A slow burn for me - struggled with this at first and found it tough going and was frustrated with Nina and Finn. But I love Amanda Prowse's writing so I persisted - and I'm glad I did!

Interesting read and shows strength of character and how to overcome challenges and difficulties.

Whilst I didn't really like any of the characters in the early part of the book, by the closing chapters I really liked the teenage son's and the relationship between nina and her sister

Great title as explained later in the book
3.5*

It was extremely fitting that I read The Art of Hiding while on a flight to join a women's tour-group for a week that was to be a life-changing experience. It was trip that was all about sisterhood, finding strength from the power within us and discovering that we are each unique, beautiful souls with our own talents to nurture and share. And that's exactly what this book is about!!
Nina seems to be leading a charmed life with her successful husband Finn - the gorgeous house, 2 sons at a top private school, whirlwind social life, complete with enviable holiday destinations. Until Finn dies suddenly and it seems that it was all a facade.
Reality comes calling in the cruelest possible way as Nina and her sons' comfortable world is ripped out from under them. It would be easier to curl up under the blankets and never have to face the world again, but that's not a possibility, and Nina's about to discover that resilience appears when you least expect it, and your champions present themselves as the most unlikely candidates.
This is a wonderful story (and don't kid yourself, stuff like this happens more often than you think) of inner strength and the fabulous support systems that women create for themselves when push comes to shove.
Amanda Prowse has the incredible ability to create characters so real that you want to pluck them from the pages and invite them into your kitchen for a cup of coffee and a heart-to-heart chat. They're warm, loveable, remarkable people that you want to keep in your life, and you are left feeling quite bereft when you reach the final pages of her books.
The Art of Hiding is no different, and it gets 5 stars from me!
Thank you so much to Amanda and Simeon for sending me an ARC of this book, and for including me in your trusted circle of early recipients. It is such an honour!

The Art of Hiding is a book about Nina McCarrick & her 2 boys Connor & Declan overcoming losing their patriarch Finn McCarrick. Finn has died & left category 12 hurricane destruction in his wake. So instead of mourning their loss, the McCarrick family is figuring out where & how to live, 1 week after losing Finn. Which is may very well destroy their love for Finn.

Nina has become a recluse housewife with no friends, job or outside social circle, she doesn't know who to call when her picture perfect Martha Stewart life starts imploding. Ignoring the warnings to preserve what she can immediately, Nina's world is shattered. Surprise! They're bankrupt, courtesy of Finn, now deceased. The creditors are taking what is owed them, including the house. Now she has to find a way to comfort her boys in a way she never imagined. Connor & Declan just want their Dad to fix everything, just like he always has. Except now, he is the reason their lives will never be the same.

Gone are the private school, luxury vacations & posh house. The McCarricks are destitute. Relying on her estranged sister Tiggy, Nina goes "home" to the impoverished neighborhood of her childhood. Here the McCarrick family's love for Finn will be tested, as they navigate an unimaginable life. Trying to figure out if Finn abandoned them or if fate really did deal them a treacherous hand. Either way, the Mccarricks have to find a way to live again. Even if it means being poor, together.

I gave The Art of Hiding 3 stars because it took some sensitive albeit complex subjects, & skimmed over them. Personally for me, if you're going to add some darkness to the plot, go all in. When you realize where the title comes from though, it gives you that bitter sweet affinity for the whole story.

The Art of Hiding started out interesting enough. The author has a good writing style and the story flows well in the beginning. Nina's loss is truly heartbreaking and then she's blindsided by circumstances that were kept hidden from her. When I read the blurb, I did have a slightly different idea of what this story would be about and that assumption was my own fault. That, in itself, wouldn't have bothered me. What did bother me was the way the story started to lag about a quarter of the way through. We're told, repeatedly, that Nina grew up poor, so I didn't quite get her naiveté when it came to money matters. We don't really get much about Finn, other than a few memories and the fact that he kept problems hidden from Nina. From what is told, I got the impression of someone who was a little controlling and wanted to keep the "little wife" at home. Once the pace of the story slowed down, it started to lose me and most of the book was pretty depressing. While I can understand and sympathize with Nina's circumstances, she drones on and on about the same things and starts to come across as whiny. That, combined with the slow pace, left me feeling a little ambivalent about how this one played out.

