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Queen of Cuba: An FBI Agent's Insider Account of the Spy Who Evaded Detection for 17 Years
As a spy prepared to give away America’s biggest secrets after the 9/11 attacks, an FBI agent raced to catch her.
US government officials knew they had a spy. But it never occurred to them it was a woman—and certainly not a superstar Defense Intelligence Agency employee known as “the Queen of Cuba.”
Ana Montes had spent seventeen years spying for the Cubans. She had been raised in a patriotic Puerto Rican Her father, a psychiatrist, was a former colonel in the US Army. Her sister worked as a translator for the FBI and helped break up a ring of Cuban spies in Miami. Her brother was also a loyal FBI agent.
Montes impressed her bosses but in secret spent her breaks memorizing top-secret documents before sending them to the Cuban government. She received no payment, even as one of her missives could have brought her the death penalty.
She also listened to anxiety-relief tapes, took medication, and saw a psychiatrist. She dreamed of a normal life where she could work a job she enjoyed. She dreamed of getting married, and even had a man in a defense analyst on the Cuba account for Southern Command. He had no idea that, three times a week, Montes pulled a short-wave radio from her closet and received encrypted messages from Cuba.
After the 9/11 attacks, Cuba wanted Montes to continue her work. They couldn’t know the FBI was already on to her. Retired FBI agent Peter J. Lapp explains the clues—including never-released information—that led their team to catch one of the United States’ most dangerous spies.
US government officials knew they had a spy. But it never occurred to them it was a woman—and certainly not a superstar Defense Intelligence Agency employee known as “the Queen of Cuba.”
Ana Montes had spent seventeen years spying for the Cubans. She had been raised in a patriotic Puerto Rican Her father, a psychiatrist, was a former colonel in the US Army. Her sister worked as a translator for the FBI and helped break up a ring of Cuban spies in Miami. Her brother was also a loyal FBI agent.
Montes impressed her bosses but in secret spent her breaks memorizing top-secret documents before sending them to the Cuban government. She received no payment, even as one of her missives could have brought her the death penalty.
She also listened to anxiety-relief tapes, took medication, and saw a psychiatrist. She dreamed of a normal life where she could work a job she enjoyed. She dreamed of getting married, and even had a man in a defense analyst on the Cuba account for Southern Command. He had no idea that, three times a week, Montes pulled a short-wave radio from her closet and received encrypted messages from Cuba.
After the 9/11 attacks, Cuba wanted Montes to continue her work. They couldn’t know the FBI was already on to her. Retired FBI agent Peter J. Lapp explains the clues—including never-released information—that led their team to catch one of the United States’ most dangerous spies.
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Published November 14, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
January 14, 2024
I was working at DIA when Ana Belen Montes was arrested. I remember the newspaper reporting at the time, and remember many of the details. The fact that Mr. Lapp told us about his life in parallel with Ana's life, however, added a lot of humanity to the story and even made it more exciting, because I could feel along with them some of the risks he and the other members of his team took in bringing Ana to justice. I hope one day to read a similar book by the FBI agent who takes Edward Snowden to prison for his treachery.
February 22, 2025
This real-life spy story was interesting but a bit dry. Real FBI work isn’t as exciting as it looks in movies, so reading a detailed account of everything it took to catch the spy wasn’t terribly exciting. On the other hand, learning about the checks and balances involved in these cases showed the diligent work that happens before someone is arrested for espionage. I’m intrigued by spy stories, so I enjoyed it.
October 17, 2024
I wish I could give this one a higher rating, but it just didn’t work for me. The book was about Ana, but the way the author switched back and forth between her story and his personal story was distracting.
April 4, 2025
"Queen of Cuba" offers a compelling and highly readable account of Ana Montes.
Montes is of the most damaging spies in American history, here seen through the eyes of FBI agent Peter Lapp, who helped bring her down.
What sets this book apart is the interwoven narrative, while recounting the details of Montes’s espionage, Lapp also shares his personal journey from an undecided college student to a determined FBI investigator. This dual storytelling approach makes the book feel grounded, relatable, and surprisingly human for a tale centered around betrayal and national security.
Lapp’s tone is conversational and accessible, which helps clarify the often complex inner workings of the intelligence community.
Counterintelligence & foreign policy gets complicated, so I appreciated how Lapp breaks down acronyms and operations without condescension. The 9/11 backdrop also adds gravity, showing how Montes’s arrest occurred on the eve of a massive shift in American security priorities.
Compared to "Code Name Blue Wren" by Jim Popkin, which I read last year, this book leans more into investigation than ideology.
Lapp doesn’t mince words, he portrays Montes as a narcissist, full stop. While that may be accurate, having read both books, I appreciated how "Blue Wren" explored her motivations in more psychological and political depth. Taken together, the two offer a richer, more nuanced portrait, an interesting statement on service & patriotism.
