The Art of Hiding is my first from Prowse and it did not disappoint at all. It is full of emotions and brings a lot of questions to the surface that certainly make you think.

Nina has suffered a devastating loss, her husband dying. It was sudden and completely unexpected in Nina’s perfect world. With the loss comes more hard times than she thought. Her way of life and the husband she though she knew were all torn apart. There is no time for to worry about all the material things that she has now lost, her boys need her more than ever. Being penniless, homeless and questioning everything you thought you knew about the man you love isn’t the way to be able to help either. Nina has to figure out to pick up the pieces of the fractured life she now has and put it back together.

My heart went to out to Nina. Losing a spouse is a terrible loss, but lose them so unexpectedly I think would be even worse. But, when Nina finds out all the things that Finn kept from her before he died, it was more a mixture of grief and anger. Her sister Tiggy, was fantastic. I adored her so much. She was a “tell it like it is” kinda girl. And she never once wavered on helping Nina and he boys. I feel that Prowse did such a wonderful job writing both of these characters so well developed and making them feel so real, it was easy to feel so connected to them.

There are so many emotions that I felt while reading, I cried with Nina and felt her hurt and sorrow. during the hard times, I could feel her despair. Other times, I laughed with her and as she grew and learned to be the strong independent woman I knew she could be, I felt it right along with her. Even at the end I wasn’t ready for it to. This was such a wonderful and inspirational read. Fans of contemporary fiction will devour this. Just have some tissues.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of  The Art of Hiding.   Nina is a homemaker from a poor background that ended up married and in the  lap of luxury.  She has a huge home, two sons in a very expensive private school and plenty of income at her disposal.  Her life revolves around this home life , her sons, and handsome husband. She doesn't really feel comfortable around her peers of this lifestyle so she is living in a crystal cocoon. 
Tragedy comes in the form of the death of her husband and consequently this entire opulent lifestyle is gone overnight.  She had been an ostrich about their finances and had no idea that everything was leveraged to the hilt. The property  and everything in it was seized and she wasn't able to secure very many items.  She returned to her childhood neighborhood, a place she never wanted to return to, and struggled to create their life  out of nothing.  She had not really educated herself for a career and finding work was exasperating.  However her older sister still lived in the neighborhood and their bond was reformed.  Her sister had always been there for her and was even more so now.   Eventually the lifestyle of luxury was completely forgotten and Nina realized whatvwerecthevimpirtantvthings in life.  She found reserves of strength  and resilience long abandoned  and a even better version of her former identity!

I found this book very predictable and twee. The underlying message (money does not equal happiness) was about as subtle as a brick, and the main character came across as being thoroughly unlikeable. You could see the job offer coming a mile off, and the relationship with Finn was largely left unexplored. Overall, a quick read, but not one with any depth or substance.

Thanks to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing and Amanda Prowse for the opportunity to read and review her latest book! I really liked her last one - The Idea of You - and her latest will not disappoint.

Nina is living large in a well-to-do community, huge house, two boys attending an exclusive prep school. Although she never felt she fit in with the other parents, she loved her family life behind her gated walls. When her husband dies in an accident, her reality comes crashing down. She finds herself homeless, broke, with two boys ripped out of their lives. Nina goes back to her hometown with help from her estranged sister to try and reboot their lives.

Just a good story of the lives we hide from each other and ourselves and for the strength and courage to pick ourselves up. Fast-paced, easy to read novel that will make you tear up and be grateful!

This was a totally different type of book than I normally read - crime.  I loved the story and the very strong characters.  It shows that money isn't everything!  Well worth a read.

I've read other books by this author and like her style of writing and this book didn't disappoint.

I didn't want to put it down as felt attached to the characters from the get go.  I found it a very emotional book to read and upsetting at times - I think I put myself in Nina's position and what I'd do and how I'd deal with all that happened.

Would thoroughly recommend it.

A poignant telling about an ordinary woman caught up in an extraordinary life where she loses her true self. This is a well paced drama about family, friendships and taking control of one's life and discovering what really matters.

The Art of Hiding by Amanda Prowse is the first novel I have read by this author.  Having no idea what to expect, I was thrilled to discover how incredibly well written it is.  It was at times difficult to read but only because you will become so entangled with the characters that it can be quite depressing at times but ultimately wonderfully up-lifting.

The novel begins by putting the perfect family on display.  Loving couple, two popular kids attending the most prestigious private school in the area, palatial home… what could possibly go wrong?  Nina is upset with her husband Finn because, once again, he has promised their 15-year-old son Connor that he will be there to watch Connor’s rugby game.  And, once again, Finn is late.

As she impatiently waits for her husband, Nina’s phone finally rings.  Relieved to see that Finn is calling, she is quickly thrown to discover the caller is actually a doctor letting her know that there has been a car accident.  Nina has to face Connor and her 10-year-old son Declan and let them know that their father has died.  In the following weeks, as they struggle with their grief, Nina ignores the many calls from their accountant and lawyer.  When she finally contacts the accountant, she discovers that instead of the financial security that she expected, they are bankrupt and being evicted from their home.  In a panic and with nowhere else to go, she returns to her sister Tiggy and their poverty stricken home town.

With no job, two devastated children and little prospects, Nina would prefer to crawl under the covers and hide from the world.  That is definitely not an option.  Instead, the three of them are forced to make the best of the gloomy situation.  The courage they embody will have the reader cheering for them the entire way.  Grab some Kleenex and dive in.

