The 7th century AD sees the end of the wars between the eastern Roman Empire (the western Empire having fallen a century earlier) and the last Persian empire, the Sassanids, as they fight themselves to a standstill. This set the stage for the rise of Islam and its first Caliphate, and they spread and conquer the Middle East (finishing off the Persians in the process) and north Africa, and leaving the Romans with basically modern Turkey and Greece. They take Jerusalem for the first time, and it doesn’t leave their hands til the First Crusade 500+ years later. This book is a good overview of that time, focusing mainly on the military campaigns. A bit dry at times, but certainly interesting. It made me want to look up lots of things - places, people, tactics - which is always a good sign. I wish the maps were better in it, with more detail, but that a nitpick.

My Amazon review -

http://www.amazon.com/review/R16EFTTAGGLZ4V/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm