I really enjoyed this book. Piecing together the mysterious mural, with the story of Anna kept me turning pages way past my bedtime! I loved the connection between Morgan and Anna coming to life was very interesting.

Read this book when you have time to put everything else aside. As the narration shifts back and forth between Anna, artist from the 1940's who's left behind a bizarre mural, and Morgan, current-day young woman who has been rescued to restore the mural when she has no training in restoration, the mystery of why Anna inserted such strange elements into the painting intensifies. The blonde Morgan wonders throughout most of the novel just why and how the famed black artist she never met chose her as one of his "projects".
Readers are rewarded with a satisfactory solution to all mysteries.

In this story we delve into the lives of Anna Dale 1939 and Morgan Christopher 2018. The story is told in alternating points of view from different time frames and is tied together by a single painting.

Morgan is serving time in prison when she is presented with a too good to be true opportunity. The artist Jesse Jameson has passed away and left instructions in his will that Morgan should restore an unfinished mural. In exchange for her work she is offered an early release from prison and a payment of $50k for restoring the painting. The restoration has a deadline that is concrete and there is a lot at stake if it’s not completed on time. Morgan has no prior experience and doubts her own abilities to complete the task she’s been challenged with. Why has Jesse chosen her of all people????

Anna Dale is the artist selected in a contest to complete the original mural that is to be completed and installed on a wall in a post office in Edmonton, North Carolina. Anna is from New Jersey and knows little, if nothing at all about the town she has been selected to portray. The local town folk aren’t too happy to have one of their own overlooked as the artist. He has lost out in the contest to an outsider that knows nothing of their town. Can she depict their town accurately not knowing anything about it??? A northerner painting and depicting a southern town??

These two ladies lives come full circle and entwine in this wonderful story. For me Anna Dale is the heroine but by the end Morgan Christopher earns the readers respect and admiration and rounds the story out for a perfect closure.

There are so many elements to each woman’s personal life that has the reader completely engrossed and eagerly flipping pages.

Many thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this great book.

Big Lies in a Small Town is the dual timeline narrative revolving around an art mural commissioned after the Great Depression to hang in the post office of Edenton. Anna Dale, a Art school graduate and single young woman relocated to the small town shortly after her mother died and she is notified that she has won a contest to create this mural. In the present day, Morgan, is released early from prison with a twist of fate that forces here to restore this mural by Anna Dale. What she uncovers brings her more questions than answers. What happened to Anna Dale? This book has brought me out of my reading slump! As with a typical Diane Chamberlain book, I seem to internalize her characters and their conflicts, and they always leave me thinking. I really the story of Anna Dale and highly recommend it. I received an ARC of this book, all opinions are my own.

Excellent book! As usual, the author does a wonderful job enveloping the reader into the atmosphere of the story. Recommended!

I want to start off by thanking St Martin's Press and Netgalley for giving me an ARC of this book for an honest review.

This book takes place in alternate time periods. It takes place in 2018 with Morgan Christopher striking a deal to restore an old mural in time for a grand opening of a gallery. The other time period is 1940 when Anna Dale wins a contest to paint a mural for a town to put up in the post office. Anna Dale doesnt know what she is getting herself into when she accepts this job.

This book was filled with a lot of mystery and exciting characters. I loved the writing and how Diane Chamberlain just grasped me from the beginning and I just couldn't put this down. Well worth the read.

I don't have the words to write here as to how this book made me feel. I absolutely loved it. Wow. Now Diane is one of my favourite authors anyway but this book was simply great. Now the book switches from person to person which I don't normally like, however the lives of the two people intertwine which makes it flow perfectly. I loved the characters and their stories.
The prison scenes are set and delivered well and so is the thoughts and desperate feelings of morgan. The end of the story is a lovely little twist too....Thank you.

