Real Life Thriller

The Woman Who Smashed Codes: A True Story of Love, Spies, and the Unlikely Heroine Who Outwitted America’s Enemies – Jason Fagone – (Dey St Books)

There have been literally dozens of books written from just about every possible perspective about this countries seemingly unrelenting battle with our enemies. Many of those stories have been told from a multitude of points of view. One of the more fascinating, recent, turn of events has been delving into the details of those mild-mannered, behind the scenes types who played an integral role in breaking the backs of our enemies using their minds, rather than their might.

Bestselling author Jason Fagone does a masterful job of conducting a deep dive into the life story of Elizebeth Smith, one of the United States pioneer cryptanalyst or code breakers in his new book The Woman Who Smashed Codes: A True Story of Love, Spies, and the Unlikely Heroine Who Outwitted America’s Enemies.

Fagone manages to not only detail Elizebeth Smith’s story, but to have it read like a spy thriller. A school teacher by trade, who’s fascination with the works of William Shakespeare lead her to back into her career path breaking codes. Fagone infuses the story with more than a little dose of Smith’s feistiness and her experiences dating back to even prior her first exposure to war time code breaking in World War I. Post WWI, found Smith plying her trade to break the radio message traffic of Prohibition era smugglers.

The Woman Who Smashed Codes offers a revealing look into the dynamic world of Smith and her husband William, and the amazing role they played in the history of our country. What makes this story stand out is that it focuses a spotlight on the all too often ignored contribution of women, that has remained hidden for too long. Fans of Hidden Figures or the Imitation Game will love this story.