I think the title is apt, because women do take on roles that are hidden and forgotten in history. Not many of us are able to name famous female figures in science, war, medicine and all other elements of advancement. Why not? Because the names of men tend to take a higher ranking in history. The truth is that there are plenty of unnamed invisible women who have advanced our society and contributed to sustaining the human race in many different ways.

This story is told by two women, Lillian is a fearless female pilot during WW2 who was determined to give herself and the women around her more than one choice in life. Then decades later her great-niece Helena, who is a genealogy researcher, stumbles upon the some of the secrets Lillian has been keeping hidden from her family.

The Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) was a British civilian organisation set up during World War 2. They employed both male and female pilots, due to the lack of available men, and also received equal pay. The women of the ATA tend to be modest and underplay their role in the Second World War, as do the majority of women who took their places in so-called men’s jobs and the women who were in active service. Adding the sub-plot of an organised ring where women help other women to re-home or adopt babies, to help women get help in desperate situations was an interesting idea.

The opposite side to Lillian’s story, which is also the avenue to her finally being able to reveal her secrets, is Helena digging in places she shouldn’t be digging in. Helena sees the similarities between herself and her aunt, and then how differently their lives have evolved across the decade, despite those similarities.

It’s a story of women empowering other women, and how some secrets seem more hurtful or sinister when they are kept buried. Barrett manages to balance a tale of empowerment and a cry to arms with the emotional vibe of a family saga. The result is an informative, brave and heart-warming read.

The Hidden Women by Kerry Barrett is the story of some of the women in the ATA who flew airplanes from the factories to the bases in England. It is also the story of Lil, who, along with other women, set up a network of people who would perform illegal abortions and set up illegal adoptions. After what had happened to Lil as a team, she was sympathetic to women who found themselves pregnant and not married. It is also the story of Lil's family who accidentally discover the story she has kept secret for seventy years. To those who support legal abortions, these women were heroines. To those who were against abortion, these women were law breakers. Whether you are pro-abortion or against abortion, the story is fascinating.

Many thanks to NetGallery, the publisher and author, Kerry Barrett, for the opportunity to read and review the arc of “The Hidden Women.”
Kerry Barrett is a new author to me and one I will certainly be reading more books from!
“The Hidden Women” was so much better then I ever expected it to be. The historical aspect was so intriguing to me. At times, I felt like I was right there with the characters.
I did find it difficult to follow with the going back and forth in time.....the first time it happened, it took me by surprise but, then I got in the flow of the writing style and all was well.
I very highly recommend this book.

Kerry Barrett is back with another dual time-line story called The Hidden Women. Slipping back and forth between the war years and the present day it follows Helena Miles as she attempts to uncover a family secret kept hidden for many years and as the surprises and revelations come thick and fast in the first half of the book she comes to realise a woman she already has the utmost of respect and admiration for just gained even more in the eyes of Helena and her family.

The chapters throughout the story alternate between Helena and her Great Aunt Lillian. I presumed the majority of Lillian's chapters would be set during the years of service she gave during the war but they also focused on several years before and gave us a glimpse into her teenage years in a quite sleepy English village. It did take me a little while to settle into the rhythm of the story as it did jump around a bit. Having chapter headings telling us what character said chapter would focus on proved to be very helpful as we didn't always return to the period we had been reading of before. But once I found my bearings with regard to the overall picture I really did enjoy this story as my love of history really was piqued and a lot of the aspects that were being explored and dealt with were new and interesting to me.

We first met Helena as she makes a huge decision with regard to the next stage of her life. Having received no support from her boyfriend Greg when she imparts some life changing news she decides to go it alone and what a brave and admirable decision she made. Fast forward three years later to 2018 and Helena works on a television programme who research the family tree of celebrities. Yes this idea may have been exactly like the programme Who Do You Think You Are? but that didn't bother me at all as the author gave a truly fascinating insight into what research is undertaken and how they go about uncovering little nuggets of information that may have been kept hidden for numerous years.

It was evident from that the character of Helena was so passionate about her job and she adored every aspect of it. I really loved Helena as a character, she loved her job but was also really trying to make a go of her personal life in raising her young daughter Dora on her own. She knew when she needed the support of her family and wasn't afraid to ask for it, even though said family were an eclectic bunch. But it's when actor Jack Jones becomes the latest celebrity to feature on the show that Helena's life becomes turned upside down as connections become apparent between Jack and Helena's family history.