The tragedy in The Art of Hiding by Amanda Prowse is a wife and mother’s nightmare come true. The death, grief that follows and the huge pile of debt turned Nina’s world around suddenly and dramatically. I couldn’t imagine having to face all of this at once while appearing strong for her children as Nina needed to do. Would I wish these circumstances on anyone? No, but Nina did so I was cheering for her from the very beginning when she met with the school officials until the very end.

If anything, this is a book of “what doesn’t break you, will make you stronger”. For Nina, it makes her family stronger too as she tackles her problems one at a time, maybe not in the way she would have wished but in the only way possible at times. For herself, she comes out like gold with shining grace and confidence. Ms. Prowse has given us a character that exemplifies courage in trouble.

When Nina loses her husband Finn in a car crash, her whole life is turned upside down. She realises that the friends she had were superficial, surface acquaintances and she won't be able to get support from them.

Her sister proves to be the support she needs even though they have become distant since she married. Her sister was a lovely character. She stepped in where she was needed and swept the years away.

This book really takes you on an emotional journey- you feel for Nina and her two boys. Although they had a very privileged life it was all based on smoke screens and they soon have to start over in her home town in a rented flat. I loved the scenes in the flat- it sounded horrendous but proved that love overcomes all even if it seems a long time coming.

You know that you can settle down with a book from Amanda and be assured a wonderful read. She tackles difficult subjects in a sensitive manner and creates such wonderful characters that you can't help but be drawn into their lives.

The Art of Hiding by Amanda Prowse

I enjoyed reading this book. A moving story about a woman and her sons. The characters are strong and have a good story to tell, but I found the pacing a bit slow and no real bang. All in all a good story and an encouraging read.

I give the Art of Hiding 3 stars for its solid story.
I would recommend this book.

I was pleasantly surprised with this book. It is not in the genre I normally read, but it looked interesting. And it was indeed. It was about Nina, a homemaker, who lives a wealthy existence. Her husband, Finn, owns a construction business and it is very successful. They have 2 sons. However, all of this is toppled one day when Finn is in an accident and dies. Suddenly, Nina's life completely changes. They were actually bankrupt, losing everything and Nina had no clue. The story is one of love, loss, grieving and self-discovery as Nina learns to live again, and have a life to actually live, not just float through. It is a really good book, especially if you like Women's fiction.

I want to say that this book is a sort of ‘coming of age’ story, only about ten years later in life than it would usually happen. I’d also say that this is Nina McCarrick’s story and that of her children Connor and Declan. The story opens with Nina having a premonition of sorts and her life certainly goes downhill from there. I don’t really want to say too much as it would probably be a spoiler or two and the actual unfolding of this family’s life story is really what it is all about. It is at times sad, uplifting, touching and loving – it even depicts the very definition of teenage angst. I’d have to say it was very poignant and while I enjoyed the read, it made me sad…admittedly in a good way but sad nonetheless. It really deals with some big issues and it was so good to see how Nina handled everything that life threw at her.

This is such a beautiful and well-written book about loss, family and resilience. In what seemed like a perfect life living in a beautiful home with two young sons attending a prestigious school, a handsome husband who runs a successful business, Nina McCarrick loses everything after the death of her husband, not knowing anything about their financial situation and learning they were in debt. Not knowing where to go, how they will live, she goes back to the town she grew up in where her sister helps her move into a small apartment belonging to a relative, and from then on Nina is determined to find a job and make the best of things for her and her two sons. This story, as did they characters, felt very real as this is something that could happen to anyone. I liked Nina and thought she was strong despite what life had handed down to her, and also liked her sister, Tiggy, and her two adorable sons, Conner and Declan.

Amanda Prowse has written such an important book that I hope many, many women will read it. And I say women because sadly there are many out there that do not know what their financial situation is, they have no idea what their mortgage payment is or how much they pay for utilities. I'm so fortunate to have a husband that discusses these things with me, and I'm actually the one that takes care of all household bills. That being said, I do highly recommend this book. It is a must read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Nina came from meager beginnings and was looking forward to becoming a nurse after high school but one day while visiting a construction site with her father Nina's whole life changes. She meets Finn. He is older, successful, and owns his own company. They fall in love and before she knows it, Nina has the comfortable and luxurious life she always wanted. Years pass by with Nina busy caring for her husband and her 2 boys, Connor and Declan. A twist of fate destroys the life Nina and her sons have known in the blink of an eye. They are forced to start all over again in Nina's hometown with hardly anything left to their names. The rest of the story is one of hope and finding the strength to be happy with what you have not miserable thinking about what you don't. I have seen some mixed reviews about this book but I just want to go on record and say that I really, really enjoyed this book.. The only reason I gave 4 stars instead of 5 is because I wish that Nina had been just a little bit angrier and less zoned out when it all started to fall apart. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for granting me an ARC and being cool with me leaving my honest opinions of the book.

Nina and Finn McCarrick have two sons, Connor and Declan attend the posh Kings Norton School and they live in a large home. Nina married Finn when she was very young and has always stayed home caring for her family and home. In recent years, she has become even less confident in social situations. She never feels like she fits in. Having grown up very poor makes her really appreciate her life now.

It is when she is waiting for Finn to join her to watch Connor’s rugby game that she gets a phone call from the hospital that Finn has been badly injured in an accident. By the time she gets there, he has died.

The next days and the funeral are very hard on Nina and the boys. Her sister, Tiggy, attends the funeral and offers her help. The two of them have not been close in recent years. Tiggy never left the poor area where they grew up and now there is a vast difference in their lives.

Nina gets a call from Finn’s account manager informing her that there are many debts that built up. It appears that Finn’s construction business had gone under. Finn had always taken care of the bills telling her that everything is fine and she is not to worry about anything. Now, it appears that they will be losing their beautiful home and everything in it. In addition, the boys’ tuition has not been paid in awhile and they must leave their beloved school.

The next weeks are terrifying for Nina as she copes with her loss coupled with the boys’ shock of losing their Dad and their lifestyle. Where will they go and how will Nina be able to support them? This is where Tiggy steps in and Nina learns to pull herself up by her boot straps.

This is a good book that is quite depressing at times but makes us realize how some people suffer and makes us thankful for what we have. I could relate to a lot of this story as my own mother was left a widow with three small children. It’s not easy but if families stick together, life does indeed go on.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Amanda Prowse has written a deeply layered story of family, trust and resiliency. She has created empathetic characters and a plausible premise for a thought-provoking novel. In The Art of Hiding, Ms. Prowse explores the differences between the “haves” and “have-nots”, mental health, the meaning of taking care of your family.

The story begins virtually at Finn’s demise, so readers only get Nina’s side of their marital story. Nina was young and living in poverty when she met Finn McCarrick, and she falls easily under his spell. He offers her a trouble-free life, and he too easily convinced her to give up her dreams of becoming a nurse. Nina doesn’t realize until Finn is gone that she has given up so much more than a career by giving in to his wishes for where and how she lives.

Finn is a Jekyll and Hyde character. I haven’t decided if he was a loving, caring husband trying to ensure he wife never has to go wanting again, or if he was controlling and used his wife’s insecurities to keep her isolated and basically in servitude to him (acting as housekeeper and nanny). Nina’s memories of him vacillate between his loving gestures to what she views as her waiting on him like a servant.

Tiggy—the would-be-astronaut --who lives above the pub at which she tends bar is a constant reminder to Nina of what her life could have been. Instead of showing her older sister compassion and helping her, Nina blindly doled out trivial trinkets and bits of money as holiday gifts presuming Tiggy will buy some pretty flowers instead of paying down the electric bill. Tiggy’s renewed presence in Nina’s life and her generosity are a mirror in which Nina can now see how she cocooned herself in Finn’s world and rejected her family as the constant reminder of the past she desperately wanted to leave behind.