For those interested in true crime, espionage, or under-the-radar female operatives, "Queen of Cuba" is a sharp and satisfying read.
Montes is of the most damaging spies in American history, here seen through the eyes of FBI agent Peter Lapp, who helped bring her down.
What sets this book apart is the interwoven narrative, while recounting the details of Montes’s espionage, Lapp also shares his personal journey from an undecided college student to a determined FBI investigator. This dual storytelling approach makes the book feel grounded, relatable, and surprisingly human for a tale centered around betrayal and national security.
Lapp’s tone is conversational and accessible, which helps clarify the often complex inner workings of the intelligence community.
Counterintelligence & foreign policy gets complicated, so I appreciated how Lapp breaks down acronyms and operations without condescension. The 9/11 backdrop also adds gravity, showing how Montes’s arrest occurred on the eve of a massive shift in American security priorities.
Compared to "Code Name Blue Wren" by Jim Popkin, which I read last year, this book leans more into investigation than ideology.
Lapp doesn’t mince words, he portrays Montes as a narcissist, full stop. While that may be accurate, having read both books, I appreciated how "Blue Wren" explored her motivations in more psychological and political depth. Taken together, the two offer a richer, more nuanced portrait, an interesting statement on service & patriotism.
For those interested in true crime, espionage, or under-the-radar female operatives, "Queen of Cuba" is a sharp and satisfying read.
June 6, 2025
Queen of Cuba is a compelling story told through the eyes of FBI agent Pete Lapp. The book follows the author's account of how Ana Montes was discovered working as a spy for Cuba and brought to justice. A testament to the hard work, commitment, and dedication to duty of the FBI.
I enjoyed how the author wove his own personal story into the book, making him relatable as a man and not just a badge and gun. Lapp's tone is conversational and easy to read. This is not just another account of a spy and espionage. Montes appeared to be an intelligent, complex woman whose arrogance helped lead to her capture.
Lapp relates conversations he had with Ana's family during interviews after her arrest and the betrayal they felt. This book is also a human story. A story about life, loyalty, betrayal, and family. Well done. I enjoyed reading it and recommend.
I enjoyed how the author wove his own personal story into the book, making him relatable as a man and not just a badge and gun. Lapp's tone is conversational and easy to read. This is not just another account of a spy and espionage. Montes appeared to be an intelligent, complex woman whose arrogance helped lead to her capture.
Lapp relates conversations he had with Ana's family during interviews after her arrest and the betrayal they felt. This book is also a human story. A story about life, loyalty, betrayal, and family. Well done. I enjoyed reading it and recommend.
February 22, 2024
*Disclaimer - I personally know Mr. Lapp, and though I’ve tried to be unbiased here, please take this review under the banner of possible favoritism*
History’s filled with so many tales: so much so, it’s inevitable most get lost in the shuffle. We only have a finite amount of time to learn about the past, and when presented with such parameters, it’s understandable macro events would take precedence in our minds.
In the early-2000s, 9/11 and the Anthrax Scare were two such events - you couldn’t change the channel without some major network or newshead raving apocalyptic rants: thus, with this much of a cataclysmic fervor behind them, you wouldn’t be faulted for not remembering, or even knowing about, Ana Montes. While the Cold War had wound down in the 90s, its aftereffects still lingered amongst the populace -- yes, the USSR had fallen, but many countries remained under the block of hard communism: countries intent on sabotaging the United States for reasons both justified and unjustified. Montes serviced those interests, her Latina nationalism leading her to spy on her homeland for the Castro Regime.
Peter Lapp’s Queen of Cuba theoretically serves as an introspective look into Montes: her upbringing, actions, motivations, and ultimate fall from grace as the FBI caught her. Given that Lapp was co-head of the team that brought her down, his book had potential to be an authentic recollection of this underreported affair in American history. And so it does…albeit with some major caveats.
The first qualm you’ll notice is how Lapp took the opportunity to incorporate autobiographical elements into Queen of Cuba, and I don’t know how to say this without coming across as churlish, but I genuinely did not care for them. The issue isn’t that his life isn’t interesting or relatable (far from it, his backstory entailing a strict father, school hazing, and having to subside childhood dreams hit close to home despite the decades-long generational gap between us); however, this was not the place for those parts -- it may come as a surprise to some, but I anticipate most people checking out Queen of Cuba wish to check it out for the titular “monarch,” not the author who played one part in the whole shebang.
