Bitter and Sweet
by Rhonda McKnight
Pub Date: June 11, 2024
Thanks to the author, publi isher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
From the beloved author of The Thing About Home comes a dual timeline tale of family, grief, secrets, and the sweet redemption that lies within the bonds of sisterhood.
With the lessons in their family's past guiding them, both sisters have a chance at a different life--if they can find a way to bridge the gap that tragedy and unhealed trauma forced between them. Told in a dual timeline that alternates between the 1920s and present-day Charleston, SC, Bitter and Sweet is an emotional story about love, one family's perseverance, and the bonds of family and heritage.
What a great read! This is a story of family. A story of Gullah culture. A story of forgiveness. A story of love. I recommend this story if you love a family drama/saga or a multigenerational story.

When I saw this as read now I had to download right away because I loved this author book The Thing about Home. This book was well written. This book includes - sibling conflict, broken marriages, and family crisis. The emotions I felt while reading made this book an easy five star read. I truly didn’t want this book to end.

Once again Rhonda McKnight give us a beautiful story of family, legacy, history, and connection.

Watching Mariah and Sabrina was heartbreaking. We learned about their grief over relationships lost in more ways than one, but watching Mariah struggle with so much anger and how most of it was geared toward Sabrina was gut wrenching. Having a sister myself I can attest to how sometimes, you have to set aside fights from your past to move on and keep your relationship in the future. Watching Mariah go to therapy and fight for her sister in the story was beyond beautiful!

As with past Rhonda McKnight books, we also get the story of a relative, Tabitha, as she built the restaurant that Mariah and Sabrina are hoping to reopen. I spent so much of my time reading Tabitha story saying "no girl, don't do it" she had me stressed :)

As with The Thing About Home. I LOVED this book and can't wait to read more.

This dual time line book by Rhonda McKnight is a wonderful book about family and how the mistakes we make can be forgiven and we can move on from the past. This dual time line book that alternates between the great-grandma in the 1910's-1925 and present day great grand daughters Maria and Sabrina was wonderfully written. The author talks about Gullah, a southern culture and cuisine found in South Carolina which was new to me and sounds wonderful to try.

There was information on historical struggles of African Americans in the early part of the 20th century which were written about to highlight strengths and weaknesses of human nature. The present day struggles of Mariah and Sabrina were also things that many of us go through - divorce and financial struggles where we see the characters experience growth through working through these things. The author portrays these difficult subjects in a real and caring way. Their grandma does a great job of being an encouragement to both women in the present day timeline.

There is some light romance in the book, but the biggest part of the book is the story of the women of this novel. This is a truly well written women's fiction book. After reading this one, I definitely want to check out other books written by this author. Despite the difficult subjects, the book to me is clean fiction, though geared towards a late high school to adult audience.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson Fiction and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

This story reads like a movie. Dual time lines, past and present. What I enjoyed most was the nuances of the characters. There are a lot of people to keep up with in this family drama that spans generations but you get to know each one and how different they all are but have similar life experiences. Two sisters learn their family history and meet their great-grandmother through her letters that their own grandmother had been saving for them. Sometime you aren’t ready to learn a lesson or the timing of information will not be beneficial for you and their grandmother held on to those letters until they were needed.
This family had so many secrets. The past held dangerous but not surprising secrets. The present held secrets that were simply rooted in shame. This story is told so that you learn history of the family before you learn the families secrets. You see in both the past and present how and why those lies and webs began to unravel. This story is well written and the characters are people you know, some of your family, present and long lost. This is a story of family. A story of Gullah culture. A story of forgiveness. A story of love. I recommend this story if you love a family drama/saga or a multigenerational story.

It's a novel about three strong women who with their determination and faith overcome big problems. The time switch between the sisters now and their great-grandmother generations before, the parallels are really interesting and more so because I learned something about Gullah culture.

What a wonderful story.

# Southernfiction

This story is written on a dual timeline.
One of my favorites. The story goes back In time . For me this was a perfect story.

This is a book that takes you away to another time in another place. Just a Fabulous story.

In the future, we have 2 sisters. Not close, but maybe one day. There's so much about this story. That's just phenomenal, Learning too, get along and be a family. So much loss from the past. A book full of history.

I just absolutely loved this book.
The author has an amazing style of writing.

What I loved about this story everything.

Wow! First it was The Thing About Home. Now it’s Bittersweet. I absolutely loved everything about this book. Sabrina & Mariah sister fighting to re open a restaurant that’s been the name sake for 87 years. While grandma is fighting for the love of her life. This is a heartwarming read. Not much drama but more about family sticking together. From broken marriage , sister feud , family crisis i give it 5 stars and will pre-order the hard copy!
Thank You NetGalley for the ARC I just reviewed Bitter and Sweet by Rhonda McKnight. #BitterandSweet #NetGalley

What a great read to get lost in. Told in dual time, the early 1900's to the present, through a gift of letters.

There is a lot of family dynamics here, and more and more come to light as you continue through this book.

There is a lot information about the Gullah people, I never knew this, and we work with the food from this region, and I loved how this all blends into this story!

There are a lot of family dynamics here, strong women, and you really need to read all the way to the end for it all to blend together. Be ready for strong emotions and a feeling that you want to fight for justice!

