To say I was pumped to be offered this Netgalley to review is an understatement. I love Diane Chamberlain and she is one of my favorite authors. I read Big Lies in a Small Town back in 2019 as a Netgalley, which means waiting for this release has felt like forever. I was almost too scared to read it because I knew it would mean I'd have to wait again for her next book. Unfortunately this one didn't do it as much for me as her previous books have. It felt like this wasn't the right time for this book to come out from her voice when so many Black voices/authors are being silenced. I feel like it was a story that should have waited or come out before. We didn't need another white voice at this time especially when it didn't feel like it added anything new/wasn't a story told before. Overall it was still a decent book and was really well written, but it just rubbed me a little wrong.

How does Ellie, a twenty year old pharmacy student at University of North Carolina, born and raised the daughter of a pharmacist in Round Hill evolve into a freedom fighter, voter registration worker, civil rights activist in 1965? What does this mean to everything she ever took for granted in life? A personal note: I grew up in Central Pennsylvania with a mother who was a civil rights activist who went to the 1963 March for Jobs and Freedom. I played with the child of the black woman who ironed our clothes and who my Mom helped to find a stable, real job in our school system. Ellie plays with the black child of their maid and has an Aunt Carol from New York who lived with them after her uncle died. Aunt Carol went to the 1963 March for Jobs and Freedom. The town sees her as kind of crazy. So, before her death, Aunt Carol has influenced Ellie to see things differently, with humanity. Meanwhile, in 2010, Kayla is reeling from her 29 year old husband's death on the construction site of their new home. He slipped and fell shortly before the two architects and their three year old daughter were to move into the contemporary house they designed together for seven years.. Kayla's staying with her widowed father in Round Hill until the house is ready. It is set deep among trees and now, that feature that appealed to her husband feels ominous. As new houses are under construction along the street, the only neighbor right now lives in the original house on the road. Word has it he is terminally ill. Kayla feels loss, ambivalence about moving into her home without the love of her life and now, burgeoning fear because of a visit from a strange older lady who drops by Kayla's office in an obvious effort to scare her away from her house. Chamberlain gives us an authentic story of the experience of the young students, white outsiders and local black students who worked to register black voters at the dawn of the voting rights act, not yet signed when Ellie joins on. She does not use one bit of gratuitous violence, but there is violence. She paints a stark picture of rural southern black poverty through some of the homes Ellie stays in, but does not stereotype once. And eventually Ellie's experience in summer 1965 and what is happening to Kayla in 2010 gives us a history of race relations in Round Hill. Rocks are turned over. And it is painful, yet not too hard to read because the characters are strong women and they keep going as best they can, acknowledging the pain but doing what you do in life when you experience great loss. I love the simplicity and the depth of Diane Chamberlain's writing. She is accessible and she keeps things real.

The Last House on the Street is classic Diane Chamberlain. This story is told in two different timelines - Ellie in 1965 and Kayla in 2010. Both women live in North Carolina (on the same street), just 45 years apart. Their stories will intersect and they will meet, and everything comes together nicely.

Kayla and her husband are architects building their dream house. Only her husband died while building the house. And yet, because it was her dream house and because of all the money into it (and the fact that no one will buy a house that someone just died in) Kayla and her 3 year old daughter still move into the house, despite a warning from a creepy woman that shows up at her work warning her against moving in. This storyline wasn't developed nearly as well as Ellie's, which is the only criticism of this book.

Ellie, meanwhile, is a 20 year old girl who wants more from her world than just getting a husband and having babies. She decides to get involved with SCOPE, a civil rights initiative designed at getting black people to vote. Her family and friends can't understand why she wants to be part of this program, but she ignores them all and joins for the summer anyway.

Ellie is an amazing character and fully developed. The way her chapters were written are excellent. There is plenty of information on civil rights and what it was like to be a civil rights worker in the 60's.

Diane Chamberlain is a must read author for me and I’m happy that her newest book, The Last House on the Street, out on 1/11, was another win. ⁣In 1965, Ellie wants to be an ally to Black people and joins a program called SCOPE to help encourage them to register to vote. She ends up becoming close with a fellow volunteer, a Black man. In the present, Kayla and her daughter move into a house and finds there are those who would rather she not live there. These two stories are connected and the mystery surrounding the house and what happened in the past make for a wonderful page turner. It contains racism, the KKK, violence, etc.

A beautifully written dual time historical fiction book! The effort for voting rights in the sixties come alive through Ellie's story of working for the SCOPE project in North Carolina. Kayla moving into a newly constructed home brings unexpected questions after strange things begin to happen. The two stories intertwine as answers to long ago questions are revealed. Recommended!

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest novel by Diane Chamberlain, one of my favorites! 5 stars!

