Loose Lips : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: enjoyable chick lit
Review: After a stint in India as a Sanskrist expert, Selena returns home to Manhattan to become a bored teacher until she reads a weird Internet ad and she surprises herself by responding. In the blink of a cyberspace eye, Selena is interviewed, tested and evaluated to determine whether she an "extraordinary individual".

The CIA hire Selena, who relocates to Virginia, where she receives top rate instruction at the "Farm"; Selena becomes an expert in hand combat, emergency medical care, and other needed skills for someone expected to work in the cold. She is considered a potential superstar except for a fear of flying that even Jung could not cure. Selena becomes friends with fellow student Iris and dates Stan, whose memory skills are incredible. However, sh*t happens leading to the CIA Internal Affairs investigating Selena as the evidence points to her being a traitor; Stan roots for her hanging, but Selena refuses to take the fall when she knows someone set her up.

LOOSE LIPS is an enjoyable chick lit takes the CIA tale that will leave the audience laughing fro start to finish. The tale is exceptional when Selena goes through her excellent training as a top gun while her relationships are shaky until Stan enters her life. The tale remains fun, but loses some of its oomph when Selena becomes the subject of an investigation of a seditious act although she remains Pollyanna at the Farm.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: I Needed More Closure
Review: I was intrigued by the plot of this book. The main character, Selena, is on the hunt for a job and comes across an ad for a position with the CIA. On a whim she applies, and after thorough background checks and psychological tests she is hired. The book jacket goes on to say that she meets a man in the class and things get interesting once Selena and her boyfriend are spying on each other of all people. It sounded like a good fun read.

The story is a very good one and the writing is quick witted and the author has invented a mish mash of characters. I enjoyed the first half of the book thoroughly and couldn't put it down. And then at some point, the wit isn't there anymore and the spying that Selena and her boyfriend do on each other is serious...and not funny. The story left me hanging and didn't allow me closure to Selena and what happened. I must say that this is how things in life do turn out...but I thought I was reading fiction and wanted an ending.

Rating:
Summary: Ever wanted to join the CIA?
Review: This is a story about Selena Keller, who on a whim, decides to send her résumé to the CIA. What follows is a battery of tests and then finally training, to become a spy. I'm not sure how much of the book is actually based on fact, but I found all Serena's training to be incredibly interesting. Besides being trained, we see Selena fall in love with Stan, another spy in training, or is he? About 75% of the book focused on Selena's job and the other 25% was on her personal life, so I found it harder to get attached to the characters. Her boyfriend, Stan, seemed like a particularly strange guy for her, but maybe it's because Selena's character wasn't explored so much, so I didn't feel like I really knew her. All in all, an entertaining read for anyone who has ever dreamt of being a spy, or has seen "The Recruit".