I loved the last book this author did and this one didn’t disappoint. Definitely had all the elements I was looking for in a book. I’d definitely recommend this to anyone

Ways We Hide
by Kristina McMorris
Pub DAte: Sept. 6, 2022
Sourcebooks
Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.
* historical fiction
This is my second novel by this author and I really enjoy the style and flow of her stories. I found this novel to be engrossing with the illusionist storyline. I had never considered using a talent like that during the war.
The strong female character was sassy and bold. I'm not a big fan of romance in a novel but I did enjoy this particular storyline. I lost interest during her mission. I think our patrons will enjoy this book so I have already preordered it.
3.5

This book was a suspenseful book but was different than I expected from the description. I thought it would be more about coming up with escape aids, but that was only a small part. Understandably, there was a sizeable part about Fenna's younger life and experiences that shaped her as a person. There was also a bit about her working as an escape artist's assistant. However, the biggest part of the book was about a mission she went on.

I wasn’t sure if I liked Arie, and some of the decisions he made (and some which Fenna made), while understandable, were not for the greater good.

I found the ending satisfying.

I have been working my way through this book for almost a week now and just can't seem to make much progress. There are parts of the story that I really enjoyed (Fenna's early years and Arie and Fenna's love story), but then others that bored me. I finally decided this book just wasn't for me and I DNF. I received this book via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank SourceBooks Landmark along with NetGalley and the author for the preview copy.
I loved this book. Historical fiction is my favorite, but I thought I was over World War 2 books. Not so! This is a sweeping saga of one strong woman’s life and loves and the history is just part of it. From a horrible start to more and more obstacles, our heroine is everything we want to see in a strong female who is trying to live her best life contributing to the war effort. What a creative premise! I learned so much about Houdini and magic tricks and love how this relates to the war effort.
I love Fenna! She’s so human and real but she is constantly trying to do the right thing all the time quite aware of her inability to create and keep intimate relationships. Her past has her very guarded and self sufficient and her reasoning for not having children is heartbreaking. We see her grow from a very shy young child into a strong woman.
The plot is huge! How many subplots, changes of settings and characters? I honestly lost track. So much research and detail are included that I am in awe of the author. This could easily be material for two if not three novels. The multiple storylines kind of exhausted me as a reader so I can’t imagine what it took to research and write this book. To be honest, I was kind of counting the pages to the end because of this.
Kristina McMorris is an author new to me and I intend to go back and read her backlist. Her writing is excellent. I did find the book a bit slow in places but the deeper I got into it the more of a page turner it was for me. I really enjoyed the author’s note and love how history and fiction made for such an amazing read.

Ways We Hide by Kristina McMorris does not disappoint. From illusions, to family drama, ww2 spies and gadgets and a love story all come together in this book. I couldn’t put it down, kept me reading late into the night too many nights to count! Would recommend this book to fans of historical fiction, ww2, 1920s and 30s America, and Harry Houdini 😉. You will not be disappointed!!

What an amazing World War 2 historical novel from a new author to me. It was not only wonderfully written, but the time the author used to use actual historical events to write her story.

Inspired by true events, The Ways We Hide is a beautifully written WWII spy story full of historical intrigue and amazing characters.

The story is primarily written from Fenna's point of view which instantly connects you to her character and surroundings. As a successful illusionist and assistant in a magical show in the US, her connections to the war feel safe and distant compared to the terror that reigns in the Netherlands. That is, until Major Hutton recruits her to M19 creating hidden gadgets to help aid in the war efforts for British allies. As the story begins to unfold, we get some backstory of her childhood tragedies as well as her more happier moments with her father and childhood best friend, Arie. The skillful weaving of these timelines not only shapes a fantastic plot but also builds the type of suspense that will keep you feverishly turning the pages. I literally could not put this book down!

Fenna Vos is an amazingly strong protagonist who is not only inspiring but also relatable, along with her childhood friend, Arie. I fell in love with them both as I laughed, cried, and longed for each of their journeys. My goodness, these two characters really gripped me!

I also enjoyed learning about M19, the game boards that helped aid war efforts, and the fun facts of Houdini's history along the way. An extensive amount of research went in to this book and it clearly shows. I truly appreciate the amount of devotion McMorris puts in to each and every one of her novels to craft such captivating stories and characters. They always seduce me into learning even more about the book's topic long after I've finished reading.

