enjoyable read
Really enjoyed this book and it made me cry.
It has a dual plot line that interweave with each other very well,
The Hidden Women is a fabulous dual timeline mystery telling the story of some truly courageous women which I thoroughly enjoyed!
The two timelines are both very interesting and well developed which is quite unusual for me as I normally find I favour one or the other.
They both feature strong, independent women which I always enjoy and I found that I warmed to both Lilian and Helen as their story develops.
I was perhaps slightly more drawn to Lilian as I felt that the time period her story was set in meant she had to go against society more.
I also loved the secret service she carries out whilst working with the ATA as she helps women in need which society otherwise judged and forced them into horrendous situations.
The story is told in alternate chapters between Helen and Lilian with each characters name clearly labelled on each chapter so the reader cant get confused over whose story they are following.
I felt it was quite an easy, absorbing read that drew me in from the first pages, The mystery surrounding what happens to Lilian is hinted at early on and was very intriguing so ensured that I kept reading as I needed to find out!
This is the first book I have read by this author and Im very excited to read more from her in the future.
If you like dual timeline stories set in WWwith an intriguing mystery about an emotional subject then youll love this book.
Huge thanks to Izzy from HQ Stories for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book via Netgalley.
I enjoyed the storyit was interesting, compelling, and kept my attention, However, some of the storyline was predictable, and some of it was super far fetchedespecially the reactions of some of the characters.
But that wasnt distracting enough fir me to not enjoy it! Another dual narrative/that I was unable to put down and a bit of a risk as it was mynd WWII era read today.
Both Helena and her great aunt Lil were absolutely intriguing characters, Of the latter, I was captivated by Lil's time in the ATA Air Transport Auxiliary,
Like Helena, I was amazed as more of Lil's story comes out but just like Helena's sister Miranda says paraphrase We think it is that way through modern eyes but we forget the hardships those women faced.
As I read, I wondered if a group of women really did what Lil, Flora, and Annie set out to do, but even if it didn't happen, this book was still a very compelling story even if the romance between two characters was a bit forced that I wholeheartedly enjoyed from beginning to end.
Thanks to Netgalley and HQ Digital for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
An enjoyable pageturner inspired by the women who flew in the Air Transport Auxiliary during World War Two.
Switching between the war and the present day, it follows a TV researchers blossoming romance with a hot actor and her investigations into her familys past, uncovering secrets and a hidden history involving her greataunt.
Once started couldn't put this book down,
This was a story of a young girl taken advantage of, scared and in a horrible situation at a time when women were judged first and the perpetrators ignored.
Family stepped in saving her while solving their own heart brake , she then rises past her experience to form a network of women helping women while training and fulfilling a much needed position during the war years.
Tragedy again strikes however she is determined to save the many women in need of their help and move on with her life.
A dual narrative perfect for fans of historical fiction! I really enjoyed this one, A well to. d story that bounces back and forth between contemporary UK and WWII,
A captivating story that takes you fromEngland to current time of, Lilian, the main character, is a strong heroine who becomes a pilot, We see so much loss of the male pilots, killed during war, and the women were needed to help fight the war.
Ive read so many wonderful books lately with strong female leads, and found myself really proud to be a woman!
There are twists and secrets that are revealed that I really enjoyed too!
Thank you to netgalley and publisher for this complimentary book.
All opinions are my own I thoroughly enjoyed this book about the brave women who worked behind the scenes of the second world war and the law.
I have not heard of the Attagirls, so it made fascinating reading, Their secret and illegal sideline of organising abortions and adoptions was a shock, It challenged my personal views and aroused disturbing conflicting feelings, I'm apt to believe that my views are set in concrete, but they are only slightly chipped and not fractured.
The novel handled sensitive and contentious material superbly, The format iswith Lillian Miles and the present with Helena, What struck me most in the present era was how much I envied Helena's job as a genealogy researcher.
I would love to have done that job with or without the unpretentious and clumsy Jack cf Michael Crawford so, I hung onto every detail.
