The war in Chechnya left us with some of the most harrowing images in recent times: a modern European city bombed to ruins while its citizens cowered in bunkers; mass graves; mothers combing the hills for their missing sons. The product of investigative and on-the-scene reporting by two established journalists, Carlotta Gall and Thomas de Waal"s captivating book recounts the story of the Chechens" violent struggle for independece, and the Kremlin politics that precipitated it. Exploring Chechnya"s complex and bloody history, the work is also a portrait of Russia"s failed attempt to make the transition to a democratic society. "A harrowing glimpse into the destabilization caused by the collapse of the Soviet Union and the troubled road to independence and democracy faced by its non-Russian members." --Kirkus Reviews