“Monumental...[A]vastanddetailedstudythatissurelythefinestsingle-volumehistoryofWorldWarII.RichardOveryhasgivenusapowerfulreminderofthehorrorofwarandthethreatposedbydictatorswithdreamsofempire.“-TheWallStreetJournalAthought-provokingandoriginalreassessmentofWorldWarII,fromBritain’sleadingmilitaryhistorianANewYorkTimesbestsellerRichardOverysetsoutinBloodandRuinstorecastthewayinwhichweviewtheSecondWorldWaranditsoriginsandaftermath.AsoneofBritain’smostdecoratedandrespectedWorldWarIIhistorians,hearguesthatthiswasthe“lastimperialwar,“withalmostacentury-longlead-upofglobalimperialexpansion,whichreacheditspeakintheterritorialambitionsofItaly,GermanyandJapaninthe1930sandearly1940s,beforedescendingintothelargestandcostliestwarinhumanhistoryandtheend,after1945,ofallterritorialempires.Overyalsoarguesforamoreglobalperspectiveonthewar,onethatlooksbroaderthanthetypicalfocusonmilitaryconflictbetweentheAlliedandAxisstates.Aboveall,Overyexplainsthebittercostforthoseinvolvedinfighting,andtheexceptionallevelofcrimeandatrocitythatmarkedthewaranditsprotractedaftermath--whichextendedfarbeyond1945.BloodandRuinsisamasterpiece,anewanddefinitivelookattheultimatestruggleoverthefutureoftheglobalorder,whichwillcompelustoviewthewarinnovelandunfamiliarways.Thought-provoking,originalandchallenging,BloodandRuinssetsouttounderstandthewaranew.
