Necessary Lies

by Diane Chamberlain

North Carolina, 1960. After losing her parents, fifteen-year-old Ivy Hart is left to care for her grandmother, older sister and young nephew as tenants on a small tobacco farm. As she struggles with her grandmother's aging, her sister's mental illness, and her own epilepsy, Ivy realizes they might need more than she can give ... When Jane Forrester takes a position as Grace County's newest social worker, she doesn't realize just how much her help is needed. She becomes emotionally invested in her clients' lives, causing tension with her boss and her new husband. But as Jane is drawn in by the Hart women, she begins to discover secrets much darker than she could have guessed.

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Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?