I will be look for more from this author!

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Thomas Nelson, and was not required to give a positive review.

WOW. What a GREAT book! I could not put it down and I felt connected instantly. My patrons will definitely love this one!

Rhonda McKnight's "Bitter and Sweet" is a captivating dual-timeline story filled with woe and delight. Through the lives of Mariah, Sabrina, and their great-great-grandmother, McKnight beautifully explores the complexities of family and the power of resilience. Readers will be drawn into the journey of these sisters as they discover their own strength and resilience. A must-read that will leave you feeling both moved and inspired.

A very enjoyable dual timeline story about a grandmother and her love for her granddaughters who have a very rocky relationship. As they read letters from the past, they begin to accept their differences and learn to love each other. I recommend this book!

Bitter and Sweet is the tale of two sisters, whose lives are derailed in different ways. Mariah and Sabrina haven’t always gotten along, but they must work together to save their grandparents’ restaurant.

Sabrina stole my heart from the get-go because of her difficult situation, plus the relationship with her adorable daughter, Kenni. Also, she’s super creative.

Mariah is the perfect example of individuals who allow circumstances, people, and relationships to make them so bitter, no one can live with them. Her meanness made me dislike her until way later, when she realized who she’d become.

The story kept me engaged and I rooted for both women to find their happy place and move from where life flung them off-course. Their grandmother was smart to bring them together and have them collaborate on a meaningful project, which helped to repair their relationship.

My favorite character was Tabitha, their great-great grandparent (if I remember correctly). She’s a picture of true resilience. After being tricked and ending up in a bad situation, she did everything to not only survive, but eventually thrive.

The novel was nicely flavored with the food and customs of the Gullah-Geechee people and provided an interesting look at the culture. Some of the language reminded me of Jamaican Patois, so of course I sounded out the speech while reading. 😊

Bitter and Sweet took me through a range of emotions, but mostly I cried for Tabitha and Sabrina because of the awful things that happened to them. At the end of the story, I rejoiced for all the characters who found forgiveness, healing, restoration, and love.

If you enjoy stories about families, their struggles and triumphs, and faith, be sure to treat yourself to a copy of Bitter and Sweet.

Oh My Goodness. I LOVED this story. The care. The tenderness. The love. The way I felt for each and every character. McKnight writing is like a spring night on the porch after the rain, in your favorite rocking chair . It’s refreshing. It’s cool to the spirit. It’s the familiar motion that makes everything around you fall away. It’s like your beverage of choice that can either send a buzz clear through to your fingertips and toes. Or a cool drink that cleanses your palette and send a chill down your spine. Or it good be a hot cup of tea that you hold near that not only warm your hands but warms the soul. Rhonda McKnight is an auto buy author for me because I LIVE for all the feels she makes me feel 🙌🏾

Bitter and Sweet tell us the story of two sisters, whose relationship is not close. At the same time, it tells the story of their grandmother, Tabitha, who struggled as a single parent in the early 1900’s, yet rose above obstacles in her way. It is a beautiful story of survival, forgiveness, and true love. It was great and. I loved it.. I will highly recommend it.

Forgive my grief. These are three of the most powerful words contained in this novel and they sum the story up for me. In Bitter and Sweet Rhonda McKnight has penned an awesome novel showing how great one’s life can be impacted by grief. Not all grief is due to death.

I loved this storyline and the characters. This book will cause you to examine your relationships. Perhaps it could be time to let go of some long standing bitterness you may be holding. It definitely serves as a wake up call for me.

I highly recommend this book. I would give it 10 stars if it was possible.

Thank you Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book.

Enjoyable enough story of several generations of a family, their secrets, sorrows, struggles. I know it was an ARC, so I hope by the time it is ready for public publishing many of the mistakes are corrected, such a the day the child is 3 years old before dinner and by sunset she is 4. Incorrect pronouns made it necessary to reread sections of it.

The Past, The Present, and the Future

Rhonda McKnight has once again given us a riveting dual time line story. Going between Georgetown and Charleston, South Carolina. Typical and non typical family drama, a grandmother fighting literally and emotionally to save the love of her life and restore peace and love within her family. My favorite character was Sabriana. One of my favorite quotes is: "I have problems bigger than this conversation."
A must read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for the ARC of Bitter And Sweet, above is my honest review.

This book deals with family, grief, secrets, and the sweet redemption that lies within the bonds of sisterhood. Two head strong sisters return home to help with the family restaurant and Grandpa’s health issues. This book is a great read and very interesting. You will find yourself falling in love with all the characters and you will be vested in them. I definitely recommend this book for your summer reading.

i received a complimentary copy of this book.......(thank you!!) and these opinions are completely my own..... so when you receive a free copy of a book, you never know what you are going to get! somethimes i struggle through a book and it takes me forever...however i finished this book in only a couple of days! i totally enjoyed it!! i usually love books that go back and forth through time...and this did not disappoint!! i loved the time changes and i loved the on going story of the relationship between sisters! the characters were well developed and interesting! i will put this author on follow and definately read another on of her books! thanks again for the advanced copy, it was a very good surprise!!