That cover is so beautiful but the inside is a bit disjointed. Really enjoyed first part of the book and lost me in the middle.

I was so lost in the beginning i fell asleep. This book was missing aspect to make it great just felt rushed which made me not care about the chapters or what's going on.

Nicola Kraus delivers a powerful, emotionally intense exploration of generational trauma. I love a character-driven family saga, and this one spans from the 1970s to the 2010s, highlighting the lasting impact of family secrets and unresolved pain. There’s nothing particularly heartwarming here—just raw, damaged people doing the best they can with what they were given. And somehow, I couldn’t stop listening.

What really hit me was how clearly the novel shows emotional silence as a kind of legacy—especially in a time when therapy wasn’t widely accepted or accessible. These characters feel heartbreakingly real, and while they often frustrate me, I hope they can at least find some peace and happiness.

🎧Narration Note: Helen Laser is a true voice actress. She brings depth to this complex, often painful story. Even when I disliked certain characters—especially Jayne—Laser’s narration helped me understand them with greater empathy. I love how she draws you fully into the Donoghue world, navigating its emotional messiness and long-buried secrets with remarkable grace and sensitivity.

I was definitely a bit confused by this book. I think the pacing threw me off - there were many POVS that changed seemingly randomly and also time jumps that made keeping up a little difficult. I did listen to the audiobook though so i think those challenges were more pronounced in this format.
In addition, it just wasn't that engaging/interesting to me.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

When Bunny Linden abandons her three children with her older sister, Jayne, in 1972, she knows Jayne will be the perfect mother. The mother Bunny, a teen runaway, could never be.

Bunny is a piece of work! She abandons her children with her sister, Jayne, and she does not return till years later. But Jayne, has taken these children under her wing and raised them to the best of her ability. It has not been easy by any means. But Jayne did what she was supposed to do. Then Bunny betrays her in the worst possible way.

This is a bit slow moving. Plus, it has a good many details that you do not necessarily need. But, Jayne is such a great character. And she does make some major mistakes. Add in all the secrets…you need to read this to find out.

Now I did struggle between 3-4 stars. It just drags off and on throughout the book. And as much as I liked Jayne…I hated her husband and Bunny just as much. But it does redeem itself in the end!

This is narrated by Helen Laser. She did a great job with all the different voices, especially between Bunny and Jayne.

Need a family drama full of betrayal…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

The Best We Could Hope For is a complex family drama and historical fiction novel that spans from the 1940s to 2013.

The story follows two sisters, Jane - the responsible and upstanding one, and Bunny - the wild child who leaves home as a teen and becomes a young mother. Bunny eventually returns to NYC and abandons her three children with Jane, who is now married and goes on to have children of her own.

Jane and Bunny share a dark family secret that bind them together. Although the sisters do not explicitly discuss it, the plot reveals how they each cope with this trauma and how it impacts their relationships with the men in their life and their children. This is a difficult subject to tackle and the book is a window into how one family is impacted across generations by the nefarious actions of the patriarch of the family.

Make sure to check your trigger warnings before reading this one. I enjoyed the audiobook narration by Helen Laser. Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Audio for an advanced audiobook in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and the author/publisher for providing me with an ARC for review. All opinions are entirely my own.

This novel started a little slow for me but once it got going it was addicting. The story centers on the baggage we carry with us and the complicated way those issues are wrapped up in secrecy and family dysfunction.

Jayne and Bunny are from a melded family and couldn’t be more different as sisters. Free-spirited Bunny sets the stage initially, and Jayne is every mother’s favorite and dutiful daughter trying to be the glue holding things together. Between them we follow the story of their offspring and the ramifications of Jayne and Bunny’s past.

Helen Laser does a good job as Narrator. A solid 4.5 stars rounded up on this one.

This book explores the difficult relationships, secrets and dynamics of a family. It also includes child sexual abuse allegations and all the fallout from that which I did not expect. All in all it was a good book that spans generations and is told from multiple POV. The beginning of the book was slow but it did pick up.
I have both the audiobook and the ebook. The Audiobook narrator was perfect.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Little A and Brilliance Publishing for gifting me an audio ARC of the new novel by Nicola Kraus. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Bunny and Jayne are sisters, but couldn't be any different. But their lives will be combined forever when Bunny leaves her children with Jayne. And again when she returns.

This is a sad but moving family saga set over the time period of the 1940s to 2013. We follow two sisters, Bunny and Jayne, as well as their children through this time. There are family secrets and trauma that will follow them and affect their lives for years. I loved the nostalgia throughout the years, and felt Kraus' handling of the trauma was sensitive and well done, with no extraneous details just for the sake of drama. The point was made perfectly. Helen Laser's narration is always perfect and kept me listening.

This novel is about a dysfunctional family dealing with generational trauma over a span of 50+ years with multiple perspectives.
It begins in 1972 with two sisters;
Bunny arrives with her three children and hands them over to Jayne, setting off the unfolding events of the story.
The primary voices in the novel are those of the mother, Jayne, at the beginning and her daughter, Linden.
It’s an engrossing novel and the author does an incredible job developing all of these characters, their depth, complexities and traumas and how they all are connected to one another.
Thank you to the publisher/author for the opportunity to listen to this complimentary advanced copy. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I found this like a serious of unfortunate events with next to no hope or inspiration within the storyline. I appreciate the work involved and the plot of this audiobook was of family dynamics however it just was too much doom and gloom that seemed to be continued throughout.

