Big Lies in a Small Town is the first book that I have read by this author and I enjoyed this dual time frame novel. Chamberlain created layers and intriguing connections between both stories with two engaging plots. Her interesting characters are likeable and draw you into their life stories. I enjoyed the way in which the past was revealed. Whether or not you enjoy art, I think that you will enjoy all that happens within this small town art gallery. I was given a copy of this book by the publisher. All opinions are my own.

How I enjoyed this historical mystery told in alternating timeliness of two main characters. Where in 1940- Anna Dale wins a contest to create a mural for the post office in a small town in North Carolina. Coming from a big city, she is unaccustomed of the ways of a small town community as to women's views and who they associate with. 2018 - Morgan Christopher a young artist paroled in exchange to restore the mural. Wondering why she was selected, dives into learning restoration and the story behind the mural.

I was captivated from the first page. l love that wholesome feeling left after reading any of this authors work. Thank you NetGalley, Publisher and Author for the E-ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of "Big Lies in a Small Town" by Diane Chamberlain in exchange for an honest review.

What a compelling story told through two women - one in 1940 and the other in 2018. I could not put this book down - I just had to know what Anna's story was and why her mural never got installed. I really enjoyed Morgan's story as she was tasked with restoring Anna's mural. Some parts seemed far fetched with the timelines to restore the mural, but that didn't really bother me as I was reading the story. I adored the ending. I had an inkling of how it was going to end, but I was pleasantly surprised with the extra bits and pieces thrown in that I hadn't anticipated.

I haven't read much by Diane Chamberlain in the past, but I will certainly be checking out her other works in the near future.

Big Lies in a Small Town was a well-crafted story about two female artists living in different time periods. The book alternates between points in time as it helps to solve mysteries of the present with information from the past. The author is clever in portioning out a little information at a time. This way it accomplishes the maximum impact on the storyline.

Each of these women have experienced hardship and made mistakes. I ultimately believe that Morgan learns how to put her own mistakes to rest and move towards the future because of what she learned from Anna and the time she spent restoring Anna's work. In the end, it was fascinating to see how these two seemingly separate stories were actually very intertwined.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Another superb read by Diane Chamberlain. Her ability to set the scene and develop characters is top notch. I was fully gripped from the start.

This book takes place in a small town in North Carolina. It is told from alternating timelines and perspectives. 20-year-old Anna, in 1940, has just been awarded the honour of painting the town mural in Edenton. She has never been to this town so must leave her home in New Jersey to spend a few months living there, getting to know the town, while she paints the mural. 22-year-old Morgan, in 2018, is in prison. She is approached by Lisa, daughter of Jesse, the famous Edenton artist who recently passed away. In his will, he has commissioned Morgan to restore an old mural. As Morgan takes on the project, she starts to learn more about the artist who reportedly went crazy and disappeared after finishing this mural. What happened to Anna? Why was Morgan, a parolee who has never met Jesse and knows nothing about art restoration, chosen for this project? The story delves into these mysteries and more.

Like most of Chamberlain’s books, this story flows nicely and is hard to put down. In the spirit of honesty, it is not my favourite book by this author, but it is nonetheless a compelling historical fiction and literary mystery. Fans will not be disappointed!

A huge thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Big Lies is a dual timeline story set in small town North Carolina in 2018 and 1940. Morgan Christopher is a parolee who has been hired to restore a historical mural; Anna Dale is the woman who painted the mural. In Morgan and Anna, Chamberlain has created two intriguing characters whose stories kept me interested right up to the very end of the book. Edenton, North Carolina is a typical southern small town, with small town virtues, and small town vices. The setting and characters are believable and engaging.

4+ stars rounded up to 5.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

🎨BOOK REVIEW🎨⁣
Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain⁣
On Sale-1/14/20
⁣
-DESCRIPTION-⁣
A girl, serving time in prison, has just been given the opportunity for early parole if she abides by the rules to restore a mural for a gallery soon opening. She soon begins to realize that this was just by chance.⁣
⁣
-THOUGHTS-⁣
1. This story is told from two points of view and it was done wonderfully. We have the story of the original artist of the mural, Anna. How she came to do the mural and her story. Then we have the point of view of Morgan, the artist who was asked to restore the mural. Both of these views were so different. ⁣
2. The story is gripping and become a page turner. I wanted and needed to know the story and how they were all connected. Chamberlain is an amazing story teller.⁣
⁣
-RATING-⁣
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⁣
I highly recommend this read.⁣
⁣
-SIMILAR RECOMMENDED READS-⁣
This Tender Land⁣
Miracle Creek⁣
Beyond the Point⁣

Another captivating and engaging book by Diane Chamberlain. I'm amazed more and more with her writing style every time I pick up a book by her. The dual timeline here was very well done and it pulled me in right from the start. This had some suspense and mystery to it that kept me glued to my seat, and it had me wondering how and if the characters from the past and the present were connected in some way. The ending did not disappoint. An excellent read that is the first to go on my Favorites for 2020. I highly recommend it.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy.

