Chinese military history is a topic that is hardly covered by Western authors. Given the limited interest in the West, short-sighted books such as this one try to cover the gap by covering 2000 years of Chinese history in 150 pages. Such a concept is bound to fail and it does as the author has to spend too many of the limited number of pages just to catch up with the intermittent centuries that pass between chapters. Characters and places are introduced rather sloppily and one never begins to care about the sort of the protagonists. The book is also not about battles but selected campaigns but it is unclear what criteria were used to include or exclude these. Fittingly, the maps are bad too. Overall, this book was produced without love and care. The author probably had to fulfill a long outstanding contract and handed in an ailing manuscript. Readers are better off with the author's collection of his Osprey titles about the Chinese armies, "Soldiers of the dragon : Chinese armies 1500 BCE-1840 CE".

Ancient Chinese military history is still waiting for its Stephen Turnbull, someone who collects what is available in Chinese and makes it accessible and interesting for Western audiences. A well made title about the Three Kingdoms should sell well in the West. Hopefully, someone will undertake a real effort. ( )