There are some interesting characters although I thought none of the men was worth their salt, I recognise that was intentional, I would be wary of recommending it to some of my friends because of its content, Thank you to NetGalley and HQ Digital, I received an advance readers copy from NetGallery, This book has three different plot lines but the author does a really good job of ensuring the reader doesnt get lost in the shuffle.
I enjoyed this book though parts did drag, The story follows Lil as she keeps a secret while being a pilot of the ATA, Her secret slowly unravels throwing her entire life into a tailspin, The book alternates chapter between her and Helena, a historian for a popular TV series, The story follows family
drama and trying to figure out the past and how it all folds together.
Easy book to fall into and keep you guessing, Excellent read switching seamlessly betweentimelines hidden women really were the hero's
Can highly recommend this book to family and friends Loved this book! Many thanks to NetGallery, the publisher and author, Kerry Barrett, for the opportunity to read and review the arc of “The Hidden Women.
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Kerry Barrett is a new author to me and one I will certainly be reading more books from!
“The Hidden Women” was so much better then I ever expected it to be.
The historical aspect was so intriguing to me, At times, I felt like I was right there with the characters,
I did find it difficult to follow with the going back and forth in time, . the first time it happened, it took me by surprise but, then I got in the flow of the writing style and all was well.
I very highly recommend this book,stars! I loved this story of love, loss, acceptance, and courage!
Lil is an ATA flyer in the earlys at the young age of.
She is incredibly brave and strongminded, and together with two friends, grows a small existing network of people who will help young girls have abortions or have their babies and then place them into loving families for adoption.
Lil is such a loveable character, . . so multifaceted and so courageous,
In present day, her niece, Helena, works for a familial research television show and stumbles upon her aunts history.
This leads to unearthing family secrets and brings the family closer together than ever,
What a beautiful story! Bravo! Many thanks to NetGalley and HQ Digital team for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
I was attracted to this book by the cover artwork and by the title, I am a big fan of books that are set in the second World War and find it fascinating to read about the different roles that women were able to participate in meaningfully assisting with what was going on in the war either at home or elsewhere.
. In reading this book I learned a lot about the role of women as Air Transport Pilots in the ATA or Air Transport Auxiliary I had heard about this before but wasn't very informed about it so imagine my surprise this past week when I went to a play that featured a character who had been an ATA pilot! It was nice to have background information on this!
The book however, is more than just a description of what the job of the female pilots did in the air.
It also deals with an important social issue of the time when many women found themselves unexpectedly pregnant with nowhere to turn.
This is a very timely topic as it s still of concern today and people tend to have strong feelings on the subject and may not be thrilled with the choices that these women made.
The story has descriptions of a young teen being groomed into a sexual relationship without initially realizing that she was being taken advantage of.
The author chose to tell this story using a technique that I am noticing in many of the books that I read these days.
It is one that seems to work well where the story is told through a look back through time driven by a connection to a family member.
. Helena, the main character from modern times, works in a tv field where she researches the family history of celebrities.
When she meets one unusual celebrity she discovers while researching his story that their appears to be a possible connection.
to her much loved Aunt Lil, who had been a member of the ATA, A family mystery seems to be involved as Lil has never shared her wartime experiences and Helena's father really wants to know more even if it proves to be upsetting to Lil.
Helena ends up on a quest, much like a detective to find out about her aunt's past, There is also a romantic element as she learns to care for the celebrity that she is researching.
Lil's story is told throughout the book in her own voice and it was fascinating and painful.
The whole story really grabbed me and kept me reading to find out what would happen next, The book shed a light on why some people don't want to talk about their wartime experiences but perhaps talking is just what is needed.
Kerry Barrett did an excellent job in crafting this story which was inspired at least in part by Mary Ellis, the last surviving pilot from the Air Transport Auxiliary who died atwhile the author was in the process of writing the book.
Lots of her experiences were apparently reflected in the novel, This is a book which should make a reader think and reflect on the times and the issues these women faced.
They were not always wellreceived by their male coworkers and were held to very high standards, Although the book may have some triggers for sexual assault survivors and deals with the topic of abortion, I would highly recommend it to those interested in this time period and can see it would make a great book for a book club to discuss.