The Russo-Japanese War was fought in the waters of the Yellow Sea and the Straits of Tsushima that divide Japan from Korea, and in the mountains of Manchuria, borrowed without permission from China. It was the first war to be fought with modern weapons. The Japanese had fought the Chinese at sea in 1894 and had gained a foothold in Manchuria by taking control of Port Authur. In 1895, however, Japan was forced to abandon its claims by the Russian fleet's presence in the Straits of Tsushima. Tsar Nicholas had obtained a window to the East for his empire and Japan had been humiliated. Tensions between the two countries would rise inexorably over the next decade. Around the world, no one doubted that little Japan would be no match for the mighty armies of Tsar Nicholas II. Yet Russia was in an advanced state of decay, the government corrupt and its troops inept and demoralized. Japan, meanwhile, was emerging from centuries of feudal isolation and becoming an industrial power, led by zealous nationalist warlords keen to lead the Orient to victory over the oppressive West. From the opening surprise attack on the Russian fleet at Port Authur in 1904, the Japanese out-fought and out-thought the Russians. This is a definitive account of one of the pivotal conflicts of the twentieth century whose impact was felt around the world.

The Russo-Japanese war saw the first defeat of a major European imperialist power by an Asian country. When Japanese and Russian expansionist interests collided over Manchuria and Korea, the Tsar assumed Japan would never dare to fight. However, after years of planning, Japan launched a surprise attack on the Russian Port Arthur, on the Liaoyang Peninsula in 1904 and the war that followed saw Japan win major battles against Russia. This book explains the background and outbreak of the war, then follows the course of the fighting at Yalu River, Sha-ho, and finally Mukden, the largest battle anywhere in the world before the First World War.

“STIRLING HAS SURPASSED HIS PREVIOUS WORK,” raved Science Fiction Chronicle of his bestselling novel Island in the Sea of Time, and George R. R. Martin hailed it as “an utterly engaging account of what happens when the isle of Nantucket is whisked back into the Bronze Age.” Now, the adventure continues... In the years since the Event, the Republic of Nantucket has done its best to recreate the better ideas of the modern age. But the evils of its time resurface in the person of William Walker, renegade Coast Guard officer, who is busy building an empire for himself based on conquest by technology. When Walker reaches Greece and recruits several of their greater kinglets to his cause, the people of Nantucket have no choice. If they are to save the primitive world from being plunged into bloodshed on a twentieth-century scale, they must defeat Walker at his own game: war.

The definitive history of the Russo-Japanese war The Russians were wrong-footed from the start, fighting in Manchuria at the end of a 5,000 mile single track railway; the Japanese were a week or so from their bases. The Russian command structure was hopelessly confused, their generals old and incompetent, the Tsar cautious and uncertain. The Russian naval defeat at Tsushima was as farcical as it was complete. The Japanese had defeated a big European power, and the lessons for the West were there for all to see, had they cared to do so. From this curious war, so unsafely ignored for the most part by the military minds of the day, Richard Connaughton has woven a fascinating narrative to appeal to readers at all levels.

When a ransom exchange turns deadly in this thrilling mystery from bestselling author Anne Perry, Commander William Monk faces an unthinkable possibility: betrayal by his own men. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST CRIME NOVELS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW • “Riveting . . . one of the series’ more powerful recent entries.”—Publishers Weekly When kidnappers choose a broken-down waterside slum as the site of a ransom exchange for the wife of wealthy real estate developer Harry Exeter, the Thames River Police and Commander William Monk shadow Harry to the spot to ensure that no harm comes to him or his captive wife. But on arrival, Monk and five of his best men are attacked from all sides. Certain that one of his colleagues has betrayed him, Monk delves into each of their pasts, one of which hides a dreadful secret. Soon facing a series of deadly obstructions, Monk must choose between his own safety and the chance to solve the mystery—and to figure out where his men’s loyalty really lies. Praise for Dark Tide Rising “Perry makes cunning work of the plot, which raises issues of trust and loyalty while driving home a grim message about the vulnerability of women who entrust their fortunes to unscrupulous men.”—The New York Times Book Review “One of the most successful of prolific Perry’s recent Victorian melodramas. The opening chapters are appropriately portentous, the mystification is authentic, and if the final surprise isn’t exactly a shock, it’s so well-prepared that even readers who don’t gasp will nod in satisfaction.”—Kirkus Reviews “Another deftly crafted gem of a suspense thriller by a master of the mystery genre . . . a ‘must read.’ ”—Midwest Book Review “Superb . . . [a] brilliant piece of historical fiction . . . No one writes Victorian-era stories quite like Perry.”—BookReporter