Maybe I’d have been able to excuse things had they organically bounced off Ana’s escapades ala the past & present sections of Back to the Future, but that’s not how it goes initially. You guys remember how, in Moby-Dick, Herman Melville would radically interject Ishmael’s tale with those random sections about whale biology? Yeah, that’s literally what happens here too: one moment you’ll be reading about Montes meeting-up with the Cubans, only for the next chapter to suddenly switch over to Lapp serenading his future-wife, and this editing structure goes on for about the first third of the book. It’s bizarre, it’s narratively incoherent, and while Lapp tries to draw some parallels between his father and Ana’s, the linkage comes across as desperate at best.
Thankfully, as things progress and he runs out of stuff to say, the book swaps to a more-conventional format primarily dedicated to Montes; and even when it veers back into moire memoirish territory, it actually features that aforementioned bounce I was talking about. For example, Lapp’s haunting remembrance of 9/11 plays off well with the revelation that Montes was informed by her handlers to hold off on info drops because of the increased counterintelligence fervor from the tragedy.
The second problem, unfortunately, pervades uninterrupted throughout the book, and that is this irate syntactical method Lapp employs nonstop -- taking the end sentence from a perfectly fine paragraph, snapping it off, and placing it as its own isolated clause right below for the purposes of creating some lame zinger. Fans of literature have no doubt seen this tactic utilized for a variety of purposes, from comedic to dramatic, but even in those cases it was at least an intermittent occurrence. Here, though, you couldn’t play a drinking game out of its usage due to the severe risk of alcohol poisoning, and what’s worse is that it's not even close to being funny or thrillerish due to, as I said, the paragraphs working perfectly on their own.
To illustrate this, I’ll literally flip to a random page and type it out:
We knew the suspect had traveled to Guantanamo Bay — a “key investigative lead,” according to the Defense Department’s investigator general’s report. And we knew the Cubans called the spy “Sergio”
Which didn’t match “Ana.”
You see what I mean? There was absolutely no need for the separation, yet he does it again and again and again for no valid purpose. Maybe it’s just my OCD, but it got under my skin every time I’d catch wind of it (which, obviously, didn’t take long to occur).
The final recurring dilemma is admittedly even more subjective, but it entails the gonzo-style journalism Lapp imbibes whenever he recreates conversations from events past that no normal person would remember the specifics of. Now look, I get that there will be people out there who prefer reading actual dialogue versus a more standard summary of what the discourse was like, but as I fall into the latter camp, it ends up (another) point of contention with Queen of Cuba.
Those quandaries aside, this is a really good and insightful piece. I walked into it knowing literally nothing about Montes: I’d never heard her name, researched what she’d done, or even knew she was released from incarceration just last year. Queen of Cuba filled in all those gaps, and much much more - finding out about Montes’s upbringing/family, the events that led to her betraying the US, the specifics of how she went about subverting her country whilst being an employee of the DIA, the mistakes that put her on the FBI’s heels, etc…etc…There are times where Lapp does deviate from the facts to engage in speculation, including psychoanalyzing Montes’s demeanor and blaming her for the death of a Green Beret, but he presents his argument in such a calm, efficient, and detailed manner that you can’t help agreeing.
Besides Montes, one of the things I really appreciated Lapp for doing was how he gave credit to EVERY SINGLE PERSON involved in the traitor’s arrest. As Queen of Cuba notes, not all of these unsung heroes were given appropriate credit by the Federal Government, and to see them get their due, even in the form of a simple book, was very thoughtful of the man (and yes, this deserves praise considering the innumerable works out there that try and consolidate credit for a manhunt into a single individual).
Lapp is also surprisingly efficient when it comes to checking/admitting his biases. You’ll frequently see him go on tirades against the corrupt Cuban Government and Montes’s reasoning for helping them, yet he consistently counterbalances this by not only providing some truthful historical facts about Cuban-US relations, but also giving Montes a chance to voice herself in such proceedings. You can tell he’s spent a lot of time reflecting on everything that transpired, the time gap since arresting Montes doing well for this introspectiveness.
In the end, I definitely do recommend checking out Queen of Cuba, if only because it provides a fair and balanced account of an underreported incident in American history. Yes, I had a lot of issues with the actual writing, but the reality is these aren’t objective critiques, and the knowledge you’ll gain about Montes and co. outweighs any cons overall (worse comes to worse, you can always just skip over the autobio bits).
NOTES
-Sometimes Lapp will use an acronym first and explain it later, rather than the conventional method of placing it the other way around. As a born-and-bred American, this didn’t affect me much, but I anticipate it may be a bit puzzling for those unfamiliar with the Alphabet Agencies.
History’s filled with so many tales: so much so, it’s inevitable most get lost in the shuffle. We only have a finite amount of time to learn about the past, and when presented with such parameters, it’s understandable macro events would take precedence in our minds.
