In the spirit of The Known World and The Underground Railroad comes a profound debut about the unlikely bond between two freedmen who are brothers and the Georgia farmer whose alliance and protection will alter their lives， and his， forever。

In the waning days of the Civil War， brothers Prentiss and Landry---freed by the Emancipation Proclamation---seek refuge on the homestead of white farmer George Walker and his wife， Isabelle。 The Walkers， hoping to bridge the chasm of grief left by the death of their only son， lost to the war， hire the brothers to work their farm。 Despite initial misgivings， Prentiss and Landry consent to the arrangement as a means of saving money for the journey north， which they hope may reunite them with the mother who was sold away from them in childhood。

Parallel to their story runs a forbidden romance between two Confederate soldiers recently returned to the town of Old Ox from the war。 The soldiers， hardly older than boys， hold their trysts in the woods， hiding their union from the unforgiving townsfolk。 When an outsider discovers their secret， however， a sequence of actions that will determine the future of the entire community， including Prentiss and Landry， is unleashed。

With candor and sympathy， debut novelist Nathan Harris creates a cast of unforgettable characters and evokes Georgia in the crucible of Reconstruction-a violent era that nevertheless provides for moments of daring， kindness， and the hope for a better life。 Equal parts beauty and terror， as gripping as it is moving， The Sweetness of Water is an epic whose grandeur locates humanity and love in the most harrowing of circumstances。