5 Gripping War Time Story Stars!!

I have become a lover of Kristina McMorris and this book is another shining example of why I love her writing so much. This book is focused on World War II and a little known, at least to me, branch of MI9 and how there were cleverly secretive plans of escape. You see Fenna has some mad skills when it comes to magic and escapism so she’s a perfect person for this assignment. But this is definitely not for the faint of heart and so many things come into question for Fenna when she accepts this request from British Intelligence.

This book isn’t just about how Fenna was involved in the war, it’s also about love and loss and how events from our past can definitely shape our future and everything we do on a daily basis. There’s a relationship that’s broken that had my heart hurting. As I read the book and became wholly invested in Fenna and her role as a spy, I was also curious about her backstory. Ms. McMorris does a wonderful job of weaving this tale, bringing the past to the forefront at just the right moment. Putting a light on what drives Fenna and the losses she’s had to live through.

This book moves at a great pace given the missions that our Heroine is part of… they’re dangerous and had my heart racing because I was always worried something would go wrong! This book is not only a wonderful story of love, loss, living with decisions that are sometimes beyond our control and a fabulous history lesson as this book is based partly on facts that occurred in WW II. It’s a gripping and fascinating read and I highly recommend this book to anyone that loves a phenomenally written story.

I was a bit wary of another WWII novel--there have been so many, and so many good ones--but this is a new and interesting twist on the theme. The novel focuses on Fenna Vos, who has found a way to deal with childhood trauma by becoming a master (mistress?) of illusion. When chance and the War take her to London, to work for MI9 helping to devise clever ways to hide materials for POWs to use, she is drawn into a desperate and dangerous gambit behind enemy lines in an effort to save the only person she's ever truly loved. With compelling characters, danger on all sides, and tricks inspired by actual events from the second World War, The Ways We Hide is not just another WWII novel, with just another heroine--pick up your copy on September 6!

I really enjoyed this fresh perspective on WW II historical fiction. The Ways We Hide features illusionist/stage magician Fenna Voss who grew up fascinated with legendary escape artist Harry Houdini. Fenna also grew up an orphan and endured tragedy in a copper mining town in Michigan, also based on real events.

I found this to be a fascinating, well-paced historical fiction novel. It kept me engaged and turning the pages throughout. I also enjoyed learning about how the British military used hidden magic and maps to help trick the enemy and save POWs across Europe. Fenna is a smart, strong-willed heroine you can’t help but cheer for.

Fenna’s childhood and her relationship with Arie Jansen is revealed through a series of flashbacks where we learn how - and why - she’s become who she is. While this story didn’t end quite the way I’d hoped, it was realistic and uplifting in the end. Highly recommend this one for any historical fiction or women’s fiction fan! 4.5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for me free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I've been reading Ways We Hide for the past two weeks and am really struggling to get into it. I'm only about 20% of the way through, and normally I devour books in a few days time. I haven't been looking forward to reading it every night, which is disappointing. I'm putting this book aside for now but am planning on picking it up again in the future to give it another chance.

Kristina McMorris’ Ways We Hide is an emotional journey through the life of Fenna Voss, an orphan, a magician and an inventor whose devices were developed to aid prisoners in their escape and evasion of the Germans in WWII. While she worked to save them, the one person in her life that she was desperate to save was Arie Jansen. Fenna’s family was Dutch. Her mother died when she was a small child, leaving her to be raised by her father. At a Christmas celebration for needy children she was trapped by a crowd when someone had yelled fire. It was Arie, the boy who lived next door, who saved her. Sent to an orphanage when her father died, she escaped and was taken in by Arie’s family. As they grew up together, they also discovered that they loved each other. Afraid of committing herself to Arie, she left him.

Fenna was always fascinated by Houdini and his escapes. She practiced magic, perfected her acts and took on a partner to perform in theaters. As their popularity grew so did her partner’s ego, leading to their breakup. At their final performance, Major Hutton was in the audience. A member of MI9, he wants Fenna to work with him in London to help save soldiers’ lives. She takes his offer and leaves the stage behind. Arie appears briefly back in her life in London. He is now connected with Intelligence and is being sent to work with the resistance in Holland. When he disappears on his mission his superiors believe that he has deserted. Speaking Dutch and desperate to find the truth, she volunteers for a mission to find him. From the moment she parachutes into Holland the mission goes wrong. There is a time limit on her mission and she is desperate to find Arie. When she does find him there are heartbreaking revelations. It will take all of her skills as an escapist and magician to survive against the Germans and save the life of a child.

