The Hitler Years: Disaster is the continuation of the volume 1 titled The Hitler Years: Triumph. It can be read as a standalone but it is better to read the volume one before. This is a huge book and needs to be read with lot of concentration as the author has chronologically taken us through the whole second world war events. I am a history buff and this book was excellent and well written. Wars are never pretty and some of the events mentioned in this book might be hard to read. One of the images used in the book could be a little triggering to some people.
The author has tried to be non objective while stating as to how the events enfolded but the subject matter of this book is such that it's impossible to be neutral and the after thoughts of the book does reflect that. Having said that this book does an excellent job of recreating the history for people like me who are not of that era.
The book makes you sit and think that how could humanity stoop so low where cost of human life was worth nothing and violating women and children were of no consequence in the bigger scheme of things. It is a disturbing book but everyone needs to read it so that our and future generations do not repeat the same mistakes.

Volume 2: Disaster, 1940-1945

The huge canvas this book covers is vividly written and beautifully presented with a body of illustrations, a time machine told in a narrative free of academic jargon, one giving us just enough details into the experiences of Germans during this frightening period: The Times of the Gestapo.

In volume 2, the companion to “The Hitler Years” Triumph, 1933-1939 is not an easy read it tells of the rise and catastrophic fall of the Nazi regime, a descent into barbarism, genocide and war that cost millions of lives. “Disaster” charts the dramatic changes for the Third Reich despite Hitler’s grand ambitions. This book focuses heavily on military campaigns, carefully analyzing each major battle and the turning points they represented. It makes it clear the importance to understand that Nazi Germany was in search of living space and for this to be achieved was through expansion taking lands from racially inferior nations.

Given the scope of the book (656 pages) some may say more attention could have been given to some aspects instead of others: ex. German massacres of prisoners of war. How does one condense satisfactorily so many elements in a single book? ”Disaster” is well-researched, well- structured and well-written.

If you are interested in this period of time both volumes are combinations of expert historical analysis.

Frank McDonough has done a wonderful job again with The Hitler Years: Disaster, 1940-1945. This book gives you the facts and not opinions. I loved getting more of a background on how Italy entered the war and the events that followed. The pictures are stunning and help to bring the words to life.

McDonough's first book in these series is a really excellent resource for those interested in Nazi Germany. He continues his excellent trend in the second book. As a historian, I really appreciate his use of historiography in his writings. It's not too scholarly and provides insights into the historical debates around the topic. It's incredibly well written. I have no doubt that this will become a great resource for those looking to move past the shorter histories of Nazi Germany to gain more insight into the period.

This is the second volume of McDonough's very thorough analysis of the Hitler years in Germany. The first volume from 1933 to 1939, showed Hitler winning over most of the population to his vision of a renewed Reich. In these years of domestic triumph, cunning maneuvers, pitting neighboring powers against each other and biding his time. This volume completes the authors chronicle of the Third Reich from 1940-1945 starting with Hitler at the pinnacle of his power having conquered most of Eastern Europe and ending with Hitler dead and Germany suffering a disastrous defeat. Hitler had failed to achieve making Germany a super power and had left the German people to cope with the consequences and the shame of the Holocaust. Despite Hitler's early successes advancing into Europe, McDonough argues that Germany never stood a chance against the combined forces of the Allies.

This and the previous volume is one of the best accounts of Germany under Hitler that I have seen. It is obvious the author did a great deal of research which is evident in the detail he presents. I highly recommend both volumes to anyone who is interested in a non-fiction account of Hitler's rise to power, his well know staff, and his ultimate defeat. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to be able to read this book.

Frank McDonough writes brilliantly with great conviction, including facts and his point of view. He has something to say and I am so grateful for his insight. The subject matter is clearly not enjoyable but talk about an absorbing and riveting book! It has increased my knowledge and made me smarter. Though the first book is remarkable, this one is even more so. A crucial read in my opinion.

One of the most striking things I learned was about the Allies and in particular the Mussolini association. Prior to this book I did not know about Case Yellow, Case Red, the "Mechelen Incident" or much about the Norway and Denmark links. I learned more about the role of Pervitin, Goebbel's horrific antisemitism, anti-Jewish propaganda, Spain's vacillation, "clean sweep" of Yugoslavia and Greece, relations between Hitler and other leaders, the Wolf's Lair, killing experiments and termination camps including Treblinka, massacres, cannibalism rumours amongst starving German soldiers, Soviet Bolshevism and rapes, the surrender of Paulus, the courageous White Rose group, the utter devastation of Dresden and the failed assassination attempt on Hitler. What stood out the most for me is the level of sheer and utter relentless apathetic depravity, unspeakable atrocities captured in words and photographs. What people suffered through is sobering and downright despicable. Looking at most of the pictures is difficult as you are looking into the cold eyes of pure evil.

This is a must read for anyone intrigued by this era and with Hitler and those surrounding him. One of the most memorable books (and I have read over 400 so far) of the year. Memorable not only for the geopolitics and atrocities but also for the thoughtfully-presented thorough research and the man who was Hitler, powerful yet a coward.

My sincere thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this thoughtful and highly informative book. Kudos to the author for this important undertaking!

I read The Hitler Years: Triumph and really enjoyed it. This one I couldn't finish. I really think I got a bad copy of an ARC Kindle. McDonough's books are always well written and researched. I barely made it through the introduction and part of chapter one. There were missing dates, which I understand that with my copy being an ARC. But, there were missing letters of words on every page of my copy. Hopefully, all will be fixed in the final copy.

