How does Mad Mabel’s allusions to Anne of Green Gables develop the novel’s characterization and themes? In what sense is the relationship between the two texts straightforward, and in what sense is it complex or even ironic?

In what sense is the setting of Rosehill symbolic? How do characters’ relationships with Rosehill illuminate important aspects of their personalities? How does the history of Rosehill support the novel’s larger meaning?

Sally Hepworth subverts the domestic-suspense genre by using an octogenarian protagonist. How does this choice create a conversation about the genre itself? Analyze how other aspects of Elsie’s characterization support this subversion.

How do various forms of media shape the public’s perception of Elsie? Is the narrative positing that “new” forms of media are different in some significant way from older forms of media, or is it arguing that the ethics of individual authors and creators matters?

Compare the protective unit formed by Cess and Ness in the past with the community that coalesces on Kenny Lane in the present. What do the similarities and differences between these two examples of a “chosen family” reveal about the novel’s argument for what is necessary for survival and healing?

The novel offers several models of motherhood through the characters of Mary, Cess, Ness, Roxanne, and, eventually, Elsie herself. Analyze how the narrative explores and redefines maternity, culminating in the revelation that Peter is Elsie’s biological son raised by Ness.

Discuss the narrative and thematic function of Daphne’s final transference to Persephone. What does this suggest about Elsie’s alleged mental illness and the power of psychological inheritance?

How does Joan Waters’s character arc from antagonist to ally illustrate the novel’s broader theme of dismantling prejudice through direct, empathetic experience?