Told in dual timelines - in 1965, we meet Ellie, home on summer break from attending college studying to be a pharmacist like her father. She becomes involved with SCOPE, a civil rights organization trying to get Blacks registered to vote, a dangerous venture for a rich, white woman in those days. In 2010, Kayla is preparing to move into her newly-constructed home with her young daughter, Rainie, after the tragic death of her architect husband. She meets Ellie, home from CA to take care of her brother and mother, living next door - the only other house on the street. Kayla's home is the subject of much mystery and lore, with people saying it's haunted ground.

Diane Chamberlain is a master at intricately weaving historical fiction with current times, making the reader see the impact history has on our lives. I learned so much about a time in our nation's history about such dedicated volunteers and the risk they undertook. Unfortunately, racism isn't one of those lessons we learned never to repeat so that makes this book all the more worthy to read.

I alternated between reading the digital copy and listening to the audiobook, wonderfully narrated by Susan Bennett who had a whole cast of characters of both sexes to voice.

What a fabulous book! It is the best book I have read in a long time! It captured my interest in the very first chapter and kept me guessing until the end.

The Last House on the Street covers two different timelines, 2010 and 1965. The 2010 timeline follows the move to a new home of recently widowed, Kayla, and her daughter. The 1965 timeline evolves around Ellie and the period of time before LBJ formally signed the legislature to permit blacks to vote. The two timelines are wonderfully interwoven by the author!

If you are considering reading this book, don’t wait! It is a well-written, captivating read!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed above are my own.

This dual time line novel follows the story of Ellie in 1965 and Kayla in 2010. Both of them are widowed and both of them live- or lived-on the same street but Ellie's story is much more interesting. Ellie worked for SCOPE, fighting for social justice and racial equality, at a time and place where it wasn't acceptable to all. Sometimes, as readers of dual time line novels know, the modern characters is just a lever to the earlier one and that's definitely the case here. That's not to say that the stories don't merge well- they do- just that I would have been happy to just have Ellie's. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Good storytelling makes this a good read.

📚𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀📚
3.75/5 🌟

I’m always excited for a Diane Chamberlain book - 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒏 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒈𝒆 and 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑫𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝑫𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒓 are my two favorites and while I found her upcoming release enjoyable, it doesn’t replace either of those as a favourite.

Chamberlain’s a master of dual-storylines, and in this one, both take place the same town in North Carolina - one 2010 and in 1965, during the Civil Rights movement. Main character Ellie is a key figure in both and my feelings about her really vacillated - part of me admired her conviction and part of me was furious at her selfishness. This book tackles heavy topics including bigotry, intolerance. racial injustice, a taboo love affair, violence and even murder, and while some parts are very uncomfortable to read, Chamberlain does her reader quite a service by exposing things that went on during this tumultuous time.

It’s an enjoyable, enlightening read, but not one that will likely bubble up to the top of my brain when someone asks for a recommendation or what my favorite reads of 2021 were. A solid, good book and if you’re a Chamberlain fan, like me, it’s worthwhile.

This book comes out January 11, 2022
(gotta say, that’s my hubs’ and my 25th anniversary!) and I’m
Grateful to @netgalley @stmartinspress for the advanced copy of this ebook!

This was my first Diane Chamberlain book but it won’t be my last. It was an excellent, though difficult, read. The race and social justice issues felt timely even though the incidents happened back in 1965. I guessed several of the surprises revealed at the end early on in the book, but it didn’t lessen my enjoyment in the story. It was suspenseful without being scary. I would recommend it!

Totally thrilling, and wholly unexpected - a perfect mix of historical fiction and thrilling suspense!

MV Rating: 7.5/10
• Based in North Carolina in the sixties and 2010, the story is told from the perspective of Ellie and Kayla respectively
•Kayla just built a house in her small hometown, but strange things -including her husband’s death- have been happening ever since they started work. After a creepy visit from a strange character, she’s determined to get to the bottom of it.
•Ellie joins the civil rights movement, enduring hatred from everyone she holds dear. Quickly, she finds that the cost of her work is terribly high.
•highly suggest this book for fans of Fiona Davis - the story has a lot of the same mysterious and historical aspects.
•How far would you go for love, or equality, or acceptance? How long would you hold out for justice?

Thank you to netgalley for the ARC access!

I received an eARC of The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain from St. Martin's Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
5 stars! I never heard of The Scope Project before and I learned a lot. This story is told from dual timelines; 2010 and 1965. Both storylines are powerful. I could not put this book down. What a page-turner!!!

I am a huge Diane Chamberlain fan and although I found this book to be quite different from her other ones it was a great read with a twist that you do not see coming.

I feel so lucky to have received an arc of this wonderful book. I am sure it will be a top bestseller for 2022! A perfect blending of a dual timeline, 1965 and 2010. Same street. Segregation, discrimination, KKK, love, murder. Couldn't put this book down!. DIane Chamberlain is an amazing author who never disappoints. This is one of her best to date.