Thanks to Netgalley, McDonough and the publisher for the Kindle Version of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is the second in Frank McDonough’s masterful two-volume survey of the “Hitler Years.” Volume one covers the pre-war period from 1933-1939, while this book covers the war years. That being the case, this is necessarily heavily focused on military history. Of course, it also devotes significant attention to the so-called Final Solution.

I appreciate McDonough’s chronological approach in these books. For me, it helps contextualize the history better. While I have read many thematic books on the Nazi era, an overview is always a good book to add to the library. .

McDonough doesn’t just describe; he has a point of view. He persuasively argues that Hitler never wanted to fight the British. He was consumed by the desire to conquer the USSR and achieve the vast living space needed to fulfill his fantasy of a self-sufficient economic superpower to rival the United States. His preoccupation with this desire and his obsessive hatred of Jews and Bolsheviks, together with his feeing that Germany and Britain were natural racial friends, took his attention away from the military opportunities the Germans had against Britain early in the war.

McDonough also argues against the viewpoint that Hitler directed the military to its doom, against the wishes of its career military officers. McDonough points out that military officers strongly supported all of Hitler’s war-making—right up until Germany began to lose. At the same time, McDonough doesn’t stint on coverage of the military plots to remove Hitler and negotiate a peace with the Allies—sometimes just he western Allies. There were a lot of plots, and it’s stunning to read about the ways each one failed

McDonough disagrees with the conventional wisdom that on the Eastern Front the efficient and technologically advanced Germans were ultimately defeated by Russians simply throwing seemingly limitless bodies into battle. McDonough’s view is that the Russians improved both tactically and technologically as the war went on, significantly reducing their casualty rate.

McDonough’s final chapter includes some interesting remarks about postwar Germany. In particular, he notes that while the Allies allowed former Nazis to go right back to work in leading positions in industry, medicine, science and the judiciary (likely contributing to Germany’s notorious reticence to prosecute war criminals), East Germany strenuously worked to keep former Nazis out of any positions of authority. For example, McDonough denies the claim that East Germany’s Stasi included former Nazis.

I highly recommend McDonough’s two Hitler Years books and I think they are likely to become the recommended standard for those looking for a history of the Nazi era

This book was very informative and interesting. Job very well done by the author and I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about history.

This book is a good overview of Hitler’s rise and fall during World War II. It does cover some new ground, but also provides a good summary of the events and what happened as a result of his orders. It does hopefully put to rest some of the ongoing dialogue of what happened at the end of the war. I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in World War II.

I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon, Facebook and my nonfiction book review blog

I received this book as an ARC and this is my review. This is Part Two of The Hitler Years and this book is amazing! I loved it! McDonough has meticulously researched the full history of Hitler’s battles, his state of mind, the state of mind of his subordinates, as well as the progress of each country in preparation for and defense of each skirmish. There is also detailed information about the concentration camps: their beginnings and operations. This is THE definitive account of the Third Reich and all its participants. I totally recommend this dramatic, historic documentation to any reader who is interested in history and its aftermath.

This is an absolutely brilliant book, well-written and highly detailed. I cannot say enough good things about it. It was an absolute treat to read as it was clear that the author spent many years researching and writing it. I give it my strongest recommendation.

This book follows Adolf Hitler’s decisions and actions chronologically for the years 1940 to 1945, as well as his interactions with and the reactions of other world leaders. Many different types of sources are used to recount well-known as well as many previously unreported facts, including quotes from his followers’ journals. The author endnotes his sources and has a substantial bibliography and index at the end of the book.

I learned a lot about the battles on the Russian front, especially the Battle of Stalingrad. Much of the facts about Germany’s war with the Soviet Union contained in this text are either not included in or are glossed over in other discussions. I also more clearly understood the events of the Battle of the Bulge. Notably, I found many new facts about how Hitler’s inner circle viewed him and his decisions. Overall, a very interesting and enlightening book that was hard to put down. 10 out of 5 stars.

Thank you to Apollo Publishing, Frank McDonough, and NetGalley for letting me read this terrific book pre-publication in the U.S. I did not receive anything for this review and my opinions are my own.

The first volume was fantastic and definitely should be read first. This second volume continues the story, incisively scrutinizing the major events of Nazism and Hitler's collapse and fall. New and interesting insights are found throughout its pages and should be added to the shelves of anyone with an interest in Hitler, Nazism, World War II, Germany or, frankly, just history in general. Highly recommended.

The Hitler Years: Disaster 1940-1945 is the companion to The Hitler Years: Triumph 1933-1939, which I previously reviewed.

As with 'Triumph', Disaster is a strict, chronologically presented layout of the events from 1940, when Hitler was at the apex of his power, to 1945, when Germany was defeated and Hitler committed suicide in Berlin.

I'll caution that this is not a narrative nonfiction work. The two books taken together could form a large collection of references about what was happening on what day in what year in (primarily) Germany's sphere between 1933 and 1945. If you haven't read the first volume,it isn't a huge issue as long as you have some kind of base understanding as to how the world got to where it was in 1940.

It's a terrific addition to the field, and I'm giving it five stars, just as I did with the first volume.

One note I will make is that the e-ARC was a terrible mess. Letters are missing from words, entire dates are left out, and it was a tremendously difficult and tedious read to get through it. I'm not dinging it for this, as it is an advanced copy, and it comes with the territory. It was, however, disappointing that it was so very, very bad in this regard.

Thanks to St Martin's Press and NetGalley for the reading copy.