Helena must wrestle with her conscious and her code of discipline at work when it comes to researching personal family matters. But also her loyalty to her Aunt becomes severely tested when faced with a predicament that if Helena forges ahead with a more detailed investigation than the apple cart could be forever upset and the dynamics of her family changed. Maybe for the better but who knows, Helena was faced with an impossible situation. Her father wished to know more, and her sister urged her on too, but Helena always stopped and thought about the consequences of her actions but would her inquisitive nature be too much to quash and will she go ahead and click that all important button that could lead to numerous shocks or would it bring many pleasant surprises?

I enjoyed that things weren't straight forward for her and that she grappled with her decision because really nothing in life is ever that clear cut and straight forward. I enjoyed the interactions between Helena and her family and how they coped with what was being discovered but I think the situation with regard to Jack and Helena was fairly rushed and was mentioned every now and again just to add some romance to the story. If I'm being perfectly honest it really didn't need it as the other storylines were more than strong enough to carry the entire book through to its conclusion. Yes it was nice to see Helena find some happiness, and Jack was needed at the beginning as the catalyst to fuel Helena's investigative fire, but after that the relationship felt too forced and it all developed rather quickly and then aspects of it were mentioned in one paragraph, glossed over and then forgotten about. Helena and Jack weren't the sole focus here and their relationship could have easily been omitted.

For me by far the strongest aspect of the book was Lillian's story as it took me back in time to the war years but the author provided a totally different slant to all the WW2 books I had read before. It was fresh and innovative and had me hooked. Yes the topic may be a divisive one depending on your viewpoint in relation to the subject matter but I felt it was dealt with such sensitivity and tact and the women involved were courageous even if it came about through previous real life experiences. We meet Lillian as she works for ATA (Air Transport Auxillary). She transports planes recently made in factories to airfields and bases all over Britain. She is a woman amidst a few others working in a man's world but it is a role she relishes and enjoys. She feels she was made for this, yet the reader can sense a hardness surrounding her, a wall she has built up, a secret she is hiding and one she would not like to come to light for fear of the repercussions. Lillian is harbouring two big secrets and over the course of the story as we learn more about her and her background, my respect and admiration for her grew and grew.

Countless times she places herself in danger in order to help others. If her manoeuvres alongside two others had been discovered it would have meant a very serious outcome for all involved. As Helena in the present digs deeper into Lillian's past the reader does become aware as to what happened during the war years and an incredible story unfolds. Some aspects were kept secret until the later stages of the book but I guessed fairly early on what had happened and why the need to cover it up. Lillian proved to be selfless person and a young woman with a strong and clear head on her shoulders. She suffered loss and heartbreak but sacrificed her emotions to help others. I would never have given any thought in the slightest as to the subject matter the story focused on and in some ways things like that still go on today and have little changed. The respect the various characters had for Lillian will inspire respect in the reader too and that makes her someone you won't forget in a hurry. I felt her initial situation before the war was awful and certainly not of her own making but it is how she handles this and moves forward with her life and attempts to help others that makes her a stand out character.

Overall I enjoyed The Hidden Women. It is a quick read, partly because of the short and snappy chapters moving back and forth through time, and also because you become engrossed in the storyline and as keen as Helena to reconcile the past with the present and to find the answers to so many questions. The reader wants to know what motivates Helena and Lillian and that is revealed with the help of present day situations. We also want to know how it affected Lillian for the rest of her life. Saying that I would have liked a little bit more mystery as I felt things came to light a little too quickly. I would have loved a little more investigation and not for things to be so apparent fairly early on. That big moment of jaw dropping, shock and surprise didn't materialise for me which I normally look for towards the end. If things had been saved for the last quarter or so then that would have happened and I would have been left deeply satisfied. Still The Hidden Women is well worth a read as it has brilliantly written characters and a plot that is interesting and informative.

I really enjoyed this book. It was better than I was expecting it to be. The dual story lines which are so common in historical fiction these days worked well together. As most of these stories have a surprise 'reveal', I was quite pleased when the potential one in this story wasn't a surprise; it was revealed early on and incorporated well into the story.

My only complaint was the historical story wasn't continuous; we traveled from 1944 to 1940 and back again - making it slightly difficult to maintain. Otherwise, this was a great book. Easy to read and it sucked me right in from the start. Definitely a recommend from me.

Loved this book. Great characters and the dual narrative was very well done. Some difficult subjects were dealt with very well. This is my first introduction to Kerry Barrett but I'll definitely be looking out for more from the author in the future!

