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A woman with a violent past gets a chance at redemption in this upmarket suspense debut, perfect for fans of Lisa Taddeo and Tiffany McDaniel.

Thirteen years ago, Providence Byrd threw the family car in reverse and ran over her mother. Even though she survived, that single instant of teenage madness made Providence a felon and irrevocably altered her life. When her mother disappears years later under suspicious circumstances, Providence tells herself that returning home is her chance to find closure after a prolonged estrangement from her family. Never mind that this is only half of the truth: she’s also returning to finally confront her abusive father, Tom Byrd. Nothing can stamp out Providence’s certainty that he is guilty of whatever terrible thing has happened to her mother.

As the search unfolds, Providence is haunted by the wounds of her past, none of which cut as deep as the distance between her and her younger sisters. Harmony and Grace are both uniquely scarred by her attempted matricide, and both have their own idea of what reconciliations might look like � if reconciling is even possible. Harmony urges Providence to make their father pay for his sins; Grace begs her to end the cycle of violence that has haunted their family for generations. As her thirst for vengeance collides with her desire to heal her relationships with her sisters, Providence must decide which she values more: revenge or redemption.

Sharp and poignant, Every Sweet Thing Is Bitter is a stunning novel that eschews picture-perfect endings and dares to tell a story about a resilient queer woman and her relentless determination to persevere.

Through Ch. 7 and I am loving it so far!

(view spoiler)[Wow! The family dynamics are all over the place. I can see why Providence wanted to kill her father, but of course I don't condone it. I see why Grace and Harmony are both angry in their own ways. I think Harmony feels abandoned by Providence although I don't blame Providence for leaving. Grace is different. She's more emotionally fragile but I get her. Her getting into trouble makes total sense too because she's grown up in an abusive home with conditional love if any love at all! The fact that she calls Providence when she gets in trouble yet gets mad at her at the same time I think just shows that she sees her as her safest person. Probably knows that Providence also won't judge her like Harmony would.

I don't quite get the clout that their father seems to have, especially since he owns the liquor store and the reservation is a "dry place." I guess it's because alcohol still seems to be in demand and he's earning lot of $$$ so maybe that has earned him power and social leverage. All legal but damaging at the same time.

I do feel like their mother knew ahead of time that something was going to happen to her, but I don't think that after all these years she'd have taken off and left her daughters. So I'm curious what really happened to her. I don't think she's dead though but I don't know why I think that. lol (hide spoiler)]

Through Ch. 13

(view spoiler)[Guess I was wrong about their mother being alive. Her being most likely run over by a car definitely throws suspicion on Providence, but I don't think she killed her. Someone wants to make it look like that, I think.

Daniel's drinking and trying to hide it from his sister makes me wonder about him. Plus he's asking Providence to hide it from her. Not good.

The last part of Ch. 13 made me wonder if maybe Providence is having a breakthrough. It made me almost well up when she said, "I do not realize I have tears until they streak down my cheeks...Then I begin to wail." I feel like it sets the tone for the next part of the plot. (hide spoiler)]

Through Ch. 20

(view spoiler)[Wow! I wasn't too surprised when Harmony took the fall for her mother's murder if it was really Grace who killed her. There were a couple places where I suspected Grace, so I won't be surprised but I'd rather there be a twist and that it was their dad.

I was not happy that Providence told Sara about Daniel's drinking but mainly because when she told her, her motive was wrong! She wanted revenge on Sara and wanted to hurt her back and not because she wanted to tell her out of genuine concern for either Daniel or Sara. (hide spoiler)]

Finished

This one was so good! I couldn't put it down!

(view spoiler)[I never suspected the old geezer nor what Connor did! Jeez, that was kind of a shock to me! I am glad it wasn't Grace, but I never believed it was her. (hide spoiler)]