*WINNER OF THE WRITERS' LEAGUE OF TEXAS FICTION AWARD 2017*

It is the spring of 2003 and coalition forces are advancing on Iraq. Images of a giant statue of Saddam Hussein crashing to the ground in Baghdad are being beamed to news channels around the world. Nineteen-year-old Specialist Cassandra Wigheard, on her first deployment since joining the US army two years earlier, is primed for war.

For Abu al-Hool, a jihadist since the days of the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, war is wearing thin. Two decades of fighting have left him questioning his commitment to the struggle. When Cassandra is taken prisoner by al-Hool's mujahideen brotherhood, both fighters will find their loyalties tested to the very limits.

A fast-paced, hard-hitting account of eight weeks in the lives of a soldier and her captor forces us to reconsider the simplistic narratives spun by those in power.

About the Author
Brian Van Reet was born in Houston. Following the September 11 attacks, he dropped out of the University of Virginia and enlisted in the U.S. Army. He served in Iraq under stop-loss orders, achieved the rank of sergeant and was awarded a Bronze Star for valour. After an honourable discharge he studied at the University of Missouri and later the University of Texas. His stories and essays have appeared in the New York Times, the Daily Beast and the Washington Post.

Reviews
A brilliantly written account of kidnap and conquest in the early years of the Iraq war. -- Justine Jordan * Guardian, Books of the Year *
Clear, authentic and beautifully written, Spoils is a book about war for people who don't like books about war. Van Reet gives us a thriller that is not a thriller, but a grave and fierce description of the moral battlefield behind the headlines from Iraq. -- Anne Enright
Blisteringly good. * Daily Telegraph *
Undeniably engrossing. * Observer *
Brian Van Reet's assured debut novel begins with one of the best opening chapters I've read... bear[s] eye-widening witness to valour, horror, violence, cruelty and absurdity... not only rewarding but necessary. * Guardian *
An instant addition to the canon of must-read war novels. -- Olivia Cole * GQ *
Uncompromisingly depicts the terror and pity of war. * Daily Mail *
This is a raw study in the ruin of men. It's unapologetic and confessional, showing the flaws in humanity just below the skin. * Washington Post *
Original, deftly plotted and incisively intelligent. * Wall Street Journal *
A timely novel with striking relevance. * Economist *



Book Information
ISBN 9781784704322
Author Brian Van Reet
Format Paperback
Page Count 272
Imprint Vintage
Publisher Vintage Publishing
Weight(grams) 191g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 17mm