I loved everything about this book. The story line and the character building was great. This author has an amazing way of making her books relatable to her readers. This is another great read by Rhonda McKnight.

Bitter and Sweet by Rhonda McKnight is a compelling exploration of love, loss, and the complexities of family dynamics. The narrative follows a young woman as she navigates her relationships while confronting painful truths about her past. McKnight’s authentic writing captures the nuances of emotional struggles and personal growth, making the characters relatable and deeply engaging. Themes of forgiveness and resilience resonate throughout the story, offering readers a thoughtful reflection on the power of healing. This heartfelt novel is a must-read for fans of contemporary fiction.

I love hos Rhonda takes difficult family and personal situations and weaves a story of hope. I could relate a bit to both sisters, at different times. The struggles of both are relatable. An excellent story of family.

A good read that kept me engaged in wanting to know how it would end for each of the main characters.

This is my first read by this author and will be interested to read more from her. This book was a beautiful multigenerational family story told through multiple points of view and also had dual timelines which I love. This was a heartfelt story of family and the trials and tribulations that families endure. Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for a chance to read and review this book in exchange for an honest review.

A story of past and present, family, love, friendship where we follow three generations of a family through the ups and downs of their lives. This story is so real and really brings to your attention family relationships and dynamics. I love the family and how they work hard individually and as a family to overcome hardships and celebrate the good times. This is a story for everyone.

So well written and easy to follow and read the story and characters draw you in to their stories and their lives. It is a great book and a wonderful story to read. 4 1/2 stars for this one.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas Nelson--FICTION for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Bitter and Sweet

Rhonda McKnight

4 stars

Mariah Clark and Sabrina Holland haven't had the easiest sisterhood, what with all the family drama from their childhood. As adults, they barely communicate, both avoiding the other to maintain their peace of mind. Now, they've both got their own messes to sort out. But when their grandma calls them back to Georgetown to run the family restaurant because their grandpa's health is going downhill, they've got to get their act together. They need to save the restaurant and keep the family name shining.

Their grandmother shared letters from their great-great-grandma Tabitha and encouraged Mariah and Sabrina to read them. Her old letters show the sisters that they're not the first in the family to deal with tough times or bad choices. Mariah's not the first to be let down by a guy, and Sabrina's not the first to make hard calls for her kid's sake. Tabitha’s persistent and determination in opening her own restaurant in the Jim Crow south is a testament to how important the restaurant, Tabby’s Meats and Sweets, is to their family heritage. While working together although reluctantly at first, the sisters are able to peel back layers and restore their relationship.

Rhonda McKnight's done it again with a book that hits you right in the feels. BITTER AND SWEET dives into some heavy stuff—postpartum blues, breakups, sorrow, unexpected pregnancy, It's a story that sticks with you and characters that feel like old friends. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good multigenerational story of strong women and the importance of family.

Bitter and sweet is a great way to describe the relations between the main characters who are sisters. They are called home to the Lowcountry of South Carolina to help our their grandparents. The grandparents have a family restaurant. They want the girls to reconcile and to possibly take over the restaurant. Both women are at a crossroads as one is reeling from an impending divorce and the needs a refuge after the untimely death of her husband and the responsibility of being a single parent.
Long held bitterness between them prevents them from being candid about each other’s needs the abilities.
Lessons in the story come from the parallel story of their great grandmother Tabitha who struggled as a single mother, restaurant owner in Charleston during the 1920s and 1930s.
I enjoyed this story.

I was incredibly nervous about reading this book. I was introduced to this author from her book The Thing About Home. I loved that book so much that it was my number 1 read of 2023 out of 190 books. So this book had some big shoes to fill because TTAH set the bar extremely high. I procrastinated cracking this one open for fear of disappointment. Now that I have finally read it, WTH was I waiting for?

This book was so good and was extremely well-written. I am a huge fan of dual timeline stories especially those that are based in historical facts. I loved the drama of the two estranged sisters as they navigate their relationship. The forced proximity opens up the path for healing and is reminder of the importance of forgiveness. The author explores the role of Black women and the impact of society’s divisions caused by Jim Crow. This is a story of reckoning and redemption illustrated as a multi-generational saga. We learn about the Gullah Geeche culture and the impact on South Carolina history. This is. a beautiful lesson in history, faith, and relationships.

This book has solidified Rhonda McKnight as an auto-buy author for me.

"Bitter and Sweet" was a dual-timeline story following a young Black woman in the early 1900s and then her granddaughters many years later.

Normally, I really like Rhonda McKnight's stories, but I just found it hard to get into this one. I found the stress and strain of Great-Grandma Tabitha's timeline to be a bit too much and, at times, repetitive. And I found it hard to relate to Mariah and Sabrina in the present-day timeline.

Due to financial difficulties after the loss of her partner (husband?), Sabrina lives out of a van. And there are references to van life in the story. But it's equated to homelessness, which isn't how van life influencers depict it. So it felt like there was a disconnect there.

And Mariah was self-centered and mean throughout much of the story. And while we're helped to understand why as she undergoes therapy to help improve her relationships, the impression we're given is that she's not a very likeable person. She even lied to her husband about a crucial decision spouses should be on the same page about before they get married.

I did appreciate the positive messages about faith, seeking help, and getting therapy. But overall, this isn't a story I'd be interested in reading again. It took a lot to actually finish it, and I just about gave up a few times. I'm glad that I didn't, because I got to see the transformation as each of the characters grew, but it's definitely not a "feel good" story.