I have read Diane Chamberlain books in the past and always enjoyed them. I have to admit that at first I found this one a little hard to get into, but having read reviews and knowing the author I kept at it and I am so glad I did! Around a third of the way in the book picked up for me and by half way through I just could not put it down or get the characters out of my thoughts. Morgan has been in jail for a DUI (which she did not actually commit) and is let out on the proviso that she restores an old mural, left by a famous artist that she covets; but she is bewildered as to why he has seeked her of all people out to restore the mural for his new art gallery. The request that she restores it by a certain date or risks going back to prison is one left by the artist in his will and brought to Morgan by his somewhat cold-hearted daughter, Lisa. Alongside Morgan’s story, the story of the original artist of the mural unfolds, Anna Dale. She tells her story from the 1930’s and is gripping as the story unfolds of her life and how the mural came to be in the hands of the artist and how it is in a state of disrepair. There are many layers to this book, but so beautifully written that you never feel lost or have to think at all about how it comes together. I am so glad I gave this book a chance. I was a little stunned at the end by all the revelations, I just didn't want it to end when it did, and I hope that there may be a possibility of a sequel in future.
Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this beautiful novel.

I always love when a new Diane Chamberlain book comes out. This book tells a story about 2 different women - Anna in 1939 and Morgan in 2018. Anna painted a mural in 1939 and never finished it. Morgan was wrongly accused and sent to prison for a crime she didn’t commit. A lawyer got her out early as she was chosen to restore this mural from 1939. Morgan had no idea how to restore a mural but she wanted out of prison so would “give it a go”. Both stories tie together very nicely with a big red bow tied around it towards the end and I loved it!! Well done Diane Chamberlain!!

Big Lies in a Small Town had is all-drama, suspense, romance, mystery. I absolutely loved this book by Diane Chamberlain. This tender story takes twists and turns as it develops. It will keep you up at night until you finish it. I enjoyed the characters, the plot and especially the ending. This book has something for everyone, you will not be disappointed!

Another winner from Diane Chamberlain! This compelling story is built around two timelines. In 1940, young inexperienced artist Anna Dale wins a competition to paint a mural for a post office in a rural North Carolina town. She relocates to the town while working on the mural and quickly begins to see deep prejudice and finds herself an unaccepted outsider. Then an event happens that threatens not only Anna, but others whom she has grown to care about.

In the other timeline, Morgan Christopher finds herself in prison for a DUI which led to the serious injury of another. She was an art student before the accident and is offered parole in exchange for restoring an old damaged mural that was to be hung in a North Carolina town. She knows nothing about art restoration but, desperate to get out of prison, accepts. But as she works on the mural she finds that it contains mysteries that she is compelled to understand.

This well written novel will keep you engrossed until the last page. Do your self a favor and read it!

Thanks you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

This is the best book I’ve read for awhile! Such good writing and an excellent premise! I loved learning about the characters.. I wanted to read undisturbed but then I didn’t want the book to end! Thank you for sharing this story.

I like period pieces. I like current fiction and I like a good mystery. Big Lies in a Small Town hits the trifecta for me.
Modern Day Morgan Christopher is offered a chance at an early prison release with the caveat she restore an old mural by a certain date. While Morgan is a lapsed artist, she knows nothing about restoration but jumps at the chance of getting out of prison.
Anna Dale is a young, Yankee post-depression era artist who has won a contest to produce a mural for a local Post Office situated in the south. Excited to have won, yet sad at the recent death of her mother, she heads to the small town of Edenton. What greets her are the locals full of suspicion of an outsider, and a disgruntled artist that failed to win the mural contest in his own town, his angry wife, and a set of rules and prejudices with which she is unfamiliar. With the help of three local teens, she sets about creating the mural in a creepy warehouse with the whole town weighing in on her having a local negro boy helping her along with two other teens. And gracious, she wears pants!
Through the painstaking restoration process, As Morgan uncovers a decade's old mystery, Big Lies in a Small Town takes the reader on a journey into the past that has the possibility to free one woman's heart and soul in the future.