From the beginning there are many characters but mainly focusing on Jayne and her sister Bunny who ends up leaving Jayne with her children in to raise. Jayne then goes on to have to face many extremely traumatic events within her family timeline. I appreciate and accept these things happen all the time in reality and in-fact advocate for the sharing of such via modalities of books but this one just didn’t quite land it was a little mismatched.

The narration on this was also a little monotone at times some parts I felt myself immersed and others I couldn’t quite grasp the emotion that was being portrayed.

This had potential for so much more if it just had a little more in way of hope and inspiration then maybe it would have all flowed a little better. I think for me it would have gained higher star rating as I do enjoy different era reading.

With thanks to NetGalley & Brilliance Publishing for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook in return for an honest review 📚🙏🏽❤️

There is a lot going on in this book and sometimes I felt it was a little hard to follow. That may have been because I was listening to the audiobook though and tend to get distracted sometimes. Overall- interesting book that really kept me wanting to find out what would happen next and how things would be resolved.

I’ve said it before: I love family dramas, and 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐖𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐇𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐫 delivered! This is a complex exploration of sisterhood, marriage, parenting, and sibling relationships. I’m not sure what it doesn’t touch on.

Told through multiple POVS, I was immediately invested in this family. This is a story about sisters Jayne and Bunny and how their childhood, their choices, and their memories would go on to affect their children. This deals with some tough and potentially triggering topics such as abandonment, sexual abuse, and drug use (nothing graphic). Yet the skillful way the author examines the repercussions of trauma as it is passed down in a family makes this book so compelling.

This was a very emotional read for me. It was hard for me to watch Jayne be so loyal and a mother to Bunny’s children when she left, and yet get blamed for so much. But there is a lot to unpack here—a lot! With painful memories from the past, a mother trying to do the best she can, and children trying to put together the pieces of their childhood, this is a complicated, intergenerational family saga that will leave you breathless.

🎧 I was thankful to be able to split my time between reading and listening to this book. One of my favorites, Helen Laser, narrates the audiobook. Her narration added richness and vibrance to this drama, making it a fabulous production.

Thank you to @suzyapprovedbooktours and @nicolakrausauthor for the gifted book. Thank you @brilliancepublishing for the gifted audiobook via #netgalley.

I was looking forward to reading this novel by Nicola Kraus. I found the start to the book to be quite slow. I would have enjoyed more character development. Overall, it was a good read.

I hoped for the BEST when selecting
"THE BEST WE COULD HOPE FOR".

The BEST of this BEST book:
1) A protagonist named Jayne -- (Yes, Jayne with a "y"! )
It doesn't get better than that!
2) The book's generational trauma/dysfunctional family theme was compelling and ambitious

TWS:
Child abuse, mental health struggles

Had these TWs been revealed, I never would have selected the book.

Also, there were issues with the book's number of characters and pacing.
1) The book spans over 50 years with many POVs, waaay too long a period for an audiobook that was less than 8 hours.

The book's timeline had wide gaps with POV changes often without warning or indication.

I prefer fewer well-developed characters over a shorter period.

2) Even though the book jumped ahead to different years, the overall pacing within the years was slow, lacking the sizzle and element of excitement I was seeking.

I listened to the audiobook read by Helen Laser. Her narration was good but not great.

Since there were many POVs and abrupt timeline changes, the book would have benefited from a full cast of narrators.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "The Best We Could Hope For" and all opinions expressed are my own. I listened to the audiobook. It was a bit hard to follow what the characters were doing and who was who. The book covers the 1940s to 2013 and follows the family. Very depressing story and confusing at times. Overall a no for me.

This was such a thought-provoking read for me and I always love a NY setting. The story was filled with interesting characters and complicated family dynamics. It took place in an era where divorce wasn’t common as it is today.  Kramer vs Kramer was the first movie I ever watched about divorce. It was powerful me as a child and it’s still powerful for me now. This book had those types of vibes for me - - heavy hitting and emotional. I keep reflecting back on it and think this would be such a great choice for a book club since there is so much to unpack. Helen Laser was a fabulous narrator.

A moving and incredibly sad intergenerational family story set over the course of the 1940s to 2013 that follows two sisters and their children and the way dark family secrets and trauma affects them for years and years. Good on audio with really great narration by Helen Laser and recommended for fans of books like The paper palace by Miranda Cowley Heller. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

CW: sexual assault of a minor (off page), PTSD, drug and alcohol use/addiction

Thank you to Nicola Kraus, Brilliance Audio and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Reminiscent of Kristin Hannah and Ariel Lawhon, Kraus has a true knack for capturing the varied emotional growth of a whole cast of characters, creating layers and depth that grow and shrink throughout the story.

Following a family torn apart and struggling to keep up with societal expectations meanwhile behind closed doors they are desperate to keep the tatters of their family together, Kraus weaves together a story from multiple view points that begs to ask the question of who is really at fault when a family crumbles?

4 stars!