2) Ben describes the McBride home as “a place of barely beige and white, chrome and glass. Cold. Nothing could feel at home here but ghosts.” Do you think Cass felt at home there? How do you think the pale colors of Cass's room and clothes might be a reflection of her character? When she recovers, do you think Cass will still dress in white? How do you think she might redecorate her room?
3) This book gives a great deal of attention to parent-child relationships. How is Cass's relationship with her father similar to Kyle's relationship with his mother? Do you believe that Cass's father thinks about her differently in the end? Cass uncharacteristically wrote in ink in an Emily Dickinson book of poetry that had “a bunch of stuff about fathers” in it. What do you think Cass might have written in the book?
4) In this book, words are weapons. By taping a walkie-talkie to Cass's hand and confining her in a box, Kyle is able to “torture” Cass by talking to her—and forcing her to talk to him—as she dies. What methods does Cass use to save herself through talking? What would you have said to Kyle that Cass didn't say?
5) In addition to acting as weapons, words can serve as a defense as well, allowing characters to justify their actions. Kyle wants the world to know his story, and Cass wants to testify against Kyle. Do you think it is most important to have the opportunity to tell your story, or do you agree with Cass when she ponders in the end, “Do unspoken words speak loudest? Say the most?” Can you think of instances in the book when a character's silence has revealed something important about him or her that words could not have?
6) How do you think the balance of power between Kyle and Cass would have been different if he had held her in a room instead of underground and they had interacted face-to-face? Do you think it would've been easier for Cass to escape? Why do you think Kyle decided to bury her instead of “torturing” her another way?
7) When Cass awoke in the box, she screamed in terror “until [she] felt like the blood vessels in [her] face and neck would burst.” Still, at the end, Cass is recording her story in a dark, cramped locker. She seems more comfortable in this coffin-like space than in the well-lit hospital. How do you think Cass's fear has shifted by the end of the novel? What has Cass gained and lost through her fear? Why do you think she erases the tape before letting anyone listen to it? In the end, do you believe Cass is broken?
8) Kyle is a scary figure because of his ability to disconnect himself from the person he is hurting (Cass) while he blames another (his mother). Yet, Kyle is vulnerable, too. Cass notes, “Kyle
was
struggling. His emotions were frayed and close to the surface.…Weakness.” What are Kyle's biggest “weaknesses”? How do they make him more approachable, but more dangerous at the same time? What do you think scares Kyle most?
9) Revenge is a strong focus of the book: David kills himself to get revenge on those who wouldn't accept him; Kyle buries Cass because she rejected David; Kyle's mother verbally abuses her children because she blames them for her unhappy life; Kyle tries to kill his mother after years of coping with abuse; Cass wants to help convict Kyle. How do you think the course of events might have changed if some of the characters were able to forgive one another? Do you think, in the end, anyone is forgiven?
10) Cass closes the novel with, “And when the words make sense and all the blame is where it belongs, I'll be ready to talk in the light.” How does blame shift in the novel? Where do you think the blame belongs? Which character(s) do you think would agree with you?