I have read several of Amanda Prowse's books before and each one has been excellent. This one was no exception.

Nina has a charmed life, a life far removed from the hand-to-mouth existence she knew growing up, and she likes it that way. She is a housewife, she has a beautiful home, her boys go to an exclusive school, everything is right in her world. Until it isn't. Until her lovely husband dies and suddenly she has to figure out what to do, how to go on without him. How to get her brain around the secrets he has been keeping.

This is a beautifully written book and I spent the whole book cheering Nina on, and hoping that she would come through this terrible period in her life relatively unscathed. I experienced a whole slew of emotions along with her; sadness, joy, hate, love, shame, pride and finally a quiet satisfaction that she was exactly where she needed to be.

I loved this book so much, it took less than a day for me to read it.

Highly recommended, obviously :)

I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

4 stars- this is a tale that happens all the time in today's America. We believe in the dream... of all the things we think we need and should have... Magnify that by a young woman who was from poverty... she meets a man who promises her safety, love and never having to worry money again...She believes him. They live a happy life with their children. Best homes, schools and cars... no worries... A Blind eye to it all...
And then life teaches her another lesson... Takes it all away... Husband dies and has been hiding all of the failure of his business, loans and no finances.

She must start again...the children must adapt... and we get to experience it all.

This was the first book book I’ve read by Amanda Prowse, but it won’t be the last. The rags-to-riches-to-rags (“rags” may be a slight overstatement) was curiously satisfying for me. I say curiously because I don’t always enjoy this type of story. But the combination of the double-whammy of the blows Nina suffered (the death of her husband, closely followed by the realization he’d gone bankrupt and hadn’t told her) ended up being very engaging for me. While at times it felt like she was a bit too plucky, at the same time I appreciated that that’s what good moms do - we suck it up for our kids, put the best face on things, apologize when we realize we’ve screwed up, and keep on loving them when our teen-aged darlings are being…shall we say, less than lovable. Most important, we do whatever we can to protect them and provide for them. Overall Nina felt quite real and human to me. She was thrown into such a difficult situation, and had to deal with that while coming to some uncomfortable realizations about her husband and their life together. In the end, I felt like I knew where it was ultimately going, but I still enjoyed the journey.
Copy provided by Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing in exchange for an unbiased review.

Nina McCarrick grew up in a poverty stricken area. Her dream was to be able to leave this place and never to have to worry about money or be safe again. Her dream became a reality, when a young man, Finn McCarrick, came into the store where she and her father were working. Finn was very mature and became smitten with Nina. They married made a great life together and had two sons. Finns contracting business became very successful and all was well. Finn told her she would never have to worry about money ever again, and that he would take care of her. He didn't bother her with any of the workings of the business or their finances. They lived in a massive, gorgeous house filled with expensive furniture, drove expensive cars, and both boys were enrolled in the very prestigious Royal Norton College. What more could she ask for? Then the unthinkable happens. He her husband is killed in an accident. She finds out that her husband had been hiding so many things from her. He was about to lose the business, the house was about to be foreclosed, the boys semesters had not been paid for, and they had no money, except for a few dollars that her husband had hidden. What is she going to do? How is she going to explain these horrible circumstances to both of her sons! She is grieving and trying to figure out how to take care of her sons and how to survive. How is she going to do this; she was a stay-at-home Mom with absolutely no skills? What lesson is there for her and her sons to learn from all if this? She came from poverty to riches and now back to poverty. What next? I enjoyed this book very much The plot was something that is very believable and feasible for a person to experience. I also like the character development in this book. The reader could really relate to the life experiences that were happening in the book.

Nina thinks she has everything. The big house , two boys at an expensive school and a husband who provides for her every need. Her world is turned upside down when her husband dies leaving her in debt. She loses everything and is forced to move back to her roots in a poverty stricken area of Southampton. At first neither her, or her boys can understand what has happened. In this well written book Amanda Prowse yet again proves she can write open, honest and believable tales of the every day.

Its a good though predictable story but is let down on the attention to details.

There are american words thrown in such as emergency room instead of a&e, and quart of cream as two examples. Its set in the UK, use english words!

Even the boys at state school being across corridor not correct as youngest 10 so would be in primary school still.

And the bit with the baliffs feels wrong; if there is only a child there, they should not enter the property.

The Art of Hiding is my first title from Amanda Prowse, and it will not be my last. The characters in this book are relatable and the situation is all to common for many. This title is a quick read. I did find it predictable, but it was enjoyable.

First Id like to thank Net Galley, Amanda Prowse and Lake union publishing for allowing me to review this amazing story told with such personal emotional depth I had to reach for the tissues. It tells the story of Nina, Connor and Declan and how a life alerting tragedy helps them pull together with Nina sister Lizzie to find courage and strength and love from each other and themselves to start to rebuild their lives and help them start to begin their lives from scratch

The Art of Hiding was another great book by Amanda Prowse. I have yet to read a book by Amanda that I did not love and this book did not disappoint me.
A great eye opener of how quick you can go from riches to rags and how easy this could happen. A very emotional story that is screaming out for a follow up??
Have a read you won't be disappointed.

The Art Of Hiding was a wonderful book of out of sadness came strength, determination and happiness.
Nina lost her husband I unexpectedly, and to make it worse found she had no money, lost her home and fancy car and had no where to go . Back to her beginning in life her and her sons moved into a tiny flat where she grew up , far cry from the life she left . Her sons had difficulty with the new surroundings and missing what they had and she struggled to find a job to support them .
Ninas sister Tiggy was an anchor for her , helping her find her true self . Loved this book

This was a tale of Nina, who thought she had the perfect life, and its unravelling. When her husband dies, Nina begins to realise that her life was not what it seemed. Their house, money and business disappear before her eyes. Can she make a new life for her sons? The story of how she does this didn't quite ring true with me. There seemed to be a naive assumption that all middle class people with money and comfortable lives were selfish, nasty and uncaring, whilst all those scraping a living were kind, happy salt of the earth types. I found the stereotyping overwhelmed the story.