McMorris’ story is filled with suspense. from escapes on stage to the final escape from Holland. Tension is broken as she injects humor when one of Fenna’s ideas for MI9 goes horribly wrong. Fenna’s fear of dark enclosed spaces caused by her childhood experience is palpable and her story will bring you to tears. This is a beautifully told story that will keep you reading well into the night. I would like to thank NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing this book for my review.

3.5 stars // This. Book. What a ride.

I love a good WWII historical fiction and this was up there with some of my favorites. I love the unique twist of the main character working for MI9 after being recruited for her skills as an illusionist/stage magician. The love story was woven in really well and wasn’t over the top.

I did NOT love the death of a character that felt completely unnecessary for me. Maybe that’s just me wanting a happy ending, but there were so many ways around it. It made me angry when it happened. I can, however, understand that not everything (especially in wartime) can have a happy ending.

The writing overall was good, but there were several times that there were sentences that made me raise an eyebrow. Mostly because they felt random and unrelated. But still overall good.

At the end of the day, this is a really good historical fiction that I would recommend!

Based on two separate historical events, this WWII historical fiction story is gripping and engaging. Fenna Vos is a Dutch American illusionist who is recruited to become a British spy. Her knowledge of illusions and escapes lend to the MI9.
McMorris has written an exceptionally detailed and well researched book.

The meaning behind The Ways We Hide is extraordinary in this book. A magician is called in to help the war. She has special talents for hiding things that escape the enemy’s view. I enjoyed the book because of the strong female lead. I loved her tenacious spirit.

THE WAYS WE HIDE by Kristina McMorris is a wonderfully-written and gripping work of historical fiction set during World War II. Based on true events, it tells the little- known history of the branch of British military intelligence called MI9 that was tasked with coming up with escape aids that could be smuggled to Allied airmen, POWs and other servicemen without detection by the Germans. Fenna Vos grew up amid hardship and trauma in the 1920s in Michigan’s Cooper County. Eager to leave her past behind forever, she perfects her skill at magic tricks and later performs a popular act onstage with an escape artist. Just as their team’s relationship hits a sour note, Fenna is unexpectedly recruited by MI9 to use her unique expertise to design escape aids for the Allies. But it’s not long before Fenna’s past and present collide when she is sent on a dangerous mission to Holland that will bring her face-to-face with an important person from her past. What follows is an epic adventure, full of intrigue, loss, love and heroism. I really enjoyed this heartbreaking and emotional story and didn’t want it end. The Author’s Notes at the end give a fascinating look at the inspiration and research behind the book. Fenna is a character I won’t soon forget. I highly recommend this outstanding book. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read and review an early copy.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Fenna grows up in Michigan with her dad who is a copper miner. As a child she is involved in a tragedy that she is helped thru with her friend Arie.

Years later, Fenna, who was always fascinated with magic and illusions, takes her show on the road. This attracts the attention of the British intelligence and they soon recruit her to help the Allied POWs escape. During her time in Europe, she is recruited for a mission that involves her childhood friend.

I really enjoyed this book. The story moved easily and I quickly became invested in Fenna's life.

Ways We Hide by Kristina McMorris is my favorite book of the year, which is saying a lot from someone who reads in any spare moments. This is historical fiction of the finest and includes so many well researched facts. The book takes place in the USA, England and The Netherlands before and during WWII, but is not like any book of that era that I have read. The main character; Fenna Vos, is a very interesting woman who is fascinated by Harry Houdini. She becomes a magician, using many of Houdini’s tricks and illusions in her own shows as well as devising ways to use these skills in helping British intelligence.

Make sure you read the author’s comments at the end of the book as she highlights the fact and fiction of the story.

