I absolutely loved this book! A great new read to start off 2020!

Switching back and forth between present day and 1940 in the same small town in North Carolina, this novel focuses on the mystery of the story behind this unfinished mural. Morgan in 2018 has been hand chosen by recently deceased artist Jesse Williams to restore the mural that Anna Dale started almost 80 years prior. The mural was commissioned for the post office but was never completed. The reader gets the story from both Morgan’s perspective in uncovering new info as well as Anna’s, painting this mural back in 1940. As the book unfolds, we continue to learn more about each of the characters and their stories.

A super engaging, powerful, and very satisfying book that I will be recommending to everyone this year! Exceptional!

Thank you Diane Chamberlain, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

#NetGalley

This is the newest release by a bestselling American author, whose last book was 'The Dream Daughter'. The novel is set in two time periods, 1940 and 2018, and has a mystery element with a touch of romance. In 1940, Anna is one of the winners of a national Post Office mural competition so she travels to small town in North Carolina to work on her project. In 2018 Morgan has spent the last year in prison and is released early as she is considered uniquely qualified to restore Anna's mural in time for an art gallery opening. While working on the project Morgan becomes obsessed with finding out Anna's story and the reasons for the weird inclusions in the mural. I would describe this one as an American Kate Morton style story and I think it would appeal to her fans. If you are like I was and have never read this author before, it's time to check her out. This is a 4.5/5 star book.

I have read several of Diane Chamberlain books and this one didn’t disappoint. It took a while to figure out the connection of the main characters Morgan from current day and Anna from the past. The history of the time with a Anna was accurate and was hard to read at times because if the way others were treated. There was one scene that was particularly hard to read because of a brutal rape.
Her books always have me waiting with anticipation of the connection, and I often have it wrong which I love.
Once I started this book it was hard to put down!

Fans of Diane Chamberlin and/or of the dual time line novel will enjoy this one for its well done plot and good characters. Anna won a contest to paint a mural for the Edenton, North Carolina post office in 1940. She discovered this was not as simple as it appeared. Morgan is an art student who made some bad decisions but who is imprisoned for a crime she did not commit. She's released in order to restore the mural, even though she has no experience (and it is, btw, a highly specialized field that requires knowledge of, among other things, organic chemistry) at the request of an eccentric and recently deceased artist. Leave aside the practical (and legal) aspects of this and go with the flow. Anna disappeared all those ago- what happened to her? What will Morgan learn not only about Anna but also about herself. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC.

This book is amazing, I don't know what else to say!

I really enjoy Diane Chamberlain's way of writing. This book is about two different stories in two different times. It is about artists and their talents and their own beautiful life stories. I especially like the redeeming aspect of each story here and the unknown the main characters were sent to which led to their own self-discovery. While Anna and Morgan are the main characters, Jesse and Oliver didn't come short of who they are in the story and what they meant to the main characters' life. As a matter of fact, I think she has perfectly delivered the characters the way they should be. An example would be that of Mrs. Dapple, Aunt Jewel, and Peter.

I have always loved Chamberlain's story setting. She seem to always pick a small, neat little town to base her story from and my mind wanders to all these places when she narrates them. I love Edenton in this book, love it! The characters are so interesting in their own little ways - warm, brazen, mysterious, lonely, accepting, non-chalant.

I was also very excited about the last part of the story and I was over the moon about the ending. I loved it, it was perfect!

Told in a dual perspective and two different timelines, Big Lies in a Small Town is compulsively readable. Both main characters and storylines are enthralling and well-developed so I was not bothered every time the timeline changed as I was equally invested in both of them. Though the book deals with some serious issues such as racism, abuse, prejudice, misogyny, justice and substance abuse, it is so well written you can’t help keep turning the pages and although I found some of the plot twists to be a bit predictable that didn’t diminish my enjoyment at all.

This is my first Diane Chamberlain and after reading this all I can say is I’m quite happy she has such a large backlist for me to choose from.

Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain
NET GALLEy =January 14,2020
North Carolina 1940 - the USA government had established a national mural contest where 48 artists would be awarded a chance at painting a hug e mural to hang in each states post office. With nary a chance Anna Dale from New Jersey was picked as one of the winners and though her submission was of a mural based on New Jersey she was selected to create a mural for Edenton NC. Anna didn’t realize that prejudices ran deep and secrets were those that could end a life.

Present day - North Carolina - After taking the fall for a crime she didn’t commit Morgan Christopher’s life was totally derailed. Her dream of being an artist had been put on hold until a mysterious visitor came to visit her at the correctional woman’s Institute. If she accepts the offer given to her to restore an old post office mural she would be released immediately. Knowing nothing about art restoration but desperate to get out of jail she accepts. What she finds under the layers of grime is a painting of madness, violence and small town secret conspiracy’s.