Thanks Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book. Diane Chamberlain is one of my favorites authors and this did not disappoint. I really liked the way that the past and the present were interwoven. It was interesting to see North Carolina from the perspective of 1939 and today.

This book covered several 'hot topics" like racism and mental illness as well as class difference, and the justice system and all of this issues affected people in the past and though times have changed, how they affect us now, sometimes in the same way.

I must read more from this author. I've been missing out. "Big Lies in a Small Town" is a beautifully written story. It is storytelling at its absolute best. Two fascinating stories, told from the past and the present, are woven together seamlessly. With an enthralling plot, well-developed characters and a captivating mystery, this book is hard to put down.

I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Diane Chamberlain for a copy of "Big Lies in a Small Town" in exchange of an honest review.

This is a book that you will be thinking about for a long time. I loved this book and could not put it down, yet I had to put it down. To digest what was happening, I needed to think.
There is always a point in a book where the reader figures it all out. This book had it, yet I had to keep putting the book down so that I would NOT race to the finish. I wanted to savor this book.
The author does such a wonderful job going between the two main narrators, Anne and Morgan. IT was perfection, the setting, the story, the narration....all perfection.
I won't give away any secrets/spoilers but this book has it all....mystery, romance, second chances, race relations. It has it all!

Morgan Christopher is shocked when she's plucked from prison and told she will be released early, as long as she perform a certain task: restore an old mural from the 1940s. Morgan, an art school dropout, has no restoration skills, but she is desperate to leave prison, where she is imprisoned for a crime she didn't commit. Once released, she finds herself captivated by the mural and what she finds underneath the layers of grime. Meanwhile, in 1940, young Anna Dale, an artist from New Jersey wins a contest to paint a mural for the post office in Edenton, North Carolina. She travels there to learn more about the town that she needs to capture. But once there, Anna is confronted both by kindness and deep-set prejudice.

I've never read a book by Diane Chamberlain before, and I really enjoyed this one. It's oddly captivating for centering on a painting from the 1940s. The point-of-view switches between Morgan and Anna and each are compelling narrators in their own right. This was one of those books where I found myself desperately wishing I could read faster, as I wanted to find out what happened to Anna (we're told early on she "went crazy").

I applaud Chamberlain for her original plot. It's odd, but not in a bad way, as it had me interested the entire time. She does a wonderful job of creating two completely different worlds: Anna's in the 40s and Morgan's in near present-day. She deftly weaves in art aspects; Morgan's drunk driving conviction and her past in prison; Anna's possible mental illness; and Morgan's benefactor, so to speak, Lisa, who springs her out of prison to fulfill the wishes of her late father, Jesse, a famous artist.

While this novel is mainly fiction, there are some great twists and turns, especially as we learn what happened to Anna. Chamberlain delves into race relations, as Anna confronts the prejudices of the south in the 1940s. Her writing style is easy, making you want to keep reading, and overall, I quite enjoyed this one. 4 stars.

Jesse Jameson Williams’ daughter and his lawyer inform Morgan, imprisoned for a crime her boyfriend committed, that his will states that she must restore the banner by Anna Dale, who won the right to create it for the Edenton post office in a nationwide art contest. To cut her prison time, she must learn the restoration process and complete the project within a limited time for his namesake gallery to open and his daughter to keep her family home. Morgan is stymied by the challenge, the time limit, the working relations with his daughter and colleagues, and the oddities she discovers in the mural itself. Told through alternating chapters, from Morgan’s in the present and Anna’s in the 1940s, pieces slowly come together to explain the oddities and the reason Morgan was chosen by the artist. Chamberlain’s ability to evoke emotion abounds in this heart-rending novel of artistic creativity, secrets held close, and the prejudices that run rampant in small towns. Her work continues to impress as she branches out again into historical fiction set in her adopted state of NC. I received a digital copy of this wonderful story by one of my favorite authors from the publisher St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley.

