Bitter Sweet, Hattie Williams
Bitter Sweet, Hattie Williams
List: $22.50 | Sale: $15.75
Club: $11.25

Bitter Sweet

Author: Hattie Williams

Narrator: Rosie Sheehy

Unabridged: 11 hr 1 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/08/2025


Synopsis

A young book publicist finds herself in an all-consuming workplace affair with her literary idol in this “very impressive debut” (Chris Whitaker, New York Times bestselling author of All the Colors of the Dark).

“Beautifully crafted, with aftershocks of conscience that will leave you processing for hours with others who’ve read it.”—Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author of By Any Other Name

Sometimes the things you love most are the very things that can tear you apart.

Charlie is twenty-three, single and the new publicity assistant at London’s preeminent independent book publishing house. Richard Aveling is fifty-six, married and the author who has defined his generation.

Charlie has long idolized the charming, illustrious writer, who also represents a link to her late mother who loved his work. But as they embark on an illicit and all-consuming affair, Charlie is forced to hide the relationship from everyone she cares about.

Too soon, she can’t imagine her life without Richard, and too late, she understands that losing him will unravel more than just their relationship—it might also unravel her.

Tender and poignant, Bitter Sweet is an intimate exploration of power, of vulnerability, of what it means to love another person and what it means to love yourself.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Brady on August 17, 2025

This has been the most frustratingly addictive book I’ve read in awhile. It’s been a very long time since I’ve picked up a book that makes me have so many physical reactions while I’m reading it. Im angry and sad, but also understanding and empathetic towards the main character and I can’t put it do......more

Goodreads review by emma on July 23, 2025

i always enjoy reading books about girls making terrible decisions. it's important to see yourself represented on page (review to come / thanks to the publisher for the e-arc)......more

Goodreads review by Farda on February 02, 2025

4 stars I couldn’t put this book down. I felt an instant connection to the main character, Charlie. Oh, Charlie—you stupid, stupid girl, honey, but I love you. There’s something so raw and real about her that made me want to reach into the pages and hug her, even while I wanted to shake her and screa......more

Goodreads review by Anna on May 16, 2025

this isn’t my typical taste but i was nonetheless drawn in by the strong characterization, moving story, and cool, sally rooney-esque sentences. i felt close to charlie and really enjoyed this book!!!......more

Goodreads review by Kevin on February 06, 2025

The first thing I would say is that I can't believe this is a debut novel. It definitely reads like a confident writer who has a really strong voice. The second thing I would say (and bear with me cause this is a compliment) is that I normally race through a book within a day or so, often within hour......more


Quotes

“The power dynamic between artist and consumer of art blurs in this unsettling account of a young publicist who meets her idol—a much older author. The lines of consent, control, and even reality shift. Like our main character we know this can’t end well—but we also can’t pull away from the impending implosion. This is beautifully crafted, with aftershocks of conscience that will leave you processing for hours with others who’ve read it.”—Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author of By Any Other Name

Bitter Sweet is a quietly devastating debut about desire, grief, and power imbalance.”—Bustle

“Nuanced . . . Readers will be moved.”—Publishers Weekly

“Beautifully written with compassion, hope, and heart . . . Bitter Sweet is a timeless tragedy, a story of the intricacies and illusions of true love, equality, and the heartbreaking disparity between what is shown to us and what we choose to see. It’s a very impressive debut.”—Chris Whitaker, New York Times bestselling author of All the Colors of the Dark

Bitter Sweet is raw and beautiful and true. Hattie Williams writes so honestly on love and loss that it hurts. This book will make you ache for your twenties and make you equally glad you survived them.”—Abigail Dean, New York Times bestselling author of Girl A

“Wondrous . . . This instant classic of a debut—as innocent and enthralling as first love; as wise and (yes) bittersweet as the hangover—recalls the likes of Caitlin Moran and Curtis Sittenfeld, but Hattie’s voice is all her own: honest, winning, breakable. What a defiant novel—you’ll devour and savor it at once, impossibly, and turn the final page having made a friend for life.”—A. J. Finn, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Woman in the Window

“Williams’s writing on early-twenties friendships and their enmeshed intensity was so convincing. I enjoyed it so much.”—Marian Keyes

“Nuanced . . . Readers will be moved.”—Publishers Weekly