Review: The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain

   

Print Length: 352 pages

Publisher: St.Martin's Press (January 11, 2022)

From Goodreads.com:  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. 

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My Rating: 3 stars out of 5

I have been staring at this review for two days now unsure of how exactly to put into words everything that I need to say. This wasn't a bad book by any means, some parts did seem to drag on (specifically the parts taking place in 2010), while other parts (the ones taking place in 1965) kept me glued to the pages. 

This also isn't the easiest book to read, so if you're looking for some "light" reading, this probably won't be for you. The events that take place in 1965 focused heavily on the racial injustices happening at the time. Mainly the SCOPE project which went out into prominently black neighborhoods and encouraged them to register to vote once the bill was passed allowing them to do so. It also spoke about some of the peaceful protests that were held at the time, again to bring awareness to the cause. But with the peace comes the violence, so this book also touched on the actions of the KKK, the cruelty they inflected, and just how widespread their reach and influence really was at the time. 

If you can make it through the somewhat lackluster events of the 2010's, which I really wish had been better developed overall, it all culminates in a heart-breaking and life-altering conclusion, which while somewhat predictable, was still a hit to the emotions. 

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

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                                The Last House on the Street is available from Amazon.com