North Carolina, 2018: Morgan Christopher's life has been derailed. Taking the fall for a crime she did not commit, she finds herself serving a three-year stint in the North Carolina Women's Correctional Center. Her dream of a career in art is put on hold―until a mysterious visitor makes her an offer that will see her released immediately. Her assignment: restore an old post office mural in a sleepy southern town. Morgan knows nothing about art restoration, but desperate to leave prison, she accepts. What she finds under the layers of grime is a painting that tells the story of madness, violence, and a conspiracy of small town secrets.
North Carolina, 1940: Anna Dale, an artist from New Jersey, wins a national contest to paint a mural for the post office in Edenton, North Carolina. Alone in the world and desperate for work, she accepts. But what she doesn't expect is to find herself immersed in a town where prejudices run deep, where people are hiding secrets behind closed doors, and where the price of being different might just end in murder.
What happened to Anna Dale? Are the clues hidden in the decrepit mural? Can Morgan overcome her own demons to discover what exists beneath the layers of lies?
—-

I LOVED this book! Chamberlain does an excellent job weaving these two story lines together. There is no choppiness or confusion that can sometimes happen in stories like these. This book is full of everything- mystery, history, friendship, love, family, suspense and so much more. I loved Anna and Morgan with their sassiness and don’t care what people think attitudes. This was my first Diane Chamberlain book and I can’t wait to go back and read her others. A must read book!!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the copy in exchange for my honest review!

I loved this book!! Great story!! Loved that it went from different years!! Love this author's books!! Received this book from St. Martin's press from netgally!!

The past, Edenton, NC 1940. New Jersey artist Anna Dale has been selected to paint a mural for the Post Office featuring local history and present day industry. Instead, her mural tells the story of small town prejudice, violence, love and death. It is never hung and, when rediscovered in...

The present, Edenton, NC today, it becomes a literal “get out of jail free” opportunity for Morgan Christopher, imprisoned for a DUI accident. She was mysteriously chosen by an artist and benefactor and has only weeks to restore the mural before a gallery opening.

As these two stories develop and collide, many memorable characters help the two artists polish their craft. Both women fall in love with small town life yet are disturbed by the gossip and undercurrents there. Morgan becomes intrigued by Anna’s story and the confusing scenes depicted in the mural. It will take an exciting, satisfying conclusion to connect Anna to Morgan. You’ll never see it coming.

I wanted Big Lies in a Small Town to continue. It’s that good. And the background information on mural painting and restoration is fascinating and makes the reader want to learn more. This is a 5 star read.

Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Diane Chamberlain for this ARC.

Wow, what a story told by two main characters 78 years apart. I was so captivated that I read 60% of the book in one day. Every moment I could I was stealing time to read a few pages here and there until I could sit down with the book and read until the end.

As I read, I would forget that both Anna Dale and Morgan were only in their early twenties' They both seemed so much older. They both experienced such tragedies at a young age that forever changed their futures. I don't think I had that much bravery at their age.

Big Lies in a Small Town has a few triggers for sensitive readers. It deals with mental illness, alcoholism, rape, suicide, and foul language (the F word). Everything pertained to the story and made it the excellent book it is.

This book is available from your favorite retailer on January 14, 2020. I am already getting it for my mama to read.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher, St. Martin's Press, through NetGalley. Any and all opinions expressed in the above review are entirely my own.

This was a wonderfully written book, as expected from Diane Chamberlain. She skilled wove the tale through two points of view separated by 78 years. Each character had a challenge specific to their time, and had to navigate in addition to the centerpiece of the story, the mural. Throughout the book, new characters are introduced and eventually a tie to present day (and their role in the mural) is established.

The book was a bit slow to get started for me, but then I found it captivating and wanted to find out the resolution of the mystery. Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC, my views are my own.

This was a really good book. It was a bit slow for the first 40%, but the connections between the two protagonists starting appearing at that point and that’s when I became very intrigued. Diane Chamberlain does a good job developing characters, you really get a feel for them. This was my first Diane Chamberlain novel and I found it be a well-done and thought-provoking piece of fiction. I plan to try other works by her. 4/5 stars ⭐️. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book!

Diane Chamberlain is the master of a gripping, dual-storyline spanning the decades. Big Lies in a Small Town brings together modern-day art restoration and post-WWII WPA murals in a small North Carolina town. I loved the vivid imagery in this book, and it led me itching to do some painting of my own.