I wasn't sure how I would feel about the two time/jumping back and forth, but it wasn't a distraction as I feared. I love Diane Chamberlain books, I have read most of them so I was excited to read this one. This book was a fantastic read, including a little historical fiction, strong women who were likable, vivid storytelling, even if at times, it was a bit cliche, but still worth the investment. I was surprised to see other reviewers surprised by the ending, I figured it out a little early, but it didn't take away from the overall enjoyment. DC is a fabulous writer, her books never disappoint!

Told in alternating chapters, Chamberlain gives us the story of two different artists in the south who struggle to come to terms with life. Anna Dale is a young artist who wins a government sponsored competition to paint a mural in a rural post office in the depression-era south. She also happens to be a young, single white woman who just lost her mother. While dealing with the grief, she also has to figure out how to navigate a southern man's world alone. Added on top of that is the resentment of locals because a local artist also entered the competition, but didn't win. Anna has strong ideas and a lot of talent, will that be enough?

Morgan Christopher is in prison for a crime she didn't commit, though she did allow it to happen. When the daughter of famous artist Jesse Jameson offers her a way out of prison if she accepts a job restoring the mural Anna Dale painted, Morgan jumps at the chance. She doesn't care that she has no skills or experience in restoration, she just knows she cannot spend 2 more years in prison. As she uncovers the mural, she finds more than dust and grime. She finds secrets and mysteries and madness that she can't comprehend. As Morgan delves deeper into her life, will she be consumed by madness that seems to have struck Anna Dale? Did madness strike Anna or was something more sinister going on in Edenton, North Carolina almost 70 years ago?

I love twists and turns. I love strong female protagonists. I love characters who grow and change in realistic ways. This book had all of that! The characters were compelling and the events realistic. I didn't see the end coming and that always makes me happy. If you enjoy good writing and strong characters, with some mystery thrown in for fun, give this one a try!

Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I loved this! The book is part historical fiction and part present day. It tells the story of Morgan who has been given a second chance as she’s tasked with restoring a painting. It also tells the story of a painter named Anna in the 30s. Parts of the story require you to suspend belief but overall a lovely read.

Former art student, Morgan Christopher, made some bad choices in her life and now she is stuck in jail for a crime she didn't commit. When Lisa, daughter of a famous artist, and her lawyer show up at the prison to tell Morgan they have her get out of jail free card if only she will restore a mural painted by mysterious artist, Anna Dale, in 1940. She jumps a the chance to be free. Once she does get a taste of freedom, she realizes just how challenging the restoration process will be and how little she knows about it. In addition to battling her past demons and restoring the mural in a ridiculous time frame, she also finds that Anna Dale has left disturbing hidden images in the mural. It is very possible that Anna Dale not only went crazy but disappeared without a trace.

I really liked this book and how the story unfolded. In all honestly, it started a bit slow for me, The book is told in alternating timelines between Morgan and Anna and very small snippets were revealed at a time. I found myself anxious for more excitement early on. At the 60% point, everything sort of happened and I suddenly could not stop reading. I had to know what happened. Another great book by Diane Chamberlain!

Diane Chamberlain is one of my top favorite authors so I expected this one to be wonderful. I was not disappointed!
This book is told from the point of view of two artists, one in 1940 and the other in 2018. They are connected by a large mural that was painted for a post office in a small town in North Carolina. There are several mysteries revealed all through this book of their connections, part of them discovered in a diary.
This one kept me glued to the story and wondering what would be uncovered next. It portrays love, friendships, family dysfunction and racial issues. I highly recommend this book, you are in for a real treat.
#NetGalley

I loved this book! It was really hard to put down. I greatly enjoyed the back and forth between 1940 and present day. Just when I settled in to read, I was hit with surprising twists that had me gasping for breath. I can’t wait for her next book.

Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to give an honest review to this book in exchange for an ARC copy.

Outstanding read. Thoroughly enjoyable...terrific story, well-developed characters, surprising twists and well written. Didn't want it to end. Highly recommended.