Brian Cathcart reconstructs the chaotic race to be first with the news of Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo in June 1815, revealing how the great military victory was almost announced as a defeat. The story follows multiple messengers, merchants, and speculators as they rushed the news across the English Channel by boat, pigeon, and horse. Cathcart draws on contemporary accounts to create a narrative that reads like a thriller, tracking the various parties racing to reach London first. The stakes were enormous: knowledge of the battle's outcome could make fortunes on the stock market, and the political consequences of victory or defeat would reshape Europe. The book captures the technological limitations of early nineteenth-century communication - no telegraph, no reliable predictions of wind and weather - and the human drama of exhausted riders, suspicious officials, and nerve-wracking delays. Cathcart is particularly interested in how the news was almost completely bungled, with early reports suggesting Wellington had been defeated. The official messenger carrying the commander's dispatch was repeatedly delayed, while rumors and unofficial accounts sowed confusion. The book illuminates a moment before instantaneous communication, when great events remained unknown for days and the truth competed with speculation. For readers interested in military history, media history, or simply good storytelling, Cathcart delivers a riveting account of a forgotten race.