I'd like to learn about the various conflicts that flared in the Caucasus in the waning days of the USSR and afterwards. What are some good books that cover the subject?
There are two introductory books I'll suggest. Both cover the entirety of the history, but that can be important to gain a decent background:
The Ghost of Freedom: A History of the Caucasus by Charles King (2008)
The Caucasus: An Introduction by Thomas de Waal (20100
Both authors have written quite a bit on the region; de Waal also wrote what is probably the best book on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Black Garden: Armenia and Azerbaijan Through Peace and War (2004). There are also several books detailing the conflicts in Georgia (both the 1990s and 2008 wars), and Chechnya, though one has to sift through them to gain a proper perspective. However feel free to ask for recommendations on the subjects, and I'll give my thoughts on them.