Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
In True Face  By  cover art

In True Face

By: Jonna Mendez
Narrated by: Barbara Benjamin-Creel
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $19.49

Buy for $19.49

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

The bestselling coauthor of The Moscow Rules and Argo tells her riveting, courageous story of being a female spy at the height of the Cold War

Jonna Hiestand Mendez began her CIA career as a “contract wife” performing secretarial duties for the CIA as a convenience to her husband, a young officer stationed in Europe. She needed his permission to open a bank account or shut off the gas to their apartment. Yet Mendez had a talent for espionage, too, and she soon took on bigger and more significant roles at the Agency. She parlayed her interest in photography into an operational role overseas, an unlikely area for a woman in the CIA. Often underestimated, occasionally undermined, she lived under cover and served tours of duty all over the globe, rising first to become an international spy and ultimately to Chief of Disguise at CIA’s Office of Technical Service.

In True Face recounts not only the drama of Mendez’s high-stakes work—how this savvy operator parlayed her “everywoman” appeal into incredible subterfuge—but also the grit and good fortune it took for her to navigate a misogynistic world. This is the story of an incredible spy career and what it took to achieve it.

©2024 Jonna Mendez (P)2024 PublicAffairs

Critic reviews

“Mendez details her fascinating career in this gripping memoir… an entertaining and enlightening glimpse inside the opaque world of spycraft.” —Publishers Weekly

“Fans of true espionage will enjoy Mendez’s stories of a formative era in intelligence history.” —Kirkus

What listeners say about In True Face

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    10
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    5
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    10
  • 4 Stars
    3
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    11
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    4

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Breaking the Glass Ceiling in the CIA

Whoever wrote the glorified secretary review clearly didn't finish the book.

Ms. Mendez did start out shifting papers and taking dictation, but she went on to travel the world, protect the vulnerable, practice and teach mad photography skills, and become a master (and chief) of disguise. She also paved the way for the generations of women who came and will come after her.

There's a lot that she really couldn't reveal about her time in the CIA, but she did share quite a bit. It seems as if it was an exciting, but also isolated way to live. Even with a partner in the same business.

No spoilers from me. I recommend this read and/or listen.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The romance between Jonna and Tony

I loved the narration and the exciting life Jonna had. Best part was meeting with president Bush!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

A CIA memoir devoid of any intrigue

If you are interested in hearing about the secret lives of CIA operatives and spy craft, then buckle up… and go find another book because this isn’t the one. This book was an 8+ hour slog of listening to the author complain incessantly about all the misogyny she encountered in the CIA. While I would never condone that type of behavior, I was hoping to hear way more about her craft as a disguise expert. The book is light on any interesting spy stories but incredibly heavy on the complaining.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

High expectations but sadly not what I was hoping for

I appreciate challenge of being a woman in CIA - if you are looking for colorful stories - this isn’t the book . I really wanted to like this book , especially as a woman myself . I found it disappointing .

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!