From the publisher’s website:

The Wagner Private Military Company (PMC) first appeared in Ukraine’s Donbas region during the initial Russian intervention in the spring of 2014. Its fighters—lacking national insignia, Russian flags, or unit designations and always concealing their faces in public—presented an unorthodox and ambiguous presence. However, their use of Russian-made arms, equipment, and uniforms left little doubt about Moscow’s involvement, reinforcing Wagner’s role as a deniable yet effective force in place of poorly trained local militias. Over the following years, Wagner served Moscow’s strategic interests by maintaining both ambiguity and control over various local proxies.

While Wagner was not initially involved in Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, a series of military setbacks suffered by the Russian Armed Forces (VSRF) led to its redeployment. Following a rapid expansion, Wagner became instrumental in achieving one of the Kremlin’s first major military successes of the war—the capture of the heavily fortified town of Popasna in late April and early May 2022. From that point, under the nominal leadership of Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner grew significantly in both personnel and firepower.

The group also played a central role in Project 42174, a large-scale recruitment program that enlisted Russian prison inmates as assault troops. Tens of thousands of these recruits were deployed—nearly 20,000 of whom were killed—during the brutal Battle of Bakhmut, which raged from July 2022 to May 2023. This operation marked Russia’s first major military victory in nearly a year and had a lasting impact on the tactics and structure of the VSRF.

Richly illustrated with rare photographs, custom-drawn artwork, and analysis based on captured Russian documents, Wagner Group Private Military Company, Volume 2 provides an in-depth examination of the group’s emergence, organization, combat operations, and eventual downfall. Offering a comprehensive study of one of the most significant and controversial private military forces of modern times, this volume is essential reading for those seeking to understand the evolution of Wagner and its role in contemporary warfare.

The book Wagner Group Private Military Company Volume 2 is an illustrated edition of this infamous military unit organized and led by Dmitry Utkin and Yevgeny Prigozhin in 2014. The second volume covers the group’s activities from 2013 through 2023.

Wagner Group Private Military Company Volume 2 includes the following chapters:

• Abbreviations and Acronyms
• Musicians in Ukraine
• Battle of Bakhmut
• Mutiny of June 2023
• Critical Perception of the Wagner Group
• Conclusions
• Endnotes
• About the Authors

The book begins with a short explanation of the acronyms and abbreviations used in the book, which I found quite handy during reading.

The second volume focuses entirely on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. We get an insight into the annexation of Crimea by Russia using the Wagner Group in 2014. I found many sections in the book enlightening, such as Putin’s belief that the war with Ukraine started in 2014, not in 2022, hence the term ‘Special Military Operation’ was adopted by Putin in February 2022, for example. The volume has many interesting pictures of the Wagner Group in action, their military vehicles, and key figures involved in the group’s operations and surrounding political background. The book is fairly short, but provides a fascinating description of events in the most recent history that we have all been witnesses to. It describes how Russian interests in the domination of other regions were executed using a well-trained elite military group. The book describes the political background to events that involved the Warner Group and their outcome. It is a very interesting volume providing insight into the mutiny of June 2023 and its aftermath.

The middle section of the book offers 7 pages of side views of military equipment, including armored vehicles and aircraft, as well as the uniforms of the soldiers. These can serve well as references for modelers. The authors provide 9 pages of cited sources and bibliography at the end of the volume, demonstrating a thorough knowledge of the matter and about recent historical events.

The book is a wonderful expansion to the first volume. It has been a fascinating read and I think it is critical to have such a documentary about the current events available in parallel to the TV and radio comments we see and hear about the current events involving Russia and Ukraine.

My sincere thanks go to Helion & Company for providing this copy for a review and IPMS USA for allowing me to review it. I truly enjoyed reading this book.