Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. Were any of your suspicions and predictions about the characters and their actions correct? Were any of them way off base?

2. When did you find the plot most exciting? Most boring or frustrating?

3. Whom would you recommend this book to? What kind of reader would least enjoy it?

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

1. Joy has fragmented memories and gaps in her recollections. Have you ever had the experience of forgetting something you went through? What was it like to be told about it, and did you ever remember it happening yourself?

2. Joy often writes about feeling trapped by her fame. If you suddenly became famous, how do you think you would handle fans and media attention?

3. Benny and Joy must manage the assumptions of their fan base. Do you have any parasocial relationships with podcasters, celebrities, or other media personalities? What are the negative and positive aspects of this kind of connection?

4. Benny has trouble identifying the trustworthy and disloyal figures in his life even before Joy’s disappearance. Have you ever regretted trusting someone? How do you decide whom to trust?

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

1. How do you think real-life podcasters’ or streamers’ everyday lives are affected by their choice of profession? Is it fair for them to complain about the impact of fame they sought out? How do these personal limitations compare to the influence of these figures on the culture at large?

2. The novel is partly set in a protective domestic violence shelter, where workers are loath to even answer the door, let alone confirm whether Joy is staying there. At the same time, the character of Mitali explains that she intends to return to her abusive husband soon. How well does the novel portray the nuances of trying to leave an abusive relationship?

3. The novel juxtaposes the professional search undertaken by the police, represented by Detective Keller, with the amateur sleuthing of Benny and other true-crime enthusiasts. What commentary is the novel making about the validity, capacity, and approach of these two different kinds of investigators? How do these plot lines compare to real-world examples of citizen detective work?

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

1. Explore the motif of surveillance in the novel. How does Joy’s internalized idea about Xander’s watchful presence influence events even when he is not physically there?

2. What thematic and symbolic role do silence and omission play in the novel? How does inability to speak add to characterization and plot development?

3. Why does the novel use two timeframes and voices to tell its story? What would be different if the plot were instead narrated chronologically? What would be lost if there were only one narrator?

4. How does the novel contrast the image of Benny and Joy broadcast for public perception through the podcast and their private reality as revealed through the memoir and through Benny’s narration?

5. What is the symbolic meaning of Joy’s narcolepsy? Why is this the neurological condition that Crum decided to give her character? What themes do its symptoms and effects underscore?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Create a logo for the podcast. What would this image feature?

2. Image the story narrated by someone else. Which character’s perspective would you want to know and why?

3. Create an episode of Joy and Benny’s podcast: Imagine your own survival scenario, and have other book club members come up with creative ways to survive the situation.

4. Who would you cast to play Benny, Joy, and Xander in an adaptation of this novel? What kind of cinematography would be used?