The Secret Book Society

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. Madeline Martin often writes about the power of books, as seen in her other novels like The Last Bookshop in London. Did The Secret Book Society meet your expectations for a story about literature’s impact, and how does it stand out from other books you’ve read with a similar focus?

2. Which part of the story resonated most with you: the friendships, the historical details of Victorian oppression, or the thrilling plot twists?

3. Which character’s journey did you find most compelling, and why?

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

1. Lady Duxbury creates the society because she believes that when a woman’s reading is restricted, other parts of her life are as well. Can you recall a time when a book provided you with a sense of freedom or a new perspective during a challenging period?

2. Lavinia’s intense emotions are dismissed by her family as “hysteria,” but Lady Duxbury and the society reframe them as an artist’s passion. Can you think of a time when someone’s perspective helped you see a personal trait of yours in a new, more positive light?

3. The act of reading is portrayed as a quiet rebellion. What are some small, seemingly simple acts in your own life that feel like a form of personal resistance or self-care?

4. Eleanor’s desire to protect her son from his father’s influence is a powerful motivator. In what ways do you see family legacy, both positive and negative, shaping your own choices?

5. What kinds of spaces or communities have served as a sanctuary for you, much like Lady Duxbury’s library did for the women?

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

1. In what ways do you see societal expectations or labels being used today to police people’s behavior, similar to how the “hysteria” diagnosis was used to control women in the novel?

2. Rose is a “dollar princess,” an American heiress married into the British aristocracy. What does her character’s journey reveal about the cultural clashes and expectations placed on women who must navigate different social systems?

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

1. What is the significance of the novel’s nonlinear structure, which opens with Eleanor already committed to the psychiatric hospital? How did knowing her fate from the beginning shape your reading of the events that led up to it?

2. Rose’s embroidered boots are a key symbol. How does their meaning evolve from a personal token of independence to an expression of collective resistance?

3. What did the narrative’s blend of third-person perspectives with the first-person account in Lady Duxbury’s diary add to your understanding of the characters and their solidarity? How might the reading experience have been different if told from only one woman’s point of view?

4. Discuss the role of Lady Duxbury’s secret garden of poisonous plants in the novel. How do they add to the narrative’s exploration of female power and knowledge?

5. Cecil’s death is caused by a date from a gift box Lady Duxbury sent, an act presented with deliberate ambiguity in the novel. Do you believe his death was an accident or a calculated act of revenge? What does your interpretation suggest about justice in the story?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. The epilogue gives us a glimpse into the characters’ lives a year later, with the suffragette movement gaining momentum. Imagine another epilogue written five years later. What roles do you think Eleanor, Rose, and Lavinia would play in that changing world?

2. If you were to write a diary entry from the perspective of another character, like Cecil or Theodore’s brother Byron, what would it reveal about their motivations?

3. At the end of the novel, Lady Pempton arrives to join the society. What kind of story or struggle do you imagine she brings with her, and how might the original members help her?