Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. This novel is a sequel to Elizabeth Day’s 2018 book, The Party. If you read the first book, how did this story feel as a continuation of Martin and Ben’s saga? If you came to One of Us as a standalone novel, did you feel you had enough context for their history?

2. What did you think of the novel’s unsettling final scene? How did the abrupt reappearance of Andrew Jarvis and Martin’s direct address to you as the reader make you feel about the story’s resolution and its commentary on justice?

3. Which narrator’s voice did you connect with the most? Why did the perspective of the cynical Martin, the conflicted Serena, the ambitious Richard, or the rebellious Cosima resonate most strongly with you?

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

1. Think about Martin and Ben’s complicated bond, which is built on a history of transactional loyalty. How do you distinguish between genuine friendship and relationships that feel more like strategic alliances in your own life?

2. Many characters in the novel carefully manage a public identity that is very different from their private reality. Think about the pressures in your own life, whether from work, family, or social media. In what ways do you find yourself performing a role, and how does that compare to the high-stakes performances of characters like Serena or Richard?

3. Cosima’s activism is fueled by a deep anger at her family’s privilege and hypocrisy. Can you recall a time when your own beliefs put you at odds with your family or community? How did you navigate that tension between personal conviction and loyalty to your loved ones?

4. How did Serena’s decision to stay with Ben and Cosima’s choice to forgive her father resonate with your own experiences of reconciliation? Have you ever found yourself weighing similar practical, emotional, or relational factors when deciding whether to continue a relationship or forgive someone?

5. Martin achieves his long-sought revenge only to find his life feels empty and without purpose. Has there ever been a time when achieving a goal you worked toward for a long time felt different from what you expected? What might Martin’s experience suggest about the nature of revenge and personal fulfillment?

6. Serena undergoes a significant personal transformation, grappling with menopause, invisibility, and a marriage that has eroded her identity. What aspects of her awakening felt most relatable to you?

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

1. The novel directly engages with contemporary debates around “cancel culture” through the incident where Martin’s use of the term “orientalism” goes viral. What do you think the book is saying about generational divides, free speech on campus, and the power of social media to shape public discourse?

2. How does the novel use the Fitzmaurice family and their ability to make scandals disappear to critique elite impunity in modern Britain? Where do you see similar dynamics of power, wealth, and accountability playing out in our own society today?

3. What does the novel suggest about the relationship between media spectacle and political power, especially through Richard Take’s journey from disgraced MP to popular contender via reality TV? Do you feel his storyline is a hyperbolic satire of our current media landscape or a realistic reflection of it?

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

1. How did the novel’s use of multiple, distinct first-person narrators shape your experience of the story? Which perspective did you find most or least reliable, and how did that influence your interpretation of the central conflicts?

2. The stately homes of Denby Hall and Tipworth Priory are almost characters in themselves. In what ways do these settings function as more than just backdrops, illustrating the insularity, power, and moral decay of the ruling class?

3. Richard Take and Ben Fitzmaurice both seek political power, but they come from very different backgrounds. How does the novel use Richard as a foil to Ben to explore themes of class, ambition, and what it takes to succeed in the “Westminster bubble”?

4. What is the effect of Fliss’s posthumous narration, delivered from a seemingly peaceful afterlife? How does her voice contrast with those of the living characters and deepen the story’s tragic elements?

5. How effective did you find the satirical elements of the novel? Did the story feel more like a comedy of manners, a tragedy, or a sharp political critique?

6. Elizabeth Day’s novel Magpie also explores themes of betrayal and psychological tension. If you’ve read it, how does the examination of elite, political betrayal in One of Us compare to the more domestic, personal betrayals in Magpie?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Imagine you are Martin in a sequel to One of Us. What steps would you take to ensure that Andrew Jarvis finally faces justice?

2. Put yourself in Cosima’s shoes after River, the undercover officer, sends her the encrypted files about Fliss’s death. Knowing what you know about her family and the political stakes, what would you have done with that information?

3. You have been commissioned to create a small memorial for Fliss, one that captures her true self rather than the sanitized version her family presented. What form would it take, what materials would you use, and what words, if any, would you inscribe on it?