After her parents died, the last thing Addie Engel expected upon moving to Atlanta was to take part in uncovering an illegal drug plot, especially one run by her beloved Garrett's cousin. But now that Lester's gone for good, Addie's journey of self-discovery can finally begin in earnest, exactly how she's always dreamed. With a new inheritance and the support of Garrett behind her, she's at last enrolled in school and on track to becoming a fully-fledged nurse at Sacred Heart Hospital. The medical center is state-of-the-art, and full of teachers, equipment, nurses, and new friends--everything Addie needs to realize her heart's aspiration. Not to mention an attractive young doctor who's taken a liking to Addie...

But the world of medicine in 1914 has its dark side, and that corruption is slowly eking into the hospital and everyone who enters it. With the Great War approaching, illness and tragedy are at an all-time high, and that means the number of children left homeless and orphaned is only growing...unfortunately for them, there are some who are all too happy to take advantage of the situation. When the bodies of young boys begin to appear scattered across town, the police don't know who or what is to blame. But Addie, as usual, is right in the middle of things, and she has a sneaking suspicion the hospital--and its favored orphanage--is unwittingly involved.

Set in the maze of mounting social strain and growing pains that is early 20th century Atlanta, Hope Never Rests is a panoramic and masterful sequel to Aspirations of the Heart, ideal for lovers of Southern and historical fiction.