OMG - What a marvelous read this was!. Not that I didn’t expect it from the pen of Ms Chamberlain however, I am always amazed with the depth and genius of the subject matter she creates her stories from. Both Anna and Morgan were fully fleshed out and had similar dysfunctional type of backgrounds. Anna possibly a little less than Morgan who thought by saving her boyfriend she had finally found someone who cared about her.

Anna’s story was much more of dealing with Southern prejudices towards colored folks that had not been quite so bad in New Jersey. The powers to be in that town had sent Anna helpers but the one who stood out, having raw talent was Jesse. Anna had to champion him and convince him to continue school and to develop his innate talent. Unfortunately the small mindedness of the population interpreted her interest as something else.

When so many years later Morgan arrived to restore the mural she was astounded by the sheer madness the mural conveyed. What had happened to the artist who held ,such amazing talent that had turned a mural into a depiction of insanity and horror? With flashbacks and some super sleuthing Morgan, whose freedom depended on finishing the project would work tirelessly to restore and discover the secret of Anna’s disappearance! Stunning work and a marvelous mystery!

Marilyn Rondeau

“Big Lies in a Small Town” by Diane Chamberlain

“When I read Diane Chamberlain’s books, I feel like I am safe and warm – and all is right with the world. With each book, I feel like I know the characters and that they are sitting next to me, telling me their story. This book, like Chamberlain’s others, is fabulous!-Green Gables Book Reviews

Everything is perfect about this book. The setting, the style it is written in, the era’s, and the story. The way the two stories flow is amazing. This is a book I will remember.

“Big Lies in a Small Town” centers around the lives of two women. Morgan, who is in prison for a crime she did not commit. Her life has been put on hold, her dreams of being an artist taken away. She feels she has no one. When two strangers show up to visit with an offer to get her out of prison, she can’t say no. But, what did she get herself into?

In 1939, Anna has no one. Her family is gone. She is alone and must find her own way. She needs a job and when her art wins a contest that will take her to North Carolina to paint a mural for the post office, she goes. She has no idea how the decision will change the course of her life.

The condition of Morgan’s release from prison is for her to restore an old mural. Morgan doesn’t know how to do this, but she has been chosen for the task-and it gets her out of prison. When she sees the condition of the mural, she does not know how she will be able to do it within the time allowed! It is dirty and in very bad shape. When Morgan starts cleaning it, she cannot believe what she finds.

Anna is settling in. She’s a little afraid of being in the old Warehouse alone, where the town has set aside for her to work. But the town has accepted her and she is a bit famous. There is a dark cloud, though, a local man, Martin Drapple, also entered the contest-but Anna, an outsider won instead. Anna is realizing that some people don’t want her in their town.

Morgan is lucky to have found Oliver, who is teaching her about the restoration. She is painstakingly cleaning the mural, inch by inch. When more and more pieces are revealed, she begins to wonder what happened to Anna. Why is the mural so different than her submission to the art council?

Anna knows she is in over her head. She reaches out to the local school and soon has student helpers. She never thought having Jessie as a helper would cause so much life long pain, for both of them.

As Morgan works on the mural, she feels close to Anna. She wonders about Anna’s life and where she is now. She’s done research and Anna seems to have simply disappeared. She continues to wonder how she was chosen for this project.

You will love reading this book! The ending will surprise you-and it is wonderful!

File Size: 4520 KB
Print Length: 400 pages
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press (January 14, 2020)
Publication Date: January 14, 2020
Sold by: Macmillan
Language: English
ASIN: B07TBW8RLR

This is only my second book I have read from this author but I was pleasantly surprised by how good this was. There are two separate timelines and as a reader you always want to know how it all relates, and it does with delicious twists and an OMG moment.

This well written, not predictable or boring at all. Makes me want to read more from this author.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain is a mystery within a mystery. The story consists of two stories in two different times that weave around each other until the resolution. The stories are set in Edenton, North Carolina in the 1940s and in the present.

Anna Dale is alone in the world. She has won a national contest to paint a mural in the post office in Edenton, North Carolina. She has won the contest over a favorite local artist. She moves to Edenton and has the support of some of the movers and shakers in town. Her goal is to show the history and the pride of the town. Anna also has a couple of kids to help her with some of the technical aspects, one a young black male, Jesse and one a young white male, Peter. In North Carolina at this time racial tensions were strong. Anna did not recognize or even believe that people would care about who she had working with her and who she mentored.

Morgan Christopher is alone in the world. SHe was found guilty of crime that she was present for, but did not commit. She was to serve three years in the correctional center, until she is offered a chance to start again. She is asked to restore an old post office mural in exchange for her future payment and her freedom. Morgan becomes fascinated with finding the truth about the painting and Anna Dale.

