Cally's War

Posleen War: Cally's War #1

by John Ringo, Julie Cochrane

Cally O'Neal was trained from childhood as a premier killer. Officially listed as dead, for the past forty years she has lived a life of aliases, random lovers and targeted assassinations. This has led her to become the top in her profession, undefeatable, invulnerable. And in the process, she has lost her soul. Now she, and the man she loves, must battle to reclaim it. But Cally will find that leaving her dark world of shadow identities, murder-for-hire, and deadly secrets will be more difficult than any of the many lethal operations she carried out in the past. Her employers think she knows too much to live, and the scores of enemies she has made still have her at the top of their hit lists. The real question is, will she win her soul only to lose her life?

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Military Fiction, Space Opera, Military Science Fiction, Ebooks, Adventure

496 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

John Ringo is a prolific author who has written in a wide variety of genres. His early life included a great deal of travel. He visited 23 foreign countries, and attended fourteen different schools. After graduation Ringo enlisted in the US military for four years, after which he studied marine biology.

In 1999 he wrote and published his first novel "A Hymn Before Battle", which proved successful. Since 2000 Ringo has been a full time author.

He has written science fiction, military fiction, and fantasy.


Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Chris Perrin · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with all John Ringo books, I feel like I've just left a really smutty bar. I know I had a good time, but I feel like I need to go shower.

Cally's War has all the hallmarks of a John Ringo novel: a protagonist that cannot be defeated, only slowed down, bad guys who are bad on the thinnest of excuses, cool action scenes, women who are impossibly attractive (apparently in the future everyone is gorgeous), etc. etc. etc.

Still, as much as I grouse about John Ringo books, I still read them and guiltily enjoy them. In some ways, though, Cally's War is a bit of a head scratcher. She is one of my favorite Ringo characters (better than Iron Mike and Herzer Herrick) because she has an emotional depth that makes her more interesting. On the other hand, I didn't really understand what the point of Cally's War was until I figured out it was part of a larger series since the book ends long before the series does.

Overall, I gave the book 3 stars in the hopes that the series will conclude satisfactorily in the next book(s).

[Dan M.]

-BEWARE-BEWARE-BEWARE-BEWARE-BEWARE-BEWARE-BEWARE-BEWARE-BEWARE-
To all the lovers of Posleen books
The previose books were fantastic. Reading this book was hours of waiting for that fantasim. This should not be called "Cally's War" (the bad ass story of cally [raised in war to be a ultimate assasin:]) but "Cally's trip to the mall" or perhaps " Cally's Cross Country Adventure". This book tricks us in to thinking it is Ringo by its first chapter (which is dark and badass) and then it sinks down and down and down from there.

Buyers beware this was not writen by John Ringo!
This was written by a lassie who knowes nothing of the Posleen story or military SciFi.

DO NOT BUY OR READ!!!

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

05/28/17 3rd re-read. Very good, and different in scope and focus from the original series.

[Tasula]

I tried to read this, but gave up after a few chapters. The heroine spent a lot of time talking about the kinds of clothes her different personas liked, how they did their nails, what kind of music they liked, we followed her to beauty salons and shopping, and a delightful romp on a dangerous beach with her girlfriends and their kids and dog. I did like the dog, but not much else. There are two authors, and I am guessing the male author wrote the brutal parts (the torture, for instance, and the weaponry) and the female half treated us to fashion, hair and girly girly stuff. I just couldn't go on.

[Thomas Jr. · Rating 1 out of 5]

This series was so good until this book. I am not a big fan of Cally as a character and all my favorite characters got cut. If this were a movie I would say that it was a fight over the budget and Iron Mike was asking for too much money to appear in this film.

But this is not a film. It is a book. Casting Iron Mike would not have been expensive at all. Although I don't think he would have fit in this story which was mostly sci-fi spycraft.

Also it was too R rated for me.

I hear the series gets better and that Iron Mike comes back but I don't know if I want to keep going.

[Neil · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was disappointed with this book the first time I read it, and it was still disappointing in some respects this time around as well. Granted, I think it is mildly better than Hero (from what I remember of that book; I think I have only read it once, it was such a stinker). I felt it was one of the weaker books of the series, especially in light of the "Sidestories" that would come out after this and the next two books. I would say that I liked a little more than half of it, and the rest of it I could have done without. It felt like it was a mix of short stories that were sewed together with some extraneous stuff to "fill in the gaps" and make it a full-fledged novel. It has zero Posleen in it, and it has zero appearances of Mike O'Neal, Junior. It focuses on Cally, Mike O'Neal, Senior, and Tommy, with a cameo of Wendy and Shari.

