There are three excellent books.
In chronology of publication, Early China: A Social and Cultural History by Li Feng (2013) covers the period from the beginning of human history in China (6500 BC) to the end of the Han dynasty in AD 220.
The Oxford Handbook of Early China (2020) covers the Neolithic era (the final period of the Stone Age, 10,000-2000 BC) to the Warring States period (440-221 BC).
To Rule All Under Heaven by Andrew Seth Meyer (2025) is the first major English-language book on the entire Warring States period.
Written over a 16-year period, this is a major achievement. Meyer writes well. It is a joy to read his book. His sources are in English and Chinese.
He obviously can read Chinese, which is now a necessity for good scholarship, as more and more good books are coming out from native Chinese historians.
LWH, Chinese New Year, 3rd day,
19 Feb 2026