I did not expect this book to shatter me. I wasn’t prepared for the emotional punch.

This story is told via two timelines: 1965 and 2010. Initially, they don’t seem to have much in common, aside from the location, but that gradually changes as events unfold.

I enjoyed the current timeline, which packed its own emotional punch, with grief and ominous undertones. But the past timeline broke me apart. We step inside racism, hate crimes, and social justice activism. We see love bloom and friendships shrivel. When the timelines converged, I physically felt the upheaval.

Diane Chamberlain is the best kind of writer, in that she steps aside and allows the story to speak to us. I felt none of the heavy-handed preachiness that can sometimes litter this type of book. The realism and honesty allowed me to experience this story every step of the way.

Do yourself a favor before reading this book. Cancel all your plans, order a pizza and find a comfy spot to read. Once you start this book you will not be able to put it down until you read the last page.

this book grabs you on the first page and DOES NOT LET GO. i highly recommend reading blind here if possible, outside of the necessary content warnings. two povs - one in present day, one in 1965, both in the same town and with homes set on the same road. we alternate between these two povs and wait for their timelines to finally be forced to collide and when they do - it's certainly something. highly, highly recommend this one!

tw: racial injustice is heavily discussed and violence against POC is described

Kayla, a recent widow, moves into the dream house she and her husband designed. Except people keep trying to prevent her from moving in. Turns out there are a lot of history in the woods. History people want to keep in the past.

The Last House on the Street is told over two timelines- Kayla in 2010 and Ellie in 1965.

Diane Chamberlain is an instant read author for me. The Last House on the Street did not disappoint. Historical fiction is my absolute favorite and Diane Chamberlain does it so well. I love that she not only tells a compelling story, but she often teaches you something as well. In this case, Ellie is part of the SCOPE Project- a project in 1965/1966 to help register African Americans to vote. I had never heard of SCOPE before, and have since read more on it. I love the history lesson! (Just like Necessary Lies brought life to the eugenics experiments.)

Anyway, if you love historical fiction, you will love this. If you are looking for suspense, it may not be the best choice. While there is a mystery of sorts, it was not hard to figure out. The only frustrating thing about the book was how oblivious some of the characters were, lol. But the rest of the story was so good, it was easy to overlook the minor annoyance.

I listened to the audiobook. The narrator is not one I am familiar with, but she did a good job. Standard narration. No complaints.

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Diane Chamberlain's writing flows so smoothly that you find yourself completely engrossed in whatever story she's telling. Told in dual timelines of 1965 and 2010, with a historically accurate recounting of the civil rights era South, The Last House on the Street is a powerful and beautiful story about the search for justice. Historical fiction fans will love this book and it's a perfect selection for any book clubs.

Blurb: When Kayla Carter's husband dies in an accident while building their dream house, she knows she has to stay strong for their four-year-old daughter. But the trophy home in Shadow Ridge Estates, a new development in sleepy Round Hill, North Carolina, will always hold tragic memories. But when she is confronted by an odd, older woman telling her not to move in, she almost agrees. It's clear this woman has some kind of connection to the area...and a connection to Kayla herself. Kayla's elderly new neighbor, Ellie Hockley, is more welcoming, but it's clear she, too, has secrets that stretch back almost fifty years. Is Ellie on a quest to right the wrongs of the past? And does the house at the end of the street hold the key? Told in dual time periods, The Last House on the Street is a novel of shocking prejudice and violence, forbidden love, the search for justice, and the tangled vines of two families.

Thank you St. Martin's Press for gifting me an egalley for early review. I definitely recommend this wonderful book. It releases January 11, 2022.

This book is told in dual timelines, amidst the SCOPE voter registration movement in 1965 and 2010.

Ellie is a college student in NC in the 1960s. She comes from a fairly privileged background, her father is a pharmacist, and she is white. Ellie begins working with SCOPE, attempting to register black voters in the South. Through her job, Ellie sees racial injustice in her hometown, a side of her town that she was previously naïve to.

In 2010, Kayla is living in the same town building her dream home with her husband. He dies from an unfortunate accident during the construction of their home. Kayla begins receiving threats and is told that their lot is haunted, etc.

I loved Ellie's story. She was a wonderful character. I love that she was able to stand up for her beliefs and continue working with those who needed her most. Unfortunately things don't always go according to plan and she end up heartbroken. She is faced with the harsh realities of living in the South in the 1960s. Racism and the KKK are rampant. I did not feel as connected to Kayla's story but appreciated it for what it added to Ellie's story and how it all tied together.

I have long been a fan of Diane Chamberlain and this book is no different. It reminds me a lot of Necessary Lies, which I would recommend to anyone who enjoyed this book.