From the dust jacket and comments made in the early portions of the book, one could say it might be a "character study" of Cally after fighting for well-nigh forty years, thirtysome of those years being some kind of "secret war" that we really do not know much about. I suppose it would be more what might a person be like after fighting for so long and being focused on nothing other than killing those deemed to be traitors to humanity. Cally has become callous, cold, calculating, and having multiple personalities with whom she identifies and lives each day of her life as opposed to being able to "just be herself" when she is no at work. So I suppose it could, somehow, be about a woman who finally discovers there is more to live than just killing targets, that she might actually "have a reason to live" and consider life beyond being an assassin, and how she "blossoms" inside? I do not know; it was not an impressive book.

So what did I not like about the book? There is not really a lot of "action" (in the sense of "military action") in the book. Based on the cover, I did not anticipate there being much, to be honest, but it was still a little disappointing. I was wanting to read more about the ACS and Mike O'Neal, Junior, as opposed to what was in this book.

The sex in the book, the amount and the descriptions, was just too much. I did not feel it was necessary, to be honest. Cally has come to look at men as just being "biological dumps" for her hormones more than anything else; she does not truly see her "lovers" as people as much as she sees them as nameless objects used to satiate her lust. I realize, on the one hand, it is "the future" and that "times have changed" and a lot of the "old morals" have been thrown out the window in order for the species to survive. I "get" that. Does not mean I have to like how Cally chose to live her life.

Actually, I should have started off with the Bane Sidhe and the stupidly annoying Indowy clan working with Father O'Reilly and his group. I really, really, really came to dislike [but not quite hate] the Bane Sidhe in this story. It is hard to believe that after working with humans for over forty years that they (the Indowy) cannot fathom or understand that for humans loyalty in a group or culture goes both ways. The "lower caste" members are expected to show loyalty and support up the chain of command, but that same loyalty had better go back down the chain of command as well. It is ridiculously stupid that the Indowy have not figured that out by now. The fact that the Bane Sidhe split because of Cally's actions when the upper management pooched the screw makes this story's ending even more stupid and idiotic.

The Bane Sidhe are hypocrites; almost as bad as the Bene Gesserit in the Dune books. They claim they despise the Darhel and use the humans "to do their dirty work for them" because the Indowy are incapable of violence [be it natural-born genetics or genetic manipulation]. Yet, these same green teddy bears judge humans for being able to get the job done, even if it means using violence. They employ humans to go out and kill other humans as well as the occasional Darhel, yet they claim to have "apprehensions and misgivings about doing so." Typical hypocrisy of these alien creatures. Even though the upper leadership was warned about keeping Petane alive (in this book) AND on the "Target of Opportunity List" for assassins, they get all wound up over Cally taking the man out because of something traitorous he did thirty years ago.

Another thing that "bugs" me is that these stupid Indowy keep talking about "the debt" they owe to Clan O'Neal over and over and over and over. How much more of a debt do they think they are not going to accrue and owe Mike O'Neal, Junior, when he finds out this "benevolent group" has been LYING TO HIM for the past forty years about the status of his father and oldest daughter?!? There is no excuse, no justification, nothing, that can ever make this right! Nothing! Yet this same group/clan is prepared to abandon Cally to the wolves because she was caught? So much for the debt owed to Mike O'Neal, Junior! Do they truly believe that Mike would be a "lesser soldier" and "lesser commander" if he knew his dad and BOTH of his daughters were alive and well? They are morons if they truly believe this, and hypocrites to the extreme. It does not matter that they are aliens, either, as they claim to be "more advanced" than humanity which means they should know better! They are as bad as the Darhel, in my opinion, for how they have manipulated the O'Neal clan over the DECADES! They abused the trust of Mike, Senior, and Cally, as well as Mike, Junior; they have emotionally abused Mike, Junior, for decades because of his belief of his father's and daughter's death during the final days of the war on Earth. Not only that, but in the third book of the "Cally stories", Mike, Junior, KILLS HIS OWN FATHER!!!!! This family is torn apart, and a patricide occurs because of the Bane Sidhe's "benevolent" decision to keep Mike, Junior, in the dark about his father and eldest daughter still being alive!