I received this book from Netgalley in return for an honest review. I am a big fan of Amanda Prowse and this book was up there with her best.

I loved and believed in all the characters with the exception of Finn, the deceased husband. I really couldn't make up my mind if he was an out and out baddie, someone who just wanted the best for his family or a real control freak, whatever he was, I didn't like him. Nina, his widow, however, is another of Amanda Prowse's strong female characters although she herself doesn't believe it initially.

Although at times the novel was necessarily bleak, Toothless Vera and sometimes even lovely little Declan did provide some comic relief.

The novel was set in what is now my part of the world and when that happens I don't think I'm alone when I'm almost looking to catch the author out. Geographically, I couldn't, but I did find it hard to believe that such a fantastic care home for the elderly was within walking distance of the house in the back streets of Southampton. However, Nina was by this time pretty impoverished and needing to save on fares as well as everything else, so what she and I might consider 'walking distance' may well differ.

This is a compelling story with a strong moral feeling much needed in this overly materialistic, throw away society that we live in nowadays; money cannot buy happiness, this point gave me, although I am not overly affluent, a lot of food for thought, what would I be prepared to give up for a life of comfort? Following on was the fact that at the end of the day we are all, each and everyone one of us, equals, no-one has the right to look down on those who have less in terms of worldly goods.

I felt that maybe the ending came together a little too neatly (although I have to admit to shedding quite a few tears) especially with regards Tiggy and her new beau (too convenient maybe?) and Connor seemingly passing through the maelstrom of teenage traumas and angst by the time he reached 16 (lucky Nina!) Perhaps I only felt this way because I actually did not want it to end, I want to know what the future has in store for this lovely family.

I always enjoy Amanda Prowse's writing and this book didn't disappoint. You felt Nina's despair when she realised her life is falling apart and then her courage in having to pull together for her children. This isn't a happy go lucky story and I felt it was true to life, scarily making you realise this could happen to anyone if you have no idea about your finances and only your partner deals with this. I felt Nina's anger at her husband was accurate but felt this could have been explored in more depth, however this is a story about survival. I would recommend this book especially if you like Amanda Prowse's other novels

This was my first Amanda Prowse novel, and it won’t be the last. Good story with characters you truly care about.
A powerful story of one woman’s resilience and determination. I highly recommend this emotional and uplifting story about love and loss and the real meaning of happiness.

As the story progressed, the more captivated I became. I couldnt wait to see what was coming next. This is a story of finding your true self amid heartbreak, loss and turmoil. I love at the end how when they visit their old home what Nina actually "sees"! Enlightening and inspring tale!

I loved this book and having read a couple of Amanda Prowse novels I wasn't sure she could keep writing at the great standard she has previously shown, I was wrong and this is a great read.
Nina had everything she could ever want, a very large house and 2 great boys who go to a private school and the love of her life Finn who worked hard at his own business. When Finn was killed in a car accident Nina's world turns upside down,the life they had was just all smoke and mirrors and Finn had kept the fact they were so far in debt to himself. This left Nina stunned and she just couldn't imagine how they were going to exist, she also wanted to shield her boys from how devastating everything is. Nina's sister Tiggy was there right by her side even though she had issues of her own she seemed to bring lightness to some altogether dark and difficult days to come. I found myself crying with sadness and then crying with happiness in places. I highly recommend this book for all but read with caution as you can find yourselves laughing and crying which doesn't go down too well on public transport. I would like t thank netGalley and the publisher for my copy of the book.

I enjoyed this novel, set in current times, with current issues, yet with a simplicity about it that made it feel old fashioned. Despite the difficulties faced by Nina, a younger widow with two sons, there's a breeziness in the way the story is told that makes the book enjoyable. Simply a pleasant end of summer read, despite the challenges faced by Nina.

Nina has a dream life - brought up in poverty she married Finn who promised to always look after her... and he did with every luxury money could buy. However Ninas life comes crashing down when Finn is killed in a car accident and Nina learns that the life they had together was just an illusion and she was left with two boys and nothing but debts.

So Nina has to return to her roots.... the old estate that she grew up in and the book follows her journey as she and her two children, adjust and learn to live this new life.

This book is an easy and moving read. Prowse brings her unique skill of creating scenarios which make the reader feel that they are living the pain and struggle of her characters.

However I found the main character, Nina, to be very unlikely... I think Prowse wants to portray her as this women who escaped her past, is haunted by it and is terrified of going back. However quite frankly Nina just comes across as spoilt and selfish to the point I found myself rolling my eyes at the pages on several occasions.

The reactions and character arc of Nina and Finns two boys is much mroe realistic and even though they start off spoilt their pain is so evident and really reaches out and grabs the reader.

From the very first page the reader is drawn into the lives of this family. Emotions separate each character beautifully enabling the reader to follow the cycle of growth, pain from loss, forced acceptance, and finally complete happiness. This story unfolds in the subconscious the inner thoughts, raw emotions, and determination in this little family that builds to a triumphant ending. Nina and Connor's growth is most remarkable. Truly an inspirational read.

Nina has the perfect life, a husband and son who love her and everything is going well. That is until her husband is killed in a car accident and she must carry on with mounting debt. She ends up having to return to her previous life with her family that she had left behind.

I really enjoyed this book and even though it is not the type of book that I would read I was hooked from the beginning. It really is a thought provoking book.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.