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Gwen tells us that her father was abusive – he cut symbols into her side, sometimes wouldn’t let her eat for days, killed in front of her – yet she bonded with him as a child (p.55). Why do you believe that was?
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18
|
101
|
February 2, 2026
|
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Overall, what did you think of Haven’t Killed in Years? (no spoilers, please!)
|
|
30
|
325
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
Gwen states that “Cody had had the best chance out of all of us. He’d been sent to a loving home with no memories of what had happened. Elyse and I should have been the crazy ones.” Why do you suppose the three’s lives turned out as they did?
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7
|
42
|
February 2, 2026
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Gwen finds a dismembered arm in a box at her door and opts to move it to another location to by found by someone else. Why do you suppose she takes this course of action? In her circumstances, do you think her actions were reasonable?
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17
|
76
|
February 2, 2026
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Dominic says, “It feels like there’s a key to life and death, and if I can figure it out, I can transcend it.” Gwen responds, “I think it’s about accepting…that you’re just another thing on this planet.” What’s your take on this conversation?
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7
|
43
|
February 2, 2026
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At the end of the book, Gwen tells Elyse she knows what happened to Elyse’s family was her fault, and Elyse concurs. Do you think Elyse forgives Gwen? Do you think Gwen forgives herself?
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12
|
95
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
Why do you think Gwen is so protective of Porter, and why she never suspects that he’s involved in the crimes? Did you suspect him at any point?
|
|
11
|
77
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
Did you read Green’s previous novel, The Prized Girl, and if so, how did it compare to this one?
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|
8
|
67
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
Who did you suspect of being the person stalking Gwen? Did your opinion shift as you read, or were you pretty sure you knew what was going on throughout?
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|
13
|
67
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
Is there a quote or scene in The Forgotten Book Club that stood out for you? Why do you suppose it resonated?
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|
7
|
100
|
February 19, 2026
|
|
Why do you suppose Natalie was able to stalk Gwen for eight years, but Gwen never picked up on her presence?
|
|
16
|
115
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
After Natalie claims to be Marin, Gwen feels partially responsible and thinks, “I had created Natalie all by myself.” What do you think she means? Do you agree with her? What responsibility do you think she bears for Natalie’s behavior?
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9
|
61
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
Why do you think Gwen felt she needed to see Declan Harris after the events of the book? Did she find what she was looking for, in your opinion?
|
|
4
|
48
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
Gwen recalls her father telling her, “You cannot assume everyone is out to get you; you have to assume they want something from you…and their want is their weakness.” What’s your opinion about this advice? Do you think it served Gwen well?
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3
|
28
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
What did you think of the narrative shift to Natalie’s point of view in Part 2?
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|
12
|
77
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
What plot twist surprised you the most?
|
|
15
|
118
|
February 2, 2026
|
|
Among our early clues about Quilty is his resemblance to Humbert. How does Quilty conform to the archetype of the Doppelgänger? Does he represent Humbert's evil underself or his higher nature? What sort of double is Quilty?
|
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5
|
50
|
December 26, 2025
|
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Why might Nabokov deploy coincidence so liberally in this book? Is it a convenient way of advancing plot or does it call the entire notion of a "realistic" narrative into question? How does coincidence tie in with Nabokov's use of literary allusion?
|
|
2
|
26
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
Why might Nabokov have chosen to begin his novel with a forward by an outside observer? What is the effect of knowing that the narrative's three main characters are already dead–and, in a sense, nonexistent, since their names have been changed?
|
|
5
|
33
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
After Eddie recovers from his overdose he's unsure if Ivan survived the night. Why do you think he never looked for information about his friend? Have you ever done an internet search for someone you haven’t spoken to for decades?
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|
21
|
148
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
Cara is at the hospital and witnesses Ivan abandoning Eddie. In what ways do you think the scene impacts her over the course of her life?
|
|
11
|
86
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
How does Humbert's marriage to Valeria foreshadow his relationships with Charlotte and Lolita? How does the revelation of Valeria's infidelity prepare us for Lolita's elopement with Quilty? Why does Humbert respond so differently to these betrayals?
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|
2
|
16
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
Quilty makes his first onstage appearance at The Enchanted Hunters, yet rumors and allusions precede him. Does the revelation of Quilty's identity come as a surprise? Is it the true climax of Lolita? How does Nabokov prepare us for this revelation?
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|
2
|
22
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
Lolita abounds with games. How does the novel itself resemble a vast and intricate game? Is Nabokov playing with his readers or against them? Do its game-like qualities detract from its emotional seriousness or actually heighten it?
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|
5
|
43
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
How does the character of Lolita combine mythology and entomology? What are some of this novel's themes of enchantment and metamorphosis as they apply both to Lolita and Humbert, and perhaps to the reader as well?
|
|
2
|
17
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
Humbert is not only Lolita's debaucher but her stepfather and, after Charlotte's death, the closest thing she has to a parent. What kind of parent is he? How does his behavior toward the girl increasingly come to resemble Charlotte's?
|
|
11
|
98
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
Why might Nabokov have chosen to name his protagonist "Humbert Humbert"? Does the name's parodic double rumble end up distancing us from its owner's depravity? Is it harder to take evil seriously when it goes under an outlandish name?
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|
4
|
127
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
Can Humbert ever be said to "love" Lolita? Does he ever perceive her as a separate being? Is the reader ever permitted to see her in ways that Humbert cannot?
|
|
7
|
91
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
According to Humbert, Lolita initiates their first sexual encounter, yet later he admits that Lolita sobbed in the night. Do you think that what began as a game for Lolita became an inescapable reality or has Humbert been lying to us from the first?
|
|
20
|
516
|
December 26, 2025
|
|
Did you suspect Nick’s connection to the Forest Strangler, and if so, at what point in the story? Did this change the way you viewed his relationship with Anna?
|
|
16
|
112
|
December 19, 2025
|