I did not like that the Bane Sidhe were "fighting" against Fleet Strike, either. Bad enough that Fleet was "now corrupt" (which still does not make any kind of sense, as the "leadership" of Fleet and Fleet Strike should have been composed of warriors and not bureaucrats or politicians or suck-ups, but that is just my opinion). I felt at least Fleet Strike and the Bane Sidhe should have been "working together" instead of being antagonists. I actually found myself wishing Fleet Strike "had won" instead of the book going down like it did.

It bugged me that the Darhel were still in power and killing humans with impunity. The book starts off with a discussion about acceptable losses amongst human colonist ships between two Darhel. Really? Really?!? After all of the problems the Darhel caused during the War on Earth, after the numerous revelations that the Darhel were behind so many unnecessary losses on Earth, humans are STILL willing to listen to these scheming, conniving, backstabbing alien creatures and take orders from them? This would be a prime example of "future" books written that take place "before" this book does on the series' timeline. After Watch on the Rhine and Yellow Eyes, I do find it hard to believe that ANY humans in positions of power (especially military power) would listen to the Darhel, let alone obey them. The AIDs were generated to take care of the Posleen and to "control the Net" by the Aldenata; they are not supposed to be under Darhel control. Plus, the new AIDs that are manufactured by the Panamanians and "clean" should have been able to create an "alternate net" sooner that would counter the Net controlled by the Darhel long before the point in time reached by this novel. I think Ringo did not plan his "future history" out very well in terms of how the books would progress. The stinking Darhel, though! Grrrrr!!!! So annoying!

Also, if the Darhel have to be so blasted careful to avoid saying or doing anything remotely violent or "exciting," how in the world could they have come up with the stupid rules for the Federation military? Nobody could have come up with any kind of rules for the Federation's "military" as the "military" is composed entirely of HUMANS! The stupid rules implicitly described in the last two books of the original series do not seem to completely overflow into this book, except for the Darhel still being around and bossing people around when they should be second-class, now. What? After thirty to forty years, humans couldn't knock the Darhel off the post of being "top dog" in the Federation? Not only that, as other books make abundantly clear, most of the Posleen warships are not being used by the Federation or any of the Federation races; there are "too many" for the races to purchase and use. That means they are HUMANITY'S ships! Humanity does not, and should not, need the stinking Federation for anything by this point! Again, just my opinion.

Too much time was spent on the stalking and killing of Petane. I could not believe how much time it took to kill such a non-character. It was crazy! Perhaps if the part had been "better-written" it would have been more tolerable.

Finally, the Buckleys. They were annoying as all get out! Especially Cally's stupid report with her Buckley. "Shut up, Buckley!" "Right!" Really? That is now "humor" in this series? It was not funny the first time I read the book, and it got really annoying, real fast, this time around as well. Like, after the second time it happened. I mean, the Buckley PDAs seemed like a great idea to replace the AIDs (especially as the AIDs could not be trusted because of their link to the Net, Darhel, and Posleen), but after Panama became able to "generate" "clean AIDs" after the war, it makes the PDAs superfluous and unnecessary. I realize it is another "continuity error" stemming from writing books that take place historically before this one after this book was published, but the Panamanian "clean AIDs" should have ensured Buckley PDAs were never designed and/or created.

So, having vented about what I did not like about the book, was there anything I did like? Actually, there was plenty I did like about the book. For one, I did enjoy reading about Cally and Mike, Senior, and Tommy. I also liked that Stewart was brought back for this novel. It was "good" to "catch up" with members of Iron Mike's family, even if Iron Mike was not directly in the novel. I also liked that Shari and Wendy made an appearance; it was "nice" to learn about what these familiar characters were up to in this brave new world as well as to find out what they had done the past thirtysome years.

I did like that a good chunk of the first part of the book was a bit of a road trip. It was an odd mix of kind-of boring, kind-of interesting, considering it shared how the country as well as how the planet had changed since the Posleen invasion. Most of humanity chose to still live in the Urbs instead of going above ground. Rejuvenation was used as an incentive to get older couples and older families to move off-planet onto colony worlds; they had to act as soldiers in order to obtain their place in a colony, but they were still able to move offworld. A "sub-culture" had developed a bias against rejuvenated people. Rejuves had to "hide" in the general population if they were not with other rejuves because of the bias against them. I liked how the "road trip" that Cally took allowed the reader to learn about what had happened, somewhat, in the last forty years. It was pretty interesting to read. It was like a snapshot of a bigger world that was quite tantalizing and might actually have been more interesting to read about over Cally's numerous sexual exploits and how she ranked them afterwards.

