I enjoyed this story.......all the characters were very real. There a few coincidences that I thought stretched the imagination just a little too far but it was a good story.
Nina living in a beautiful large house, two sons and an adoring husband wants for nothing and tends not to mix with others because she is totally content. But then disaster strikes and Nina has to fend for herself and the boys......of course she survives but the way she does, her determination to and her realisation that money isn't everything makes for a very good read.

Well I thought I wanted to read this book until I got partway through and realised that it was what I think people probably call 'chicklit', which is not a genre that I'm interested in.
It was certain well written and crafted in a way that leads the reader nicely through the story.
However I made a mistake in selecting it and did not really enjoy it much at all.
So in fairness to the author I am not going to criticise it and will just say that it will probably suit those who like a story about life destroyed by disaster and then rebuilt through personal resilience.

I received a copy of this book as an auto-approval from NetGalley in exchange for my review. This is the second book by Amanda Prowse I've been given the opportunity to read. I'm not sure at this moment in life I would have picked this book as I've been stuck in a thriller mood lately. I am however glad I gave it a shot.

How would you cope if everything you thought about your life was a lie?

There's Nina, who is a housewife and mother of 2 boys, Connor and Declan. She is busy with life surrounding the activities of her sons and husband, Finn. When her husband dies in a car accident her world is thrown into turmoil. What will she do? She doesn't work a job, and hasn't for years. Her family has lived a rather extravagant lifestyle. She knows nothing of their finances and is totally shocked when their lawyer informs her after her husband's funeral that they are broke. Not just broke, but owing eight million pounds of debt. She doesn't understand any of it because her husband said nothing about any of this to her. So Nina and her sons have to start from scratch, leaving behind their monstrous home and the boys private school to go back to the town where her sister lives.

This book shows you the trials of this family trying to rebuild their life after experiencing one upset after another. With help from her sister, Tiggy, she proves that she can overcome. Nina has great strength even though she thinks she doesn't.

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. You know when you have both a good laugh and a good cry, it's a good book. It was well written and I look forward to another by Amanda Prowse.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for this opportunity.

A beautifully written book. This story really tugged at my heartstrings. That's not to say it is a necessarily sad book, just that it was real. The book depicts circumstances that could happen to anybody, and illustrates the hidden strengths that we all possess. An excellent read.

Actual Rating: 4.5 stars

This book was fantastic, even better than Prowse's previous novel that I read, "The Idea of You". We follow Nina McCormick, a rich housewife, whose world gets turned upsidedown when she gets a calls that her husband is dead, and that catastrophe amplifies even more when she learns that they're bankrupt and losing everything (including their luxurious home). As a [now] single mother of two boys, a ten yo and 16 yo, she has to come through the pains and understandings of parenting these children to be the best men they can be.

All the while Nina is questioning who her husband actually was, and examining their marriage in a different light because of the things that were revealed after his death. There's also a delightful sisterhood between her and the older sister Tiggy, which was messy but ultimately protective and supportive.

One thing that I was so glad of, was that there was no love interest; Nina was just her own independent women, and she didn't need a man to provide/guide her children. I went into this book, perhaps expecting a romance of sorts, given the history of Prowse's previous books, however, the way that the story progressed, focusing on the mother-son and sister relationships was the better way to handle the plot of this.

Nina as a character is so relatable and I truly connected to her, which is what makes a book shine. However, at the same time I was so frustrated with how blind and naive she could be to her relationship to her late husband Finn. He was a controlling, money-lusting man, who wanted to mold Nina into this perfect little housewife that was oblivious to the pressure of the dangers facing their family.

In all, this is a beautiful story of loss, motherhood, and the value of family. It could be described as a family drama, a from riches to rags type of book. You would do yourself a favor picking this up, once you do, you won't stop reading until the last page.

**Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.**

Having read one other book by the author I thought I'd try this one but the title and the description promised much more than the book actually delivered.

I think this is one for fans of Amanda Prowse and those who are happy to plod along with a domestic drama in which nothing really goes on with very little to grip you but everyday life. As I prefer a drama that takes me out of the humdrum and into the 'Wow! That really happened?' I would have to say that this book was definitely not for me. I skimmed most of the last third.