In the early-2000s, 9/11 and the Anthrax Scare were two such events - you couldn’t change the channel without some major network or newshead raving apocalyptic rants: thus, with this much of a cataclysmic fervor behind them, you wouldn’t be faulted for not remembering, or even knowing about, Ana Montes. While the Cold War had wound down in the 90s, its aftereffects still lingered amongst the populace -- yes, the USSR had fallen, but many countries remained under the block of hard communism: countries intent on sabotaging the United States for reasons both justified and unjustified. Montes serviced those interests, her Latina nationalism leading her to spy on her homeland for the Castro Regime.
Peter Lapp’s Queen of Cuba theoretically serves as an introspective look into Montes: her upbringing, actions, motivations, and ultimate fall from grace as the FBI caught her. Given that Lapp was co-head of the team that brought her down, his book had potential to be an authentic recollection of this underreported affair in American history. And so it does…albeit with some major caveats.
The first qualm you’ll notice is how Lapp took the opportunity to incorporate autobiographical elements into Queen of Cuba, and I don’t know how to say this without coming across as churlish, but I genuinely did not care for them. The issue isn’t that his life isn’t interesting or relatable (far from it, his backstory entailing a strict father, school hazing, and having to subside childhood dreams hit close to home despite the decades-long generational gap between us); however, this was not the place for those parts -- it may come as a surprise to some, but I anticipate most people checking out Queen of Cuba wish to check it out for the titular “monarch,” not the author who played one part in the whole shebang.
Maybe I’d have been able to excuse things had they organically bounced off Ana’s escapades ala the past & present sections of Back to the Future, but that’s not how it goes initially. You guys remember how, in Moby-Dick, Herman Melville would radically interject Ishmael’s tale with those random sections about whale biology? Yeah, that’s literally what happens here too: one moment you’ll be reading about Montes meeting-up with the Cubans, only for the next chapter to suddenly switch over to Lapp serenading his future-wife, and this editing structure goes on for about the first third of the book. It’s bizarre, it’s narratively incoherent, and while Lapp tries to draw some parallels between his father and Ana’s, the linkage comes across as desperate at best.
Thankfully, as things progress and he runs out of stuff to say, the book swaps to a more-conventional format primarily dedicated to Montes; and even when it veers back into moire memoirish territory, it actually features that aforementioned bounce I was talking about. For example, Lapp’s haunting remembrance of 9/11 plays off well with the revelation that Montes was informed by her handlers to hold off on info drops because of the increased counterintelligence fervor from the tragedy.
The second problem, unfortunately, pervades uninterrupted throughout the book, and that is this irate syntactical method Lapp employs nonstop -- taking the end sentence from a perfectly fine paragraph, snapping it off, and placing it as its own isolated clause right below for the purposes of creating some lame zinger. Fans of literature have no doubt seen this tactic utilized for a variety of purposes, from comedic to dramatic, but even in those cases it was at least an intermittent occurrence. Here, though, you couldn’t play a drinking game out of its usage due to the severe risk of alcohol poisoning, and what’s worse is that it's not even close to being funny or thrillerish due to, as I said, the paragraphs working perfectly on their own.
To illustrate this, I’ll literally flip to a random page and type it out:
We knew the suspect had traveled to Guantanamo Bay — a “key investigative lead,” according to the Defense Department’s investigator general’s report. And we knew the Cubans called the spy “Sergio”
Which didn’t match “Ana.”
You see what I mean? There was absolutely no need for the separation, yet he does it again and again and again for no valid purpose. Maybe it’s just my OCD, but it got under my skin every time I’d catch wind of it (which, obviously, didn’t take long to occur).
The final recurring dilemma is admittedly even more subjective, but it entails the gonzo-style journalism Lapp imbibes whenever he recreates conversations from events past that no normal person would remember the specifics of. Now look, I get that there will be people out there who prefer reading actual dialogue versus a more standard summary of what the discourse was like, but as I fall into the latter camp, it ends up (another) point of contention with Queen of Cuba.
Those quandaries aside, this is a really good and insightful piece. I walked into it knowing literally nothing about Montes: I’d never heard her name, researched what she’d done, or even knew she was released from incarceration just last year. Queen of Cuba filled in all those gaps, and much much more - finding out about Montes’s upbringing/family, the events that led to her betraying the US, the specifics of how she went about subverting her country whilst being an employee of the DIA, the mistakes that put her on the FBI’s heels, etc…etc…There are times where Lapp does deviate from the facts to engage in speculation, including psychoanalyzing Montes’s demeanor and blaming her for the death of a Green Beret, but he presents his argument in such a calm, efficient, and detailed manner that you can’t help agreeing.
