Call to Duty is a novel of epic scope and breathtaking adventure that races at mach speed between two deadly wars — one waged five decades ago against a madman with dreams of world domination, the other to be fought tomorrow against well-armed dealers in poison and death. For there are times that call for swift, decisive action — as unforeseen global events threaten to shatter an uncertain peace. There are times that test the mettle of even the most courageous of men and women — as four young Americans taken captive by a power-hungry Asian drug lord. And now, a beleaguered Commander-in-Chief — beset upon by internal political turmoil and terrifying international intrigues — must find guidance and strength in his own heroic past. Then he must act.

For these are certain times.

In the years after the Cold War, civil war breaks out in China, threatening the world's stability and thrusting Colonel Matt Pontowski, commander of the 303rd fighter squadron of the Reserves, and his men into the center of the action.

The most influential men in Russia, including the country's corrupt head of state, have gathered in a Moscow cemetery in the dead of winter to bury a fallen comrade. Before the ceremony has concluded, however, blood will stain the snow-covered ground, and Russia's ultimate power will have fallen into the hands of a man of ruthless and insane ambition.

U.S. President Madeline Turner has already weathered global crises, treachery, and insurrection in her own cabinet during the first months of her administration, and it has made her a stronger, more able leader. But her effectiveness will be tested to its limits now that the balance of power has shifted dangerously and dramatically in Europe. Closer to home, a small personal emergency has brought a one-time hero and Air Force legend into her life: Matt Pontowski, who will become the proud, capable yet lonely and beleaguered Commander-in-Chief's confidant, friend, and more.

Meanwhile, a fearsome, re-emergent Russian bear is on a rampage, spurred on by a criminal government in control of an awesome military arsenal. A suddenly vulnerable Poland faces invasion and possible extinction—not only from Russia, but from a newly emboldened expansionist Germany. And soon a brazen act of aggression has locked a determined Maddy Turner into a war of wits and weaponry with the fearless cabal of drug runners and murderers who now rule a one—time empire—a war that could reshape the face of the world and the future of freedom, and decide the fate of the President herself; whether she lives or dies.

Three hundred of the men and women of the 45th Tactical Fighter Wing are taken captive by the armies of Communist-backed post-Ayatollah Iran. Tension mounts as U.S. forces plan, train and execute the daring rescue mission. Smashing follow-up to the bestseller The Warbirds.

Learning that the Afrikaner resistance movement has discovered the secret of cold fusion, Colonel Matt Pontowski heads a United Nations mission in which he must decide between a hopeless attack and the destruction of a nation. 20,000 first printing.

A true master of the action-packed geopolitical thriller, Richard Herman puts America in the middle of a two-front war where success is far from certain.

The Last PhoenixIt is the beginning of a new century and Maddy Turner, the first woman to occupy the White House, is about to become a wartime president. The war on terrorism has been too successful; the radical Islamic states have devised a brilliant, unthinkable strategy and found a new ally in a surging China. They know the price will be high, but the prize is control of the vast Middle Eastern oil reserves and the strategic Strait of Malacca. By working in concert where timing is critical, they intend to create a new axis of world power by ensnaring the president's armed forces in a devastating double-pronged conflict — a war the American military can no longer win.

Fueled by the failure of her intelligence agencies to foresee the unexpected, President Turner must react to a global crisis of world-altering proportions, as nightmarish scenes of brutal conflict and terrorism are played out half a world away. It will take courage, remarkable cunning, stealth, luck, and seemingly unbearable sacrifice to avoid Armageddon, as she approaches what will either be her finest hour or her most tragic mistake. But working below the radarscopes of Turner's antagonists is an ancient warrior on a quest of vengeance in the jungles of Malaysia. Victor Kamigami, a legend in the world of special operations, is a wild card no one knows is in play.

Fighting for reelection against a political enemy as unprincipled and determined as her foes on the battlefield, Turner must turn to the man she trusts above all others, perhaps the only one she can trust in the brutal snake pit of Beltway politics: Brigadier General Matt Pontowski — himself the grandson of a president — a brilliant flier and military tactician, and an intimate confidant of the most powerful woman on earth. The mission she must entrust him with is bold and extraordinary — and potentially suicidal — a daring incursion into the Malaysian jungle, where a small force of determined warriors must hold off a fearsome, overwhelming aggressor long enough for another war to be won. The risks are astronomical, the chance of success slim. But the alternative is unthinkable. And it is the only road America has left.

President Madeline Turner faces the greatest world crisis of her generation when the expansionist Chinese government, having already annexed Taiwan, turns its sights on Japan, and a cabal of domestic political leaders attempt to unseat her.

