The Wagner Group : Inside Russia’s Mercenary Army

by Margolin, Jack

Russia

Published 01/02/2026 by REAKTION BOOKS in the United Kingdom.

Paperback | 328 pages, 4 illustrations

Now available in paperback, this book tells the story of Russia’s most notorious private military company, the Wagner Group, revealing details of its operations never documented before, and the warning the group holds for the evolution of conflict. Jack Margolin traces the Wagner Group from its roots as a battlefield rumour to a private military enterprise tens of thousands strong. He follows individual commanders and foot soldiers as they fight in Ukraine, Syria and Africa. He shows Wagner mercenaries committing atrocities, plundering oil, diamonds and gold, and changing the course of conflicts in the name of the Kremlin. In documenting the Wagner Group’s story up to the dramatic demise of its chief director, Evgeniy Prigozhin, Margolin demonstrates what the Wagner Group represents for not only the future of Putin’s political system but the privatization of war.