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Addresses head-on the central issue of invasion timing in the Allied European strategy of World War II

In Second Front Now – 1943: An Opportunity Delayed, military historian Walter S. Dunn offers a sharply argued and meticulously researched reassessment of one of the most consequential strategic debates of World War II: the decision not to launch a full-scale Allied invasion of Western Europe in 1943. At a time when Nazi Germany was stretched across multiple fronts and the Soviet Union bore the brunt of the fighting in the East, the question of when—and where—to open a Second Front in Europe became a defining issue among Allied leaders.

Dunn explores the complex interplay of military planning, political caution, logistical constraints, and inter-Allied tensions that led Britain and the United States to postpone a cross-Channel invasion. Drawing from official records, wartime correspondence, and operational analyses, he reconstructs the strategic environment of 1943 and challenges the conventional wisdom that the delay was inevitable—or even prudent. Instead, Dunn presents a compelling case that an earlier invasion may have been both feasible and decisive, potentially shortening the war and altering the balance of postwar power.

With clarity and analytical rigor, the book examines the competing priorities of Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin, the influence of Mediterranean operations, and the evolving capabilities of Allied forces. It also considers the broader implications of the delay, including its impact on Soviet–Western relations and the shaping of the Cold War order that followed.

Blending narrative accessibility with scholarly depth, Second Front Now – 1943 is essential reading for students, historians, and anyone interested in the strategic decisions that defined the Allied path to victory. Dunn invites readers to reconsider a pivotal “missed moment” in history—and to reflect on how differently the war, and the world, might have unfolded.

Secular Power Europe and Islam argues that secularism is not the central principle of international relations but should be considered as one belief system that influences international politics. Through an exploration of Europe’s secular identity, an identity that is seen erroneously as normative, author Sarah Wolff shows how Islam confronts the EU’s existential anxieties about its security and its secular identity. Islam disrupts Eurocentric assumptions about democracy and revolution and human rights. Through three case studies, Wolff encourages the reader to unpack secularism as a bedrock principle of IR and diplomacy. This book argues that the EU’s interest and diplomacy activities in relation to religion, and to Islam specifically, is shaped by the insistence on a European secular identity, which should be reconsidered in areas of religion and foreign policy.

Among the most momentous decisions that leaders of a state are called upon to make is whether or not to initiate warfare. How their military will fare against the opponent may be the first consideration, but not far behind are concerns about domestic political response and the reaction of the international community.

            
Securing Approval makes clear the relationship between these two seemingly distinct concerns, demonstrating how multilateral security organizations like the UN influence foreign policy through public opinion without ever exercising direct enforcement power. While UN approval of a proposed action often bolsters public support, its refusal of endorsement may conversely send a strong signal to domestic audiences that the action will be exceedingly costly or overly aggressive. With a cogent theoretical and empirical argument, Terrence L. Chapman provides new evidence for how multilateral organizations matter in security affairs as well as a new way of thinking about the design and function of these institutions.

Special? investigates the unique, but increasingly weak, relationship between the US and UK and contemplates how it might develop in the future.  

Many relationships in international affairs are singular, but the United Kingdom’s relationship with the United States has always been different. For a time, what Churchill dubbed the "special" relationship had consequences far beyond the borders of the two countries—a closeness that has provoked envy, curiosity, and bewilderment.

In this new volume, Simon McDonald takes stock of this special relationship and speculates about its future. Starting with its sixteenth-century origins, he takes a longer look at the twentieth century and the two nations' relationship today, before looking forward at how, and if, it may develop in the coming centuries. Just how important are ties in defense, intelligence, language, and culture? What can we make of the United States’s ambivalent relationship with the Royal Family? Has the US ever acted benevolently towards the UK, or has it always taken decisions in its own interest? 

Today, the relationship is weaker than Churchill, Thatcher, or even Blair understood it; much that made it special belongs to a rapidly receding past. Though it can no longer be claimed that the relationship is central to international relations, McDonald asks if recent events represent a temporary cooling of what remains a vital relationship to the UK and an important one to the US; or a rift that will only grow wider.