The first book I read by McMorris (Sold on a Monday) made me a true fan and I will continue to read anything she writes.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for this ARC. My rating is a very strong five stars!

This was a three star read for me. I found the pacing to be off. There were parts that I thoroughly enjoyed and parts that were so slow that I skimmed through.
The love story between Fenna and Arie was heartbreaking, as you would find in most WWII novels. I was expecting more from the illusionist/women helping the war effort story line and, sadly, this missed the mark for me. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital arc of this book.

I’ve written before of my pandemic-era fascination with novels set during World War II and immediately after the war, so I’m always on the lookout for a fresh perspective on the conflict which continues to inspire so many writers born decades after it ended. Kristina McMorris’ The Ways We Hide presents the tale of Fenna Vos, an illusionist who creates amazing escapes modeled on her idol, Harry Houdini. For reasons that become clear later on, while Fenna crafts the tricks, she does not perform them; her associate, Charles, does. As a result, most audience members assume that he’s the mastermind and she’s his assistant, when nothing could be further from the truth.

After a spat with Charles, who endangered himself and the act by consuming alcohol before a show, a British man approaches Fenna to ask if she’d be willing to use her talents toward the war effort. He’d overheard her argument with Charles, and figures she might be up for a change of scene. Initially reluctant, Fenna decides to accept the offer.

Before the action moves to England, we travel back in time to Fenna’s girlhood to discover the roots of her love of magic and fear of confined spaces. One horrific incident that takes place during Fenna’s childhood is based in reality, as McMorris explains in the book’s afterword; so too is her job working for the War Office under Christopher Hutton, a Houdini fan who came up with the ingenious idea of hiding silk maps, tiny compasses and other useful items inside Monopoly games sent to POWs in German prison camps.

McMorris packs a lot of heartbreak into this 500-page novel; while I don’t expect World War II stories to be comfort reads, very few of them include the level of child endangerment and death that comprise a large part of The Ways We Hide. I had kind of hoped for more magic and illusion and didn’t think such a substantial part of the book would feature children in jeopardy, so let this serve as a content warning if such things are anathema to you. I was only able to read a few chapters at a time because it was so achingly sad. Still, I’m not sorry I read it, as it does illuminate a new aspect of the war that I hadn’t heard of before, and Fenna is a wonderfully strong and indomitable heroine.

I read this book while on a cruise ship sailing around Ireland. So whatever I read had to be something that would really hold my attention. And this story did just that. It is basically a war story and a magic story and a story about war time tricks to keep the soldiers safer and provide them with the tools they would need to escape the enemy. I don't really like war stories as such but I do like the ones that give you insight into the real lives of the people who survive the war and how they do it. This book was very interesting and about a part of the war effort that I haven't read about before. I would highly recommend it.

Holy WOW. No Hiding All the FEELS!
Heart, heartache and had my attention from the start. The story telling and writing is phenomenal keeping me on edge and needy for the next page. You feel the tragedy, strength and courage and the will Of a strong and determined woman. I'm completely and emotionally in love with the writing and storytelling that made this an easy five star read.

⭐️: 4/5

After a traumatic event in her childhood, Fenna Vos turned to sleight of hand and the inspiration of Harry Houdini to escape her fears. Now, acting as the assistant but the secret brains behind the operation, she performs acts of magical escapism around the country. A chance encounter leads her to a job helping the British military intelligence design escape devices for captured soldiers, and while there her loyalty is tested while she struggles to escape the traumas of her past.

I love books like this that are dramatized, but based on true stories of impressive stories in history. Historical fiction books are generally one of my favorite genres to read, but I haven’t read one recently at all, due to just not really being in the mood. Fortunately, the impending publication date of this one, for lack of a better word, forced me to read it sooner rather than later, and effectively break my historical fiction book slump along with it. It was a great reading experience, with short chapters so it was easy to read “just one more”. I also loved the time jump, where we first meet Fenna in her present, then jump back to get to know her past and childhood experiences that made her who she is, and then jump forward again to her present, working with MI9 and her travels across Europe. One of my favorite parts about the book was the tie-ins to Houdini and the discussion of how some of his tricks actually worked. It was also really interesting to read the Author’s Note at the end to learn more about what parts of the book were based on fact and what were made up.

