The Beach Club

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. How do you think The Beach Club (2000) stands out as a debut novel? How do its plot, character development, and emotional impact compare to Hilderbrand’s later novels, like Summer of ‘69 (2019) and Hotel Nantucket (2022)?

2. Which love stories and/or potential love stories had the most impact on you as a reader? Were you rooting for Mack to be with Maribel, Andrea, or Cecily? How did you feel about Love’s eventual romance with Vance? Were Bill and Therese the ultimate role models for devotion?

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

1. Therese actively and insistently promotes a romance between Cecily, a new high school graduate, and the much older Mack Petersen, despite Cecily’s interest in Gabriel and Mack’s relationship with Maribel. Did you find her goals (and/or actions) appropriate?

2. Several characters receive both life advice and financial help from the hotel guests. Has a chance encounter with someone ever changed the course of your life?

3. Mack seems to be genuinely conflicted about whom he truly loves: Maribel or Andrea. Do you believe it’s possible to love two people at the same time? Would you respond the same way Mack does?

4. When Mack wonders if the afterlife is real, Therese stresses the importance of hope. This resonates with Bill, who feels close to death himself. Does it resonate with you?

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

1. The novel depicts a confrontation between Cecily and Mrs. Higgens, a guest at the hotel who disapproves of people of color being members. To what extent have places like Nantucket and the hotel itself become more accepting since 2000, the year in which the novel takes place?

2. Nantucket is an island that is somewhat cut off from the rest of Massachusetts, but its population quadruples during the height of vacation season. What cultural or socioeconomic commentary does the novel offer on the tourism industry, particularly in communities that depend heavily on it for survival?

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

1. How might starting each chapter of the book with S. B. T’s letters create tension and drive the plot? Did you find the revelation of S. B. T.’s identity a satisfying twist, in keeping with the work’s overall message?

2. Many of the characters have experienced either loss or abandonment. To what extent does the novel differentiate between these two kinds of trauma? Does it suggest that each entails a fundamentally different kind of healing process?

3. Mack repeatedly experiences Nantucket “speaking” to him. What impact does this have in a book that is, in general, realistic?

4. The book resolves many of the characters’ major internal conflicts. For example, Maribel fights for Mack but ultimately realizes that she needs to remove herself from this unrequited love affair. Did you like the way Hilderbrand rounded out these solutions? Is there any character who didn’t receive a definite resolution or didn’t get what they “deserved”?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Could you draw a map of Nantucket based on the descriptions Hilderbrand gives in her book? Which landmarks would you highlight?

2. If you could write a sequel focusing on one of the key relationships in the book (Bill and Therese, Maribel and Jem, Mack and Cecily, or Love and Vance), which couple would you choose, and what do you imagine their life going forward might look like?

3. Imagine you could have a meal or date with one of the characters in this book. Whom would you choose, and why? Where might you go, and what would you do? Would you choose a simple picnic like Maribel and Jem’s, or would you want a night out at a fancy restaurant?