It was interesting to learn more about Titan Base and how it was designed, how it looked. The reader only got snippets of Titan Base in Ringo's original four novels, and not really enough to make a decision about how the base looked, let alone what kind of armaments it might have had. This book gives the reader a better idea of what the base might have been like; granted, it had probably expanded quite a bit after the war. Still, though, it was kind of odd to not have anything be said about the base in terms of armaments and defensive or offensive weaponry. In addition, there were no "naval vessels" at or around the base. One would have thought there would have been some destroyers or even cruisers docked there. I think some frigates were mentioned, but it might have been just referring to the vessels used during the War.

While not a big fan of the numerous "sex scenes" in the book, I was surprised at how quickly Cally "broke character" when she was seducing the Fleet Strike cadet in the beginning of the book. The
cadet was quick to notice how the persona that Cally had created/generated had disappeared shortly after they started having sex. The cadet resented Cally for what she did, for leading him on like she did. Her mental thoughts about him also revealed how cold and callous she had become, as she defended her behavior (or lack thereof) by attacking him (for pointing out what she had done and how she had deceived him like she did).

I do not know how to describe it, really. It starts off with a bit of a bang, and the it is very slow (almost abysmally slow), action-wise, before it starts picking up the pace, again. I did not really mind most of the slow parts, but some did get intolerably slow, and I wanted them to be over with. Still, though, I did enjoy the book (for some bizarre reason I cannot articulate). I would say a high 2.8 - 2.9 stars, rounded up to 3 stars, I suppose. It was not what I expected it to be the first time I read it, and it was still a disappointment to me even after this reading. I am glad that I reread it, though, despite its failings.

[Chip Hunter · Rating 2 out of 5]

I waned to (and expected to) like this book. After the disappointing side trip into the future with THE HERO, I was looking forward to getting back to the present day post-invasion world with the great characters we had come to love in the original 4-book saga. Here we are reintroduced to Cally O'Neal, a fine-tuned and multi-talented assassin working for the Bane Sidhe. Sexy, strong, and smart, Cally seems like an excellent character, but early on in the book you find that your expectations are way too high. Predictable, cynical, sardonic, and depressed, you find that the potentially great character of Cally O'Neal has been thoroughly ruined. A raging sex fiend and a binge-shopper, Cally is nothing like the professional and purpose-driven hero I expected. This is one protagonist that I came to like less and less as the story progressed. Her completely unhealthy and unemotional approach to sex is truly bizarre. I'm not typically one to complain about books being too graphic, but this one takes it over the top with mind-numbing, pointless, and violent sex. I mean, come on, Cally really doesn't even mind being gang-raped?? Just ridiculous and off-putting.

Also, the book does very little to further the story as a whole. You get a little detail about the way of the world post-invasion, and about intergalactic relations, but to a very limited degree. The plot of this book is of a very personal nature and doesn't have any major implications for the universe or the various peoples inhabiting it. Actually, while the book cover promises this to be "Cally's most important mission", she and the other characters are little changed by the end, and in essentially the same positions they were in at the beginning of the book.

A very disappointing read, hopefully Ringo can get some life back into this series... Certainly NOT recommended.

[Mike Ward · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love SciFi..........This was not SciFi. Certainly a continuation as part of the previous books BUT.... this was just a spy and assasin book which basically could have been set in the near future or far future with a slight hint of SciFi towards the end.
Absolutely dissapointed with this to the point that I am putting off reading the next two books in the series.
Overly descriptive of meal orders, clothing being worn, restaurant settings etc. I skipped pages to not be bored. I persisted just to say I read it right through!
This must be the worst book that John Ringo has put his name to. I hope he takes no credit for writing this. I guess all writers have to have one bad one. In this case this is it!

[Xan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Podría ser un gran libro para cerrar una serie que me encanta pero se queda en un spin-off que apenas aporta nada a la trama. El personaje de Cally era la opción más lógica para desarrollar la historia detrás de la invasión de los Posleen. Lamentablemente el cambio de autor, porque aunque lo firman a medias el texto es al cien por cien de Julie Cochrane, ha dejado esta parte de la historia en una simple aventura de espías. Con mucha paja, muchos traumas y algo de política, pero sin ningún avance significativo.

Para pasar el rato.

[Chuck · Rating 1 out of 5]

It is very obvious that this book was written by Julie Cochrane, not John Ringo. Compared to the rest of the Posleen War series this is a real disappointment, and made me not want to read the rest of the series.

[Camilo Emiliano Rosas Echeverria · Rating 1 out of 5]

A moronic collage of pruriginous fantasies, without any resemblance of coherence or plot. It's embarassing to see this poorly written and worse edited fan-fiction attached to on otherwise excellent series.