Ms. Prowse deftly created a marital situation that could have weathered all of its fissures had there been more trust and communication. Nina completely and blindly trusted Finn. He either didn’t trust Nina’s fortitude or didn’t trust her love for him. Tiggy offers the viewpoint that Nina is a much stronger person than her late husband, and she sagely helps Nina remember the art of survival. Together, Tiggy and Nina, teach Nina’s sons, Declan and Connor, resiliency.

In different ways and for different reasons, Nina and Finn have both mastered the “art of hiding”. Ms. Prowse’s novel is about how they hid, why they hid, and the tenacity it takes to stop hiding and face a situation head-on.

4.5 stars

I have a few Amanda Prowse books that I have yet to read. I have always been brought in by the blurbs.

I received this book unexpectantly and I am so grateful I did.

It took me a while to get into the book, I felt at times that the chapters dragged on but I persevered and in the end I absolutely enjoyed this book.

Nina is thrown from her comfortable life when her husband dies and she discovers the money isn't there. Her two boys have to adjust to state school, and Nina has to find a job and move back to the poorer area she grew up in.

Feels thin and cliched - i really didn't enjoy it.

After the sudden death of husband Finn, Nina finds out that the perfect wrapped-in-a-bubble life she thought they had wasn’t perfect after all. She is forced to give up her beautiful house and expensive things and move with her two sons back to the place Nina swore she would never return to - her hometown. With the help of her feisty sister Tiggy, she will try to find a job – although she has absolutely no work experience - and get her life back together.
This book focuses on families as Nina and her sons grow closer than they have ever been and she reconnects with her estranged sister. Although I found the plot interesting and relatable, it didn’t completely engage me or keep me captivated. The characters were not particularly likable and were a bit irritating, especially Nina who keeps repeating how she grew up poor and married rich and seems too naive and clueless.

After reading many Amanda Prowse books I was very much looking forward to reading this one. However I sadly have to say that I think this is one of her weaker ones. The storyline is predictable and the very tragic losses (both emotional and material) were dealt with in a frothy and superficial way. Having experienced a close friend's fall out after the suicide of her husband, the way Nina coped and reacted was just unbelievable.
Another small irritation is that rugby is never played in the summer term in any school, public or state and if Connor celebrated his 16th birthday in the summer term he would also be sitting his GCSEs. Every mother would know this and these two inconsistencies added to my feeling that Ms Prowse has not done enough research and should perhaps stop churning out books like James Paterson and spend a little more time on getting to grips with the details.

The Art of Hiding takes the reader along on a roller coaster ride of emotions, experiencing the panic, fear, anger, desperation, and confusion of losing a loved one through Nina and her two boys, Connor and Declan. I loved this story; it is a story of survival and discovering just what is really important in life.

The Art of Hiding would make a good book discussion title. I can think of many friends that I would love to sit down with and talk about this book while sipping on a "mug of white wine"

I felt this was a well written book about loss and grief seen through the eyes of different family members, with a hopeful and positive ending. However I did feel it was quite cliched and that I had read the story of girl with a troubled background being whisked off her feet by a rich man then losing it all and with a troubled background being whisked off her feet by rich man then losing it all and ultimately realising material possessions aren't as important as love and family.

When a husband dies and his wife and family know nothing about the running of the house and business, things can become rather more difficult than they anticipated when the day after the funeral Nina is told they are bankrupt. Life changes dramatically and suddenly. Money doesn’t always bring happiness or self worth.. This is one of those books that grabs you from the start and makes you want to find out more. A lead character that you feel and root for in the turmoil of her life and the innocent and naive one she has led to this point, sheltered by a devoted husband. She has her boys to think of and realises things that wouldn’t have crossed her mind in her past life with Finn. She has talents of her own and enjoys company rather than hiding behind her insecurities. She is beholden to no-one and isn;t the waitress she realises that she was, standing on the periphery. This is beautifully written and poignant , filling me with tears at one point with memories of my own as I am sure it will others.. Stunning, uplifting, wonderful. Love it.I voluntarily chose to read this ARC and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased