Corrie suffers a moral crisis over the lying, theft, forgery and bribery that are necessary to keep the Jews that her family is hiding. Moreover, it is unlikely that her family would get away with helping Jews for long, as they had nowhere to hide them. The Dutch underground arranges for a secret room to be built in the Béjé so that the Jews would have a place to hide during an inevitable raid. What an incredible picture of true faith in the face of such hardness and suffering. Anyone going through trials will benefit from this book. Likewise those seeking to be content in all circumstances and to rejoice in the Lord always. This is one of those books that you cover your eyes with your hand while still looking through the space between your fingers, saying no, no, no, not that. It can't be THAT!

Once the concluding storyline was revealed, first I gasped and then followed that up with the thought of... wait a minute, I've read this story before (again a nod to Stephen King). But I was wrong. So wrong. The author took things so much further than I could have ever imagined I was left thinking Stephen who? Even though I was left wanting—if only Tudor had pushed the envelope a bit further—it won’t deter me from visiting another of her literary creations. In fact, at the moment, I find myself contemplating a peek at her debut, The Chalk Man. In the next few chapters, Corrie talks about her childhood, her infirm, but glad-hearted mother and the three aunts who once lived in the Béjé. Father held the baby close, his white beard brushed its cheek, looking into the little face with eyes as blue and innocent as the baby's own. At last he looked up at the pastor. 'You say we could lose our lives for this child. I would consider that the greatest honor that could come to my family.'" Julia had a history of depression. She just had a divorce from Ben's father. She had stopped her medication and requested a leave of absence and took Ben out of school. Then she bludgeoned her son to death before she blew her own head off. She wrote three words in blood on the wall of Ben's bedroom, NOT MY SON. Are these the actions of a mad woman or an unbalanced mind or is this something a lot more sinister?According to the sources I read, this version has had some of the most disturbing details and scenes removed, some of the sentences shortened for easier reading, and some illustrations added. Since I never read the original, I can’t analyze the differences between the two versions. However, I can say that I loved the book, I enjoyed the illustrations, and I didn’t find the writing to be clumsy or particularly “dumbed down.” As far as the serious content goes, I found it very powerful and sobering, but not overly disturbing. A sensitive child might still find it disturbing, since it does describe the suffering at the concentration camps, etc. I think this book is appropriate for kids age 10-12, but with particularly sensitive kids, it might be better to wait until they are teenagers. These acts of heroism and sacrifice became the foundation for Corrie ten Boom's global writing and speaking career which began after she was released. Its problem is that throughout it pushes religion. Honestly, when an author expects me, as a reader, to actually believe that any religious doctrine is the truth I feel like my intelligence is being insulted and it is downright offensive."

This book is written from Corrie's point of view and is remarkable. Will leave you feeling encouraged and changed for the better. Like, no matter what circumstance you find yourself in, no matter how dark, how impossible, how complex or evil God is always with you. It shows how we can find things to be grateful for even when on the surface they are not good. When Corrie graduates high school, she takes over the work of running the household. In particular, she cares for Tante Jans, who has developed diabetes. The disease makes the normally tough Tante Jans worried and nervous. Every week Corrie performs a complicated blood test on her aunt; one week the results are bad, and she knows that Jans has only a few weeks to live. The family gently delivers the news to the old woman, but she reacts with great calm and tranquility. To Corrie, this is confidence that God always endows people with moral strength at the moment they need it most. Once again there is a young man returning to the town he grew up in. Joe Thorne has a dual purpose to his return, he needs a job, teaching, and he will never get over what happened to his little sister Annie. Once all is revealed you will have a hard time getting her out of your head as well! He wants revenge and an ending to what seems to be “happening again” in this town. She firmly believes that there are no finer meals than takeaway pizza and champagne, or chips with curry sauce after a night out. Tudor has that grown-up Scooby Doo vibe going in her books, which I love. All the gang getting together and solving a mystery. SO MUCH FUN!

