Stillhouse Lake: book club discussion, open to all!

[ufcasey]

I couldn't find any book discussion questions online, so I made up some on my own, sorry if they are terrible! Feel free to ignore them and just discuss your overall thoughts on the book if you wish!

1. Were you able to figure out who was behind the murders at the lake before it was finally revealed to be Officer Graham?
2. Did you think there were any plot holes/inconsistencies?
3. Do you think Gwen/Gina's paranoia added to the suspense or took away from it?
4. If you were in her situation, what would you do to help protect your kids from judgmental people IRL and on the internet?

Looking forward to hearing everyone's thoughts!

[ufcasey]

Tagging people who might have read this book:

spedrunner, ssmjlm, oliviapope, travella, wambam, jenny1223, illgetthere, lostrn, bex, ally, minzy, RoxMonster, tacokick, mrspez07,

[bex]

I've read enough Nora Roberts to have spotted Officer Graham, lol. Or rather, I knew it was someone tied to the police force. Sam was obviously too obvious, ha, and after that I think the author was trying to get us to assume it was Javier since he was so mad, so then Graham seemed to fit. And then as soon as he took her into the car I knew. (also the whole "we aren't investigating anyone who has lived here for a while.")

I don't know if there were plot holes, but the whole book felt forced to me. I thought Gwen's paranoia ended up detracting from the suspense, and it almost felt implausible to me. I wondered if she and the kids would have been better off living somewhere where they were known, but eventually interest would surely fade, and the police/FBI could protect them somewhat. But I dunno, it occurred to me that I have never followed what happens to the spouses of people who convict horrible crimes, so maybe moving around and being paranoid was the only way.

The biggest inconsistency to me - which was obvious in retrospect - was Absalom. This person used to attack her online and then was like "oh that's not nice that they are attacking your children. I still loathe you but I will help you and not tell anyone, don't worry." Like....she was so paranoid, so private, but let this stranger know basically everything about her? At the time I just thought it was weird, but when it became clear at the end that he was helping Graham it was like - "oh, of course. should have seen that one coming."

I also found it unlikely that the police would keep arresting her as a possible suspect. I know they had to investigate her to a certain extent - but it really seemed like they thought she did it and considering she was already fully investigated and found to be not guilty, did they think she moved to this remote area in Tennessee and started killing people like she used to do back in Kansas (per them) even though everyone would figure out it was her? I mean, really, that was their theory of the case, over the likelihood that it was a copycat?

so I guess I did think there were plot holes, lol. And I found them annoying and like they were forcing the plot, like I said, but overall I enjoyed the book. It dragged for the first 75 pages or so for me but then it picked up and I read the rest of it basically in one sitting.

[ssmjlm]

1. Were you able to figure out who was behind the murders at the lake before it was finally revealed to be Officer Graham?
-Yes I had that one figured out pretty quickly based on some of the things in the book.

2. Did you think there were any plot holes/inconsistencies?
-It's been a while, I was going to re-read and haven't yet.

3. Do you think Gwen/Gina's paranoia added to the suspense or took away from it?
-The back and forth of her remembering things, plus the idea of "was she or wasn't she involved" was a bit annoying.

4. If you were in her situation, what would you do to help protect your kids from judgmental people IRL and on the internet?
-I can't say I blamed her for any of her actions and wanting to protect her kids. It may have been easier to do it in a less remote place, where she could have blended in a bit more.

[ufcasey]

So I didn't hate this book by any means, but I didn't love it (and my questions probably show it LOL - sorry!).
Here's the problems I had:

1) Gwen/Gina set up video cameras in and around her house and yet she didn't use them to show the police who vandalized the outside of her house.
2) She was paranoid to the extreme and yet when someone else gets ahold of her son's phone she doesn't change phone numbers or get him a new phone or look at it to make sure nothing important was on it that could have been accessed while it wasn't in his hands?
3) She paid money via a contact through Absalom to get Melvin beat up in jail - but if Absalom is really working for Graham/Melvin, why would he go through with that? Why would he offer that up at all? And why wouldn't she pay just to have him killed in jail, which was also offered, if he is sending her and her children threatening letters? I'd just go directly to that!
4) How would she keep either kid from ever accessing the internet to look up their dad's crimes in the entire time they have been running/hiding? That just seems completely implausible.
5) If Javier was willing to rat out Gwen for wanting to leave town to the police, why would he then convince his girlfriend police officer Kenzie to then befriend Gwen and also give her a suspect list when she hasn't been completely ruled out yet?
6) What was Graham's solution for not being a suspect if he did kidnap/kill Gwen? He was the last one to see her when he took her from the police station.
7) Who the hell can buy a house, even a destroyed one, for just twenty thousand dollars that includes a safe room?
8) If Sam knew who Gwen was all along, got over it, even kissed her, then why did he then distance himself from her once she confessed who she really was?