Besides Montes, one of the things I really appreciated Lapp for doing was how he gave credit to EVERY SINGLE PERSON involved in the traitor’s arrest. As Queen of Cuba notes, not all of these unsung heroes were given appropriate credit by the Federal Government, and to see them get their due, even in the form of a simple book, was very thoughtful of the man (and yes, this deserves praise considering the innumerable works out there that try and consolidate credit for a manhunt into a single individual).
Lapp is also surprisingly efficient when it comes to checking/admitting his biases. You’ll frequently see him go on tirades against the corrupt Cuban Government and Montes’s reasoning for helping them, yet he consistently counterbalances this by not only providing some truthful historical facts about Cuban-US relations, but also giving Montes a chance to voice herself in such proceedings. You can tell he’s spent a lot of time reflecting on everything that transpired, the time gap since arresting Montes doing well for this introspectiveness.
In the end, I definitely do recommend checking out Queen of Cuba, if only because it provides a fair and balanced account of an underreported incident in American history. Yes, I had a lot of issues with the actual writing, but the reality is these aren’t objective critiques, and the knowledge you’ll gain about Montes and co. outweighs any cons overall (worse comes to worse, you can always just skip over the autobio bits).
NOTES
-Sometimes Lapp will use an acronym first and explain it later, rather than the conventional method of placing it the other way around. As a born-and-bred American, this didn’t affect me much, but I anticipate it may be a bit puzzling for those unfamiliar with the Alphabet Agencies.
November 15, 2023
Queen of Cuba by Peter J. Lapp was a book, that once I started to read it, I found it hard to put it down, especially as it was a true story and an FBI Agent's called Ana Montes who spent seventeen years spying for the Cubans. She had been raised in a patriotic Puerto Rican Her father, a psychiatrist, was a former colonel in the U.S. Army. Her sister worked as a translator for the FBI and helped break up a ring of Cuban spies in Miami. Her brother was also a loyal FBI agent.
Ana Montes impressed all her bosses, but in secret, spent her breaks memorising top secret documents before sending them to the Cuban government. She received no payment, even as one of her missives could have brought her the death penalty. WoW - She was brave!!!
9/11 happened and everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing, But Cuba wanted Ana to continue her work for them. They didn't know the FBI was already on to her.
But, Now, retired FBI agent Peter J. Lapp was onto her and explains all the clues found and including never released information, that led their team to catch one of the United States’ most dangerous spies.
And what a book this was........It was very interesting from start to finish and how she got away with it for so long...........It would make a great film or series..........I highly recommend this book if you love American history.
Thanks to NetGalley and Post Hill Press the publishers for my ARC in exchange of a review.
Ana Montes impressed all her bosses, but in secret, spent her breaks memorising top secret documents before sending them to the Cuban government. She received no payment, even as one of her missives could have brought her the death penalty. WoW - She was brave!!!
9/11 happened and everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing, But Cuba wanted Ana to continue her work for them. They didn't know the FBI was already on to her.
But, Now, retired FBI agent Peter J. Lapp was onto her and explains all the clues found and including never released information, that led their team to catch one of the United States’ most dangerous spies.
And what a book this was........It was very interesting from start to finish and how she got away with it for so long...........It would make a great film or series..........I highly recommend this book if you love American history.
Thanks to NetGalley and Post Hill Press the publishers for my ARC in exchange of a review.
October 24, 2023
The Ice Queen Of Cuba.
The US government officials knew they had a spy, but it never occurred to them that it could have been a woman. The Queen of Cuba is the story of Anna Montes who rose in rank and importance in the DIA. She became the agency’s chief analyst in charge of processing U.S. intelligence about the island, earning the nickname, “Queen of Cuba,” both for her unrivalled expertise and her arrogant and domineering manner.
Montes had a secret: She was spying for the Cubans. Montes ranks as one of the most damaging spies in U.S. history as Montes had secretly visited Cuba on several occasions. After she was arrested it was discovered that Fidel Castro had personally given her a medal. Through all of that, there had not been even a whiff of suspicion that Montes was their spy.
This book is a real page turning suspense story that takes you behind the schemes into the cloak and dagger world of a real espionage case from the FBI counterintelligence agent who helped catch the Cuban spy inside the DIA. This is a professionally written book by retired FBI agent Peter J, Lapp who helped captured and interrogate one of the United States most dangerous spy's the “Queen of Cuba”. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers of this book for giving me a free advance copy of the book to preview and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
The US government officials knew they had a spy, but it never occurred to them that it could have been a woman. The Queen of Cuba is the story of Anna Montes who rose in rank and importance in the DIA. She became the agency’s chief analyst in charge of processing U.S. intelligence about the island, earning the nickname, “Queen of Cuba,” both for her unrivalled expertise and her arrogant and domineering manner.
