Gun-for-hire James 'Ash' Ashcroft thought he'd left Iraq behind. Last time he only got out alive thanks to the bravery of his interpreter and friend Sammy. But now a call for help means Ash must once again face the chaos of war-torn Baghdad - and this time there's no pay cheque. Abandoned by the occupying Coalition Forces, Sammy and his family face certain death at the hands of the Shia-dominated Iraqi Police and the death squads that roam the streets unless Ash and his team can get in and...

In September 2003, James 'Ash' Ashcroft, a former British Infantry Captain, arrived in Iraq as a 'gun for hire'. It was the beginning of an 18-month journey into blood and chaos.In this action-packed page-turner, Ashcroft reveals the dangers of his adrenalin-fuelled life as a security contractor in Baghdad, where private soldiers outnumber non-US Coalition forces in a war that is slowly being privatised. From blow-by-blow accounts of days under mortar bombardment to revelations abo...

Max Benitz reports from the frontline of a highly controversial war in a perceptive and revealing account of several months spent in Afghanistan with this world-famous infantry battalion. Training with them and living amongst them as they undertake their tour in Helmand province, Benitz gives a unique insight into the pressures faced by those who risk their lives every second of the day in one of the most dangerous places on earth. Fascinating and illuminating; The Scots Guards in Afgh...

"Spotlights the career of a fascinating modern warrior, while also shedding light on some of the conflicts that have raged throughout the world" ( Tucson Citizen).A former South African Air Force pilot who saw action throughout the region from the 1970s on, Neall Ellis is the best-known mercenary combat aviator alive. Apart from flying Alouette helicopter gunships in Angola, he fought in the Balkan war for the Islamic forces, tried to resuscitate Mobutu's a...

Mercenaries have been with us since the dawn of civilization, yet in the modern world they are little understood. While many of today's freelance fighters provide support for larger military establishments, others wage war where the great powers refuse to tread. In War Dog, Al Venter examines the latter world of mercenary fighters effecting decisions by themselves. In the process he unveils a remarkable array of close-quarters combat action.Having personally visited every locale he ...

Equally courageous, equally deadly, the British mercenaries in Bosnia have a story to tell as amazing as 'The One That Got Away', but a story without official blessing. 'War Dogs' follows the fortunes of a gang of eight British mercenaries, a mixed bunch, old and cynical, young and naive, mean and psychotic, two idealists, and the rest just in it for the money. Each of these rogue warriors has his own special skills, strengths and weaknesses, and are all tested in an increasingly terrifyin...

The true story of a legendary SAS soldier who participated in the battle of Mirbat and assaulted the Iranian Embassy to free the hostages held within.No publicity, no media. We move in silently, do our job, and melt away into the background. If you have the stamina, the willpower and the guts, we'll welcome you with open arms and make you one of us. And if you haven't, then it's been very nice knowing you.Eighteen years in the SAS saw Pete Winner, ...

Pete Mercer takes us on an unforgettable journey through the dangerous backstreets of 21st-century Iraq, and reveals that the realities of the ongoing War on Terror are not all that they seem.Northern Iraq, 2004 - a lawless region so dangerous the regular coalition armies were reluctant to put their soliders in harm's way. Enter the 'civilian contractors': private armies in all but name. Working alongside the US Army, men from all corners of the globe volunteered to risk their lives day af...

The true story of one of the most dramatic and sustained special operations in military historyWhen American and British forces invaded Iraq in March 2003, select teams of special forces and intelligence operatives got to work looking for the WMD their governments had promised were there. They quickly realized no such weapons existed. Instead they faced an insurgency—a soaring spiral of extremism and violence that was almost impossible to understand, let alone reve...

A thoughtful, reflective narrative of a reluctant soldier that captures the rhythms of life in war as well as the boredom and chaos of Vietnam.At the height of the Vietnam War, Charles Carr left graduate school to serve in the army in Southeast Asia, knowing that if he didn't, another man would go—and possibly die—in his place. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion of the 47th Infantry (Mechanized) in the northern Mekong Delta for a tour of forcing himself through r...

Zulu Foxtrot Reloaded covers Durand's last two of six years with the unit. Once again patrols, ambushes and contacts, situations of certain death, dealings with the enemy and relationships with Ovambo colleagues. Except now, what it was also like to be a killing machine in the heat of battle while becoming a loving husband and father and having to alternate mindset between surviving the murder and mayhem as well as family life.Told just how it was experienced without pulling any stops.

Seen through the eyes of Section Commander George Thomsen, this inspiring first-hand account, tells of the tension-packed lead up, and the heroic stand, by a tiny band of brothers on one of the most inhospitable islands on the planet South Georgia.They fought alone besieged, isolated, and against an overwhelming invasion force and yet had the enemy reeling on the ropes.This is the story of true British grit, sheer bloody-mindedness, professionalism and ingenuity.The...