The "Architectural Guide Chechnya and the North Caucasus" represents the first pioneering work of its type to shed light on a little-known mountainous region split between ­Europe and Asia, one of the few places on Earth that can claim a varied amalgam of ethnic cities, ­languages, cultures, a remarkable architectural legacy, and human puzzles. This groundbreaking and comprehensive vademecum, collecting unreleased materials and more than 130 buildings scattered throughout seven geo­graphical and ethnocultural areas of the North Caucasus, is a unique piece of literature to anyone interested in the culture, the history and, of course, the captivating architectural heritage of this mysterious patch of Earth. Sochi: Holidays in the USSR The Ancient Land of the Circassians Spas, Sanatoriums, and Drinking Galleries Magas and Ingushetias Stone Towers Vladikavkaz: Ruler of the Caucasus Grozny and the Chechen Highlands Dagestan: Mountain Hamlets and Modernist Shapes Soviet Monumental Art: Memorials and Mosaics

Gianluca Pardelli is a photojournalist, travel author, tour operator, and architecture buff. He was born and raised in a sunny seaside town in Tuscany. After long years in the sweet languor of seemingly endless Italian summers, Gianluca moved north to study Slavic languages in Berlin and photojournalism in London. Over the course of the last decade, he has been travelling around and photographing four continents and more than 80 countries. During his journeys, Gianluca fell hopelessly in love with the complex geopolitical and cultural heritage of a vanished land that was once the Soviet Union.