How far would a Texas tycoon go to corner the market on the biggest undiscovered oil field in the world? Is there anything L.J. Ellis, the CEO of RayTex Oil, wouldn't do to get a jump start on the competition? Hardly anything, as it turns out, especially when the treasure's practically in her backyard. All it will take for the beautiful, sexy, ruthless petroleum queen to turn her company's fortunes around is a little revolution, just big enough to unseat Fidel Castro and turn Cuba's untapped reserves into liquid gold. That's the setup for this Clancy-like techno-thriller. But what might have been a tidy little mystery of international intrigue and corporate chicanery almost gets lost in all the other scenarios author Richard Herman lays out, especially the antics of a bunch of over-the-hill aviators who finally get a chance to relive their glory days and climb back into the cockpits of their fighter planes to save the day for Old Glory. One of them happens to be the father of Mike Stuart, a military bureaucrat charged with assessing the nation's petroleum reserves who notices an anomaly in the movement of oil tankers. Although Mike is ostensibly Herman's hero, he's too involved in a custody dispute with his ex-wife, a new love affair, and counting the days until he puts in his retirement papers to notice that there's a pattern behind all the seemingly random attacks on his life, and that they all tie in to RayTex. The author is at the top of his form when it comes to aeronautics and military strategy. Although he presents the reader with some interesting characters, many of whom will be familiar to fans of Herman's previous books (Warbirds, Against All Enemies, Edge of Honor), the real stars of this book are the airplanes. —Jane Adams

Colonel Anthony "Muddy" Waters has a mission: to mold a company of poorly trained rogues and misfits into heroes. His assignment is one that no other officer in the United States Air Force would touch. But Waters has a fabled stubbornness and dedication unparalleled in the armed services ... and the will to make the impossible possible.

The Warbirds is the breakthrough novel that captures the saga of the F-4 Phantom and the men who made it a legend: like "Muddy" Waters, who must transform the men and women under his command — Including a superbly talented pilot but loose cannon named Jack Locke-into a fighting force to be reckoned with. Because their country could ask them at any time to fly their F-4s into the eye of the firestorm, to face an overwhelming enemy and brave the flames of hell itself without question and with no support.

Tomorrow that call will come.

And there will be no turning backwhen the heavens explode.

You'd be hard-pressed to find a more comprehensive, engrossing, and just plain fun-to-read guidebook than the Eyewitness Travel Guide: France. Spilling over with all sorts of useful information for the traveler, you'll find three-dimensional drawings, floor plans, and detailed neighborhood maps, as well as timelines, charts, even Metro stations. Broken into four sections——"Introducing France," "Region by Region" (covering Paris quite impressively, as well as the Loire Valley, Provence, Brittany, and Normandy), "Traveler's Needs," and "Survival Guide"—the guide paints a complete picture of the country. Readers will especially appreciate the hundreds of color photos of everything from ski towns in the Alps to the beaches of St. Tropez to vineyards of the Rhone Valley. You'll also find street-by-street illustrated city walks (Paris's Champs-Élysées and St. Germain-des-Pres are two good ones), not to mention the best brasseries, bistros, and boulangeries. —Jill Fergus

How does your company define creativity? Or doescreativity define your company? In this remarkable book, Jerry Hirshberg, founder and president of Nissan Design International (NDI), distills his experience as leader of the world's hotbed of automotive innovation and reveals his strategy for designing an organization around creativity.

In The Creative Priority Hirshberg weaves together enlightening real-world anecdotes with the story of NDI's genesis to illustrate eleven interlocking strategies that came to define NDI's creative priority. Richly illustrated with NDI's elegant designs and sketched, The Creative Priority is at once a compelling narrative, a rich store of hands-on experience, and a grab bag of breakthrough insights that can help your business perform its most vital function.

We live in the age of speed. We strain to be more efficient, to cram more into each minute, each hour, each day. Since the Industrial Revolution shifted the world into high gear, the cult of speed has pushed us to a breaking point. Consider these facts: Americans on average spend seventy-two minutes of every day behind the wheel of a car, a typical business executive now loses sixty-eight hours a year to being put on hold, and American adults currently devote on average a mere half hour per week to making love.

Living on the edge of exhaustion, we are constantly reminded by our bodies and minds that the pace of life is spinning out of control. In Praise of Slowness traces the history of our increasingly breathless relationship with time and tackles the consequences of living in this accelerated culture of our own creation. Why are we always in such a rush? What is the cure for time sickness? Is it possible, or even desirable, to slow down? Realizing the price we pay for unrelenting speed, people all over the world are reclaiming their time and slowing down the pace — and living happier, healthier, and more productive lives as a result. A Slow revolution is taking place.

Here you will find no Luddite calls to overthrow technology and seek a preindustrial utopia. This is a modern revolution, championed by cell-phone using, e-mailing lovers of sanity. The Slow philosophy can be summed up in a single word — balance. People are discovering energy and efficiency where they may have been least expected — in slowing down.

In this engaging and entertaining exploration, award-winning journalist and rehabilitated speedaholic Carl Honoré details our perennial love affair with efficiency and speed in a perfect blend of anecdotal reportage, history, and intellectual inquiry. In Praise of Slowness is the first comprehensive look at the worldwide Slow movements making their way into the mainstream — in offices, factories, neighborhoods, kitchens, hospitals, concert halls, bedrooms, gyms, and schools. Defining a movement that is here to stay, this spirited manifesto will make you completely rethink your relationship with time.