Things I did like about the book:
- The kids were believable and age appropriate. I hate it when books pick random ages for kids and then seemingly never talk to any children of that age to see how they would speak/what their vocabulary/maturity would be at that age. This one did it right.
- I did like that Gwen was strong, knew how to use a gun, but yet wasn't all 'my gun will solve everything' which is an annoying trope in books and movies.
- The twist of Sam being the brother of the last victim of Melvin. I didn't see that coming.

[minzy]

I'm a little embarrassed that I did not see that the copycat killer was Officer Graham.  I didn't see a motive for him at all.  I was bothered he used his kids in his crimes.

As for plot holes, I was skeptical that Gina had no outside contacts.  I know it was mentioned once that they were unable to be in a witness protection program, but it still seems like she would have had some legitimate outside contacts on her side - law enforcement, trauma therapists, the National Center for Victims of Crime, somebody other than just the arms length contact with her mother.  I did not see the twist coming with Sam as the brother of Melvin's last victim, but at least they each get a silver lining if their relationship works out.  I hated the ending that Melvin escapes, though I guess that sets up the sequel.

I found Gina's paranoia irksome.  At the beginning of the book she was in a flight or fight type situation maybe ten times in a row and when nothing was really happening, it began to feel tired, like she was crying wolf.  She also seemed a little suspicious herself at times, only revealing parts of her past at a time, having an odd but convenient job, and I wondered about her relationship with her dad.  Her contact with Absalom set off alarm bells right away.  I found it odd that a body was found on the lake right in front of her house, and then she and Sam are out there, relaxing and sipping beers, and it was barely mentioned again for weeks.  I was skeptical of her simple call which resulted in Melvin being beaten in prison.  Given all of that, I still harbored a little doubt about her own involvement in the killings until practically the very end.  

I'd rate it 3.5 stars.  I didn't love it, but I tore through it in less than a day, so that's something. 

And it's a little random, but I'm glad I read the book last week instead of a month ago, so I could get the Banksy reference on page 200.

[wambam]

Oct 31, 2018 10:58:21 GMT -5 ufcasey said:

Tagging people who might have read this book:

 wambam

I haven't read it, but it sounds right up my alley!

[CrazyLucky]

I was overly excited for this because I just finished reading last night. I loved the book and put the sequel on hold at the library already. I'm going to go back and read everyone's answers, but I wanted to put mine down before reading or I feel like I'm cheating. LOL.

1. I am not good at figuring out who the bad guy is. This time it took me until Graham offered to give her a ride. But I still didn't realize the younger son was evil. The Absalom reveal was a shocker to me.
2. Even though it was addressed a lot of times, it's still hard to believe that you could live in the house where murdering was going on and not realize it. No way in hell my DH is padlocking a part of our house and not letting me in. I thought the Absalom thing was a little far fetched too. First that he would just flip a switch and go from antagonizer to helper and then that she, in all her paranoia, would lean on him so hard. Also, her visit to the jail didn't make a lot of sense to me. Oh, and it seemed like the son had a pretty good relationship with her, and he was pretty smart. So it seemed like he would have mentioned that the safe room code was on his phone. Even though she trusted Graham at that point, she probably would have changed the code.
3. I'm not sure. In some cases, I think it took away. When she and Lanny went for a run and came back and the alarm wasn't armed and she ended up almost shooting the son. It was easy to guess way in advance that the kid had forgotten to arm the alarm.
4. I really have no idea. Honestly, I think I am too naive to even comprehend what someone in her position goes through. One thought that ran through my head several times is that I would have moved out of country.

Because my reading time is so limited, I usually take a long time to read a book. I finished this one in three evenings. I thought the character development was pretty good, and the twist with Sam Cade was interesting to me. I just really enjoyed it. Although I did have trouble sleeping the past two nights... maybe reading about serial killers isn't great for a good night's sleep.

[tacokick]

I enjoyed it but I do think it was easy to figure out! The Abasolm (sp?) part was so cheesy!! Why would she believe anything he said? She was so paranoid but trusted some rando on the Internet?

I did find it a quick, easy book to read. I read a lot of more “serious” books sometimes so it was a nice break. I read the next one too and felt like that one was also a bit far fetched but it switched to the perspectives of the kids in addition to her which I sort of wished this one had. I felt like her paranoia was a little much (although I guess justified) and I would have liked a break from her when reading.


I don’t have kids but if my husband was a famous killer, I’d probably at least change my name and probably move to another big city. Luckily we don’t have a mysterious garage I’m not allowed in.

I liked that it was from the perspective of the wife of the killer, I’ve always thought about what their lives must be like after their husbands are caught. I’m listening to the Happy Face podcast that’s about the daughter and wife of a serial killer and that’s interesting too if anyone is interested in that.

[mrspez07]

I liked that Gwen was a strong character. So many of the recent suspense/unknowing wife books have the women as helpless or floundering until they suddenly wake up. She is strong from the beginning of the story with her boundaries (mostly), and with her parenting,etc. her anxiety was a little much at times, but I think her paranoia was a plot device to make the reader doubt Everyones intentions (even the old man saying hello).
I felt like randomly introducing scenes and things that happened out of the blue or without follow up was annoying (like revealing the kids stealing the phone, the intro of the female cop, etc.
I agree with most everyone else’s plot holes, but often in the moment of an exciting book, they are easier to overlook as part of the paranoia, chaos, excitement of the suspenseful story development.
I thought the story should have been wrapped up and not a series. That was the most frustrating part to me. Maybe much of the random intros throughout the book will play into the next book.