Montes had a secret: She was spying for the Cubans. Montes ranks as one of the most damaging spies in U.S. history as Montes had secretly visited Cuba on several occasions. After she was arrested it was discovered that Fidel Castro had personally given her a medal. Through all of that, there had not been even a whiff of suspicion that Montes was their spy.
This book is a real page turning suspense story that takes you behind the schemes into the cloak and dagger world of a real espionage case from the FBI counterintelligence agent who helped catch the Cuban spy inside the DIA. This is a professionally written book by retired FBI agent Peter J, Lapp who helped captured and interrogate one of the United States most dangerous spy's the “Queen of Cuba”. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers of this book for giving me a free advance copy of the book to preview and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
April 29, 2024
I listened to this book via Audible.
As someone who has worked for the federal government, when I saw the cover of this book I immediately recognized Ana Montes from the mandatory insider threat training we have to take. I was interested to find out the full story about this prolific spy who hid in plain sight for almost two decades.
The tale of her turning and eventual capture was fascinating. It is difficult to comprehend how someone could spy on their country, especially surrounded by family members who served in the armed forces and FBI. There's a level of cognitive dissonance to Montes that I simply cannot understand.
While all of the details around the investigation were very intriguing, I think I could have done without some of the background on Special Agent Pete Lapp. I understand this is his book and his story, but I was definitely expecting it to focus on Ana Montes and not have a mini biography about Lapp as well. I think as a narrative it worked well, weaving their two stories together until their paths eventually crossed, but maybe there could have been a bit less of it. The Bon Jovi references were fine though - they can stay.
All-in-all, this was a well-written and very interesting look into the mind of a spy. If you're curious about real spycraft and not just what the movies show James Bond doing, consider giving it a read!
As someone who has worked for the federal government, when I saw the cover of this book I immediately recognized Ana Montes from the mandatory insider threat training we have to take. I was interested to find out the full story about this prolific spy who hid in plain sight for almost two decades.
The tale of her turning and eventual capture was fascinating. It is difficult to comprehend how someone could spy on their country, especially surrounded by family members who served in the armed forces and FBI. There's a level of cognitive dissonance to Montes that I simply cannot understand.
While all of the details around the investigation were very intriguing, I think I could have done without some of the background on Special Agent Pete Lapp. I understand this is his book and his story, but I was definitely expecting it to focus on Ana Montes and not have a mini biography about Lapp as well. I think as a narrative it worked well, weaving their two stories together until their paths eventually crossed, but maybe there could have been a bit less of it. The Bon Jovi references were fine though - they can stay.
All-in-all, this was a well-written and very interesting look into the mind of a spy. If you're curious about real spycraft and not just what the movies show James Bond doing, consider giving it a read!
January 25, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Gripping
The story of the Cuban spy, Ana Montes, told by the FBI agent assigned to bring her to justice
Before I started this book I had never heard of Ana Montes but she turned out to be a fascinating character and an unlikely spy and following Peter Lapps account of how she was discovered and bought to justice was gripping
Ana is an unlikely spy and reading her story gave me a different perspective on the reasons people might commit espionage and that not all spies are cloak and dagger types, some challenge perceptions and Ana was one of those, hiding in plain sight
I will admit that at times I really struggled with this book, it’s very heavy going with a lot of background details in the first half that I didn’t enjoy as much but definitely needed to know and as the story sped up I was pulled further into it and ended up at the stage where I couldn’t put it down
I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a story full of drama and intrigue that will challenge your perceptions and introduce you to a world that you may not know too much about
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me access to this book in return for an honest review
Gripping
The story of the Cuban spy, Ana Montes, told by the FBI agent assigned to bring her to justice
Before I started this book I had never heard of Ana Montes but she turned out to be a fascinating character and an unlikely spy and following Peter Lapps account of how she was discovered and bought to justice was gripping
Ana is an unlikely spy and reading her story gave me a different perspective on the reasons people might commit espionage and that not all spies are cloak and dagger types, some challenge perceptions and Ana was one of those, hiding in plain sight
I will admit that at times I really struggled with this book, it’s very heavy going with a lot of background details in the first half that I didn’t enjoy as much but definitely needed to know and as the story sped up I was pulled further into it and ended up at the stage where I couldn’t put it down
I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a story full of drama and intrigue that will challenge your perceptions and introduce you to a world that you may not know too much about
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me access to this book in return for an honest review
April 25, 2024
An insight into a person and mission I had never heard about, I find it a fitting continuation this month after having read "Wise Girls" documenting the founding ladies of the CIA and "Cuba: an American History" that gave me a good background.
While Lapp gives easy access reading, being light hearted, and giving enough information for those with very little knowledge about the era or locations of concern, having personally recently looked over the history of Cuba certainly enhanced my comprehension.
