The Shadows
Alex North, 2020
Celadon Books
336 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781250318039
Summary
The haunting new thriller from Alex North, author of the New York Times bestseller The Whisper Man.
You knew a teenager like Charlie Crabtree. A dark imagination, a sinister smile—always on the outside of the group. Some part of you suspected he might be capable of doing something awful.
Twenty-five years ago, Crabtree did just that, committing a murder so shocking that it’s attracted that strange kind of infamy that only exists on the darkest corners of the internet—and inspired more than one copycat.
Paul Adams remembers the case all too well: Crabtree—and his victim—were Paul’s friends. Paul has slowly put his life back together.
But now his mother, old and suffering from dementia, has taken a turn for the worse. Though every inch of him resists, it is time to come home.
It's not long before things start to go wrong.
Paul learns that Detective Amanda Beck is investigating another copycat that has struck in the nearby town of Featherbank. His mother is distressed, insistent that there's something in the house. And someone is following him. Which reminds him of the most unsettling thing about that awful day twenty-five years ago.
It wasn't just the murder.
It was the fact that afterward, Charlie Crabtree was never seen again. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
Alex North (a pseudonym) was born in Leeds, England, where he now lives with his wife and son. The author is a British crime writer who has previously published under another name. The Whisper Man was his first title under the pseudonym, and The Shadows is his second. Both came out in 2020. (From the publisher.)
Book Reviews
This is absorbing, headlong reading, a play on classic horror with an inventiveness all its own. As in his debut, The Whisper Man, North is aware of how a good horror novel can subtly rearrange a reader’s surroundings, charging them with menace.… In the third act, a revelation upends both the entire narrative and its emotional valence.… As with all the best illusions, you are left feeling not tricked, but full of wonder.
New York Times Book Review
(Starred review) The complex plot shifts smoothly between past and present with numerous unexpected twists. An… atmosphere of doom and disaster hovers over the… darkness of the nearby woods. This heart-pounding page-turner is impossible to put down.
Publishers Weekly
Before this twisty story ends, there are many surprises.… a successful, creepy thriller.T he conclusion wraps it up too tidily, but overall, this is a successful, creepy thriller. If you like Stephen King, you'll probably like North's new thriller, too. —David Keymer, Cleveland, OH.
Library Journal
(Starred review) Expect to be electrified by the author’s total mastery of misdirection. This second stunning thriller firmly establishes North as a rapturous teller of tales.
Booklist
The complicated backstory and new characters introduced late in the game… are not great. But the recourse to the ol’ "and then I woke up" tactic to pull one over on the reader is worse. Despite several interesting characters, the suspense plot lacks an engaging emotional core.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, please use our generic MYSTERY QUESTIONS to start a discussion for THE SHADOWS … then take off on your own:
GENERIC DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Mystery / Crime / Suspense Thrillers
1. Talk about the characters, both good and bad. Describe their personalities and motivations. Are they fully developed and emotionally complex? Or are they flat, one-dimensional heroes and villains?
2. What do you know...and when do you know it? At what point in the book do you begin to piece together what happened?
3. Good crime writers embed hidden clues in plain sight, slipping them in casually, almost in passing. Did you pick them out, or were you...clueless? Once you've finished the book, go back to locate the clues hidden in plain sight. How skillful was the author in burying them?
4. Good crime writers also tease us with red-herrings—false clues—to purposely lead readers astray? Does your author try to throw you off track? If so, were you tripped up?
5. Talk about the twists & turns—those surprising plot developments that throw everything you think you've figured out into disarray.
- Do they enhance the story, add complexity, and build suspense?
- Are they plausible or implausible?
- Do they feel forced and gratuitous—inserted merely to extend the story?
6. Does the author ratchet up the suspense? Did you find yourself anxious—quickly turning pages to learn what happened? A what point does the suspense start to build? Where does it climax...then perhaps start rising again?
7. A good ending is essential in any mystery or crime thriller: it should ease up on tension, answer questions, and tidy up loose ends. Does the ending accomplish those goals?
- Is the conclusion probable or believable?