Diane Chamberlain has written a story whose characters slowly weave their way into your heart. You want them to find their peace, their happy ending. The story is well written with depth. The book will stay with you. I enjoyed reading this book and will gladly suggest it to others to read! Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain was a great read.

This was only the second book by Diane Chamberlain I've read, but it won't be my last. I love when an author writers alternates between two different timelines so well that it makes me care about each one equally. In one time timeline, we go back to 1939 to learn about how Anna Dale, a 22-year-old artist won a contest to paint a mural for the town of Edenton, North Carolina. The only catch is that she's from New Jersey and has never experienced southern life. But she takes the job, partly because she needs the money but mostly because she wants to leave her house and her memories--her mother has recently died, so Anna is looking for a fresh start.

Morgan, our other 22-year-old heroine, also needs a fresh start. Her timeline begins in 2018, and she's in jail in North Carolina for causing a car accident while driving under the influence. She's since learned that the victim lived but is paralyzed. Morgan has been in jail one year, haunted by her past, when she's abruptly offered a get-out-jail-free card. All she needs to do is restore an old, dirty mural that has been stored away for decades. The only catch is that she has no experience in art restoration but must somehow learn what to do in a short two months.

Each chapter teaches us more about each woman as Anna paints and Morgan restores the mural. The book is overall mostly a mystery--we are privy to more information than Morgan has, as she works to figure out who, exactly, Anna was--but the details are tantalizingly uncovered for us in the same way Morgan reveals the former glory of the mural: slowly, section by section. Overall, this was a gripping read, and I'm eager to go back and read more by this talented author.

Wow! What a story! I enjoyed this ride from the beginning and it kept my attention and kept me anxiously reading all the way through. Loved the little mystery found inside this story and did not see that twist there at the end. Such an enjoyable read.

In this story there are 2 time periods and 2 women we follow. Morgan is in jail for a hit and run charge when two mysterious visitors come and save her from incarceration. She is given the nearly impossible task of cleaning up a damaged painting- something she has no experience in whatsoever.

Anna has been chosen to paint a mural for a post office in a small town in North Carolina, but she could never guess what kinds of drama will occur when she moves from Virginia to accept this assignment.

Trigger warnings- rape, some hard language.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC for my honest review.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Many years ago I was an avid Chamberlain fan but something pulled me away; I'm glad I'm back. Chamberlain has spun a tale of intrigue, adventure, and suspense in this book.

I did find the beginning a little difficult to get into but then the story took off! This is a definite recommend to anyone wanting a variety in the plot. Enjoy! 📚

Diane Chamberlain can do no wrong in my eyes. I’m a true fan for lie. After loving her last book I didn’t know if I would love this as much but it’s going right at the top of my favorites. Anna and Morgan are brilliant female protagonists and I just adored them both so much. The author clearly did her research and who knew I would be so interested in art restoration. I loved the themes of forgiveness and growth for Morgan. Seeing characters come into their own is so rewarding to read. I’ll be highly recommending this to friends.

5 shiny stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
I will not go into the plot as I do not want to spoil the experience for other readers. But I will tell you this: This book came to me at just the right time. My last read was a difficult one both in format and subject manner. I guess I needed a break but you know - so many books, so little time. So when I started reading this one I felt as if was force feeding myself. That feeling quickly dissipated. <b>Big Lies in a Small Town</b> turned out to be the perfect remedy. I feel exhilarated! Thank you Ms. Chamberlain🤗

It’s no surprise that Diane Chamberlain is a bestselling author. This is the second book I have read by her, and the plot is a intriguing and masterfully woven together as the first.

In this book there are two main characters,Morgan and Anna, who were born about seventy years apart. They both had some difficult experiences in their young lives. The book goes back and forth between the two telling their stories and how they are connected through the painting of a post office mural. The character development is exceptional and the settings are very well done. The plot is original and I loved how the author neatly wrapped everything up by the end—at least, almost everything. There was one loose end, that Morgan had a hard time dealing with, and in the end, she decided to face it. How it went was up to the reader’s imagination.

Big Lies in a Small Town captivated me. For the majority of the book, the story is told in chapters alternating between Morgan (2018) as she works to restore a mural, and Anna (1939-40) as she paints the original. These two women are both outsiders who end up in Edentown because of the moral, and through the story other connections emerge. Chapters often ended with a twist that made me not want to put the book down. Anna was strong to begin with, but Morgan finds her strength as she makes progress in accomplishing the restoration. Great story with lots of depth.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I do believe that Diane Chamberlaon is a gifted storyteller who has seamlessly woven together two storylines, from two different time periods, and two very distinct characters, blending them together into one cohesive story. This story is very southern in feel with a vivid sense of both eras. There is a clear representation of the frustration and heartache of issues that were commonplace in the day, specifically gender and racial inequality.

