The Last House on the Street A Novel by Diane Chamberlain

 Book Excerpt:

"A community's past sins rise to the surface in New York Times bestselling author Diane Chamberlain's The Last House on the Street when two women, a generation apart, find themselves bound by tragedy and an unsolved, decades-old mystery.

1965

Growing up in the well-to-do town of Round Hill, North Carolina, Ellie Hockley was raised to be a specific type of proper Southern lady. Enrolled in college and all but engaged to a bank manager, Ellie isn't as committed to her expected future as her family believes. Instead, she's chosen to spend her summer break as a volunteer helping to register black voters. But as Ellie follows her ideals fighting for the civil rights of the marginalized, her scandalized parents scorn her efforts, and her neighbors reveal their prejudices. And when she loses her heart to a fellow volunteer, Ellie discovers the frightening true nature of the people living in Round Hill.

2010

Architect Kayla Carter and her husband designed a beautiful house for themselves in Round Hill's new development, Shadow Ridge Estates. It was supposed to be a home where they could raise their three-year-old daughter and grow old together. Instead, it's the place where Kayla's husband died in an accident—a fact known to a mysterious woman who warns Kayla against moving in. In addition, the woods and lake behind the property are reputed to be haunted, and the new home has been targeted by vandals leaving threatening notes. And Kayla's neighbor Ellie Hockley is harboring long-buried secrets about the land's dark history where her house was built.

Two women. Two stories. Both on a collision course with the truth--no matter what that truth may bring to light--in Diane Chamberlain's riveting, powerful novel about the search for justice."

Title: The Last House on the Street
Author: Diane Chamberlain
Publisher: St Martin's Press
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Five
Review:
"The Last House on the Street" by Diane Chamberlain

My Opinion:

'The Last House on the Street' was quite a historical fiction. Mystery, suspenseful read with grief, and romance will draw one into Kayla Carter and Eleanor [Ellie] Hockley's story. Yes, this was about 'family, love, racism, and injustice.' We find that this was from Round Hill, North Carolina, in a neighborhood called Shadow Ridge Estates... of two timelines, 1965 and 2010. What was it about these two timelines that will direct how these characters are linked? Be ready for many surprises, along with twists and turns that will keep the reader turning the pages. For example, what will happen as Kayla finds out about her town and family. "What had happened on this land in 1965 that Kayla's father was trying to warn her about moving to this area that Kayla's husband had built for her?"

And with Ellie living next door, how will these two connect? What did Ellie working with SCOPE do with it, and what happened to her family? One thing that is for sure this author did her research to give the reader quite a story. I'm not sure whom I felt sorrier for...With the subject being so involved with intense racism, Kayla or Ellie, the root of it all is emotional and heartbreaking. To get all of the answers to these questions and more, you must pick up "The Last House on the Street' to see how well this author brings us this read. It may take a while, but these two-time timelines do come together, giving the reader one heck of a story by the end.

This story wasn't an easy read, definitely will stay with me, but it was a story worth telling, and using these dual timelines and multi-generations was well-done.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC and my leaving my honest opinion.