45. The Women of Arlington Hall by Jane Healey

listened on Audible

329 pgs.

2025
Adult Historical Fiction
Finished 9/6/2026
Goodreads rating: 4.24
My rating: 3
Setting: 1947-1950 Washington DC

My comments: This story was a dragger, for me....it just seemed to drag on and on.  The premise was good, the characterization was good, some of the situations seemed ... off, not quite believable.  Much of the book was about the friendships between the women and some of the men codebreakers, and how the FBI personel and the government personel working on the problem of Russian spies interacted with each other.  The last third of the book perked up a bit, and my overall reaction increased.  However, I'm left with a ho-hum  feeling, unfortunately.  Quite a bit was apparently (based on the afterword by the author) based on facts and truths, and I did learn....or recall...quite a bit about out country's history at the time.

Goodreads synopsis: A female codebreaker puts her future and her heart on the line in a stirring novel about love, loyalty, betrayal, and Cold War spy games by the bestselling author of The Secret Stealers.

1947: Adventurous Radcliffe graduate Catherine “Cat” Killeen cancels her wedding and upends a future that no longer suits her. At the behest of her professor and hungry for a challenge, Cat arrives in Virginia to work on a confidential military project. A student in cryptoanalysis, Cat is already ahead of the game—to assist in rooting out Soviet spies who have infiltrated the US.

Joining the “government girls” of Arlington Hall, Cat gains the respect of her superiors and the friendship of her peers. Then, on a night out in DC, Cat runs into Jonathan Dardis, her arrogant and privileged Harvard rival and newly minted agent for the FBI. What Cat and Jonathan share is a competitive drive and an attraction that’s becoming just as spirited. They’re also united in the same critical goal for America. Together, they’re diving deep into the shadows of espionage.

The stakes of the codebreaking operation grow ever higher, and Cat’s relationship with Jonathan opens her heart. Amid dangerous intrigue and grave secrecy, Cat is ready for every risk—no matter how personal the stakes get.

53. Zeroes by Chuck Wendig

read on my iPhone
2015 Harper Voyager
432 pgs.
Contemporary mystery
Finished June 16, 2018
Goodreads rating:  3.62 - 3197 ratings
My rating:  3

First line/s:  "The train clacks on the tracks, rocking side to side."

My comments:  Creepily interesting
          Great characters. The story/plot either left out some information or took it for granted I understood some that I didn’t.  Since it was about hacking and disturbing government agents and agencies, probably both apply! The first and second halves of the book were very different – I much preferred the first half, and would have rated the book higher if it had continued in the same vein.

Goodreads synopsis:  Five hackers—an Anonymous-style rabble-rouser, an Arab Spring hacktivist, a black-hat hacker, an old-school cipherpunk, and an online troll—are detained by the U.S. government, forced to work as white-hat hackers for Uncle Sam in order to avoid federal prison. At a secret complex known only as "the Lodge," where they will spend the next year working as an elite cyber-espionage team, these misfits dub themselves "the Zeroes."
          But once the Zeroes begin to work, they uncover secrets that would make even the most dedicated conspiracy theorist's head spin. And soon they're not just trying to serve their time, they're also trying to perform the ultimate hack: burrowing deep into the U.S. government from the inside, and hoping they'll get out alive. Packed with electric wit and breakneck plot twists, Zer0es is an unforgettable thrill ride through the seedy underbelly of "progress."

MOVIE - Red Sparrow

R

3/2/18 Wide Release

Viewed Monday, 3/5/18 at Carlisle 8
IMBd:  6.7/10

RT Critic:  50    Audience:  56
Critic's Consensus:  Red Sparrow's tense, character-driven story -- elevated by outstanding work from Jennifer Lawrence -- help this topical spy thriller overcome its somewhat uneven narrative.

Cag:  5/I loved it

Directed by Francis Lawrence

Twentieth Century Fox

Based on the novel by Jason Matthews

Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton, Jeremy Irons, Charlotte Rampling, and a short part played by Mary Louise Parker!

My comments: The review numbers weren't that great for this movie, but I found it very entertaining and exciting. I've not been enamored of Jennifer Lawrence lately, but I think she did a terrific, mesmerizing job.  And I think Joel Edgerton is really good. What an intriguing story, Russian bad guys vs. American good guys.....

RT/ IMDb Summary:  Dominika Egorova is many things. A devoted daughter determined to protect her mother at all costs. A prima ballerina whose ferocity has pushed her body and mind to the absolute limit. A master of seductive and manipulative combat. When she suffers a career-ending injury, Dominika and her mother are facing a bleak and uncertain future. That is why she finds herself manipulated into becoming the newest recruit for Sparrow School, a secret intelligence service that trains exceptional young people like her to use their bodies and minds as weapons. After enduring the perverse and sadistic training process, she emerges as the most dangerous Sparrow the program has ever produced. Dominika must now reconcile the person she was with the power she now commands, with her own life and everyone she cares about at risk, including an American CIA agent who tries to convince her he is the only person she can trust.

MOVIE - Keeping Up with the Joneses

PG-13 (1:41)

Wide 10/21/16

Viewed 11/23/16 at Century Gateway

RT Critic: 19   Audience:  46
Critic's Consensus:  Keeping Up with the Joneses squanders a decent premise -- and a talented cast full of funny people -- on a witless and largely laugh-free suburban spy adventure.

Cag:  3.5/totally enjoyed it (though not to be considered a "great" movie)

Directed by Greg Mottola

20th Century Fox

Zach Galifianakis, Jon Hamm

My comments:  Holy catfish, this was a fun movie to watch...funny as heck, actors that have great chemistry and fast moving.  Took my mind away from everything else, as a good movie should, and left me with not a lot of "deep thinking," which at this particular point in my life I'm grateful about!

RT/ IMDb Summary:  A suburban couple becomes embroiled in an international espionage plot when they discover that their seemingly perfect new neighbors are government spies.

MOVIE - Jason Bourne

PG-13 (2:03)

Wide release 7/29/16

Viewed On Sunday, August 28, 2016 at Gettysburg Outlets

RT Critic:  56  Audience:  61
Critic's Consensus:  Jason Bourne delivers fans of the franchise more of what they've come to expect -- which is this sequel's biggest selling point as well as its greatest flaw.

Cag: 3/Liked it

Directed by Paul Greengrass

Universal Studio

Matt Damon, Tommy Lee Jones, 

My comments:  75% crazy ridiculous car chases, 20% eye-rolling CIA garbage, and 5% traveling the world (with Matt Damon as eye candy).  Since I don't like stupid car chases, the movie was only....okay.

MovieFone Summary:  It's been 10 years since Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) walked away from the agency that trained him to become a deadly weapon. Hoping to draw him out of the shadows, CIA director Robert Dewey assigns hacker and counterinsurgency expert Heather Lee to find him. Lee suspects that former operative Nicky Parsons is also looking for him. As she begins tracking the duo, Bourne finds himself back in action battling a sinister network that utilizes terror and technology to maintain unchecked power.