- Is it organic, growing out of clues previously laid out by the author (see Question 3)?
- Or does the ending come out of the blue, feeling forced or tacked-on?
- Perhaps it's too predictable.
- Can you envision a different or better ending?
8. Are there certain passages in the book—ideas, descriptions, or dialogue—that you found interesting or revealing...or that somehow struck you? What lines, if any, made you stop and think?
9. Overall, does the book satisfy? Does it live up to the standards of a good crime story or suspense thriller? Why or why not?
(Generic Mystery Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Trust No One
Debra Webb, 2020
Amazon Publishing
428 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781542018098
Summary
A double homicide and a missing woman lead a detective to unearth disturbing secrets in this gripping thriller from USA Today bestselling author Debra Webb.
It’s the worst possible time for Detective Kerri Devlin to be involved in an all-consuming double-homicide case. She’s locked in a bitter struggle with her ex-husband and teenage daughter, and her reckless new partner is anything but trustworthy.
Still, she has a job to do: there’s a killer at large, and a pregnant woman has gone missing.
Once Devlin and her partner get to work, they quickly unearth secrets involving Birmingham’s most esteemed citizens. Each new layer of the investigation brings Devlin closer to the killer and the missing woman, who starts looking more like a suspect than a victim.
But just as answers come into view, the case twists, expands, and slithers into Devlin’s personal life.
There’s a much more sinister game at work, one she doesn’t even know she’s playing—and she must unravel the truth once and for all to stop the killer before she loses everything. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
Debra Webb is an American author of romance-suspense novels. Webb grew up on a farm outside Scottsboro, Alabama. As a child, she created stories in her head, and began to write them down when she was only nine.
Even as she got older, Webb continued to invent stories. But, once she married, her heavy work schedule as vacuum cleaner salesperson, factory worker, and fast-food worker afforded her little time to write her stories down.
After the birth of the couple's child, Webb returned to school to earn a degree in Business Administration. Her husband joined the military and was eventually stationed in Berlin. The family joined him there, and Debra continued working, this time as a secetary in the commanding general's office. In 1985 the family returned to the US, and Webb went to work as an executive secretary at NASA.
In 1995, after a chronic illness, Webb decided to focus on her stories again. For three years, she researched the romance novel market, and in 1998 she sold her first novel—a comedic romance. Six weeks later, she sold a second novel, this time to Harlequin.
Today, Debra Webb is the author of more than 150 novels, a number of them bestsellers on the USA Today list. She has more than four million books in print in many languages and countries.
Webb is the recipient of the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award for Romantic Suspense, as well as numerous Reviewers’ Choice Awards. In 2012 became the first recipient of the L. A. Banks Warrior Woman Award for courage, strength, and grace in the face of adversity. When she published her 100th novel, she received the distinguished Centennial Award. (From the publisher.)
Book Reviews
[G]ripping.… Det. Kerri Devlin and her junior partner, Det. Luke Falco… investigate a double homicide.… [T]he action barrels along to the explosive conclusion. Police procedural fans who like to see evil rich people get their comeuppance will be satisfied.
Publishers Weekly
Can wealth and power shield the privileged from justice?… [A] game of cat and mouse in which the mice have all the power. A powerful combination of police procedural and psychological thriller whose every clue provides a fresh shock.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, please use our GENERIC MYSTERY QUESTIONS to start a discussion for TRUST NO ONE … then take off on your own:
GENERIC DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Mystery / Crime / Suspense Thrillers
1. Talk about the characters, both good and bad. Describe their personalities and motivations. Are they fully developed and emotionally complex? Or are they flat, one-dimensional heroes and villains?
2. What do you know...and when do you know it? At what point in the book do you begin to piece together what happened?
3. Good crime writers embed hidden clues in plain sight, slipping them in casually, almost in passing. Did you pick them out, or were you...clueless? Once you've finished the book, go back to locate the clues hidden in plain sight. How skillful was the author in burying them?
4. Good crime writers also tease us with red-herrings—false clues—to purposely lead readers astray? Does your author try to throw you off track? If so, were you tripped up?
