In Sword, veteran chronicler of war Max Hastings explores with extraordinary vividness the actions of the Commando brigade, Montgomery’s 3rd Infantry and 6th Airborne divisions on and around a single British beach.

The book offers a searching analysis of why British troops did not reach Caen on 6 June 1944, as Montgomery had promised Churchill that they would – and the story of the brigadier who was sacked for that failure. This is D-Day as you have never read the story told before, with the blend of narrative, analysis and human insight from an award-winning author, journalist and broadcaster.