Diane Chamberlain's latest novel is told in dual timelines. In 2010, Kayla Carter and her daughter are moving into the dream home she and her late husband designed and in 1965, where we meet Ellie Hockley, a young college girl volunteering to help register black voters. Ellie's family isn't too happy about her volunteering and she's pretty naive about how involved her small town is with the Ku Klux Klan. Kayla's house is the last house on the same street as the one Ellie grew up in. It doesn't feel as welcoming to Kayla as it once did. Now the house has a foreboding presence and mysterious things start happening making Kayla wonder if they need to move out.

Diane Chamberlain's books are always good reads. I thought Ellie's timeline was more interesting and kept me wanting to read more. There were some difficult parts to read. I would definitely recommend this to anyone that likes a little bit of historical fiction. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Told in a dual timeline, this book takes place in North Carolina during the time right before LBJ signs the Voting Rights Acts into legislation. A young white woman defies her family and becomes a member of SCOPE project to educated the black community and hopefully get their commitment to register to vote when the time comes. Each white student is paired with a black student to help gain the confidence of the community in which they are canvassing. One of the pairs develop feelings for each other, and racial tensions run high. As the past and present alternate we see the rich development of the storyline of the students, the lives they lead today, and the pain of their hidden secrets they have carried all these years later.

This book is AMAZING. I loved every single thing, from the characters to the storyline to the civil rights issues being expressed. It is beautifully written and I could not put it down. Diane chamberlain never disappoints and this might be my very favorite. Loved!!
Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Wow ! Just wow ! Blown away by this book ! I am a huge fan of this author. No one pulls the past and the present together quite like she does. And always filled with epic twists ! Kayla lost her husband in a tragic accident and is leary about moving into the house she and her husband built together. He died in that house. Is she crazy or is the sense of foreboding real ? Ellie moved away 40 plus years ago and never looked back. Until she has to come home to care for her elderly mother and terminally ill brother. Is she strong enough to face the past ? How does her past conflict with Kayla's present ? Beautifully written story full of so much emotion. Highly recommend.

This was truly a page turner and I was hooked right off the bat. The dual timelines and dual points of view worked perfectly and both stories were equally compelling. I grew up after the Civil Rights movement so the 1965 story line was eye-opening but also heartbreaking. Things have come a long way but there is still a long way to go. The author did a fantastic job with character development and weaving the two stories together. I was so engrossed that I could hardly put it down. This is a solid five star read in my opinion.

What an intense and powerful book. I loved it. This is a story from the civil rights movement told from alternating characters (Ellie and Kayla) and different timelines (1960 and 2010) that connect each other to a very tragic past. Both character's stories were equally compelling, but Ellie was definitely my favorite. She was so strong and admirable, and her passion for change was unmatched. The engaging and beautiful writing immediately draws you in to the heartbreaking tragedies and emotional moments throughout the story. This thought-provoking book with decades old injustices, made me feel so much anger, sadness, heartbreak and frustration, but even some love too. Despite living in North Carolina where the story takes place, I found myself learning quite a few things I hadn't known before. I definitely recommend this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! This book is due for publication January 11 th 2022.

This was an incredibly powerful story that while fiction is likely not far off from other true stories. Ellie's story is recounted while we live Katie's in the present time, not quite knowing what their connection is. As we start to learn how they are connected, more questions arise. The events from the past that unfold are heartbreaking and sobering. Diane Chamberlain does an amazing job at bringing this story and history to life as hard as that may be.

Another solid book by Diane Chamberlain. The use of dual storylines can sometimes be confusing but for this story it worked. I did feel that the 1965 storyline was more interesting and complete then the 2010 storyline. Sometimes painful to read, but only because you know as you are reading that these events and experiences really happened.

What a great read. I’ve enjoyed Diane Chamberlain for some time and this one didn’t disappoint. The dual timelines and characters were compelling and I couldn’t read fast enough!

A big thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Chamberlain’s newest book. She is one of my favorite authors and I devoured the story of Kayla and Ellie. Kayla moves into a beautiful home with a lot of history. Down the street, Ellie is back home taking care of her mother and brother and is able to fill in the details of the house and town’s tragic history. A heartbreaking story that is beautifully written. Another 5 star read from Chamberlain.

You know those books you read that as soon as you turn the final page you think, "Oh. My. God. That was a good book"? This was that book for me. Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC
The Last House on The Street was a smooth genre blend of historical fiction and thriller (more suspense really). I couldn't put this one down last night until I finished it. Now I'm sleep-deprived and not unhappy about it.
The story follows the life of a young woman who deviates from what is expected of her middle-class white southern upbringing to join the civil rights movement in the 60s. Her retelling of the events is a fresh view of life during more turbulent times. While hearing Ellie's story, we also follow a character who is living today with a series of unfortunate events that she is grasping to understand. While this is a bilateral storyline, it is very easy to follow. About half way through I also realized how clean the book is. There's no overuse of offensive language or graphic details about your sex life.
If historical fiction and suspense are your thing, this is a must-read. I highly recommend it.

Diane Chamberlain is such a great author! This was a wonderful story with some tough topics. I thought the characters were compelling and easy to connect with. I really enjoyed this one!

The last story I read by Diane had me filled with so many emotions and she has done it again with this story and she doesn't shy away from tough topics. She also tied the past to present perfectly. I will say that this was not an easy read but it is relevant in today's society.

I completely recommend this story so thank you St Martin's press who kindly provided me with an arc through net galley in exchange for an honest review.