While I enjoyed the story as a whole, at times it dragged, as it seemed nothing was happening story wise and we were simply getting a play by play of Fenna’s day to day activities. I also found it overall lacking when it came to actually making me FEEL things, because while the events portrayed were tragic or impressive or exciting or any other big emotion word, it just didn’t leap off the page. I’d credit the almost documentary style cataloguing of the details of scenes, which kind of took me out of the moment.

Thank you to @netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark @bookmarked for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!!

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in return for an honest review.

I absolutely love WW2 historical fiction and so I was quite excited to read this book because the premise sounded different than many of the other WW2 books I've read. I really enjoyed reading about the gadgets they created during the war to smuggle contraband to soldiers and prisoners. I felt that the flashback to Fenna's childhood, while interesting (particularly her experience in the stairwell), went on a bit long. So well there were a number of things I liked about the story, the length made it a 3.5 star read for me.

ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC - 5+ STARS

I have read my share of WWII books and this is a true BREATH OF FRESH AIR in that genre. I was completely captivated by Fenna and her life, beginning with her close-knit Dutch-American family and the tragedies she witnessed as a child, through growing up and working both on the stage and during the war. I was entranced seeing how Fenna would use her "magic" illusionist skills to get herself out of tough situations again and again.

The ways the author, Kristina McMorris, wove in so many unbelievable-yet-true historical facts and people blew my mind. She is an incredible writer - I enjoyed every word.

For fans of historical fiction, women's fiction, literary novels, or WWII, This would be an EXCELLENT book club pick, in fact, I'm so confident it will be a hit that I'm going to recommend it to mine as our next book!

The Ways We Hide is an extraordinary book. Kristina McMorris puts together a tale so unique, its hard to believe its based on true historical events.

Who would have imagined that an illusionist would have been recruited by British military intelligence to aid in WWII? McMorris did ... and her research and inquisitiveness brings a remarkable story to life about the strength of love and the perserverance of the human spirit.

I found myself rooting for Fenna Voss as I followed her from an 11-year-old girl in living with her widowed father; to losing him, and onto her teenage years when she first discovers the magic of Houdini and also her first love;. Later when she's discovered perfoming masterful illusion acts, she is recruited by British intelligence to design gadgets and escape aids to help defeat the Nazis.

Life isnt easy for Fenna. We learn about her fears of claustrophobia when she survives the harrowing experience when seventy-three men, women, and children were crushed to death in a stampede when someone falsely shouted "fire" at a crowded Christmas party. Her deep friendship with Arie and her love for all things magic/illusion help her through many hard times.

The Ways We Hide is an exceptional book; one all historical fiction lovers will love. McMorris covers war, loss, espionage, courage, finding strength to face your fears, surviving in a war torn country and opening your heart to a future after war.

I want to encourage everyone to read the authors note at the very end. It's here we learn McMorris based her story on an article she found in 2015 - "How Monopoly Helped Win WWII." Apparently game boards were used to smuggle escape aids to Allied prisoners of war!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for introducing me to Kristina McMorris and the Ways We Hide. Thank you for the fresh and fascinating new wartime take, along with an unconventional heroine. I cried with, cheered for and admired Fenna.

This book opens on a stage with Fenn as the assistant to an escape artist, reminiscent of Houdini. In truth, she is not the assistant but the brains, the inventor, the magician and creator of the show. After the show, she is sought out to come work for M19, in London, to aid in the war. Following that, the reader is taken back to Fenn’s childhood. Her childhood was quite traumatic due to a Christmas event where many lost their lives. The author did such a good job writing about this event, based on true history, that I actually gasped out loud. Her childhood was long and brutal but she persevered, losing herself in the magic of Houdini.
This background took her to serve in WWII, first in London and then on to Netherland. This book was very interesting, historically but a slow read for me. The section that compromised her childhood was too long a narrative. More interactions and dialogue between characters was lacking. I appreciate that I was provided with a digital ARC from Sourcebooks and NetGalley. This is my own opinion and it appears that the majority of readers would not agree with it.