The novel is full of hidden secrets and repressed emotions, especially in the way people in the village react to Gabriel’s return. What role do these secrets play in the novel? How do they affect Beth’s relationships and her sense of self?

Book Clubs Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall Discussion
1

The novel is full of hidden secrets and repressed emotions, especially in the way people in the village react to Gabriel’s return. What role do these secrets play in the novel? How do they affect Beth’s relationships and her sense of self?

2

Frank’s repressed emotions make Beth and Frank unable to heal their marriage, and Beth realizes it when she says “it is our togetherness that bars us from healing.” Every day that she spends at Gabriel’s house widens the secrets and the gap in her marriage, and we can sense disaster ahead. The writer’s technique of providing the back-and-forth glimpses of the past and present increase tension and the mystery.

3

Based on the reaction of certain people in Beth’s sphere, I assumed a lot of villagers knew of the rekindled affair. They probably resented both Beth and Gabriel. “If only he had stayed away!!! none of this would have happened to Frank, and his brother would still be alive Why can you imagine?? Tsk tsk”