Over 150.000 copies sold in the Netherlands and Germany

When Annetje Beets, born in 1888, dies at the age of almost a hundred, it seems that she has not achieved anything that would justify a biography. She lived in the shadow of people who were more important and successful than herself.

Annetje’s one great love, the young politician P.J. Oud, is already married when their paths cross once more during the First World War. They nevertheless begin an ardent affair. When P.J. Oud becomes a Member of Parliament in 1917, there is no place for her in his life any longer. By default she succumbs to the advances of her ex-lover’s father, moving in with him as his ‘housekeeper’. When, at the end of the Second World War, father Oud is on his death bed, Annetje’s future is his main concern. He persuades his friend, the famous retired singer Christiaan Mansborg, to marry Annetje after his passing. Annetje becomes Mrs Mansborg, but happy she is not.

In Woman in the Wings, Dorinde Van Oort tells the incredible story of her great aunt, whose secrets and machinations had a deep impact not only on her own life, but on her whole family’s lives. After reading this book you will never look at your old family photographs in the same way again.

‘Woman in the Shade reads like a thriller. But besides thrilling, the book is the tragic history of a woman without much grip on her life.’ – de Volkskrant

‘Like a true detective she unravels her family’s secrets. You want to keep on reading, till deep in the night, till the book is finished. Because it is beautiful.’ 
– Vrij Nederland

'A fascinating, animated and exciting family history.' – Opzij