Hidden in the Shadows by Imogen Matthews - Book Review

Hidden in the Shadows by Imogen Matthews

Wartime Holland #2 (Standalone)

Publication Date: 20th April 2022

Genre: WWII, Historical Fiction 

3 Stars 

One Liner: Interesting backdrop and side characters. The rest falls flat. 

*****
Sep 1944

The hidden village has been discovered and destroyed by the Nazis. Wouter, who should have been guiding the survivors to safety, panics and runs away to save his life. He feels guilty for his reaction and worries about Laura (his love) and others. Wouter manages to track some of them, though he has no information about Laura. He is determined to right the wrong and find her… if it’s not too late. 

Laura is a Jew and knows that her chances of being alive are zero if found by the Nazis. She is moved from one place to another, hidden in the cellars and attics, and transported in the dark. She doesn’t know if she’ll ever get to stay in one place for long. Moreover, she wonders what happened to Wouter and if there’s any chance of having another chance at love. 

Will Wouter and Laura find each other and be united? Can their love triumph in the bleakest of times? 

What I Like: 

• The book is less than 300 pages and has a decent page. It deals with Holland during wartime and how the locals did their best to hide/ save Jews from being caught by the Nazis. 

• The side characters are more impactful and active in the book. They are the ones who take responsibility and get the job done. 

• There is little violence in the book. What’s there is not graphic and is only mentioned. It was a relief, especially since this is my third book (back to back) in the WWII setting. 

What Didn’t Work for Me: 

• Sigh! I know this book takes off where book one ends. I didn’t read it. That wasn’t a problem either. My issue was with the narration. 

• The story moves between Wouter’s POV in the third person and Laura’s in the first person. Now, I should’ve connected to at least one of them. Instead, I liked Else, Kiki, Oliver, Dick, Bets, Henk, etc. Go figure!  

• I hate to say this, but neither of the lead characters impressed me or made me worry for their safety. The distance between me and the lead characters was too vast and continued to grow wider. After a point, I just wanted the book to end. 

• The timeline is also not smooth. The events happen before or after in one timeline, and we get to know if it is in the other. I don’t know if I would have felt differently if I read book one. The narrative style doesn’t seem to work for me. 

• The saving grace was the network of the Dutch people who took a brave stance of defending the Jews in ways they could despite the dire circumstances and constant threat to their lives. 

To sum up, Hidden in the Shadows uses an interesting theme, but the lead characters fail to make an impact. Those who read the first book loved this more, so you might want to pick that up before this one. 

Thank you, NetGalley and Bookouture, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

#NetGalley #HiddenintheShadows