[Eric · Rating 1 out of 5]

This read more like fanfic/slash fic based on the Posleen war series, moreso than anything the original writer was actually involved in. It took a weird turn into essentially softcore porn halfway through, too, which was dismaying.

[Barb in Maryland · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rude, crude and such a disappointment.

[Michael McGill · Rating 2 out of 5]

My least favorite of this series. It is interesting but very different. More of a spy thriller novel from a woman's perspective and lots of sex. Not to say it is a bad read. It is just very different. I suspect that the co-author did the bulk of the writing with Ringo overseeing it for story approval. It has a decidedly female feeling to the writing. There is a lot of focus on what the character decides to wear and she is more emotional by her internal dialogue than she is described in the book by other characters or even herself. The main thing that I didn't like is that she is just not a very likable character. All hitmen (and, by analogy, assassins) are by definition sociopathic. It is hard to sympathize with that and there isn't enough of the specifics of the cause to make me want to excuse her actions aside from the very first scenario with some real scumbags. She is certainly a very damaged person but not particularly endearing, relate-able or ethical.
Anyway, I would still recommend it for the purpose of filling in the story on this side of the war if you are so inclined. I would recommend doing so before reading Eye of the Storm.

[Kamas Kirian · Rating 4 out of 5]

More like 3 ½ stars. Definitely not my favorite in the Posleen War series (there weren't really any Posleen in the story). It was a slow build, which I figured was just setting the stage, but it continued on for longer than I expected. The last quarter of the book was faster paced and saved the story. It's more spy thriller than anything else. And I really did like the last part of the book.

I loved character of Cally, along with Papa O'Neil and Tommy Sunday, and Pryce/Stewart. The rest of the characters were meh, even if they got a fair amount of page time. I'm curious as to where the story goes from here, but I think I'll give it a break for awhile and try something else.

The eBook was formatted fairly well. There were a couple of spelling/grammar errors in the free edition I downloaded from the Baen Free Library/CDs.

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a perfect example of "don't judge a book by it's cover". The cover looks really cool, very sci-fi, very badass and the book itself is BORING! There is hardly any action at all and Cally just has sex with everyone so they spill super secrets. She does a lot of shopping and bar hopping and it's all very very boring. I skimmed the last half of the book just to get it over with and move on. 2 out of 5 stars and I won't be continuing the series.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't think I missed a book but I must have because it is more than twenty years later and Cally is spying and stuff. Argh, I loved Cally, what book is it that explains where she went??? By itself, this is still a good read.

[David L · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one a lot. Didn't rate 5 stars though as despite the beginning it was a little short on the action we saw in earlier books. There was a lot of the politics post the Posleen invasion and the strange new Earth that resulted. Worth the read.

[Jeff J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

First book in a side trilogy taking place after the Posleen War books, and featuring Cally O’Neill, all grown up and kicking butt as an assassin. The story seemed self-contained, I’m curious what happens next.

[Juan Sanmiguel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cally is an agent working for an organization which is running interference against alien influence in Earth’s affairs. She is entrusted for finding the leak in her organization. The action and the characterization is great. Its an exciting story with some nice twists.

[Taimo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Typical bait-and-switch. Instead of easy to read male oriented cheap entertainment you get wattpad fanfic level pointless porn for females. There is enough of it in the world, finding something to read for males is hard enough, no need to take male oriented series and turn it to cheap chick lit.

[PCress · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well done, .. maybe this framework is wearing out for me. I did like the characters and this is a character study in a way.

[Craig Russo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really tough keeping the characters straight.

[Dr. Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an espionage story set in a Sci-Fi world. It moved slow. I struggled to get through it. It was so not Sci-Fi that it turned me off to the rest of the series

[BunsenBurner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goodish but slow

Not as much rock em sock em as usual. Probably important part of the timeline but didnt need to be a whole novel IMHO.

[Amschneider50]

I love the rest of the Posleen War Saga, but definitely could not get into these books. Set in the same universe, but definitely not my style.

[Robert W Blackwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Story

I've read this book multiple times and it's still fun to read. He's one of only a handful of authors I can say that about. Give them a try but start at the beginning.

[Kubany Csongor · Rating 1 out of 5]

Simply bad. Nothing more to say.

[Katy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found this a bit confusing despite having read all the previous novels.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Assassin Cally kills a little, plans a little, and needs a break. The big war is over now the cold peace is underway. Can't wait to read the next one.