The Last Dragon of Steeple Morden is an incredible story of survival. Chicago's Top Fighter Pilot in World War II is shot down, deep behind German lines, in the apocalyptic twilight of the war. What happens over the subsequent two weeks tests the young pilot's resolve to survive and affirms mankind's propensity for severe brutality as well as its overwhelming capacity for compassion in the face of death. One of the most fantastic aspects of this story is that it is all true.

Including brand-new paintings, this is a fully illustrated new edition of the forerunner to The Lord of the Rings, telling the earlier history of Middle-earth, recounting the events of the First and Second Ages, and introducing some of the key characters, such as Galadriel, Elrond, Elendil and the Dark Lord, Sauron. The Silmarillion is the core of J.R.R. Tolkien's imaginative writing, a collection of narratives ranging in time from the Elder Days of Middle-earth, through the Second Age and the rise of Sauron, to the end of the War of the Ring. They are set in an age when Morgoth, the first Dark Lord, dwelt in Middle-earth, and the Elves made war upon him in his impenetrable fortress in Angband for the recovery of the Silmarils, three jewels containing the last remaining pure light of Valinor, seized by Morgoth and set in his iron crown. Accompanying these tales are several shorter works. The Ainulindale is a myth of the Creation and in the Valaquenta the nature and powers of the gods is described. The Akallabeth recounts the downfall of the great island kingdom of Numenor at the end of the Second Age and Of the Rings of Power tells of the great events at the end of the Third Age, as told in The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien could not publish The Silmarillion in his lifetime, as it grew with him, so he would leave it to his son, Christopher, to edit the work from many manuscripts and bring his father's great vision to publishable form, so completing the literary achievement of a lifetime. This special edition presents anew this seminal first step towards mapping out the posthumous publishing of Middle-earth, and the beginning of an illustrious forty years and more than twenty books celebrating his father's legacy. Also included is a letter by J.R.R. Tolkien written in 1951 which provides a brilliant exposition of the earlier Ages, and almost 50 full-colour paintings by Ted Nasmith, including some which appear here for the first time.

When I was a youngster growing up in Texas my dad worked in a number of fields. From the Oil Patch of West Texas, to farming in the Panhandle or in security in central Texas the family usually enjoyed evening meals together. After supper Dad enjoyed drinking a cup of coffee and telling us stories ranging from his experiences in the army during World War II, where he was wounded during a German artillery barrage, or his dreams for our futures or sometimes stories from his childhood. On one such occasion he told of two young men who were separated during the Civil War. One was raised by a family in the North and the other was raised by a family in the South. Years later when both boys were grown and had families of their own they were reunited. I have taken this event to construct the story of Josh and Jim, two young boys who were separated by the Civil War. The names, characters, locations and events are entirely fictitious and are presented for the readers' enjoyment. I hope that you enjoy this story as much as I have enjoyed writing it.

It's 1968, and Herb Royce, a lieutenant in the U.S. Army Military Police, has been married for less than two weeks when he receives his orders to ship out. To his surprise, he's not heading off to fight in the jungles of Vietnam; he is being sent to Korea instead.

Not willing to be left behind, his wife, Joyce, a headstrong Canadian nurse, follows him and gets a job in a Korean hospital next to Herb's camp. But little do the two realize just what they've got themselves into. North Korea's dictator is desperate to start a second Korean War in parallel with the Vietnam conflict. The snatching of a U.S. Navy ship, the "USS Pueblo," is just the beginning of a murderous yearlong struggle.

Unfortunately, Herb has more than a maniacal dictator to deal with. His unstable, alcoholic colonel commands a tactical nuclear rocket outfit and clearly hates Herb's guts. It's soon evident that the colonel wouldn't mind sending Herb back to the United States in a body bag.

In as increasingly hostile environment, Joyce and Herb find their relationship tested in a strange and deadly world filled with spies, black marketeers, thieves, prostitutes and murderous North Korean army commandos. But when Herb rescues an abandoned Korean infant, the couple embarks on a truly extraordinary journey, one that will define them in ways they never thought possible.

Set during the turbulent era of the Vietnam War, "Counters" is a quirky, thrilling story of air combat and of the young fighter pilots who blend the harsh reality of war with youth's untamed urges.

As the pilot of a sleek F-4C Phantom II, self-doubting Lieutenant Steve Mylder fights for his life in the skies above Vietnam in 1967 but battles for his soul against the Red Baron of his imagination. His cocky friend Avery-womanizer and master of the art of combat seduction-thunders fifty feet over a North Vietnamese beach, looks down, locks eyes with an improbable woman, and falls into hopeless love.

Steve and Avery count their missions, hoping against the odds that they'll make it back home alive instead of in a body bag. But liberating the recklessness in their souls is sometimes the only way to deal with the unknown, and the two friends soon realize that growing up is a lot harder than they thought.

In "Counters," humor and whimsy counteract with authentic details of air combat brought to life by former air force pilot Tony Taylor, illuminating a brooding yet fanciful look at the hormones and "warmones" that impel young men to war and stupidity.

When terrorists loyal to Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union win control of the Honde Valley on the eastern border of Rhodesia, the government must decide whether to concede defeat or take a stand.

Prime Minister Ian Smith decides to fight back, and he calls upon Jamie Ross, a district commissioner, to relocate 21,000 people into protected villages. To restore the Honde Valley, Ross must first re-establish authority, win over the hearts and minds of the people, and create conditions necessary to re-open the tea estates-a source of vital foreign exchange.

Meanwhile, Josiah Makoni, one of Mugabe's most terrifying lieutenants, is winning followers and accumulating power with a series of vicious terrorist acts. As the war escalates, Makoni faces setbacks, and cannot escape the internal conflicts that plague his nights and lead him to question whether life is worth living.

Find out whether Jamie and his team can overcome the unbridled fury of the terrorists while learning about the history of Rhodesia from multiple perspectives in Dawn of Deliverance.

Learn what has happened to the country of Zimbabwe under one of the most brutal dictators in modern history.

This first volume in the Sgt. Smith WWII trilogy follows a squad of First Infantry Division soldiers to the Tunisian desert of North Africa in their first experience of war. As members of the "Big Red One," the most famous division in the American army, they do battle with the most famous units in the German army; Rommel's Africa Corps, as well as the 10th and 21st Panzer Divisions. Although this three-part series is told in novel format, it is a true story, based upon documented accounts as well as stories my father told me. This is a vivid, unvarnished odyssey into the slit trenches of World War II, a gritty look at a war we should never forget. Volume 2: "Soldiers in the Sun: Sgt. Smith in the Campaign for Sicily" now available.