Bone Hollow Book Group Discussion Starters

  1. The promotional copy for Bone Hollow says “No place is safe, if your enemy is everywhere.” Who or what is the enemy in this statement as it relates to the story? How is this enemy “everywhere,” if it is? 

  2. Whose story is this? Which characters do you identify with most strongly? Where does your outlook diverge from those of the characters?

  3. What part does the landscape play in the story? Have you been to the area where Bone Hollow is set? Have you been anyplace like it? 

  4. How does the Gales’ marriage change during the course of the story? How would you characterize it at different stages of the novel?

  5. What did you expect to happen in the story that didn’t? What did happen that surprised you?

  6. Where were you in autumn 2008? Were you aware of the economic and industrial issues that affect the story? Were you before reading the novel?

  7. What is the role of greed in Bone Hollow? What other forces cause the events to unfold as they do?

  8. Which character(s), if any, would you like to see again? Why?

  9. The Gales react to the stresses of the story in different ways. How do you think you would act in their place? Have you ever been in situations like those they face? How did your reactions differ?

  10. Does the prologue set up themes that you saw elsewhere in the novel? 

  11. Although the title refers to a fictionalized version of a real locale, what other associations does it raise? Do those have echoes elsewhere in the book?