Amanda Prowse broke me down with the beginning of The Art of Hiding, but by the end of the story put my roller coaster of emotions back together again! This story deals with traumatic loss and learning how someone dear and close to you could have hidden so much from you.

This story hit so close to home for me and was heartbreaking and challenging to read at times. BUT, it was needed it is such a great story that reading what the main character, Nina, goes through is most likely every married woman's worst nightmare come to life. I loved how Prowse gives Nina the perfect ending in the story!

Thank you Amanda for a great, soul searching story that I needed to read even though, at times, it was hard for me to feel the strife that challenged the main characters in the story!

Wonderfully realistic! So often, this type of book has stereotyped characters - the beautiful, poor, unfortunate, grieving widow and her adorable kids have to make their way in the world without their father and husband, who was everything to all of them.....until a handsome guy who she either dislikes at first, or only thinks of as a friend, finally rescues her from a situation and declares his undying love for her and they live happily ever after - I'm so happy this was different! I won't give away any plot twists, but I can actually see this story happening in real life.
Each main character has dimension, but I really liked Nina.
She wasn't perfect, but I could identify with her and how she reacted to her situation and I admired the way she handled her children.

<i>'Nina McCarrick has it all: a loving husband, two beautiful boys, a well-appointed home and more time than she knows what to do with. Life is perfect. Until her husband, Finn, is killed in a car accident and everything Nina thought she could rely on unravels.'</i>

I was given an ARC copy from NetGalley in return for my honest review.

I give it 2.5 stars. A bit boring for my tastes but not horrible.

The Art of Hiding did have a few inspiring moments, but for the most part it was just 'meh' for me. I really don't think I am the target audience for this book. It wasn't a bad book but I was never really able to connect with Nina, the main character and all. I mostly found her naive and annoying. The fact that she had absolutely no knowledge of their family finances and didn't even have access to bank account passwords seems unrealistic in this day and age. And that her husband, who supposedly loved her, would leave her and their children in this situation with no warning of what was going on makes him seem more like a controlling jerk than a loving husband and father. The most interesting character in the whole story was her sister Tiggy.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2097464909

This book really made me think. Nina had to deal with the death of her husband and subsequently the death of her life as she knew it. To "start your life over" is one thing but to have to do with while raising young kids is a totally different thing. This is what Nina had to do and so many times during this book I really felt for her probably because I am a wife and mother so I put myself in her shoes. I wondered what it would be like if that was me. This is truly an amazing read!! I do recommend this to wives, moms, and all woman. It will teach you a thing or two about knowing that ultimately the only person you can truly depend on and trust is yourself.

Nina seems to be living the perfect life……lives in a beautiful home, has a wealthy husband and two sons who are studying in a very elite school. Suddenly it all falls apart as her husband dies and she finds that her perfect life is not what it seems. This is a story of loss, starting over and perseverance told in a very realistic way. The author captures all of these feelings by each of the characters, particularly Nina who must confront her past before starting her future. A great read!

Nina lives a charmed life in her beautiful, immaculate home, spending her days cooking, shopping, and looking after her two boys and successful husband. Then one day a terrible accident changes her life completely. Suddenly destitute, she loses her home and is forced to move back to a tiny flat in the working class area she had escaped from twenty years earlier. She struggles to find a job and adjust to a new life, but also to reconnect with her sister.
I found the dialogue a bit unbelievable, too much self-analysis and angst, and couldn't imagine these characters actually talking to each other in this way.
The plot is familiar and predictable aside from a slight twist towards the end. This is a light, entertaining read, perfect for a holiday or long flight.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is my second Amanda Prowse book.
She writes of families that you will become a part of, and you will root for.

A family living their lives and all is well...
or so it appears.

Then the husband/father dies-
hidden discoveries are seen.
they lose their home, belongings, security; but not each other.

