Caught Up

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What was your reaction to Allen’s frank portrayals of the realities of sex work? Did the novel’s primary conflicts raise any philosophical questions for you?

2. How did your impressions of the main characters change over time? Did your opinions of them improve or devolve?

3. Compare the recurring patterns between Caught Up to Lights Out. How do the two novels work together to form a cohesive whole? What “loose threads” have yet to be addressed?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Reflect on Junior and Lauren’s emotional journeys. Did you empathize with either character during their tumultuous romance, or did you find their reactions exaggerated or unnecessary? Explain your reasoning.

2. A dominant theme in Caught Up is the potential for people to redeem themselves. Did Caught Up make a good argument for this hopeful stance, or were the main characters’ transformations unrealistic?

3. Many people have had negative experiences with a former romantic partner. Within this context, is Lauren’s stance on cutting people out of her life reasonable or paranoid? Does it make sense for her to renew her connection with Junior?

4. The setting of Caught Up is intended to be a generic American city, with Lauren noting that “every city” has a “Little Italy.” Did you find the setting realistic? Could you see this narrative taking place in a city near you?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. The book delivers a strong commentary on sex work and the need for stronger protections for sex workers. How did you feel about Lauren’s activism?

2. Setting this romance within the context of the mafia aligns Junior and the Trocci family with certain tropes that have been popularized in books and films like The Godfather and Goodfellas. How did these tropes influence your perception of the characters, and how does Allen subvert some of these conventions?

3. Even without the specific context of sex work, misogyny and sexism recur frequently in the novel and in society at large. How do Lauren and Taylor’s experiences reflect the lived experiences of women in the real world—including those who are not involved in sex work?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. The novel is told from both Junior and Lauren’s first-person perspectives. How did this narrative structure impact your interpretation of each character? How does Allen use this approach to inject moments of dramatic irony into the plot?

2. Aly and Josh were both popular characters in Lights Out, and their reappearance in Caught Up invites direct comparisons to Junior and Aly. What issues do both couples struggle to overcome, and how does Allen use the two novels to advance a serious critique of taboo topics?

3. The novel shows Lauren wavering over her feelings for Junior. How did her uncertainty influence your perception of her and Junior?

4. With the inclusion of Ryan’s character, Allen creates a positive, nonchalant representation for nonbinary people. How did you feel about Ryan’s presence in the novel—both as a representation of the nonbinary community and as one of several representations of the queer community?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If a movie adaptation were made of Caught Up, which real-world celebrities would you cast as Junior, Lauren, or Nico Sr.?

2. The end of Caught Up shows Tyler and Stella as they are about to tell the story of how they met. Based on the details that you know about these characters from Caught Up alone, what might the high and low points of their relationship be?