Discussion Questions
Use our LitLovers Book Club Resources; they can help with discussions for any book:
• How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips)
• Generic Discussion Questions—Fiction and Nonfiction
• Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)
Also consider these LitLovers talking points to help get a discussion started for The Tempest Tales:
1. Does Tempest deserve to be delivered to hell? Is St. Peter correct—is Tempest a sinner?
2. Mosley's book is about casuistry, or situational ethics—when is a sin not really a sin? Are there extenuating circumstances that erase, or mitigate, a sin? In each of the "tales" of this novel, Tempest faces temptation—what do you think of his decisions / actions? What other types of situations can you think of, in our own lives, that involve making decisions that are, on the surface, wrong but perhaps end up doing good...or doing less harm than otherwise?
3. What do you make of the two supernatural powers—Joshua Angel and Basel John?
4. Does The Tempest Tales challenge your understanding of sin and judgment according to Christian doctrine?
5. Are you satisfied with the ultimate ending of this book? Do characters get what they truly deserve—or not?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
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