I enjoy historical fiction and this was a different take on the typical WWII novel as it was based in the US not Europe. I liked that the main character worked with an illusionist and thought this was a fresh approach to an occupation I’d never read about. There was a solid plot as well as a bit of romance. I thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Fenna Vos, copper miner's daughter, escape artist assistant and now team leader for those designing escape tools for those behind the enemy lines during WWII. As her efforts improved the chances for successful escapes, her trust in herself will grow. Based on a true story, this is a side of history I'd not read of before.

The Ways We Hide is the second book I’ve read by Kristina McMorris. I loved her first book Sold on a Monday so I was excited to read this one! The majority of the book takes place during WWII with Fenna Vos working for a British Intelligence unit. Fenna had a hard childhood in Michigan and learned magic tricks and mastered illusions as a way to get through. When she is recruited by a spy agency to use her knowledge of illusions to develop gadgets and such for their military she readily accepted. She didn’t know then that she would have to rely on her training to try to rescue a childhood friend from the Nazi’s.

The plot is interesting, but the story was way too slow in the middle and I lost a little interest there. In the end, I’m glad I read it though!

There are some books which just by looking at their cover and premise, you are able to predict that it's going to be a good read. This is one such book!
Definitely put this one in your TBR pile!
Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of the book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this title. Due to health issues I am late on reading and reviewing. This was a well written and obviously a well researched book. Fenna was a great character. I rooted for her the entire book. This book covers courage, intrigue, and romance . I love reading about people being placed in difficult situations and watching as they shine especially set during the war.
I will remember this story for a long time and will highly recommend to my reader friends
Thank you again~
Leslie Ponder

Having survived the 1913 Italian Hall Disaster, Fenna Vos is obsessed with escape. The challenges and hardships she faced as a child, and a penchant for the magic of Harry Houdini, leads her down the path to becoming a creator and performer of illusions. Her talent and ingenuity captures the attention of the British Intelligence, who recruit her to design gadgets and escape aids that played an integral role to support the resistance movement during WWII.

Blending fact with fiction, McMorris once again successfully shines the spotlight on a lesser-known part of history, not only the world or magic and illusion and the role it played in WWII, but also shedding light on the 1913 Italian Hall Disaster, an event I knew nothing about.

Freshly unique and utterly captivating. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

A hearty thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the opportunity to read an advanced digital copy of this story in exchange for my honest review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Ways We Hide by Kristina McMorris was truly such an incredible story. I loved the characters and the overall storyline. I wasn't able to put it down.

Kristina McMorris is a mastermind in historical fiction. Kristina brings another approach to reading about WW2. She gives us unforgettable characters and stories that will stay with us forever.
This is a must read for historical fiction readers,

I loved the author's book On the Edge of Lost, and liked Sold on a Monday okay enough. I would say this one falls in between the two - I love WWII books, I love nonfiction and historical fiction, so when a WWII novel based on a true story gets published I almost always want to read it! This was a well-written, gripping story, based on true events, that had me absolutely captivated and always eager to know what would happen next. 4.5 stars!

I have enjoyed books by this author and this is no exception. Ways We Hide is an historical fiction novel that is set in WWII and based on true events. I love novels that portray history in a narrative format such as this. It has a strong female protagonist and a strong plot. the writing is beautiful and the subject matter brings the emotions. Definitely recommend.
#TheWaysWeHide #NetGalley #SourcebooksLandmark

I received a free ARC ebook of <i>The Ways We Hide</i> from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

First person narrators can be difficult to maintain in a novel. Feena, the protagonist and narrator, uses her love and awe of Houdini's skill and magic to eventually serve as a creator of aids to soldiers during World War II. The path there is circuitous and long. Readers first see Feena as a little immigrant Dutch girl whose father works in the mines. A terrible tragedy involving a terrified crush of people leaves Feena emotionally scarred. Her father's death cements her loneliness. Feena's struggles to survive with a little magic eventually brings her to the home of the Jansens and Arie who once saved her.

Eventually Feena's talent brings her to Britain to aid in war work. It isn't long before her friend Arie needs help. Although I never doubted Feena's willingness to help Arie behind enemy lines, I truly doubted the British agreement to send a lightly trained American to meet with Resistance fighters.

Her time in Holland made the first person narration awkward. Too often Feena gets involved in a dangerous situation without enough details or backup. The reader can only see what she sees, hear what she hears. There is no limited omniscient view to provide more information.

Still the idea of trickery and deception to fool the Nazis in a critical situation kept me reading.

I loved this book. Idk why it took me so long to read it it. But it was so good! I need the physical copy. It literally had me in from sentence one.

the concept of a female magician using her skills to combat nazi is so compelling but i felt this book less about that than it was about displaying all the historical research the author did.

this was a strangely paced book that jumped around in time. it wasn't hard to follow but the way it was employed only served to slow down the momentum.

additionally, i don't understand the need for every book (especially ones that are "historical fiction") to include a romance element. in this case, it was especially heavy handed.

I enjoyed the first half of the book very much but there was a specific plot point mid-way through that made me groan for predictability and nearly made me want to abandon it. There was enough of a "cat and mouse" story going to keep me engaged enough to finish and the author does a nice job with her research of historical events to give it some authenticity.

For some reason I could not get into this book. I think the topic was good and the author told a part of history that is important. I found it slow at the beginning and for me it just didn’t pick up speed.

I wanted to like this story more than I did. I found it hard to relate to Fenna throughout the book so it was a bit of a slog.

Another beautiful book written by Kristina Morris. The story weaves magic, family, tragedies and war together beautifully. It had me tearing up, getting angry and cheering.. The ending was a bit odd for me, but it does tie the story together.

Thank you #NetGalley, #SourcebooksLandmark, #kristinaMcMorris and #thewayswehide for the ebook for my honest review.

A different view of WWII and a completely different plot than I was expecting when I started reading. This book moved slow to start, but I was too engrossed into the life of Fenna, and her creative mind. Kristina McMorris is a storyteller through and through, and this is no exception! Beautiful piece of history.

So, most of the historical fiction I read usually has a romance component as the main part of it. Not with this book. Ways We Hide was a great insight into an unknown portion of World War 2 for me. I learned something about the war and gained a deeper understanding of magic.

Some parts of Fenna were undesirable to me, but for a woman of that time, she was incredibly strong. I do wish that she had relaxed a bit more and been a bit more open, but in some way, those are things that I also wish for myself.

I think I will go back and read more books by this author, as I appreciate the amount of research that goes into them.

This book gives off the many wonderful, powerful themes of a strong WWII novel. I was immediately captivated by Fenna as such a strong character, struggling with many inner challenges of her difficult upbringing and uncertainties.