I will say that the summary is a bit of a misdirect. This is as much of a personal memoir and reflection for Lapp's own life and career. However, the parts are tied in well together, and both are intriguing in their own right where they don't overlap.
Brief, interesting, but only time will tell if it really sticks with me.
While Lapp gives easy access reading, being light hearted, and giving enough information for those with very little knowledge about the era or locations of concern, having personally recently looked over the history of Cuba certainly enhanced my comprehension.
I will say that the summary is a bit of a misdirect. This is as much of a personal memoir and reflection for Lapp's own life and career. However, the parts are tied in well together, and both are intriguing in their own right where they don't overlap.
Brief, interesting, but only time will tell if it really sticks with me.
October 30, 2024
I grudgingly give this book three stars - I found it interesting but flawed. The author alternates the early chapters between Montes' (the spy) childhood and early career and his own childhood and early career. The chapters on the author were probably only of interest to his family and good friends. Accordingly, I skipped them after I figured this out. There were also a lot of [redaction]s imposed by the FBI.
The later chapters focus primarily on Montes and the efforts of the FBI to make a case and her debriefing. This was the best part of the book and redeemed it for me. But of course the author intrudes again in the epilogue about performing in a band, getting divorced, etc. Not interested.
There is a co-author. I wonder did she do nothing, or was she polishing a really bad manuscript?
The later chapters focus primarily on Montes and the efforts of the FBI to make a case and her debriefing. This was the best part of the book and redeemed it for me. But of course the author intrudes again in the epilogue about performing in a band, getting divorced, etc. Not interested.
There is a co-author. I wonder did she do nothing, or was she polishing a really bad manuscript?
July 31, 2024
I know Pete Lapp because he performs at local wineries in northern VA, we also discovered that we had attended the same college, but didn’t run in the same circle. When I found out about the book, I was excited to support Pete and purchased it. I gave it to my dad to read, who then gave it to me to read.
I had never heard of Ana, and was drawn in quickly because of the way Pete writes and the familiarity I had with his college and our current northern VA home. I was fascinated by the detail and commitment Pete made to bringing this person to justice.
Well done, Pete. A good read. I highly recommend.
I had never heard of Ana, and was drawn in quickly because of the way Pete writes and the familiarity I had with his college and our current northern VA home. I was fascinated by the detail and commitment Pete made to bringing this person to justice.
Well done, Pete. A good read. I highly recommend.
April 3, 2024
The story itself about an American that is spying for Cuba is interesting. The problem is it is very dry. the way the story was told reminded me of the old tv show "Dragnet". Still, I wasn't about to put the book down. I found it interesting with the way she conducted her spying. It also gave some reason for her doing so. I would like to hear her side of the story. One thing that stood out for me was happened to the "secrets" she gave to Cuba. It seems Cuba then sold the secrets to the Russians. So, nothing is ever really a secret, is it.
May 26, 2024
A Real Cloak And Dagger Spy
Author Peter Lapp was an FBI agent in a former life and this book is the result of a famous case about a would-be Mata Hari he and colleagues pursued and ultimately arrested.
What makes this case so unusual is that she worked in a very high level of the federal government, had a brother and sister who loyally worked for the FBI and she didn’t do it for money - she was a true believer and hid for nearly two decades while streaming U.S. secrets to the Cubans.
You can’t make this stuff up and it makes a great read.
Author Peter Lapp was an FBI agent in a former life and this book is the result of a famous case about a would-be Mata Hari he and colleagues pursued and ultimately arrested.
What makes this case so unusual is that she worked in a very high level of the federal government, had a brother and sister who loyally worked for the FBI and she didn’t do it for money - she was a true believer and hid for nearly two decades while streaming U.S. secrets to the Cubans.
You can’t make this stuff up and it makes a great read.
August 23, 2024
I’ve always been interested in the minds of spies and I’ve researched Ana Montes. Imagine my surprise when I sat down for a training and Peter Lapp was one of the instructors. I could probably have spent all week picking his brain about this mad woman but the book did a great job of giving you the story of Ana and how the FBI finally put her away. It was a quick easy read! If you have no Security or law enforcement background you won’t get bogged down with acronyms and industry words! Now if someone could get a copy to Mr. Jon Bon Jovi!
September 30, 2024
Needed to see more pictures of the spy... A red Toyota Echo and waring driver gloves!
Seems like we have people in congress who need to be watched, they sympathize with non christian nations that are not friends with America...get them off intelligence committees and don`t put them in the Senate please! It just makes my mind SCHIFF!!!
Oh Malpaso productions please make a movie about this spy master,(From Cuba with love) it is just too rich.
P.S. let theCuban people change their government not the USA, well Ms. Montes not when Fidel has nuclear missles aming at us!
