The Bletchley Riddle

The novel examines various ways of serving the war efforts. What are some of the ways different characters support Britain and the Allied cause, in ways both large and small?

Analyze Colin. How is he depicted? What is his wider significance in the story?

The novel explores the tensions between secrecy and honesty between the characters. How do the protagonists’ understanding of both secrecy and honesty change over the course of the novel?

Examine the novel’s narrative structure. How does the alternating narrative affect characterization, plot, and/or illuminate the novel’s key themes and ideas?

How does the novel explore the nature and value of different interpersonal connections, for example, sibling dynamics, friendship, romance, and/or even teamwork? How do these connections help various characters achieve their goals or navigate their problems?

Examine how the past influences the present in the novel. How are Jakob and Lizzie shaped by their past experiences in navigating their current dilemmas? What does the novel suggest about the relationship between past and present more generally?

The authors chose not to end the novel after the events of the war but amid the Blitz, when thousands have died and the end of the war is nowhere in sight. What is the wider significance of this open ending? How does the uncertainty and conflict contribute to the novel’s message?

The novel is, to a certain extent, a coming-of-age story. How do Jakob and Lizzie’s storylines reflect, or diverge from, some of the common tropes of coming-of-age narratives? How have both Jakob and Lizzie changed by the novel’s end?