Welcome to Litsy!

I devoured this book! My #bookspin for February @TheAromaofBooks

I have issues with the writing and some incidents that I consider lazy plotting, but I must say that this gave me lots to think about. So it‘s a three-star pick. I think it‘s easier to confront our older history (“yes, my ancestors held people in enslavement, but that was so long ago”) than to ponder nearer questions (“Did my grandfather belong to the KKK?”) I‘ve added the tagged nonfiction below to my reading list to work on the “what next?”

Rather than buy a new book while on vacation, I convinced my hostess to share this with me. Maybe I will continue it via Libby if I don‘t finish before we fly home. #Lilacs #StillBlooming

Excellent book!!!! It connects a story centering around civil rights workers in the 60‘s and a current story about a young women‘s personal tragedy.

#MarchMadness2023 #BookSpinBingo

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. Kayla's elderly new neighbor, Ellie Hockley 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?

This book has two time lines: 1965 and 2010. Both set in #NorthCarolina. Ellie signs up for SCOPE program to try to aid Blacks to vote but they are faced with such rabid racism from Whites that the registrars‘ offices were closed, so the students mainly held protests and discussed voting with mostly poor sharecroppers. Tragedy ensues. The 2010 timeline has a separate but linked story which uncovers what really happened.

In 2010, Kayla Carter reluctantly moves into the beautiful new home that she built with her now deceased husband, Jackson and 3 year old Rainie. The past and present collide when Kayla meets Ellie who has returned to help care for her elderly mother and dying brother, Buddy. Many mysterious events in the present are revealed which relate to traumatic events of the past in Round Hill. It‘s an important story about family, history, and reparations.

This is an emotional, heart breaking and horrifying look into the South‘s past-at what ignorance and hate can do-along with a mystery and some history I wasn‘t very familiar with.

Also my #doublespin for November @TheAromaofBooks

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It was a good book but the only thing that j wasn‘t use to is it going back and forth between 2 characters point of views. Other than that, it was a good ending but caught me by surprised.

My family spoiled me for my birthday-an awesome new DND shirt, Narnia bookmark and fireball sticker for my water bottle. And books, of course! ❤️❤️

🎧 📚: I took my time with this 📖 bc it broke my ❤️ open. The dark side of history should feel painful bc it reminds us of what humans are capable of doing to one another while providing us an opportunity to practice empathy & recommit to a more socially just future. So, fellow reader, take your time. Do not be afraid to let it break your heart open, but remember to keep the hope. Full review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4475455783

3½⭐
TᖇY TᕼIS Iᖴ YOᙀ ᗩᖇᙓ Iᑎ Tᕼᙓ ᙏOOᗪ ᖴOᖇ...
A Mystery
Intersecting dual timelines (present-day/Summer 1965)
Fiction based on truth
SCOPE Project
Sadly, for the first 2/3 of this story, I never felt an urgency to finish this and had to force myself to get to where the story finally picked up. Once I was there…things did improve. Ultimately, I wanted to like this a whole lot more than I actually did. The SCOPE project was educational, though.

I don‘t know how to draw, but I desire aesthetically pleasing book journals. So, I gifted me some stencils. Enjoying a slow morning by drinking some tea, listening to an audiobook, and stenciling in my new book journal.

What an excellent book this was. It involves two and o e is during the segregation period and the other is during modern time. Ellie is involved with SCOPE which is an organization that helps black people to vote while Kayla is an architect in modern time. Their lives come together when Kayla finds out about the mystery of her new home.

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.

This book was powerful.I read it as part of a bookclub I belong to.While several sections of it got to me,there‘s a specific one I‘ll never forget.I can‘t say this was a easy read, I felt so many emotions as the story went on.I‘m sure that this book tells only one of many stories of the times. Unfortunately,the majority of these stories aren‘t happy.I hope the people who actually lived through these events and times are someday able to find peace.

The story seemed to be well-researched, and while it does focus on a white person‘s perspective, I don‘t think it‘s a tale that embraces white savior vibes. If anything, we see the opposite. The narrative presents a person who believes she can make a difference, fueled largely by a past guilt, and she is forced to learn how horrific and widespread racism is and how dangerous her own ignorance can be.

◉ 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 ◉
⁣
𝗗𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗲 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻 explores contemporary issues with a story set 57 years ago. Via dual first-person narratives, the heartbreaking mystery encompasses racism, social injustice, & the freedom to love whomever one chooses. Restrained telling of a riveting story with villains identified through revelations of their reprehensible beliefs & actions is moving. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⁣
⁣
𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸: https://tinyurl.com/3m2fv9fh

THE LAST HOUSE ON THE STREET is an emotional, heartbreaking, well-researched, educational read.

Another book historical fiction fans will not want to miss with shocking ending revelations. 5/5

FULL REVIEW: https://tinyurl.com/5n8bwcth

@diane.chamberlain.author
@stmartinspress

Review is up on my blog! Check it out! This one got intense toward the end!

https://reecaspieces.com/2022/01/11/the-last-house-on-the-street-by-diane-chambe...

Wow! I could not put this book down. It is a historical fiction, with some mystery, and is set in North Carolina in two timelines, 2010 and 1965. It is a story of racism, families and forbidden love. The characters will stay with me for a long time. I gave it 5/5 stars.

My plans for the day…may change to wine later 😂🍷. It is a very cold, snowy day in the ‘Sip. But this book is great company!!!

I love Chamberlain! Her latest is impossible to stop listening to! Told in dual timelines, with 2 narrators, the bulk of the book is set in Round Hill, NC. In 2010, Kayla & her daughter move to their new home after a tragedy- only to be inundated with warnings & creepy happenings stem from the past. Ellie narrates the 1965 portion as a Civil Rights volunteer where she loses her innocence to see the truth of her community. Riveting! #AudioColoring

The Last House on the Street is a gripping novel that took some turns that I never expected. The events take place along two timelines, and these timelines work so well together, piecing everything together seamlessly. I love that the main characters are strong women who passionately stand up for those they love and for the things they believe in. They are well developed and so enjoyable to read about.

#mbcreadathon
#mbcbookfrogsreadathon10

Most anticipated release

Thanks to Netgalley for an early release e-copy of this book. I love when a book starts out with 2 stories then somewhere near the middle the stories start to intertwine and come together so perfectly...this book did not disappoint!! I love all the characters and the stories they told! Definitely recommend it!

I always really enjoy this author's books. Despite the fact that she uses the same general formula for each, they are all unique in their own way. If you haven't read any of her books yet, I definitely recommend all of them. This one is coming out in January, so maybe try a different one for instant gratification.

#BookSpin done ✔
@TheAromaofBooks

Pub date is 1/11/2022
#ARC #Netgalley