5. Talk about the twists & turns—those surprising plot developments that throw everything you think you've figured out into disarray.
- Do they enhance the story, add complexity, and build suspense?
- Are they plausible or implausible?
- Do they feel forced and gratuitous—inserted merely to extend the story?
6. Does the author ratchet up the suspense? Did you find yourself anxious—quickly turning pages to learn what happened? A what point does the suspense start to build? Where does it climax...then perhaps start rising again?
7. A good ending is essential in any mystery or crime thriller: it should ease up on tension, answer questions, and tidy up loose ends. Does the ending accomplish those goals?
- Is the conclusion probable or believable?
- Is it organic, growing out of clues previously laid out by the author (see Question 3)?
- Or does the ending come out of the blue, feeling forced or tacked-on?
- Perhaps it's too predictable.
- Can you envision a different or better ending?
8. Are there certain passages in the book—ideas, descriptions, or dialogue—that you found interesting or revealing...or that somehow struck you? What lines, if any, made you stop and think?
9. Overall, does the book satisfy? Does it live up to the standards of a good crime story or suspense thriller? Why or why not?
(Generic Mystery Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
The Last Train to Key West
Chanel Cleeton, 2020
Penguin Publishing
320 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780451490889
Summary
In 1935 three women are forever changed when one of the most powerful hurricanes in history barrels toward the Florida Keys.
For the tourists traveling on Henry Flagler’s legendary Overseas Railroad, Labor Day weekend is an opportunity to forget the economic depression gripping the nation.
But one person’s paradise can be another’s prison, and Key West-native Helen Berner yearns to escape.
After the Cuban Revolution of 1933 leaves Mirta Perez’s family in a precarious position, she agrees to an arranged marriage with a notorious American. Following her wedding in Havana, Mirta arrives in the Keys on her honeymoon.
While she can’t deny the growing attraction to her new husband, his illicit business interests may threaten not only her relationship, but her life.
Elizabeth Preston's trip to Key West is a chance to save her once-wealthy family from their troubles after the Wall Street crash. Her quest takes her to the camps occupied by veterans of the Great War and pairs her with an unlikely ally on a treacherous hunt of his own.
Over the course of the holiday weekend, the women’s paths cross unexpectedly, and the danger swirling around them is matched only by the terrifying force of the deadly storm threatening the Keys. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
Chanel Cleeton is bestselling author of When We Left Cuba (2019), the Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick Next Year in Havana.(2019), and The Last Train to Key West (2020).
Originally from Florida, she grew up on stories of her family's exodus from Cuba following the events of the Cuban Revolution. Her passion for politics and history continued during her years spent studying in England where she earned a bachelor's degree in international relations from Richmond, the American International University in London, and a master's degree in global politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Chanel also received her Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law. She loves to travel and has lived in the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. (From the publisher.)
Book Reviews
Edge-of-your-seat storytelling is Cleeton's hallmark….The Last Train to Key West blends danger, intimacy, history, and suspense in a taut, romantic story I didn't want to end.
NPR
The author neatly ties up the trio of plotlines, revealing the slender—and very convenient—threads connecting the women. Cleeton finds the right balance of historical detail and suspense, making this a riveting curl-up-on-the-couch affair.
Publishers Weekly
[E]ach of the three story lines is well done on its own, and the historical events are riveting. Cleeton's strength is in exploring the lives of women longing to push back against restrictive social expectations. —Mara Bandy Fass, Champaign P.L., IL
Library Journal
Cleeton’s depiction of the catastrophic hurricane is both gripping and terrifying, and she skillfully balances each woman’s internal growth with the various romantic subplots. Fans of Cleeton’s previous books… will devour this exciting, romantic tale.
Booklist
The story, the characters, the setting and the situation all lead to a thrilling climax.… We see the beauty of the Keys, the worst side of nature, and the fortitude of women who must stand up for themselves.
BookReporter
Discussion Questions
1. At the beginning of the novel, Helen says, "People are what circumstances make them.' Do you agree with her statement? Why or why not? Are there places in the book where this sentiment seems to be true? How do the characters demonstrate this?
