The Afghan Campaign - Tapa dura

Alexander the Great’s campaign in the Afghan kingdoms began in the summer of 330BC. It lasted for three brutal years and proved the most difficult he and his army ever fought... The Afghan Campaign recounts the story of this bloody and ruthless conflict from the perspective of a Macedonian recruit. The youngest of three brothers and eager to prove himself, Matthias has volunteered for Alexander's ambitious expedition into the unknown, unconquered country we now call Afghanistan. But as Matthias joins the frontline, he begins to realise that the nature of warfare for which he trained has changed. The Macedonians face a new kind of enemy – and must learn to fight a new kind of war. Experiencing fear, euphoria, horror and shame, Matthias and his comrades undergo a rite of passage as they, soldiers of a Western force whose code was secular and humanist, struggle to subjugate a fiercely proud Eastern warrior nation of deeply-held beliefs and a fervent willingness to die for their cause. Simply to survive, Alexander’s men must shake off the trappings of ‘civilization’ as they know it and adopt the same unorthodox and barbaric tactics as their foe – but at what cost? Set against the imposing, alien implacability of the Afghan landscape, this powerfully affecting, thrillingly-told novel not only demonstrates its author's profound understanding of the hopes and fears of men in battle but also has some important things to say about the nature of wars past...and present.

Acclaim for the novels of Steven Pressfield: ‘Pressfield brings Alexander alive for a modern audience with the verve and the skill with which he conjured the heroes of Thermopylae in Gates of Fire.’ Manda Scott ‘Pressfield writes with a quality and style akin to classical legend . . . I’ve not read such convincing accounts of classical warfare in years.’ John Whitbourn ‘Gripping, moving and literate . . . rarely does an author manage to recreate a moment in history with such mastery, authority and psychological insight.’ Nelson DeMille ‘An impressive scholar and gifted storyteller, Pressfield is the finest military writer alive, bar none.’ Stephen Coonts 'No one writes better historical fiction than Steven Pressfield.' Vince Flynn