As with all Amanda's books this was heartfelt and the characters felt real . Nina's life is turned upside down as she discovers irs not what she thought it was. The choice her and her boys  have is sink or swim. Nina initially is perceived as a weak anxious person but when faced with starting over with nothing she shows her true strength of character.

This is good,really good. Superficially,a story of a family's distress after the death of the husband and father, it is an important social commentary as well as a reassuring tale of how human beings overcome adversity. The analysis of what matters in family life and how the strength of one person can hold a bereft family together is absorbing. The depiction of the older teenage son is particularly well crafted. I found I wanted to finish the book? I wanted the social analysis to triumph and it did. I strongly recommend this book.

I received a free electronic copy of this novel from Netgalley, Amanda Prowse, and Lake Union Publishing in exchange for a honest review.  Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. 

This is an excellent novel outlining the hardships faced by many family members at the loss of the major breadwinner.  Our US seniors living on Social Security find their income halved at the death of a spouse.  Nina and her boys find themselves without a dime just days after the death of their bread winner, with no advance notice that this sort of hardship was in the offing. And they handle it, with poise and  gratitude for what they can bring away from this experience.  This is a book I thoroughly enjoyed, and one I can heartily recommend.

I haven't read anything by Amanda Prowse for a while, and I'd forgotten how good she is. 
She really draws you into the story and I felt every emotion that Nina was experiencing. 
Yes I cried through sadness, but there were also tears when something good finally happened.
I normally read crime books so this was a lot different from my usual reads, but I really enjoyed it. 
I was invested in the story throughout and was desperate to know how things would turn out in the end for Nina and her boys. 
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a great book to get wrapped up in. 
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read the advance copy.

Another powerful book by Amanda Prowse. When Nina's husband is killed in a car accident, her life begins to fall apart and she wonders if she ever truly knew her husband. Having two children to take care of, Nina goes back to work, something her husband had discouraged. A beautiful story of love, loss, and finding yourself after tragedy strikes. Definitely recommend this one.

This was a realistic and thought provoking novel. The main character loses almost everything in her perfect life, causing anguish and despair. The novel takes you through her journey as she struggles to cope with how her life has been turned upside down. It is a fascinating read, causing the reader to connect to the characters and to consider the true priorities in life. I found myself wanting to read on, even late at night, in order to find out what would happen and whether she would make it. Highly recommend.

The Art of Hiding is a very black and white novel in which the main character, Nina, must redefine herself after the death of her husband and the sudden realization that she and her two boys have nowhere to live and no money.

Much of the first half of the novel is extremely melodramatic with Nina being emotionally beaten by all of the extremely mean people in her life. Everyone is a stereotype and/or caricature with weasely laughs or mean smirks or no sympathy and charity for a woman who has lost everything. Why a woman, who had made it such a point to not socialize when invitations were extended and to continually emit an air of anti-social behavior, would turn to these same people when she had difficulties is mystifying. And this is the same woman who behaves badly toward her older sister, Tiggy, really the only attractive character in this novel, and Tiggy is the only one who comes to Nina’s rescue.

The Art of Hiding tested limits of credibility for me. It isn’t logical or smart for a person who had grown up impoverished to turn her fate over to someone else. More accurately, this person would also be squirreling something away because the environment of not knowing what each day would bring never completely leaves a person. But then, Nina doesn’t strike me as the sharpest tool in the shed, but rather someone who has been living in a fantasy world and has never, ever had to stand on her own feet. This just sounds like a character who would have existed pre-1960’s.

I really had no sympathy for Nina. For the majority of the novel she doesn’t show any initiative or backbone. She doesn’t prepare her sons for actions that she knows are about occur. She seems to work entirely by a set of emotions without any logic or reasoning.

The writing is functional. Quite a bit of the dialogue is formal and not really believable.

The level of angst and melodrama and whining in The Art of Hiding is wearying and this continues for much of the novel. I know that there are some readers who love the melodrama so if you like self-absorbed, self-pitying characters and lots of angst, this one is for you. You might even cheer when Nina’s luck incredibly changes.

I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Another fantastic book from Amanda about hope and survival and true inner strength. I loved the relationship between the sisters. Beautiful

Amanda Prowse’s latest novel “The Art of Hiding” is an exploration of the human spirit when a person feels as if they cannot handle another wave of oppression to come crashing down on them. Nina McCarrick honestly thought she led a charmed life with her amazing husband and two brilliant sons, but in a twist of fate her life is forever changed and the illusion of security is shattered. Nina must dig deep inside herself and find the life she was always meant to have. Ms. Prowse captivates the reader from the first sentence and holds them tight with her mastery of words that elicit feelings making it difficult for the reader to put it down. I was given an advanced copy of this book, and all of the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I wasn't sure about reading this as typically women's fiction isn't a genre I read very often, but as I'd been auto-approved I thought I'd give it a go and I'm very glad I did. Prowse is an excellent writer and her skill stopped this from descending into a depressing and maudlin experience and instead showed Nina and her family discovering how strong they truly are and also how much they really love one another. I thought the way they journeyed through their grief and anger at Finn and arrived at love, acceptance and finally understanding was surprisingly uplifting. All in all highly recommended.

*ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review*

What a great subject for a book. The unpredictability of what can happen on the spin of a coin and life as you know it gone. Great story and I would thoroughly recommend it to other readers. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the chance to review it.

An excellent domestic story with the unravelling of a lifestyle from wealth and comfort to poverty and loss; then the rebuilding and development of the family life and happiness.