The Ways We Hide - Kristina McMorris

Author: Kristina McMorris

Genre: Historical Fiction

Rating: 3 stars.

In a Nutshell: Outlier review alert! This started off strongly but I lost interest midway the book. Loved everything connected to magic. Was bored by almost everything set in Holland. But yes, this isn’t a typical WWII fiction, so there is some novelty to the plot.

Story Synopsis:

After being orphaned at an early age, Fenna Vos has learned how to survive on her own. Though a master inventor and magician, she is forced to play assistant to an escape artist to keep the 1940s audience happy. When an officer of the British Intelligence spots her and asks her to come to London to help out with the WWII efforts using her inventions, Fenna reluctantly joins the team, and is soon part of a dangerous mission in Holland. This mission will be the test of her loyalty in many ways.

The story comes to us in the first person perspective of Fenna.

✔ The initial half of the book was outstanding. Beginning with Fenna’s stage experiences in the US in 1943, going back to 1928 for a glimpse of her younger years, and moving back to 1943 London, where Fenna was trying to settle into her role as an inventor for the Allied troops - the content was relatively fast-paced, and kept me invested.

❌ Once the storyline reached Holland where Fenna is on a secret mission, the content became repetitive and slow. I had to force myself to concentrate and continue. My mind kept wandering.

✔ I loved all the elements of Fenna’s life that were connected to magic. Her stage life, her creative thinking, her astounding inventions, her sleight of hand, her strong admiration for Harry Houdini – all were written well. Her Dutch background is also put to good use.

❌ The second half hardly makes use of her magical skills. It is like the book forgot her capabilities as an illusionist and just wanted to focus on her skills as a spy.

✔ Fenna is a strong character and makes for a mostly compelling historical mc. Her brain is her biggest asset and the book chooses to focus on this than her physical appeal. I appreciate this angle.

❌ Her decision-making was questionable at times. Her reason for moving away from her hometown was unconvincing. I didn’t understand why she couldn’t communicate her worry to the concerned person instead of running away secretly.

✔ The first half was fast.

❌ The second half was slooooowwwwwwww and seemed to go on and on.

✔ The ending was somewhat worth the effort.

✔ There are quite a few topics in the story – magic, personal tragedies, inventions, rescue missions, romance, family issues, the WWII. I enjoyed most of these. Seeing the WWII from the pov of a woman illusionist was a fun experience.

❌ The one topic I didn’t like at all was the rescue mission in Holland. Unfortunately, this formed the biggest chunk of the book. If this part were crisper, I might have enjoyed the book more.

✔ The book incorporates plenty of real life incidents into its narrative. The author explains these very well in her author’s note. Her research is outstanding. I never knew the extent to which “magic” was involved in the WWII! I learnt a lot about history from this book, though I have been an avid reader of the historical fiction genre.

❌ The first person narration doesn’t work in favour of the book. There is a lot of inner rambling which further reduces the pacing. This is more pronounced during the mission, where Fenna is alone and hence voices her thoughts on almost everything.

✔ The plot seems to proceed in compartmentalised sections. There is the stage life of the magician, then the 1928 flashback, then the 1943 London segment, the Holland mission and finally the tying up of every end. It was almost like reading a fresh novel after each section than a continuation.

❌ While I did like the first two sections for their content, I felt that the book didn’t come together into a cohesive whole. As each section deals with a fresh location and a fresh situation, the transition took time.

❌ I don’t like romance when it comes up in non-romance genre books. It is, more often than not, irrelevant to the main plot. This story could have easily been written without the romantic track.

✔ The direction of the romance took me by surprise. This is what sets the romance in the book apart from others in this genre, a small saving grace.

All in all, maybe my high expectations also contributed to my disappointment. I expected a story more focussed on Fenna’s inventive skills, and when that angle disappeared, it took my interest along with it. I am NOT giving up on this author yet because her plotting and her research left me fairly impressed. Hoping for a better experience the next time around.

This is an outlier review, so please go through the other, more positive reviews, before you take a call on this title.

3 stars, mostly for the brilliant first half.

My thanks to author Kristina McMorris, Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for the DRC of “The Ways We Hide”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.