Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. The Gone World blends a gritty police procedural with mind-bending cosmic horror. How effective did you find this mix of genres? Did you feel they complemented each other, or did one overpower the other? How does its approach compare to other genre-bending thrillers you may have read, such as Blake Crouch’s Dark Matter?

2. What did you think of the novel’s opening, which throws you directly into the apocalyptic Terminus before jumping back to a 1997 murder investigation? How did this structure shape your reading experience and your expectations for where the story was headed?

3. Which image or scene from the book has stuck with you the most since you finished reading? What made it so memorable for you?

4. The Epilogue resets the timeline, giving Moss a peaceful, new beginning but with lingering hints of the erased reality. How did you feel about this ending? Did it provide a satisfying resolution?

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

1. Moss’s entire career is a response to the unresolved murder of her friend, Courtney. Is there a time when a past event influenced a major choice in your life? 

2. The novel presents multiple versions of characters like Philip Nestor and William Brock, whose lives are radically different based on a tiny shift in the timeline. Have you ever thought about your own “what if” moments? What’s a moment in your life when your life could’ve gone a different direction if you’d made a different choice?

3. Moss’s work as a time traveler leads to a deep sense of isolation, cutting her off from normal relationships and the experience of aging alongside her peers. Have you ever had an experience that made you feel disconnected from those around you?

4. Moss visits her aging mother in various IFTs and experiences different versions of her decline. How do you think seeing a potential future for a loved one would affect your relationship with them in the present? Would you find the knowledge comforting, or would it be an emotional burden?

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

1. The story is set in 1997 against the backdrop of the Hale-Bopp comet and the Heaven’s Gate tragedy, tapping into real-world millennial anxieties. What does the novel suggest about how societies process existential threats and unexplained phenomena? Where do you see similar forms of collective anxiety or belief systems emerging today?

2. Naval Space Command is a clandestine government entity with the power to alter reality, operating completely outside public knowledge. What questions does this raise for you about government secrecy and the ethical oversight of powerful technologies? How do these concerns mirror contemporary debates about AI, genetic engineering, or surveillance?

3. Hyldekrugger’s followers evolve from traumatized sailors into a fanatical domestic terror cell. What does their journey suggest about how a charismatic leader can forge a violent ideology? Do you see any parallels to the ways real-world extremist groups recruit members and justify their actions?

4. What was your reaction to the Driscoll AI using the form of Moss’s dead friend to communicate with her? Do you think it’s ethical to use such a deep, personal connection to achieve a goal, even if the stakes are incredibly high?

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

1. How does The Gone World compare to other New Wave sci-fi novels like J.G. Ballard’s The Crystal World and Anna Kavan’s Ice? What differences or similarities emerge? 

2. What literary techniques or rhetorical devices does Sweterlitsch use to develop the idea that free will is an illusion throughout Moss’s arc? Do you believe any character truly breaks free from their seemingly predetermined fate?

3. How does the mythological symbol of Naglfar, the Ship of Nails, function in the story? How does it inform the motivations behind Hyldekrugger’s mission?

4. Moss’s prosthetic leg is a constant physical reminder of her past trauma. In what ways does the novel explore the connection between physical and psychological wounds?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Imagine you had the ability to enter the Vardogger and glimpse one of your own possible futures. Would you take the chance? What would be the biggest temptation for you to look, and what would be your greatest fear about what you might learn?

2. Design a training manual for new NCIS agents assigned to Deep Waters. What warnings would you include based on Moss’s experiences? What advice would you give them for surviving the psychological and ethical challenges of time travel?