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A review by snipinfool
The Ways We Hide by Kristina McMorris
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
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.
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.