All my reviews are my own thoughts and opinions

Expected Publication Date: 1/11/22

Overall I thought this was a good book! I always enjoy a book with alternating timelines because I like to figure out how the two are connected. I thought the characters were relatable and interesting and I liked the ending. I’m giving it a 4/5 star review because I wished the author would have written a little bit more about Kayla and her story, otherwise I loved it. Thank you so much for the ARC ebook!

Genre: Domestic Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Pub. Date: January 11, 2022

The past crimes of a community become known as two women, separated by a generation, are brought together by tragedy and a decades-old mystery.
Chamberlain does a good job of mixing up the civil rights movement and a suspenseful plot around the past and a more recent decade. The suspense story is good. The author shines when writing on the evils of the KKK, which can be difficult to read, nevertheless, enlightening and well written.

There are two timelines in the novel: Southern, white, twenty-year-old Ellie is resolved to get active in the Civil Rights struggle by assisting African Americans in registering to vote in 1965 in the real-life project— The Summer Community Organization and Political Education (SCOPE), which was peopled by kids in college called on by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In 2010, architects, Kayla, and her husband build their dream home in North Carolina, which is where Kayla’s father and Ellie both grew up. Before they move in the husband dies. After much deliberation, Kayla decides that she and their young daughter should move into the house. However, once they are in someone is trying to scare them out. The twists were decent.

In the powerful and moving earlier timeline, Chamberlain reminds her readers that the KKK was everywhere not just in the Deep South. This part of the story was heartbreaking to read and I real eye-opener to those of us who only know about cross-burning and lynching through old newspaper stories. In this reviewer’s opinion, the 1965 timeline is more than enough to keep the reader’s interest. The 2010 timeline was not needed other than to attract readers who enjoy suspense.

You'll learn a lot from this story.

The Last House on the Street is actually two stories. We have a modern-day one and also something that happened in the past, right when black people were finally getting to vote.

Each story has its own tragedy, one being more tragic than the other. I felt devastated by things that happened, even though it's fiction I know stuff like this did happen to real people back then. It's truly heartbreaking what people had to endure and the consequences being a good person could have. I felt drawn into the story set in 1965 more than I did the 2010 one, but I connected with the characters in the 2010 one better.

Sometimes having two stories makes the entire thing feel disjointed. I found myself wishing from time to time something would end so I could dive back into the other narrative. That's the only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5. Both stories are fantastic, maybe having the book separated into part 1 and part 2 instead of breaking away would have the awkward perspective shift, I had a hard time adapting to the transitions.

I received an advanced copy of this story and would like to thank the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing it. This is my voluntary, honest review.

Thank you St. Martin's Press, NetGalley and Author for this advance ebook copy in return for an honest review!

WoW! What do you say about The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain?!.
I do know this! I don't think I've ever read a book as chilling and thrilling as this one!
And everything I want to say has legit already been said.... In my own words here it is.
The characters. Holy Cow! Both timelines the characters are extremely believable and realistic.
This page turner told in duel time lines. 1965 and 2010! Which I freaking loved.
The tension here grows like ivy and doesn't stop till the dramatic ending.
The twists and turns added to the mystery that we are all trying to find answers to.
Compelling and intriguing this story gets real in every way possible.
Such a remarkable book. This deserves every bit of five stars!
Diane Chamberlain is a very talented writer!

St. Martin's Press>>>>> I couldn't love a pub more than I do y'all 😘 thank you
Thanks again NetGalley, Publisher and Author for the chance to read and review this amazing book!
I'll post to my Social media platforms closer to pub date!




St. Martin's Press

If you are looking for an engrossing, timely read, look no further than The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain. The story has everything: mystery, suspense and romance, mixed in with historical fiction via a dual timeline that takes you back to the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's. Kayla, a recent widow with a young daughter, moves into the dream home that her husband died building. Someone, however, is trying to scare her away, and there are secrets hidden in the creepy woods behind her home. Her neighbor, Ellie, has returned to her childhood home, after decades away, to care for her brother and mother. The story of her work with SCOPE in the summer of 1965, and highlights the courageous work and tremendous risks involved in the pursuit of equality. Highly recommend!

Chamberlain has another winner on her hands with The Last House on the Street. The story alternates between two women in 1965 and 2010 and takes place in Round Hill, North Carolina. After becoming increasingly uncomfortable with what she sees happening around her to the Black people in her community, Ellie joins a Civil Rights group, SCOPE, to educate and encourage Black people to vote once President Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act. Her involvement in the group and her intensifying feelings for a Black man she's volunteering with endangers both of them and awakens Ellie to the intense bigotry she's been oblivious to in her community. Years later, Kayla, the daughter of Ellie's college boyfriend, and her daughter are moving in to the home she designed with her husband before his untimely death. Already rattled and unsure whether she and Rainey belong in the house, Kayla begins receiving threats trying to scare her away. Both storylines are good and end up intertwining in a satisfying and conclusive way, but the book really shines in telling Ellie's experience participating in the Civil Rights movement.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book which jumped between 1965 and 2010. It's eye-opening to read about the voter registration and civil rights movement from the perspective of a young sheltered white girl in the South and to watch her surprise and growth when she gets involved for the summer. And who doesn't love a love story, which is what this book is--along with being a mystery, historical fiction and a view of social justice. It illustrates privilege without using the word and is a good read for people who think they don't like history.

There's also a haunted house involved and a number of deaths. Pretty much something for everyone. It reads smoothly and the reader will not want to put it down until the end, so I recommend starting to read it when you have the time to immerse fully.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book.

PS. If you lived through the sixties, you'll enjoy it even more.