The Ways We Hide is the story of Fenna Vos, a girl raised by her father in hardship during the Depression. Eventually orphaned, Fenna goes to live in an orphanage, then eventually escapes to live in the city, doing magic tricks on the street corner to make money. As time goes by, she is noticed by an important government official who gives her the opportunity to work for the war effort in Europe making and inventing gadgets that will help soldiers to survive and avoid capture. She is drawn into the world of espionage and is eventually reunited with her long-time friend, Arie, who has loved her since they were children. She is called on rescue Arie's niece and return her to her family in the US. I found the first part of the book slow and "wordy", but eventually grew accustomed to the writer's style and enjoyed it. The book is full of breathtaking suspense and the writer did an excellent job with these portions. There's a sadness to this story that I can't get past. It is based on a true story and must have required extensive research. The writer's note at the end is excellent, so don't pass it up. If you enjoy WWII historial fiction, you will be intrigued with this one. Thank you, Net Galley, Kristina McMorris and Sourcebooks for the ARC. Publication date is September 6, 2022. I recomend it!

I just reviewed Ways We Hide by Kristina McMorris. #TheWaysWeHide #NetGalley

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebook Landmarks for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be published September 6, 2022.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author. It started off so compelling, got a bit slow in the middle and then picked up pace near the end. Otherwise would have been 4.5 stars. I found the writing to be beautiful and eloquent, the kind of sentences you have to read twice because they are just that good.

It’s the story of young Fenna Vos, who learns the art of magic. It’s historical fiction so the backdrop is war time. Fenna is recruited to help during the war, and she crosses paths were her childhood friend Arie. They attempt a risky move to try to escape.

Themes include magic, war, loss and what it means to have family.

In the interest of full disclosure, it took me a couple of chapters to really become charmed by The Ways We Hide by Kristina McMorris, however, the push to keep going was entirely worth it. A truly engrossing, magical and twisting story, set in both the 1920s and the 1940s. We meet the main characters, Fenna and Arie as children, who experience a traumatic event, narrowly escaping with their lives. Arie gifts Fenna a copy of Houdini’s magic tricks, and she becomes obsessed with mastering his skills of illusion. While Fenna and Arie were separated for a time, they are reunited and grow up together, in the home of Arie’s parents, Fenna out of fear stemming from earlier trauma flees with only a letter left as a goodbye. Fenna follows in Houdini’s footsteps and becomes a part of an illusionist show, devising and designing complex escape illusions for her partner. After a performance she is offered the opportunity to go to England and join an M19 classified section to help create gadgets and tools for the Allieds to use to help win the war. Fenna ends up using the skills she has practiced since childhood to escape multiple dangerous situations and free a young Jewish girl with connections to her past.

Inspired by true events, including the Italian Hall Disaster in Calumet, Michigan, the tricks of Harry Houdini and board games which were used to smuggle escape aids to Allied prisoners of war in WWII. This novel is well researched and exceptionally well written.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark and the author for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When I read books electronically I often struggle with no necessarily knowing how long the book is... and man, did I feel like this book drug on and on at parts. I finally checked the page count and yeah, it was a bit long. Shorten this book by about 200 pages and I would have enjoyed it much more. It was an interesting take on WW2 but the romance part had me kinda ehhh.

Once I got into this book I was intrigued by Fenna and what was going to happen next as she went through her time in the service. There were moments of mystery that really pulls the reader in. It did take me a while to get into the book - it starts with her as an adult, and when she gets approached to join British Intelligence the story switches to her as a child - which I don't know was fully necessary and was less intriguing to me. This ultimately led to a 4 star rating. Once I got past about 35% and the story focused on Fenna as an adult/in British Intelligence the story was gripping and a fast read.

Synopsis: As a little girl raised amid the hardships of Michigan’s Copper Country, Fenna Vos learned to focus on her own survival. Though she performs onstage as the assistant to an unruly escape artist, behind the curtain she’s the mastermind of their act. Ultimately, controlling her surroundings and eluding traps of every kind helps her keep a lingering trauma at bay. Yet for all her planning, Fenna doesn’t foresee being called upon by British military intelligence. Tasked with designing escape aids to thwart the Germans. Fenna reluctantly joins the unconventional team as an inventor. But when a test of her loyalty draws her deep into the fray, she discovers no mission is more treacherous than escaping one’s past.

Thank you to netgalley and Sourcebook to for the Ways we Hide. A remarkable historical fiction novel that takes place during world war 2. The characters were memorable and I was eager to see how they developed into the story. Kristina Mc Morris is a talented author who develops memorable characters that you cant wait to see how there story takes place. This is my second book by this author but, it will not be my last.

