“From mass executions to pinpoint air strikes, political and military frustrations and the politics of coalition warfare, Hunting the Caliphate is a compelling blend of military history and first-person memories of the war against terror--the complex battlefield, the joys of victory, the tragedy of loss, and the sacrifice of the men and women who carried out the mission. An insider account from a senior Army ground commander and a front line battlefield airman, the book is a gritty, compelling read for all who hope to understand America's longest war.”

– Deborah Lee James, 23rd Secretary of the Air Force | Author of Aim High: Chart Your Course and Find Success

“With the complementary insights of a general and his senior enlisted man, along with an insider's eye for detail and an unshakeable belief in their mission, Pittard and Bryant expertly pull back the curtain on the front line fight against ISIS. From Iraq to Afghanistan and Syria, Pittard and Bryant describe the development of a devastating air campaign waged from a distance, where rapid life or death decisions must be made with limited information and murky rules of engagement, and where ultimate success hinges on coordination between a stateof-the-art operations center with a small group of highly trained Americans led by Pittard and Bryant, and their indigenous allies battling ISIS on the ground. Eye-opening, candid, and at times deeply human, Hunting the Caliphate is a must read for understanding a new kind of war told by two men who not only fought that war, but helped define it.”

– David Broyles, former USAF Pararescueman (PJ) | Co-creator of History Channel's combat drama SIX

“Simply excellent. Hunting the Caliphate is the first account to give sustained insights into the events and personalities shaping the war on ISIS that academics and journalists have been unable to capture except in snapshots. Effectively written, and with editing nothing short of first-rate, it is a descriptive and gripping narrative from two contrasting yet intersecting perspectives that offers readers a broader view of the US military campaign against ISIS. As a historian of modern combat operations, I applaud the insightful observations appearing throughout that serve to accurately convey an important history—and dispel its myths.”

– Mark J. Reardon, Senior Historian, US Army Center of Military History

“The book…provides the best account to date of how constraints imposed by the Obama Administration drove the U.S. military to innovate in how it utilized JTAC’s—and by extension air power—to support partnered ground forces, [and] fills in key gaps and includes important discussion on the evolving use of precision fire to support ground units.”

– The Cypher Brief

“Above all, Hunting The Caliphate underscores the heroic acts of our armed forces. Overall, Hunting The Caliphate is a great book for those who are unfamiliar with the fight against ISIS and the use of strike cells. Any individual who chooses to read this book will surely learn something about strike cells, foreign affairs, policy and even about themselves.”

– Duke Center on Law, Ethics, and National Security

“An engaging story of two men called to action to lead a fight against a ruthless and determined enemy. [Pittard and Bryant] provide a case study of how the U.S. military engaged ISIS and rescued a beleaguered Iraqi government, and how leaders can solve problems through engagement and personality.”

– Lt. Col. Daniel Sukman,  Strategist and member of the military faculty at the Joint Forces Staff College, Association of the United States Army

“Authors Dana Pittard and Wes Bryant do an outstanding job of illuminating all of the ins and outs of the war against ISIS. Written from the wartime perspectives of a general officer in Pittard, and a JTAC, Wes Bryant, I thoroughly enjoyed and was enthralled in the way they traded off chapters to give their perspective on the events occurring during a major conflict. Their synopses, timelines and minute details captured me and my attention from the onset.”

– Lieutenant Colonel Ken Murray (USAF Ret) | Author of On Parr: The Stunning Combat Missions of American Fighter Ace Colonel Ralph Parr

“In describing a campaign that has been treated so far mostly from the top down and from a broad strategic perspective, Dana Pittard and Wes Bryant have provided us, for the first time, a detailed account of our most recent war against ISIS as they experienced it as assigned insiders from the ground up. They are unabashed in venting their frustration over the constraints imposed by Washington.... Most important, however, they effectively capture how the synergistic blend of precision U.S. and coalition air power, courageous and committed Iraqi and Syrian anti-ISIS foot soldiers, and supporting U.S. special operations teams and forward air controllers ultimately crushed the scourge of ISIS on the battlefield without any need to commit large numbers of American ground troops to the fight.”

– Benjamin S. Lambeth, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments | Author of Airpower in the War Against ISIS

“While unreservedly recommended for community, college, and university library collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, military history buffs, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject.”

– Carl Logan, Midwest Book Review