From author, Diane Holmes, comes a story inspired by the life of her grandmother, Bernadine. In this work of historical fiction, the relationship between Bernadine and her older sister Elizabeth is complicated. Bitterness between them develops when Elizabeth asks Bernadine to keep a deep dark secret about her past. The author shows throughout the novel how the impact of keeping that secret is far greater for the one sister than it is for the other. The bitterness is intensified when the younger sister must leave her home in Germany and say goodbye to her best friend, Judith.

Two Sisters' Secret is not just the personal story of Bernadine and Elizabeth but the story of rural America at the turn of the century and beyond – the days of horse-powered farm machinery and transportation, the transition to electric lights and telephones, the sadness, fear, and loneliness of an immigrant in the United States, and the very real hardship of The Great Depression.

Holmes takes you into the heart and soul of Bernadine as she struggles on the Midwest plains of Iowa, suffering heartbreaking losses of farmland, an infant son, a daughter so needlessly, and husband before his time. The reader senses how Bernadine meets the challenges she faces with strength and faith in God, all the while keeping the secret. They see the sorrow she feels when learning her best friend, Judith, is killed in the Holocaust.

The poignant revelation of the secret is inevitable, but the real story is in the life of Bernadine and the legacy she leaves.