2. The hurricane hits Key West in 1935, during the Great Depression. What effect does the Depression have on the characters, on the setting? How do larger world events shape characters’ lives in the book?
3. What parallels do you see between the effects the hurricane has on the characters and that of fighting in the Great War?
4. How is the treatment of the veterans of the Great War similar to the problems faced by society during the Great Depression? Were you surprised to hear about the veterans’ lives after they came home from the war and some of the challenges they faced?
5. Helen and John have both experienced trauma. How does it shape them? What similarities do you see between their experiences and the way they cope with them? What differences?
6. Mirta and Elizabeth both come from wealthy families that have fallen on hard times. What similarities do you see in their personalities? What differences? How do those similarities and differences influence the choices they make throughout the novel?
7. The Last Train to Key West alternates between Helen’s, Mirta’s, and Elizabeth’s perspectives. Which character did you identify with most? How do they grow and change throughout the novel?
8. Elizabeth tells Sam that the Depression has been particularly hard on women. What examples do you see throughout the book where women’s lives are influenced by society’s expectations for them? How do they react to these expectations?
9. During the Depression, marriage rates dropped significantly. At the same time, marriage plays an important role in the characters’ lives. How do the heroines’ views on marriage change throughout the novel? Do the women find power in their relationships?
10. Mirta and Anthony’s marriage changes throughout the novel. What shifts do you see in their relationship? What roles do they take on and how do they evolve in those roles?
11. All of the main characters are searching for something at the start of the novel. Do you they ultimately find what they were looking for? How does the journey change them? What were they really searching for to begin with?
12. The characters’ lives are largely shaped by the hurricane and its aftermath. Have you ever experienced a natural disaster? How did the experience influence you?
(Questions issued by the publisher.)
What You Wish For
Katherine Center, 2020
St. Martin's Press
320 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781250219367
Summary
Samantha Casey is a school librarian who loves her job, the kids, and her school family with passion and joy for living.
But she wasn’t always that way.
Duncan Carpenter is the new school principal who lives by rules and regulations, guided by the knowledge that bad things can happen.
But he wasn’t always that way.
And Sam knows it. Because she knew him before—at another school, in a different life. Back then, she loved him—but she was invisible. To him. To everyone. Even to herself.
She escaped to a new school, a new job, a new chance at living.
But when Duncan, of all people, gets hired as the new principal there, it feels like the best thing that could possibly happen to the school—and the worst thing that could possibly happen to Sam.
Until the opposite turns out to be true. The lovable Duncan she’d known is now a suit-and-tie wearing, rule-enforcing tough guy so hell-bent on protecting the school that he’s willing to destroy it.
As the school community spirals into chaos, and danger from all corners looms large, Sam and Duncan must find their way to who they really are, what it means to be brave, and how to take a chance on love—which is the riskiest move of all.
With Katherine Center’s sparkling dialogue, unforgettable characters, heart, hope, and humanity, What You Wish For is the author at her most compelling best.
Author Bio
• Birth—March 4, 1972
• Raised—Houston, Texas, USA
• Education—B.A., Vassar College; M.F.A., University of Houston
• Currently—lives in Houston, Texas
Katherine Center is the author of several contemporary novels about love and family. She graduated from St. John's School in Houston, Texas, and later earned her B.A. from Vassar College, where she won the Vassar College Fiction Prize.
She went on to receive her M.A. in fiction from the University of Houston. While in graduate school, she distinguised herself as a writer and editor: she co-edited Gulf Coast, a literary fiction magazine, and her graduate thesis earned her a spot as a finalist for the Mary McCarthy Prize in Short Fiction.
Center is the author of 7 novels, starting in 2006 with: The Bright Side of Disaster. More recently she has published How to Walk Away (2018), which became a Book of the Month Club pick; Things to Save in a Fire (2019), and What You Wish For (2020). Center's work is often categorized as women's fiction, chick lit and mommy lit. She describes her books as "bittersweet comic novels."
Center currently lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband and two children.
Extras
- Along with Jeffrey Toobin and Douglas Brinkley, Center was one of the speakers at the 2007 Houston Chronicle Book and Author Dinner.