Kristina McMorriss has done it again. I loved Sold on a Monday which told of an aspect of the depression that I hadn’t considered. In Ways We Hide, she delves into the invention and use of gadgets to help prisoners of war and the Resistance during World War II. The story is told from the point of view of Fenna Voss, an American woman making her living in the world of magic. She is recruited to join others in England developing gadgets to help the war effort. Fenna’s story is fascinating and enjoyable in itself. The author also incorporated devastating incidents of stampedes in crowded areas that resulted in many deaths into the story. She writes perfect historical fiction that entertains as well as educates particularly about events we probably did not learn about in history class. Bravo Kristina McMorriss!

it took me awhile to finish this book becase of personal things going on in my life......but i really enjoyed it......there was so much going on there could have been about books or more..... being born in michigan and living there my whole like i found the parts with Fenna living in michigan very interesting. I had to look up some of the events to see if they were real as i had never heard of them. And yes, they were real,,,, hard to imagine that i had never learned of them! I found the characters to be interesting and relatable...... I dont like reviews of books that just tell what the book is about....when i read reviews i just want to know if the book was enjoyable and the readers thoughts...... i would recommend this book and i will read others by this author.. thanks for the advance copy!!

The Ways We Hide is historical fiction taking place from 1928 through WWII. We meet Fenna as a child and learn of her childhood traumas and friendships, particularly with Arie and his family. As an adult, she’s an illusionist who draws the attention of British Intelligence (MI9) seeking to use her illusions and misdirection to help the Allies win the war. Focusing on how she uses her abilities within MI9, the plot somewhat implausibly brings Arie back into Fenna’s life, although not quite how she might have preferred. Fenna goes to Holland as an undercover agent with a dual mission: one her formal assignment from British Intelligence and the other her personal quest. Somehow, neither works out quite how Fenna anticipated.

The novel tries to cover too much material. As a result, the story at times feels unnecessarily drawn out and loses its focus. Is it a spy novel? A romance? A thriller? A story of survival? Even so, I found myself cheering Fenna on, hoping that things work out for her in all aspects of her life.

I enjoyed this book but felt like maybe it got a little bogged down with all that was going on. I’m not too big a fan of magic and although I can appreciate it, it went into it too much for me. Specifically in the first few chapters. I loved how strong the main character was and how she was the mastermind behind it all.

Fascinating story about little known war efforts to help the Allies. Fenna, the fictional character loves Houdini and tinkering with illusions. She is recruited to help create games to escape or evade. The author did a good job on researching this type of evasion. Liked her note included with additional facts.

Fenna works with an escape artist but she’s becoming frustrated. He gets all the adulation, despite her being the brains behind the operation. When she is recruited to work in England for Intelligence, she puts her expertise to the test, devising ways to hide information during WWII. Reminiscent of the gadgets of James Bond, Fenna works for Hutton, a brilliant but quirky man, as they create ingenious contraptions and methods for concealing documents and messages.

During a difficult childhood, Fenna had found solace and comfort in a childhood friend named Arie. He was with her during the terrible 1913 Italian Hall Disaster that left 73 people trampled and dead, most of them children. That event haunts her throughout her life. When she and Arie grow up, things get too tense for Fenna and she runs away to follow her dream of working with someone like her hero Harry Houdini. She has always been fascinated with the magic of illusion and it’s these skills that the British want to use. In Europe, Ari and Fenna meet again when they are both working for Intelligence Their lives are on the line and they will once again help each other as they did when they were little.

McMorris weaves real events and real people into her story. There was a tragic disaster in 1913 and there was a British unit under Hutton who invented ingenious methods of hiding maps and messages for spies, prisoners and soldiers. These are the backdrops for the story of Fenna and Arie.

The theme of hiding is prevalent throughout. For one, the characters have a lot of personal issues they hide, there’s also Fenna’s job of making a living out of hiding reality from an audience or from an enemy and finally, there’s hiding in German occupied territory.

The characters are fully realized and the romantic story is touching. Inserting real people and occurrences adds to the impact and gives more weight to the book. Readers will be swept up in the story and won’t be disappointed.

This is the second book by Kristina McMorris that I have read, and I will be reading more. Kristina writes stories about history that pull you in and make you feel.

Fenna Vos is an amazingly strong woman. She endured so much tragedy at such a young age and still went on. Her story was inspiring and you could feel her love for those she truly let into her life.

I love that Fenna was the brains behind her and Charles stage show. I loved that she went to London to help win the war. Although I was heartbroken that her story didn't end quite the way I had hoped, it was beautiful.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for the ARC of this books. All opinions expressed are my own.

Magic! The Ways We Hide is a propulsive, fascinating, well researched novel focusing not only on World War II, but also on a myriad of other themes, including family, friendship, love, tragedy, grief, prejudice and the experiences of American immigrants. As I read, I often found myself wondering how in the world Kristina McMorris conceived of this unique, complex, imaginative tale. And though I’ve enjoyed a veritable mountain of stories set in WWII, I learned many new facts reading The Ways We Hide. For example, who knew the UK had an organization called. “MI9”?! The Authors Note at the end was among my favorite parts of the book, and the descriptions of the myriad of gadgets for wartime use were great fun.

Not all of the story worked for me personally. I’m not really entertained by most magic tricks and the details of such in the early pages seemed to bog down the plot. And, while I enjoyed this novel in part for its complexities, I dare say the range of topics explored might have been a tad bit overly ambitious. For me, the story would have been strengthened by the elimination of a few themes/scenes.