Schedule to publish on September 6, 2022, The Ways We Hide is perfect for historical fiction fans and book club discussions. I highly recommend this book!

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks for an Advanced Readers Copy of this amazing book. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Five Key Feels

-Fenna and Arie are so sweet, their story is so engrossing.

-The various settings of this book are very interesting.

-The integration of magic and it’s usefulness is so well done.

-The book was full of tension!

-This book did a great job of weaving real history into a historical fiction book.


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The Ways We Hide is a historical fiction book set during World War 2, and centers around a women named Fenna. She is a magician who uses her skills to aid the war effort. She then essentially becomes a spy in order to help her dear friend Arie escape Nazi Occupied the Netherlands.

I found this book to be a bit slow to start, and it took me awhile to really get into the meat of the story. I get that the pieces were all interconnected, but I felt the explanations for those pieces took awhile to really flesh out.

As someone who is a big fan of historical fiction, particularly World War 2, I loved Fenna’s work on tools for espionage. However, I found her being dropped into The Netherlands a bit implausible. I am not saying these things didn’t happen in World War 2, because they did, but the rush to link her job to basically becoming a spy was a hard jump for me to just accept.

Overall, I still really enjoyed this book. It was very engaging, and I would definitely recommend it to other historical fiction lovers.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A young woman faces hardships and finds her place in the world in spite of her past difficulties.

As someone who loves history and has just recently gotten into historical fiction, The Ways We Hide has become one of the best books I have read in the genre!

The blend of WW2, Illusion/Magic and a little blend of romance creates a beautifully crafted story of love and the lengths we go to as we reach for it or even run away from it. The characters of Fen and Arie bring this story to life and make it feel realistic and like it could have happened in real life.

Kristina McMorris crafts a story that feels lived in and I hope to see what else she writes because of this phenomenal story!

This was a fantastic read, I found the description of the book interesting because Fenna grew up in Copper Harbor Michigan (I'm from MI), she was involved in magic shows and loved Houdini (I was always fascinated with both), and she was recruited to use her skills to help in WWII. I thought she was going to be performing across Europe to sneak in and out and help during the war but that isn't the way she helped. I also was surprised to see that she was the assistant in the magic show but in truth was the genius behind the show and the builder of all the large "tricks" they performed. Her many skills behind coming up with these was how she started to help, coming up with so many ideas for our servicemen. This is based on true events during the war to make the book further interesting. I normally read books around 300 pages so when I got the book and saw it was just under 500 I was a little disappointed but I am so glad I read it. From Fenna's childhood, her time touring with her magic show, her time with the military intelligence coming up with so many creative ideas to her actually heading into the war zone in a dangerous plan the book was so captivating. Fenna is the main character in the book and it was so good to read about a strong female lead! If you like books like The Forest of Vanishing Stars, The Pull of the Stars, & The Exiles you will love this book too! I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley and this review is my honest opinion.

Ways We Hide is an interesting perspective on the interwar years and WWII. It is also a relief after all the standard WWII fare.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Fenna is an assistant fir a stage act. She stats behind the scenes and makes the trick look effortless. She is asked to us her skills to help defend her country. This was a remarkable story.

Young Fenna Vos shares a love of magic tricks with her neighbor, Arie. The two children live very separate lives, but trade Morse code messages by tapping on a shared wall. Language and religion keep their families apart. Fenna and her father, both Catholics, speak a different dialect of Dutch than Arie’s Protestant family.

The two families live in Michigan’s copper mining region. The mine owners are putting pressure on the workers to keep them from unionizing. At a Christmas Eve gathering, Fenna and Arie are caught in a suspicious and horrendous tragedy that kills many of their neighbors, mostly children. They survive, and are bound together and scarred for life by the experience.

As Fenna gets older, she becomes increasingly interested in gadgets and magic tricks. She eventually performs on stage, designing tricks and acting as back-up for a less adept magician. Her skill, and her uniqueness as a female magician, come to the attention of an MI9 operative in Britain. She is recruited for the war effort. Her assignment is to make gadgets and hide tools that will help downed airmen and prisoners of war escape from the Germans.

Meanwhile, Arie is also recruited for his skills. When the two childhood friends cross paths again, Arie is suspected of being a traitor. Fenna sneaks into Holland to aid her old friend. Deep in German territory, Fenna must use all of her knowledge of gadgets, tricks and misdirection to get out alive.

