The Hidden

Thanks to NetGalley, Oneworld Publications and Mary Chamberlain for giving me a chance to read and review her new book: The Hidden.
I have read her previous book The Dressmaker Of Dachua and it's also called The Dressmakers War.

The Hidden: is a fictional story based around true facts about the German occupation of The Channel Islands during the second world war and how the island of Jersey was cut off from England for five years.
Jersey and the people who remained living there were completely isolated from the mainland from 1940 to 1945. They had to live with the German's controlling everything on the Island, they suffered terribly due to shortages of basic every day items such as food, medicine, new clothes, new shoes, bicycle tires and even soap!

The Hidden has a dual timeline that connects the past with the present time of 1985, it's a story about WW II, isolation, love, secrets, betrayal, trust., survival, humanity, shame and it's a very emotional book to read.

The story is based on three main characters living on the Island of Jersey during the second world war, Dora Simon is the local midwife, Joe O'Cleary is an unhappy Irish priest and Geoffrey Laurent an lonely widowed farmer.
They all of course knew each other, they all had issues from their pasts that they wanted to keep hidden and they found themselves caught up in a very unique situation during WW II and being stranded on Jersey. They had no idea who they could trust and they had to deal with the constant threat from the German soldiers who were looking to arrest anyone who broke the rules or hid their true heritage.

In 1985, Barbara Hummel is going through her deceased mothers Trude's things when she discovers some old photo's of a mystery woman with a German officer and they were taken during WW II on the island Jersey? 
Her mother had always told her that her father died in the war but Barbara had always had her doubts about this being true? She has a feeling the mysterious woman in the photo might be able to help her find out the truth and she begins her search to discover who she is?

England 1985, Dora is contacted by Barbara and she also visits her, but she's very reluctant to tell her anything about her past, what happened to her during the war and especially about her Jewish heritage.
Barbara also travels to Jersey, she meets Joe who's living in a caravan on Geoffrey's land and he's taking care of the aging Geoffrey. 

All three are connected by the past and are hiding what happened to them during the second world war on the island of Jersey. They don't want to talk about the terrible suffering they all experienced, it's a tragic story full of secrets. hardship and abuse.

I really enjoyed reading The Hidden by Mary Chamberlain, like her previous book it's a brilliant emotional world war two story and I gave her latest book 5 stars.