Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain is a parallel story taking place during two time periods.
In 1939, Anna Dale wins a mural contest and is assigned to paint for a post office in the small town of Edenton, North Carolina. Some town members are irritated that an outside woman got the job instead of their own resident painter, Martin Drapple. Some also don’t care for Anna’s progressive ways such as wearing pants, working in the warehouse at all hours of the evening, and using a black teenage boy as one of her volunteer assistants.
Meanwhile in 2018, Morgan Christoper is able to get an early release from jail after a vehicular manslaughter charge if she agrees to restore an old, mysterious mural (Anna’s) with a very strict timeline. Morgan begins to realize that the painting is far more special than she could ever have imagined. Of course, there is much more depth beyond my quick summary. Both Anna and Morgan need to overcome some major setbacks in their respective lives.
The author artfully 🙂 weaves these stories together, which kept me interested from start to finish.
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