"From The Gambia, to Sweden, to LA, this dual timeframe page-turner explores mothers, daughters, and finding freedom from the past in order to forge a fresh future."
“Don’t let a man obstruct you. I let a man stop me from becoming who I was meant to be”. Words of wisdom and experience from Nancy, the elder of the mother-daughter pair whose stories are explored in Lolá Ákínmádé’s brilliantly compelling Bitter Honey. “But it’s never too late to reclaim your life,” Tina, the daughter, counters. And therein lies two of the main themes threaded through this novel as it spans four decades and three continents through the two women.
In 1978, Nancy leaves The Gambia to study in Sweden. With her sights set on becoming Madame President of her country someday, there she falls in love with a fellow Gambian, and also strikes up an intense bond with one of her professors. Through the years, she loses sight of her own ambitions, except for a bone-deep desire to protect her children and see them live good lives.
In 2006, we meet Tina, Nancy’s daughter, a young woman on the cusp of making it as an international singer, with her childhood sweetheart — who’s something of a national football hero — at her side. Then comes a shocking blast from the past that unsettles Tina ahead of a succession of shockwaves in her personal and professional life.
Partly revealing the damage done by needy, manipulative, self-serving men who sap dreams and agency, and alienate women from their potential, Bitter Honey also explores the complexities, rifts and healing aspects of mother-daughter relationships, sisterhood, and how it’s possible to dig deep, summon resilience, and find the strength to make positive transformations. It’s a compulsive read, driven by complex, messy, realistic root-worthy characters.
| Primary Genre | Modern and Contemporary Fiction |