- Her first novel was optioned by Varsity Pictures.
- Center has published essays in Real Simple and the anthologies Because I Love Her, CRUSH: 26 Real-Life Tales of First Love, and My Parents Were Awesome.
- Center also makes video essays, one of which, a letter to her daughter about motherhood, became the very popular "Defining a Movement" video for the Mom 2.0 conference.
- As a speaker at the 2018 TEDx Bend, Center's talk was entitled, "We Need to Teach Boys to Read Stories About Girls."
(Author bio adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 5/15/2018.)
Book Reviews
This charming, often lighthearted novel touches on serious issues and celebrates the power of joy to trump fear and despair.
People
[Q]uirky…. The cast of eccentric supporting characters adds to a fast-paced tale steeped with whimsical, yet sometimes outlandish, plot points. This is one for the beach bag.
Publishers Weekly
[L]ibrarian Samantha Casey is distraught when her school's new principal turns out to be secret crush Duncan Carpenter from way back—and even more distraught to find that Duncan is a cold fish obsessed with rules and school safety.
Library Journal
(Starred review) Center uses familiar rom-com tropes but never in a way that feels forced or cliched. Instead, she fills even the lightest moments with a real, human sadness…. A timely, uplifting read about finding joy in the midst of tragedy, filled with quirky characters and comforting warmth.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
1, On page 59, Sam recalls Max telling her to, "Pay attention to the things that connect you with joy." Did reading this also remind you to pay attention to what makes you happy? What are some things in your life that make you feel connected with joy?
2. What did you make of how affected Sam was by the news of Duncan coming to her school? Why do you think the idea of Duncan and Sam’s feelings for him have so much control over her and her thoughts?
3. What was your initial reaction when Duncan doesn’t recognize Sam? Did you suspect that he did and was keeping it a secret? Why do you think he did?
4. Sam knew that Duncan coming back into her life would be hard and stressful for her, but it turned out to be in a way entirely different from what she expected.Have you had any situations in your life where you similarly thought something would be challenging but it turned out to be so in a completely different way? How did you handle it?
5. On page 144, Duncan talks about painting over the butterfly mural and says,"When the world is a safer place, we’ll bring it back." What did you make of that comment? Did you believe Duncan and his motives? Did you begin to wonder why he was so concerned about safety?
6. At one point in the novel Sam says that she doesn’t have anyone in her life with whom she feels like she truly belongs. Did you see this come across as you were reading? How does this change over the course of the novel?
7. Sam makes it clear that her epilepsy has held her back from doing things like driving and dating. Do you think some of Sam’s past trauma with her epilepsy and her father walking out on her and her mother has affected her in other ways?
8. Duncan confesses his true feelings to Sam after his surgery, but he doesn’t remember doing so. Why do you think Sam doesn’t tell him what he told her? Why do you think she never has the nerve to when she has such strong feelings for him?
9. The library is a safe place for Sam that brings her joy. She also works very hard to make sure her students feel the same. Is there a place like this for you in your life? Was there one when you were a child?
10. As cruel as Tina Buckley is to Sam, we know that she has faced a lot of challenges in her life. What do you make of her evolution over the course of the novel, and the evolution of her relationship with Sam?
11. This story has a lot of lessons about how to live a more joyful life, even in the face of hardship. What insights from the book stood out for you? Are there ways you might approach your own life differently after reading this novel?
(Questions issued by the publisher.)
Utopia Avenue
David Mitchell, 2020
Pengjuin Publishing
592 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780812997439
Summary
Utopia Avenue is the strangest British band you’ve never heard of.
Emerging from London’s psychedelic scene in 1967, and fronted by folk singer Elf Holloway, blues bassist Dean Moss and guitar virtuoso Jasper de Zoet, Utopia Avenue embarked on a meteoric journey from—
- the seedy clubs of Soho
- a TV debut on Top of the Pops
- glory in Amsterdam
- prison in Rome
- a fateful American sojourn in the Chelsea Hotel, Laurel Canyon, and San Francisco during the autumn of ’68.
