Bitter and Sweet by Rhonda McKnight

Bitter and Sweet

Award-winning Lowcountry Novel

Rhonda McKnight

Thomas Nelson · Print & ebook · June 11, 2024

A 2025 CHRISTY AWARD WINNER!

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Who it’s for
A warm, layered read about sisterhood, family history, grief, and the possibility of starting again.
Genres
Black Christian Fiction, Sibling Stories, Multigenerational Family Stories
Published
Thomas Nelson, June 11, 2024

About this book

A 2025 CHRISTY AWARD WINNER! "A poignant story of sisterhood, motherhood, and new love found in old places. McKnight's writing is as delectable as the Gullah cuisine at the heart of the novel." --Denny S. Bryce, bestselling author of The Other Princess and Wild Women and the Blues From the beloved author of The Thing About Home comes a dual timeline tale of Lowcountry flavor, family, grief, secrets, and the sweet redemption that lies within the bonds of sisterhood.

Continue reading

The Present. When summoned to Georgetown, South Carolina, sisters Mariah Clark and Sabrina Holland both assume their ailing grandfather's health has gotten worse. Neither expects their grandmother's undeniable request--save the family restaurant. Mariah is at a crossroad in her life. After being dumped by her husband and forced to walk away from their diner that she helped rescue from bankruptcy, bitter feelings consume her. Even though the restaurant has been in the family for eighty-six years, giving her all to another struggling business isn't something she wants to do. Living out of her van and striving for a fresh start, Sabrina yearns for stability for herself and her daughter and a chance to turn her baking hustle into a bona-fide business. The family restaurant may be just the blessing she needs--but as old tensions and angry disagreements resurface, Sabrina wonders if her sister will let her have a say. The Past. After falling victim to a love she thought would last a lifetime, Tabitha Cooper finds herself away from home and struggling to survive in Charleston in the early twentieth century. She is determined to turn corn into cornbread and to take care of her children the best way she knows how--by serving food that's good for the soul--and along the way forges a path that leaves a legacy of success for generations to come. Through letters that reveal Tabitha's complicated past, the sisters discover truths that just might be the right recipe to mend their hearts--if they can find a way to savor the blessing of today and leave the bitter aftertaste of old memories behind them. Bitter and Sweet is a standalone novel that includes discussion questions, making it a great pick for book clubs looking to explore and discuss the themes of faith, family, and self-discovery.

Family, Then and Now

A warm, layered read about sisterhood, family history, grief, and the possibility of starting again.

Come here for

  • Family ties, old hurts, and Lowcountry food at the heart of the story
  • A dual timeline linking sisters’ present-day choices with a family legacy

Expect

  • Present-day tensions alongside a past revealed through letters
  • Faith, food, and family bonds with plenty to discuss

Where it sits

Sibling Stories35%
Black Christian Fiction27%
Multigenerational Family Stories27%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Clean Romance
  • Contemporary Christian Fiction
  • Sibling Stories
  • Black Christian Fiction
Show all 8 publisher categories
  • Black Women's Fiction
  • Cultural Heritage Fiction
  • Southern Fiction
  • Own Voices Fiction
Authors
Rhonda McKnight
Publisher
Thomas Nelson
Published
June 11, 2024
Format
Print & ebook
Reading lane
Clean Romance