The Art of Hiding was just an OK book for me. The book wasn't bad, in fact I really liked the writing style, I just wasn't in the right state of mind for this type of story. The main heroine Nina wasn't really likable, at least in the first half of the book. As I read I found myself getting angry with her for being so passive and so naïve. She relied on Finn, her husband, who was a successful business owner and the sole provider, for everything. In her role as a rich housewife all her activities revolved around keeping a nice house for her husband and their children. She never paid a bill, checked a bank statement, or asked any questions about Finn's business. So when Finn died and she discovered that he lost his business and left them in a massive debt, she found herself unprepared to deal with the consequences.

I enjoyed the second part of the book a lot more. We got to see Nina's growth, her determination to provide for her children and to keep them safe. We also saw her making amends with her sister Tiggy, whom she neglected while married to Finn. It was interesting to see the changes in Nina and how she learned to love her new, humbler life.

The Art of Hiding is very much a character driven book and it would be a good choice for a book club because the author raises some very interesting questions about relationships, money, grief, and self-discovery.

This isn't the type of book I usually read. When I was offered the chance to read it through NetGalley I thought I would check it out and probably pass. I started reading and found myself caught up in the story. It is definitely a tear jerker, which I wouldn't usually read, but it was so well written I had to keep going. If you like emotional character driven books than this one is for you. At the heart of this story is the reality of a marriage and the struggle between mother and child during adolescent. A few times I thought the author was going to give our protagonist an easy way out but she didn't. I've read stories that are far more Cinderella like in how the character overcomes tragedy but that is definitely not the case here. This is a family drama that is very real. You cannot but hope for the family to make it through to the other side. By the end I was still invested in the family and curious about where they were going. I received this copy for free though NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! This is a stunner of a book. Right from the start I was engrossed. I felt so sad for Nina when Finn died, and for her lovely boys. It was as though I knew them personally.

She is left with nothing, and you feel so much sympathy and pride for her when she tries to put her life back together again.

It feels like such a huge, momentous story, and yet it’s something that happens all the time to ordinary people. This is what makes Amanda Prowse’s books so extraordinary.

This book should come with warnings: will make you cry and smile, and also, be prepared to want to cancel everything so that you can finish it.

Thought-provoking and captivating, it’s a must-read.

How can I describe this book? It's a book of two halves really. Nina has ' the perfect life', money,family and well everything.
This is an exploration of what happens if that is suddenly taken away. Finn her husband dies and what was a perfect existence is gone in the blink of an eye. So how do people from privilege survive in a world of poverty and self sacrifice in order to survive.
To some it will seem the cruelest of fates and to others a journey of self awareness and self discovery.
Some will dislike Ninas thought processes whilst others will see the true depth to self discovery and self fulfilment. Are people with less more honest and more genuine. What you in life is real and what is fake and how are we so conditioned that we can't see this?
The author is incredibly accurate in her analysis of people,how we rag names to them ,toothless Vera, made me smile but that does not detract from seeing the real person beneath.

So,this is well written,insightful,emotional. If you are looking for a pacy read save this until you want to sit and relax in to it,I did not find it pacy but a gentle amble.
Well worth a read

I enjoyed this book. The too perfect empty lifestyle, the shattering events and the rebuilding of the new were well described. The narrative is linear, comfortable and even the gentle twist at the end was predictable. I found the portrayal of life before and after the death a bit too black and white, all the rich people being hollow and empty, all the poor people being wonderfully alive. Overall I enjoyed it and would certainly recommend the book to others. Read on NetGalley free for an honest review.
Posted on Amazon

The Art of Hiding is the first book I've read by Amanda Prowse and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

It follows the story of Nina, she has a wonderful life with her husband Finn and her sons Connor and Declan in a beautifully house in Bath. The boys attend an exclusive school and she spends her days living the perfect life.

Then everything changes a Finn is killed in a car crash and everything Nina thought she could rely on begins to unravel. Her life off luxury becomes a distant memory as she and the boys are forced to move to Southampton, a place where she thought she'd escaped from for good. This book followed her as she starts to take charge of her life and begin to provide for the boys.

It's a lovely story that covers a woman's experience of both loss and love. The characters are all likeable and it's easy to get immersed into the story. I would give this book 4 stars, I read it in a few days and can recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing and the author for the chance to review.