Thursday, August 1, 2024

BITTER AND SWEET by Rhonda McKnight, Reviewed by Rebecca Maney

" . . . Tabitha decided she liked doing what was right. She always met Jesus there."

Life had rarely been easy for Tabitha Cooper, trying to raise her three children in Charleston, South Carolina during an era when women of color rarely got the sort of opportunities that their talents should have afforded them. Let it be said that Tabitha was no ordinary woman, proven by the legacy that she leaves her two great-great granddaughters, gifting them with a blueprint for courage and determination. The day had most certainly come when they would need that legacy to brave what they are tempted to assume is "not salvageable", whether it's an old family restaurant, or their tenuous relationship with each other.

A tale of two sisters, Mariah Clark and Sabrina Holland; as different as night and day . . . glass half-full, glass half-empty kind of different . . . coerced into working together by their savvy grandmother, who is adamant about saving "Tabby's Meats and Sweets", confident that the project will bring out the best in both of them, for it is obvious to everyone else that their broken and battered hearts need the strength of one for the other.
Full of southern charm and low-country vibes, the author not only writes to preserve what was, but she also honors what can be, for "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".

Beautifully written with characters as vibrant as their heritage!

*I purchased this book and was under no obligation to provide a positive review. 4.5 stars
 
 
BackCover Blurb:
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.

-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.

Thomas Nelson, June, 2024
Available in digital ebook, paperback and audiobook:
Buy BITTER AND SWEET at Amazon, Christianbook .com, or Baker Book House

 

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