David Mitchell’s kaleidoscopic novel tells the unexpurgated story of Utopia Avenue’s turbulent life and times; of fame’s Faustian pact and stardom’s wobbly ladder; of the families we choose and the ones we don’t; of voices in the head, and the truths and lies they whisper; of music, madness, and idealism.
Can we really change the world, or does the world change us? (From the publisher.)
• Birth—January 12, 1969
• Where—Southport, Lancashire, UK
• Education—B.A., M.A., University of Kent
• Awards—John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
• Currently—lives in County Cork, Ireland
David Mitchell is an English novelist, the author of several novels, two of which, number9dream (2001) and Cloud Atlas (2004), were shortlisted for the Booker Prize. He has lived in Italy, Japan and Ireland. Mitchell currently lives with his wife Keiko Yoshida and their two children in Ardfield, Clonakilty in County Cork, Ireland.
Early life
Mitchell was born in Southport in Merseyside, England, and raised in Malvern, Worcestershire. He was educated at Hanley Castle High School and at the University of Kent, where he obtained a degree in English and American Literature followed by an M.A. in Comparative Literature. He lived in Sicily for a year, then moved to Hiroshima, Japan, where he taught English to technical students for eight years, before returning to England, where he could live on his earnings as a writer and support his pregnant wife.
Work
Mitchell's first novel, Ghostwritten (1999), moves around the globe, from Okinawa to Mongolia to pre-Millennial New York City, as nine narrators tell stories that interlock and intersect. The novel won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize (for best work of British literature written by an author under 35) and was shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award. His two subsequent novels, number9dream (2001) and Cloud Atlas (2004), were both shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. In 2003, he was selected as one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists. In 2007, Mitchell was listed among Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in The World.
In 2012 his novel Cloud Atlas was made into a film. In recent years he has also written opera libretti. Wake, based on the 2000 Enschede fireworks disaster and with music by Klaas de Vries, was performed by the Dutch Nationale Reisopera in 2010. For his other opera, Sunken Garden, he collaborated with the Dutch composer Michel van der Aa. It premiered in 2013 with the English National Opera.
Mitchell's sixth novel, The Bone Clocks, was released on September 2nd, 2014. In an interview in The Spectator, Mitchell said that the novel has "dollops of the fantastic in it", and is about "stuff between life and death." The book was longlisted for the 2014 Man Booker Prize.
Personal
In a Random House essay, Mitchell wrote:
Mitchell has the speech disorder of stammering and considers the film The King's Speech (2010) to be one of the most accurate portrayals of what it's like to be a stammerer: "I'd probably still be avoiding the subject today had I not outed myself by writing a semi-autobiographical novel, Black Swan Green, narrated by a stammering 13 year old.
One of Mitchell's children is autistic, and in 2013 he and wife Keiko translated into English a book written by a 13-year-old Japanese boy with autism, The Reason I Jump: One Boy's Voice from the Silence of Autism.
List of works
Novels
Ghostwritten (1999)
number9dream (2001)
Cloud Atlas (2004)
Black Swan Green (2006)
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet (2010)
The Bone Clocks (2014)
Slade House (2015)
Utopia Avenue (2020)
(Bio adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 9/4/2014.)
Book Reviews
(Starred review)[ M]agical… a rollicking, rapturous tale of 1960s rock ’n’ roll.… Mitchell makes the best use of his familiar elements, from recurring characters to an innovative narrative structure, delivering more fun, more mischief, and more heart than ever before. This is Mitchell at his best.
Publishers Weekly
Mitchell's sprawling, engrossing look at the psychedelic era is lovingly rendered…. His fans will appreciate the Easter eggs and a metaphysical interlude; those who enjoy revisiting the 1960s will groove on the cameos from many celebrities of the time. —Liz French
Library Journal
(Starred review) [A] gritty, richly detailed fable from rock’s golden age.…[J]ust the thing for pop music fans of a bygone era that’s still very much with us. Those whose musical tastes end in the early 1970s—and literary tastes are up to the minute—will especially enjoy Mitchell’s yarn.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, 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)
(Resources by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online and off, with attribution. Thanks.)