Talking Location With …. Sarah Holding: ICELAND
Novel set in GAMBIA and SWEDEN
5th March 2026
Bitter Honey by Lola Akinmade, novel set in Gambia and Sweden.
A lifetime of secrets played out across two continents
Lola Akinmade’s Bitter Honey moves from the warmth of Gambia to wintry Sweden as Nancy is offered a scholarship in the late 1970s that she can’t resist. This is a sweeping, emotionally charged novel covering four decades as it explores the inner lives of a mother and daughter whose stories are influenced by migration, ambition, cultural dislocation and long‑buried secrets.
Nancy’s early sense of hope that she may eventually belong soon dissipates as her relationship with charismatic scholar Lars turns dangerous as he turns out to be not what she thought. It’s a story of how power, race and cultural differences can change the dynamic of relationships, disrupting dreams and destroying identity.
Fast forward to 2006 and the story turns to Nancy’s daughter Tina, a former pop princess struggling between her carefully crafted public image and her taste of fame as she battles to find her own identify. She questions her heritage and the father she believes to be dead, but Nancy is desperate to keep the past hidden. As it resurfaces, both women have to confront the truth and their relationship turns tender, strained but also deeply human.
From Gambia’s sun‑soaked vibrancy to Stockholm’s isolating cold; from Eurovision’s pseudo spectacle to 
private moments of womanhood, the contrasts are stark and shape the characters’ choices, weaknesses and strengths.
This is a beautifully constructed, deeply affecting saga, rich with atmosphere, cultural insight and emotional truth. An evocative journey across continents and decades, this novel will transport you across cultural divides and continents, all the while focusing on the pain and love of inherited lives.
Val for the TripFiction Team
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