Thanks to Rhonda McKnight, Thomas Nelson, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

This book was AMAZING....A Praying Grandmother is thee best thing to have.

Great-great Tabitha's perseverance made it possible for Sabrina and Mariah to fulfill their Grandmother's dreams.

I really appreciated how the author placed therapy in this novel. Letting readers know therapy is ok. Therapy was through cooking in this novel if you think about it.

This novel will definitely have you shedding some tears.

The story goes through three perspectives, two sisters and the great great grandmother from the past. The story of their great great grandmother is read from the perspective of her journals and how her tribulations and triumphs are connecting with the two sisters. Are the sisters able to bounce back from their situations? Will they be able to reconnect and rebuild their relationship?

Rhonda McKnight is such a masterful storyteller!!! This story is rich with history and culture - and my oh my, does she have a wonderful way with words! I highly recommend!

I love Southern fiction and when I saw Bitter and Sweet was a Lowcountry novel I knew I had to read it. This one does not disappoint, I was held captive from the first page. The story is told in a dual timeline between sisters, Mariah and Sabrina in the present time and their great-great-grandmother Tabitha in the early 1920s. The sisters have been summoned home to Georgetown, South Carolina to save the family restaurant. This inspirational story is about family and sisters working together to help save the restaurant and heal their grievances. This is the first book by this author I have read and I found it enjoyable. Thanks to author Rhonda McKnight, publisher Thomas Nelson, and NetGalley. I received a complimentary copy of this ebook. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. This was a wonderful family drama. The multiple timelines made the story flow quite effortlessly. The characters were well drawn and relatable. Highly recommend

Rhonda McKnight’s Bitter and Sweet is another powerful inspirational historical fiction novel. The story is set in fictional Georgetown, South Carolina, during two different eras, the early 1900s and the present. Two estranged sisters are summoned by their grandmother to return home. Each is facing personal dilemmas and neither sister is eager to see the other. But the mysterious text from their grandmother does not stop the sisters from dropping everything to honor their grandma’s request.

Mariah Clark is still reeling from her divorce and the loss of her business to her husband. She’s wondering if she can ever trust again. Her sister Sabrina is facing financial and emotional issues following the loss of her daughter’s father. She is resigned to living out of her van while trying to find a way forward. The sisters separately believe that their grandfather is seriously ill and needs care. The restaurant that their grandmother and grandfather run has been in their family for generations and is closed. When the sisters arrive, they are told by their grandmother to save the family’s restaurant – together. The present meets the past when they read letters written by their great-great-grandmother Tabitha. Learning about the Cooper family legacy strengthens their resolve to get the restaurant back on its feet. The letters prove to the women that they come from a legacy of perseverance as they also discover hard truths about themselves and each other.

This book served as a history lesson for me. It reminded me how strong sisterhood is whether by blood or friendship. The themes of faith, forgiveness, and hope prove that we all need each other in good times and in bad times. The author writes stories giving her characters grace to grow while they endure the toughest of times. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and look forward to her next one.

Mariah and Sabrina are sisters by birth, but they've never been close. Now, they both face personal challenges, including homelessness and the loss of a marriage. When their grandmother asks the girls fo help, they rush to her aid. But can they solve their grandmother's problem, save the family's restaurant and heal their relationship before it's too late?
Told in dual-timeline, this novel addresses topics like women's empowerment, how women choose men, family dynamics, generational trauma patterns, racism, and grief. The author pulls on family stories to write this book. The topics are definitely important for modern-day readers to discuss and relatable to many readers.
The sisters do good work and reach out for help. That's positive. The author also includes dozens of one-line therapy insights like:
"When you know who you are, no way can you show up different.”
“Everybody is not Christian. Judging them for it won’t get them to be."
"We are strengthened when we are healed."
"Forgive my grief."
I found myself struggling to keep the sisters separate, though, and I preferred Tabitha's story. And just when I started to get involved in a chracters story, the author switched characters. That technique was jaring.
Also, some of the content didn't sit right with me. For example, there's some lust and sexual innuendo, a wealth and prosperity gospel, a message that Jesus and therapy can make someone rich, and women need a man to be whole. Plus, one of the boyfriends Quinton borders on predator behavior and is pushy.

“Everything we struggle through has a purpose. That’s what God’s Word says. We have to take the good and bad and the bitter and sweet.”

In Bitter and Sweet, Rhonda McKnight uses two timelines to allow readers to build relationships with a South Carolina family whose women forge bright futures for their children in the face of big challenges. As in her 2023 novel The Thing About Home, this story has family, food, faith, and forgiveness as its cornerstones.

I was quickly drawn into the contemporary storyline with sisters Mariah and Sabrina, and appreciated learning about their great-great-grandmother Tabitha through letters she left behind. The mouth-watering food descriptions, swoony heroes, memorable secondary characters, and mentions of Gullah Geeche culture added rich texture of this story.

I enjoyed the audiobook narrated by Joniece Abbott-Pratt, Angel Pean and Lynnette R. Freeman

Thank you to Thomas Nelson and HarperCollins Christian Publishing for the review copies of this moving novel.

Put this one down at 52%. There was not enough character development in either of the sisters in the first half of the book, and the timeline following their ancestor was not interesting enough to keep going.

I enjoyed the family dynamic and the strong generational roots that were present throughout this book. The restaurant setting drew me in as well. The main sister characters drew me in and their story arc felt like one I could live with my own family. My favorite part of the book was the historic timeline of the great grandmother telling her story in past years. I would have enjoyed the book without this timeline, but it added to the appeal for me. I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good story about the real difficulties faced when families struggle together.