That said, I definitely recommend this books to fans of McMorris, Kate Quinn, Kristin Harmel, Martha Hall Kelly, and anyone else seeking intelligent, superbly researched, beautifully crafted World War II tales.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for a complimentary ARC. Opinions are my own.

Historical fiction crossed with a love story. Ways We Hide tells the story of Fen, an Orphan of Dutch immigrants, who finds a home with Arie's family and solace in mastering illusions. When the British army requests Fin's assistance in developing items for soldiers using her expertise, she has no idea that it will bring Arie back into her life! But, has Arie been drawn to the other side? If so, why? And, will he be assassinated as a traitor?

Sounds like a lot going on, right? Well there is a lot going on in this book! The author has good character development and a well written story! It was, however, a bit longer than I felt necessary with a few storylines that could have been left out. It was also a lot more of a love story than what it was described to be which isn't one of my favorite genres. If romance is your go-to then you will probably enjoy this book more than me!

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks for this eARC in exchange for this honest review.

WW2, historical-novel, historical-figures, historical-places-events, historical-research, history-and-culture, escapologist, grief, grieving, British-intelligence, performers*****

This is the story of a fictional inventive illusionist who became a performer and later a designer of escape tools for British Intelligence. Her life and loves are well presented and seem quite real. The historical aspects are well researched and made me wonder why I had never thought about the designers of the things that helped so many during the wars. I don't know how to meaningfully condense the story without getting overlong.
I really enjoyed it.
I requested and received a free e-book copy from Sourcebooks Landmark via NetGalley. Thank you!

I found this to be a riveting story unlike any other I've ever read. (And I read a lot!) I was fascinated by the concept of an illusionist helping the war effort. I'd never heard of anything like that before.

And adding the complications of Fenna's early life experiences and how that shaped her reaction to people, places and situations, made the story all the more compelling.

I highly enjoyed this story and would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoyed historical fiction that inspires.

Thank you to Kristina McMorris, SourceBooks and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Ways We Hide
A Novel
by Kristina McMorris
Pub Date 06 Sep 2022
SOURCEBOOKS Landmark
Historical Fiction | Women's Fiction


I am reviewing a copy of Ways We Hide through Sourcebooks Landmark and Netgalley:



Fenna Vos learned to focus on her own survival, as a little girl raised amid the hardships of Michigan’s Copper Country. The ability to focus on her own survival sustains her even as World War 2 rages in faraway countries. Though she performs onstage as the assistant to an unruly escape artist, behind the curtain she’s the mastermind of their act. Ultimately, controlling her surroundings and eluding traps of every kind helps her keep a lingering trauma at bay.



Yet for all her planning, Fenna doesn’t foresee being called upon by British military intelligence. Tasked with designing escape aids to thwart the Germans, MI9 seeks those with specialized skills for a war nearing its breaking point. Fenna reluctantly joins the unconventional team as an inventor. But when a test of her loyalty draws her deep into the fray, she discovers no mission is more treacherous than escaping one’s past.




The Ways We Hide is inspired by true accounts, and is a gripping story of love and loss, the wars we fight on the battlefields and within ourselves and the courage found in unexpected places.


I give Ways We Hide five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

Thank you for the opportunity to read and give an honest review. This was a very different book than what I am used to reading. I love historical fiction which is why I thought I’d give it a try. Fenna is an illusionist recruited to help in the war efforts. This grabbed my attention, but was a bit disappointed given that the book was so long and did not hold my interest. The story itself was very unique, which I liked, but dragged a lot and was very hard for me to stay in tune with it.

Fenna is a magician/illusionist/escape artist who developed her skills as a child as a means of dealing with claustrophobia after narrowly escaping a tragic accident in which many people were trampled to death in a stairwell. During WWII, Fenna is recruited by M19 in England to work on developing devices that could help imprisoned allied soldiers escape or survive. This work eventually leads to her traveling to the Netherlands in order to “bring in” her childhood friend and love of her life, Arie who is accused of being a double agent.
I have mentioned in previous reviews, there is so much current WWII fiction being published, I think that authors need a different “angle” to keep readers interested. This book definitely has that angle to a certain degree with the illusionist story. I did read about all the research that the author did and very much appreciate her incorporating this interesting information into the story. I see that other reviewers have loved this book so glad it resonated with them. However, I had a hard time getting through the book. It took me over a month to read it because I dreaded picking it up and chose to read books that I found more entertaining. The book was just plain boring to me. The interesting “angle” was such a small part of the story and the rest was typical WWII drama - working with the resistance, narrowly escaping the Nazis, some characters being caught and killed, helping children and of course, some romance thrown in. And it seemed like the story was drawn out much longer than it needed to be. The episode of Fenna parachuting into enemy territory as a civilian with no training was so unrealistic, it sort of negated the author’s careful research. I think I am so done with WWII historical fiction!
Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the Advanced Reader Copy.