A great story line with brilliant main characters.. I read this book in one sitting as I couldn't put it down.

I wanted to love this book. This genre of historical fiction relaying women's incredible contributions in prior generations has become very popular. It's often fascinating to learn about these women through novels but the two stories - current and past - both have to be compelling. Also if there is a mystery involved there has to be some suspense. Unfortunately for me this book didn't meet either of those criteria. I found much of the story to be trite and there was no suspense - I knew what was coming every step of the way. However, even with those criticisms I stilled enjoyed reading the story; hence why I gave it 3 stars. I liked the characters and enjoyed the plot (even with my complaints:)

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an early release in exchange for an honest and fair review.

The Hidden Women by Kerry Barrett is a beautifully written story. Some of the subjects brought up were hard to deal with like abortion. Everyone has different opinions on abortion and the time that this book takes place being unmarried and having a baby was not supposed to a happen. The book had a great plot a person that deals with researching stars family histories.

What a wonderful read set in two timescales.
Lillian flew airplanes to their delivery destination in the war and with friends also set up a network of help near the airbases. She's a wonderful character and she's related to the other main female character in the modern part of the book.

Helena works for a tv company that researches celebrities history and one of her cases unearths her aunts name. That sparks curiosity and it is fascinating to read both sides of the story and see how the story weaves together.


I am keen to read more by Kerry Barrett.

Having loved Kerry's previous book, I just knew that I wanted to read her next one and so glad that I did.

This has been a truly wonderful, heartfelt and emotionally charged story from start to finish. I loved how the story was told in two time frames, past in 1940 and present 2018. I especially loved the historical element as I loved a few things that I never even knew, like women flying the planes even spitfires, just wow.

I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know all of the characters and seeing how their lives played out, there were some emotional moments which bought tears to my eyes and then there were some shocking moments too.

I just loved loved reading this story and so didn't want it to end.

Thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest review
The hidden women really were hero's.
During war times women just got on with what had to be done loved the smooth transition between the two times flowed beautifully an excellent read that I will be recommending to friends.

I loved this book it is very engaging in both of the timelines it makes you wonder if things like this actually happened.The charactors are brilliant and i was a staunch supporter of Lilian and all that she did.Worthy of 5*

I loved this book so much. All the characters, in both timelines, really shone and you were rooting for them from the beginning. I found the wartime story the most interesting, especially as I can’t help but wonder if there really were women who did what Lil did during the war. Either way, this is a lovely book. It is very easy to read despite touching on some very serious topics. I was gripped and read it all in one evening. I’d never heard of this author and requested it from Netgalley on a whim, but I will definitely be purchasing her back catalogue now.

I love historical fiction, so this was right up my alley. Kerry Barrett writes a very engaging story about women that were trained as pilots in Britain, and delivered airplanes to various airfields, assisting in the war effort. The main character Lillian, has a side project that she’s involved in, one that requires courage and could compromise her job and her life.
The author develops an interesting cast of characters, while alternating separate time periods. Helena, Lil’s young niece, takes an interest in her aunts story and as she does her own research, risks alienating members of her own family.
This is a well written story of brave women, family love and loyalty and also the secrets that can damage even the strongest bonds. Thank you to Net Galley and Harper Collins for my ARC.

The Hidden Women by Kerry Barrett is a gripping contemporary and historical novel that will have your emotions shot to pieces.
The book celebrates the groundbreaking achievements of the first female pilots in WWII. Their bravery and courage is to be admired. They are very much modern women seeking equality with men in an age of inequality.
The Hidden Women explores the underground network of women who stood up for and helped other women, at the risk to their own liberty. Unwanted pregnancies in the war years were not uncommon, helping these women with secret adoptions and more was not. Brave women risked prison to help those with nowhere to turn. This novel is a tribute to those brave women who helped those whom society preferred to judge rather than love.
The dual timeline explores how attitudes have changed. The reader is treated to two different voices in the two time periods. Both are in the first person so we become intimately acquainted with both women and their gutsy personalities.
The women in the novel are strong in comparison with the men who seem weak and some of whom take advantage of the minors in their charge.
A unique and cleverly constructed plotline links the two time periods. I was enthralled from the start.
The Hidden Women was a fabulous read. It certainly makes the modern reader thankful that times have moved on from the 1940’s. Thank you to all the brave women who helped those whom society condemned. May we never judge others harshly for their situations but love and support them.
Kerry Barrett is a new author to me. I shall definitely be seeking out more by her.
I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.