READERS GUIDE

1. Why do you think Laura believed her husband, Jake, when he told her Anne tried to seduce him? What would you do if your husband said that about your own sister?

 2. The sisters all have different relationships with their mother, Sarah, yet each of them feels like she’s a disappointment to her. Do you think Sarah loved her daughters equally? Is it even possible to love your children equally? 

3. Laura stayed with Jake for many years despite the fact that he didn’t seem to desire her physically. What kept her in the marriage? Should she have left him sooner?

4. Were you disappointed by the resolution with Neil, or do you think it was better that the novel ended this way?

5. Two of the sisters, Anne and Elly, have lived away from home, while the third sister, Laura, stayed. How did leaving Folly Cove change Anne and Elly? Do you think it’s important to live away from the place where you grew up? Why or why not?

6. Why do you think Flossie stayed on at Folly Cove despite the ten‑ sions between her and Sarah? How would you describe the relationship between these two women?

7. If you had to predict what these characters will be doing five years after the novel ends, what would you say?