillfully plotted, fast-moving thriller brimming with a believable cast of characters, especially the indelible Frank Thompson, an old-school hero who I hope to see more of.” —David Swinson, author of Trigger and The Second Girl “Russo’s The Dead Don’t Sleep is a pulse racing, chest thumper of a novel.” —Reed Farrel Coleman, New York Times bestselling author of What You Break “Imagine if Rambo had lived a quiet, undisturbed life in Maine until, many decades later, the ghosts of the Vietnam War came after him. That’s roughly the premise of The Dead Don’t Sleep, a gripping, highly readable contemporary thriller with a strong emotional undercurrent. Steven Max Russo has done a magnificent job rendering the unique hold Vietnam continues to claim on thousands of its veterans.” —Brad Parks, international bestselling author “The Dead Don’t Sleep is a well-crafted, tense, suspenseful thriller in which hatred that’s lasted a lifetime explodes into violence with uncontrollable consequences.” —Thomas Perry, Edgar Award-winning author of The Butcher’s Boy “A dark tale of vengeance and redemption, complete with mystery, secrets, and a longing for new adventure. A delectable and poignant read.” —Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author of The Malta Exchange “The Dead Don’t Sleep is white-knuckle, nonstop action, a story of hard men at their limits and grudges that never die.” —Joseph Finder, New York Times bestselling author of House on Fire

Look inside an 18th-century warship as it sails into battle on the high seas. Packed with extraordinary illustrations, this history book for children covers everything from warship design to navigation. Biesty's incredible drawings slice through a man-of-war to explore every corner, from the crow's nest to the stinking hold. Packed with fascinating facts and gory details, the pages teem with sailors going about their duties. Find out how gun crews fired a cannon, examine a surgeon's toolkit, and learn the best way to wriggle the maggots out of the ship's biscuits. Look out, too, for the stowaway on every page. He's the one with spiky hair, and there's a reward for his capture! This absorbing book will have children--and adults--poring over every page. Celebrating its 25th anniversary, Stephen Biesty's Cross-Sections Man-of-War remains as entertaining as ever.