Osprey has had a very successful series of books covering various aces and the aircraft they flew. Depending on the scope of the subject, it was either event-based, theatre-based, country-based, aircraft-based, or some combination of the four.

It should come as no surprise that some of the more popular subjects have been Luftwaffe, as it seems as if there is a never-ending demand for such material. What Osprey has done, is to combine two of its books into a single volume. In this case it is Aces #6: FW-190 Aces of the Russian Front, and Aces #37: Bf-109 Aces of the Russian Front. It makes for a healthy 182 pages.

The only part of the book that is new is the front and back cover and even that really isn't brand new as the images are taken from within the book. Sadly gone are the great cover artwork that was in the individual editions. In all respects this is nothing but a reprint of the two books. No information has been added or deleted. The page numbers have been continued from the first book into the second and the index at the back does follow the new numbers for the FW-190 book.

Like all the Osprey aces books, there are a number of color drawings and profiles that are so popular. Since the FW-190 book is an older book, there are 60 color profiles. The newer 109 book only has 40 since Osprey has been cutting back on these to enhance profitability of the books. We may not like it, but there it is.

If you have neither of these books, then this is a great way to add to your collection. You save at least $10 over the individual books now that the single editions are running $18,95. If you already have one of the two subjects, then perhaps it isn't such a bargain. There is at least one other 'twofer' released and that is on Japanese Army and Navy aces. It remains to be seen how popular these compendiums will become.

Review book courtesy of my growing library.

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