I am in absolute awe of The Ways We Hide. The quality of the writing, the plot and the characters are exquisite. This is not a thinly disguised romance set in the past. This is the real deal. Drawn from historical facts and extensive research, this is a masterwork novel. This is one of the best books I’ve read this year and is the first book to win my Historical Fiction Gold Star Award in 2022.

My Rating GOLD STAR, A+

NOTE: Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebook Landmark publishing for the opportunity to read and review an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. Expected publication date is September 6, 2022. Look for it at your favorite online or local bookseller.

Five stars for this fascinating well-written tale of "love and loss" that had me emotionally hooked from the beginning. The author did a terrific job developing the main characters whom we first meet as children. We understand how & why they develop into the adults they become and why their relationship moves along as it does. The main female character is a magician/illusionist who ends up in British intelligence helping to save lives in WWII; this aspect of the book, much of it based on true events, was incredibly interesting and informative. The well-rounded secondary characters added a great deal to the story, helping us better understand the motivations and actions of the main characters. I look forward to the author's next book

This is an entertaining, well-written, fast paced, historical fiction novel set during WWII, which is based on true events. It is tragic and heart-breaking, and has suspense, perseverance, a heart-warming romance, heroism, and hope. The female protagonist is likable, caring, courageous, intelligent, confident and resilient. The author's notes at the at the end of this novel are interesting and informative, and are truly appreciated.
NetGalley and Sourcebook Landmark kindly provided me with an ARC of this novel, and this is my honest opinion.

Wow oh Wow!! I have read several of this authors works, but this one, is by far the best ever. What research she had to have done to get this story told so well plus the writing is stellar. There was never a dull moment, and the story is completely believable all the way thru.
The flow of this story is something you just don’t want to miss. I loved all the characters, it has it all, intrigue, enjoyment, sadness, joy but most of all, love. The love story is so touching. I re-read so many passages over again just so I wouldn’t miss anything.
I loved this book, the highest 5 stars I can give. Moving it into my top 5 books ever list. Of which she was already in the list with Sold on a Monday.
I want to thank SourceBooks Landmark along with NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC. Coming in with high 5*****

A great read. Very different than your typical WW2 reads. A lot packed into one novel! Thank you to NetGalle6 and the publisher for the early read.

The Ways We Hide opened introducing us to the main character, Fenna Vos in 1948. Fenna worked as a magician's assistant in a magic show. She was really the master mind behind the act as she created most of the tricks and props. She trained her partner to be the lead in the act hoping to get more bookings.

The story later flashed back to 1928 to give the reader a sense of Fenna's childhood. Fenna was a child who grew up in poverty. She became friends with the boy next door, Arie, who gave her a book on magic as a way to occupy her mind after they barely survived a tragic event . She spent time practicing on Arie and developed a real love for magic and Harry Houdini. Fenna lost her mother as a young child. She later lost her father as well and was sent to an orphanage. She eventually escaped the orphanage and tried to find her best friend, Arie, who moved to another town nearby. She found him and his family took her in. Fenna and Arie continued to pass the time practicing magic, learning, using Morse Code, and solving puzzles.

The story then moves back to 1943 where Fenna is approached by an agent working with the MI9 section of the British War Office. It was the middle of WWII and they were working on ways to secretly get tools and supplies to POWs. The agent felt that Fenna's skills in creating secret compartments used in magic acts would be an asset to their office. She decided to leave the magic act and begin work in London.

Fenna was an wonderful main character. She was flawed, as humans are, but she tried to do what was right. She had a love of creating illusions and misdirecting attention that helped those captured soldiers get necessary supplies. Fenna was fiercely loyal and would do what she could to help those she cared about. That loyalty later took her on a dangerous mission.

McMorris did a fantastic job of telling an unusual WWII tale. In reading her Author's Note at the end it was interesting reading how she took several events and wound those through her story. I love reading how women helped the war effort with their unique talents and abilities. Fenna's story explored an angle I had not read of before and I fell in love with her completely.

The Ways We Hide is scheduled to be released on September 6. 2022. I would like to thank Kristina McMorris, Sourcebooks Landmark, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and honestly review this book.

This review has been posted to my Goodreads, Instagram, and StoryGraph accounts. The links are below.