At a time of mounting geopolitical instability and renewed power politics, Ukraine Vis-à-Vis Russia and the EU: Misperceptions of Foreign Challenges in Times of War, 2014–2015 stands out as a timely and incisive contribution. Alina Nychyk’s book offers not only a rigorous and balanced analysis of Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and the war in Donbas up to the Minsk II agreement, but, more importantly, a compelling reminder of the inherent complexity of foreign policy and geopolitics, resisting any simplistic reading of international relations.

Putin’s Revenge: Why Russia Invaded Ukraine by Lucian Kim is an exciting complement to the emerging literature on Russia's war against Ukraine, which started in 2014 and escalated into a full-scale invasion in 2022.[1] The book’s main goal is to explain how Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, whose actions were shaped by Russia’s internal political environment and key international events, evolved into a brutal dictator and ultimately decided to launch the largest war in Europe since the end of the World War II.