What Remains Is Hope

The Heppenheimer Family Holocaust Saga, Book 2

Beginning in 1930s Germany and based on their real lives, four cousins as close as siblings—Bettina, Trudi, Gustav, and Gertrud—share the experiences of the young, including first loves, marriages, and children. Bettina, the oldest, struggles to help her parents with their failing business. Trudi dresses in the latest fashions and tries to make everything look beautiful. Gustav is an artist at heart and hopes to one day open a tailoring shop. Gertrud, the youngest, is forced by her parents to keep secrets, but that doesn’t stop her from chasing boys. However, over their seemingly ordinary lives hangs one critical truth—they’re Jewish—putting them increasingly at risk.

When World War II breaks out, the four are still in Germany or German-occupied lands, unable or unwilling to leave. How will these cousins avoid the horrors of the Nazi regime, a regime that wants them dead? Will they be able to avoid the deportations and concentration camps that have claimed their fellow Jews? Danger is their constant companion, and it will take hope and more to survive.

©2025 Black Rose Writing (P)2025 Black Rose Writing

Horrible narration

It is hard for me to honestly assess this book as I found the narrator so awful it was hard to give the story honest attention.

The narrator used voices that we so over the top it was like listening to someone reading a children’s story, someone like myself sho was a really bad reader of children’s stories. I round it disrespectful to a story about the holocaust.

A Moving Story That Feels Personal

There’s a quiet strength to this story that really stayed with me. It begins with the everyday lives of these four cousins, and those early moments make them feel real and relatable before everything starts to change.

What makes this especially impactful is how grounded it feels. You are not just hearing about history, you are following people who had hopes, relationships, and normal lives that were slowly taken from them. That shift from ordinary to uncertain is handled in a way that feels natural and honest.

Each cousin brings something different to the story, which helps keep it engaging without feeling overwhelming. Their individual personalities and choices add depth and make you more invested in what happens to them.

The narration fits the tone well. It is calm and steady, which allows the emotion of the story to come through without feeling forced.

This is not an easy listen, but it is an important one. It is a reminder of how fragile life can be and how much strength it takes to hold on to hope in the middle of fear and uncertainty.

A Story of Real Life

I enjoyed listening to this book because it made the people of the past feel like they were very modern and relatable in their feelings. It is a beautiful tribute to a real family and the love that kept them going through the darkest times of their lives.

Insightful

I listened to What Remains Is Hope on a long flight, and the hours disappeared faster than I expected. The narration drew me deep into the Heppenheimer cousins’ lives, making their joys and heartbreaks feel strikingly real. The author paints prewar Germany so vividly that I could almost see the scenes out the airplane window. What captivated me most was how ordinary family moments—love, work, ambition—stood against the rising tide of hatred and fear. Even at thirty thousand feet, I felt their courage resonate, reminding me how fragile and precious hope can be. It’s an emotionally charged, beautifully told story that lingers long after landing.