1. General Impressions
Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.
- How did the flashbacks and the first-person narration build tension in the novel? Did you feel they gave you clues to the novel’s overarching mystery, or obscured the ending?
- The novel explores good intentions gone wrong and the effects of tragedy. Does the text suggest that intentions don’t matter? Does the effect of a choice outweigh its rationale?
2. Personal Reflection and Connection
Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.
- Do you think Hannah’s faith in Owen’s good intentions as a father are warranted? Were there any points in the novel where you felt she should have doubted him more?
- The Last Thing He Told Me was adapted into a TV series starring Jennifer Garner as Hannah. How does this casting—or the show overall, if you’ve seen it—affect how you picture the characters and events in the novel?
- Do you agree with Bradford that “you always have a choice” (50)? Why or why not?
- Did you entirely trust Hannah as a narrator? Why or why not?
- Hannah finds her neighbors’ prying eyes stifling. Do you know your neighbors? Do you wish you knew them more—or less—than you do? Why?
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