Big Lies in a Small Town is indeed a unique story that comes full circle and has a profound message. While I can appreciate it for what it is, it just wasn’t a great fit for me specifically.

This story has a large focus on art and art restoration, and this is not a topic that holds much interest for me. I also felt the story was rather slow paced, and though I found the characters somewhat interesting, I wasn’t able to connect with them and stay invested in the story. The mystery was also fairly predictable and though the story was creative in concept, the way it played out wasn’t particularly surprising. I found the journal entry, though interesting in what it revealed, to be a bit convenient from a literary standpoint.

The epilogue was one of the best sections of the story, in my opinion, with a notable quote within its pages that I will pen in my own journal. It was both insightful and thought-provoking. But even though the conclusion was moving, it was also shockingly abrupt.

I can see why this story will be a hit for many readers, especially fans of Diane Chamberlain, but for me, the issues I had with it kept me from really enjoying it as much as I had hoped.

I absolutely loved this book, but that wasn't a surprise to me because I have enjoyed every single book Diane Chamberlain has written. The story changing from 1939/1940 (Anna) to 2018 (Morgan) was great. Sometimes it can be hard to write in two different time periods, but it was brilliantly done by Chamberlain. We follow the stories of Anna and Morgan....both working on painting the same mural during very different time periods. I fell in love with these characters and didn't want the book to end! Do yourself a favor and grab this book!

Big Lies in a Small Town, written by Diane Chamberlain, is a story that spans over seventy-five years and connects two women that seemingly have nothing in common. There are secrets, lies, violence, and small-town prejudices that run deep. However, there is also love and redemption. Sometimes the subject matter was disturbing and dark to read, but it was so well delivered that it just made this story stand out. Ms. Chamberlain not only gives us this excellent mystery but infuses a dash of art and then wraps it all up in a bit of American postal art history.

Written in dual timelines, 1940 and 2018, Big Lies in a Small Town tells the story of two different women, Anna Dale and Morgan Christopher.

Ann’s story is told from the past; she is a talented artist who is the winner of a national art contest. Anna, a city girl, goes to the small town of Edenton North Carolina to paint a mural representing a town she knows nothing about. Half the town is fascinated by Anna, and the other half is resentful of her because she won the art contest over a local artist. Getting to know Anna was a delight; she is a woman trying to find her place in the world since her mother has passed away. I loved how Ms. Chamberlain had Anna faceoff with the smallminded people of the town. Everything is seeming going well until Anna befriends a young black artist. She starts to notice small things that aren’t quite right.

Morgan has made some terrible mistakes in her life, but the biggest was not of her own doing. She is in the North Carolina Women’s Correctional Center presently paying for someone else’s crime. With her future art career derailed, a stranger makes her an offer that is difficult to turn down; get out of jail by restoring a mural painted by the obscure 1940’s artist Anna Dale. Morgan finds herself in the small town of Edenton, NC, totally alone and out of her element. But what does she have to lose? What she never expects to happen is that as she restores this bizarrely painted mural, she becomes wholly immersed in Anna’s life. Morgan becomes obsessed with trying to figure out why this promising artist disappeared never to be heard from again.

Big Lies in a Small Town is a well-constructed story that builds suspense slowly while at the same time, the reader becomes consumed with the lives of the two main characters. Then when you least expect it, Ms. Chamberlain drops the proverbial bombshell. More than once, I didn’t see multiple twists that were revealed. It is evident that Ms. Chamberlain has put a great deal of time and effort into researching this book. I came away with a greater appreciation of art and art restoration after reading this book.

Ms. Chamberlain writes both of these women in such a way that you feel like you know their innermost thoughts and feelings. She surrounds them with well-thought-out supporting characters, some of which you will love and others you will despise. She weaves these two women’s stories seamlessly throughout this book connecting them in many ways. In one moment, you are crying for the tragic events in their lives, and in the next moment, you are cheering them on in the hope that maybe things will work out for these two women. Both are strong in different ways but also imperfect, the perfect combination, and that made them very likable.


Big Lies in a Small Town is the first book by Ms. Chamberlain that I have had the pleasure of reading, and as I am sitting here writing this review, I am wondering how I missed reading any of her previous work. This book was a joy to read, and I highly recommend it.



*** I kindly received this galley by way of NetGalley/publisher/author. I was not contacted, asked, or required to leave a review. I received no compensation, financial or otherwise. I have voluntarily read this book, and this review is my honest opinion. ***