'A refreshing engagement with the powerful and ubiquitous concept of security from a critical perspective. Managing to remain theoretically sophisticated, empirically detailed and accessible throughout, this book will be a vital resource for students and researchers of security in international relations, from two of the most promising researchers in the area.' - Matt McDonald, University of Queensland, Australia 'Impressively comprehensive, deeply knowledgeable, scrupulously fair, and consistently insightful - this book is one of the very best introductions to security studies.'- Anthony Burke, UNSW, Australia 'This is a thoughtfully conceptualized, carefully argued textbook with a probing quality that competing volumes lack. Students will acquire state-of-the-art knowledge of security studies, and conceptual tools to engage in critical reflection on peace and war, terrorism, human security, and other relevant phenomena.' - Kjell Engelbrekt, Swedish National Defence College 'This stimulating text offers a genuinely fresh and interdisciplinary approach to the study of security. By asking the big questions, it breaks out of the straitjacket of the sectoral approach typical of other recent texts.' - Michael Sheehan, Swansea University, UK