Seems like we have people in congress who need to be watched, they sympathize with non christian nations that are not friends with America...get them off intelligence committees and don`t put them in the Senate please! It just makes my mind SCHIFF!!!
Oh Malpaso productions please make a movie about this spy master,(From Cuba with love) it is just too rich.
P.S. let theCuban people change their government not the USA, well Ms. Montes not when Fidel has nuclear missles aming at us!
December 9, 2023
3.7 stars
One moment it's Anna story then it's about agent Peter which made me confused for a bit until I got the gist that...oh this is how he narrated. And it turned out not much really about Anna and her espionage. I don't have problem with some redacted but I just don't enjoy the writing much. Could have use some artistic flair to make this interesting story more intriguing and gripping. It's not bad, really but sadly it could have been much better.
One moment it's Anna story then it's about agent Peter which made me confused for a bit until I got the gist that...oh this is how he narrated. And it turned out not much really about Anna and her espionage. I don't have problem with some redacted but I just don't enjoy the writing much. Could have use some artistic flair to make this interesting story more intriguing and gripping. It's not bad, really but sadly it could have been much better.
March 29, 2024
Overall a true story which was a good, solid read about a Cuban spy who took many years to catch. At first I thought the tib bits provided in the book were not necessary and didn’t belong in the book. Tib bits like the history of Coatsvilke, PA or the fact that the black squirrels found in Washington. DC are native from Canada and escaped from the Washington zoo many years ago. After reading the book I am glad the author included them and found them interesting.
May 28, 2024
I have read something else about this spy previously and thought it would be interesting to hear the FBI account. It was pretty good. It included personal details of the FBI agent, which is understandable, just less interesting than the spy stuff. It gave a good picture of what it takes to catch a spy, though, and with all the bureaucracy involved, it makes you a little surprised we ever catch any of them.
March 17, 2024
Pretty good book, well written, and a fast read. One of my favorite quotes: "The world of counterintelligence is hard. Far from black and white. There are shades of gray in counterintelligence that Sherwin-Williams could never dream about." Also, Secretary Chertoff's response to SecDef Rumsfeld on page 210...chef's kiss.
June 6, 2024
The author was pompous and misogynistic and also dumped on Malcom Galdwell, one of my favorites, so major red flag. I could have done with a lot less of personal info on the author. I didn't read this to learn about Peter J. Lapp. Anna Montes' case will always interest me so that was the only redeeming quality.
June 23, 2024
Ana Montes was a true believer, so much so that she betrayed her country and her family for an ideal. Mr. Lapp was a key participant in stopping her from giving the plans developed at the Defense Intelligence Agency for the invasion of Afghanistan to her allies in Cuba who have traded intelligence for support amongst Cuba's allies.
December 27, 2023
What a beautiful book!!
Reading this book is like living right next to the author and breathing the same air at every moment. The story of Ana Belen Montes is a fascinating example of how the real enemy of this beautiful country never stops attempting to destroy us!
Reading this book is like living right next to the author and breathing the same air at every moment. The story of Ana Belen Montes is a fascinating example of how the real enemy of this beautiful country never stops attempting to destroy us!
January 3, 2024
This was so interesting I had never heard of this and it really amazed me and kept me so intrigued throughout.. It felt so professionally written.
I was given a free copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.
I was given a free copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.
January 22, 2024
Ego is tough but when you are a spy it can and usually is your downfall. Evidence of this is everywhere and it permeates throughout this story. The fact that she only spent 25 years in prison is sad but it is what it is. Well worth the read.
December 15, 2024
interesting yarn but not my style
Did not fully appreciate the author's organization or style. Interesting circumstances and history. It's an easy read. Holds some locale and time period interest to DCers.
Did not fully appreciate the author's organization or style. Interesting circumstances and history. It's an easy read. Holds some locale and time period interest to DCers.
April 7, 2025
Grossly biased. Informative, but the author clearly has an unrestrained contempt for the subject, and the amount of hatred he bears toward Anna Montes taints this entire book. The author writes about himself and his personal life WAY too much (almost any amount would have been too much, as it was largely irrelevant), and though he jokingly refers to himself as the “dumb cop,” he spends the entire book proving himself to be EXACTLY this person. The author makes no attempt to understand or sympathize with the positions of Anna Montes, Cuba, or literally anyone besides himself and his personal vision of what he understands America should be.
December 3, 2023
Great Job, Pete!
I respect and appreciate his dedication to the mission. I am thankful for his talents and suggest we owe Pete (et al) a debt of gratitude.
I respect and appreciate his dedication to the mission. I am thankful for his talents and suggest we owe Pete (et al) a debt of gratitude.
December 19, 2023
Much more technically detailed insight into the Ana Montes case. Good follow up read to Code Blue Wren.
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