The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom was actually a very good book, much to my surprise. I expected it to be very boring, very depressing, and very preachy. At times it did drag a little - especially at the beginning - and it was sad, but it could be called preachy, and the hope won out in the end. It won out through much of the book, actually; I never felt truly depressed. I just knew God was there. Corrie and Betsie both showed their belief in this truth in the way they dealt with difficult situations.

Okay so the book starts off with the police discovering a corpse of a woman whose head is blown off and its chunks scattered all over the room (hey, I said spoiler free, didn't say it w Selfishness took on a life of its own...Oh this was the great ply of Satan in that kingdom of his:To display such blatant evil that one could almost believe that one's own secret sins didn't matter....I came to Paul's account of his thorn in the flesh...the real sin lay in thinking that any power to help and transform came from me. Of course it was not my wholeness, but Christ's that made the difference. The book wasted no time and opened with this horrific and creepy murder scene which gripped me from the first line. An impeccably written suspenseful and horrific story which will glue you to your seats.Every town, village and city has a history. There's the official history. The bone-dry version collated in textbooks and census reports, related verbatim in the classroom. Then there's the history that is passed down through generations... The secret history." Tudor grabbed me with the grotesque and dingy opening. Two dead bodies to make sense of in a tired cottage swarming with bluebottles, flies and the stench of decay. From there the author flashes forward a few months in time, with an introduction to Joe. It only took me a few chapters to start comparing Tudor's writing style to that of Stephen King, and I mean that in the most flattering of ways. Ten Boom returned to the Netherlands after the war and set up a rehabilitation center for concentration camp survivors. In the Christian spirit to which she was so devoted, she also took in those who had cooperated with the Germans during the occupation. In 1946, she began a worldwide ministry that took her to more than 60 countries.

Every human being should be required to read this book. I guarantee it will change forever the way you look at life. While it is a scary topic and should include a mature adult to explain, I truly think children even as young as 8 yrs old, could benefit. Tudor paces her story well and keeps the reader on edge, only pushing the final piece into place in time for the reader to catch their breath and end the intense novel. Soon afterwards, Mama has a stroke. Now she’s confined permanently to her bed, and can’t speak or write. Still, she manages to correspond with family and friends by having Corrie write letters to them. Meanwhile, Nollie becomes engaged to Flip, another student at the teaching school she currently attends. On their wedding day, Corrie realizes that she will probably never get married or leave home. She recalls her previous hopes of a life with Karel, but finds that she’s able to think of him “without the slightest trace of hurt.” She knows that Jesus has helped her to forgive Karel and pray for him sincerely. Several weeks after the wedding, Mama dies. The book was later made into a film of the same name, along with a comic book adaptation by Spire Christian Comics.

The memoir is a true account of Corrie Ten Boom's experiences in German-occupied Holland during WWII (and afterward in prisons and concentration camps). The most amazing thing to me is that she was not Jewish. She was a Dutch Christian who freely sacrificed her own life, and the lives of those she loved most, to fight against cruelty and hate. I read the book aloud to my husband, taking a break at some point in each chapter just because I couldn't read for the tears. I can understand overcoming amid tragedy, but thanking God for the fleas that are eating your flesh? Praying for the guard who beats you? Two questions kept going through my head in the journey with Corrie: "Are there really people in the world who are this GOOD?" and "Why am I such a selfish, ungrateful, spoiled brat?" I loved this book. It was dark and so creepy. If you love creepy then I think you will love this book. It kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the whole book. It was horrifying in some parts. It had a very creepy supernatural factor to it that I just loved. I noticed that this book had some similarities to two of Stephen King's books. I love Stephen King, so I really loved this book. This book was so bizarre. Thank you to NetGalley, Crown Publishing and C.J. Tudor for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. CJ Tudor has been criticized for writing too much like Stephen King. I say PHEWYYYY! I think Tudor is a hundred times more user (reader) friendly than King. I’m a fan of this super talented author.