Brian J. Ford Book order (chronological)

Powerful illustrations and a unique new narrative make this an incomparable illustrated history of the secret weapons that changed the course of World War II. The book's basic structure is chronological, charting the race in technology between the Allied and Axis powers, with examples of their use in battle, along with those that remained experimental or remained the stuff of science fiction. Importantly (and of interest to the general reader) it also shows how wartime research anticipated the high-tech era in which we now live. The account charts secret weapons development from the Japanese ray gun of the 1930s to the powerful V2 rocket, and compares World War II secret weapons research with the realities of present-day science. It's a riveting story of innovation under pressure, from a world of machine guns and biplanes to electronics, rockets, and nuclear bombs with the power to wipe out humanity.

As the Nazi war machine moved into action, it fed upon the Fatherland's resources and technology to develop instruments of warfare unrivaled in force and sophistication by anything previously known. Scientific ingenuity and technological breakthroughs in propulsion and explosives led to German supremacy in jet-powered aircraft, and to the fateful development of the V-2 - the father of the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile! Only Nazi Germany's turbulent politics prevented its technological developments from completely outdistancing the Allies in terms of superweapons.