Queen of Cuba

An FBI Agent's Insider Account of the Spy Who Evaded Detection for 17 Years

By: Peter J. Lapp, Kelly Kennedy - contributor

Narrated by: George Newbern

Length: 6 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

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 household: 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 mind: 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.

©2023 Peter J. Lapp (P)2023 Blackstone Publishing

Great overall story. Highly recommend.

Pete does a terrific job telling the story, that includes his own journey. Taking the time to explain Ana’s family and where she came from puts into perspective the choices she made.

Couldn’t stop listening

Reads like a movie. I finished listening to it in two days it was so good. Well written, kept me engaged, and the narrator has a great voice. Five stars!!!

Interesting

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.

The telling me as direct, simple and compelling

I'm encouraged with this telling that FBI can learn and make changes, that spies and espionage can be caught and prosecuted. the telling draws you in, the narrator made it to very welcoming to listen to this story

So very interesting

Well written and told with the right amount of personal information, facts, history, and wit. Narrator was outstanding. The story was captivating

Queen of Cuba! Excellent read.

I just finished reading "Queen of Cuba," and wow, what an amazing book! I really enjoyed it. I particularly liked the way Peter intertwined his personal career and growth with family anecdotes, his experience as an Army officer, and his time as a cop before joining the Bureau.

The book was incredible in describing the significance and impact of the information she provided to the Cubans and the damage and harm it caused.

Excellent book!!!!

Fascinating story!

I liked this book, even though I was chilled by the story of the spy for Cuba. I think the woman must have a mental malfunction, possibly borderline personality, maybe as bad as being a sociopath. She certainly was a narcissistic traitor, completely lacking in remorse for the deaths and damage she helped cause. It was interesting learning about her particular spy activities on behalf of Cuba. I also enjoyed some of the details of the life and thought processes of the author, an agent who participated in revealing the Queen of Cuba’s long time spy activities. The chilling aspect is how long this woman got away with sending critical US secret info to her Cuban handlers, before she was finally detected and stopped.

Interesting Story of Catching a Ruthless Spy

The story was a first-person narrative of how a spy was eventually caught by the FBI. It was a little dry, as so much of the work was tedious as they built a case. Still, the insights into how the government works were well worth the read.

Fascinating and well told story

Listened to this from start to finish in one sitting. Captivating story told with as much detail as possible. You feel you know the author personally and his fight to catch one of the US’s worst spies. Well done!

Loved the book

I really loved the narrator. I love the frankness of the writer. I loved the humanity of the FBI. I loved all of the details being included even the mistakes that were made. I love the sense of pride for being an American. I’m so happy he wrote this book.especially coming after Malcolm Gladwell’s book this book answered a lot of questions.