The new review of Katharina in now available online: Chemistry of alkaline earth metals: It is not all ionic and definitely not boring!
K. M. Fromm, Coord. Chem. Reviews 2020, 408, 213193. DOI: 10.1016/j.ccr.2020.213193
abstract: “Some scientists might consider group 2 chemistry as “boring, closed shell and all ionic, aqueous chemistry, where everything is known! It is not worth investigating”. How wrong they are! Far from forming only purely ionic compounds, this review will shed light on some spectacular molecules, showing that alkaline earth metal ions can behave similar to transition metal ions. After general remarks about each element, from beryllium to barium, mainly recent examples of group 2 coordination compounds will be presented, their bonding situation will be discussed and examples of applications, e.g. in catalysis, will be given.“