[bex]

Oh and I agree that I found it implausible that she never went into the garage. But, it also sounds like he probably cleaned up in between killings, right? so maybe for a month she cant go in there because "its so messy, I have tools and wood everywhere for this project" and then after that she goes in to bring him coffee or something, I dunno, and it looks normal?

But the idea that there was this garage attached to their house where he tortured and murdered these women and she never once thought anything of the fact that the room was closed off to her - that just felt off to me, but I guess it happens. (I did "like" that they explained that he cut the vocal cords first, because that at least explained the lack of screaming.)

I'm trying to imagine H telling me there's a room I cant go in, lol.

I read the book fast so I may have missed it - were there ever woodworking projects he completed? If H was spending hours in his workshop like that, I would expect some bookshelves or something out of it ha.

[tacokick]

Oct 31, 2018 14:17:02 GMT -5 bex said:

Oh and I agree that I found it implausible that she never went into the garage. But, it also sounds like he probably cleaned up in between killings, right? so maybe for a month she cant go in there because "its so messy, I have tools and wood everywhere for this project" and then after that she goes in to bring him coffee or something, I dunno, and it looks normal?

But the idea that there was this garage attached to their house where he tortured and murdered these women and she never once thought anything of the fact that the room was closed off to her - that just felt off to me, but I guess it happens. (I did "like" that they explained that he cut the vocal cords first, because that at least explained the lack of screaming.)

I'm trying to imagine H telling me there's a room I cant go in, lol.

I read the book fast so I may have missed it - were there ever woodworking projects he completed? If H was spending hours in his workshop like that, I would expect some bookshelves or something out of it ha.

I think there was some mention of him making things for the children so I guess that was his cover?

Now that I think of it, I do have an attic I have never been in. Who knows what is going on up there?

[travella]

1. Were you able to figure out who was behind the murders at the lake before it was finally revealed to be Officer Graham?


No, I didn't figure out the identity of the killer at the lake. I knew Graham was involved because of the phone disappearing, but I figured he was just passing information to her husband or Abalsom (I can't quite recall the online guy's name).

2. Did you think there were any plot holes/inconsistencies?


Yes, there were many times where I asked myself if something in the book was really plausible. Her level of paranoia, her ability to trust someone with her livelihood who hated her so venomously when she trusts no one, her unending money supply, etc.,etc. The book was alright, but after so many times of questioning the plausibility of things in the book it took away from the story.

3. Do you think Gwen/Gina's paranoia added to the suspense or took away from it?


I could understand where she would be paranoid, but her paranoia was over the top. Especially when she trusted Abalsom with all the information about her identity and location. It took from the book in my opinion.


I thought the book was ok,3*. Besides what I already mentioned, I didn't like that the author seemed to lack subtly with some of her clues. I knew what was going on with son's phone from the start because she made such a big deal about him losing his phone. The whole scene felt like it was a forced conversation. I did have to read the next book in the series so the story about her husband escaping from prison would be resolved. I liked the story in the second book more than the first, but the second book was too dark and gruesome for my taste. It's not a book I would ever recommend to someone.

[wesleycrusher]

I'm not the biggest fan of the domestic thriller genre. This one was so implausible to me for all the reasons mentioned in previous posts- her paranoia, Absalom, the visit to Melvin in prison, etc. and it just took the cake that he escaped at the end. The thing that gets me is that this genre is supposed to be based in reality . So I don't think I would say this book had plot holes, more so it's almost like a fantasy or horror novel where you have to suspend disbelief.

[ssmjlm]

Also, normally I would be on the whole "no wife will believe her husband and just not go into the garage," but after watching RHOC (lol) and seeing how just completely out of touch Shannon is with running a household, I feel like there are women out there who will just be the good wife with the cute kids and not second guess their husbands.

Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter (which I do not recommend, both of her books I've read have been terrible) was very similar in the rich aloof wife who finds out her husband is a murder and she has no idea.

[wesleycrusher]

Oct 31, 2018 13:23:47 GMT -5 mrspez07 said:

I liked that Gwen was a strong character. So many of the recent suspense/unknowing wife books have the women as helpless or floundering until they suddenly wake up. She is strong from the beginning of the story with her boundaries (mostly), and with her parenting,etc. her anxiety was a little much at times, but I think her paranoia was a plot device to make the reader doubt Everyones intentions (even the old man saying hello).

This is interesting to me and really got me thinking.  A few people in this thread have called her "strong." 

So she is a wife who plays into this "perfect life" role- successful husband, good kids, etc- and does it so much so that she never questions anything. She has this horrible revelation occur and which forces her to start to questioning EVERYTHING.  Thinking about it as a fear response, her extreme paranoia makes more sense (but in turn Absalom makes even less sense).   I would not say she is a strong character from the beginning- I think her strength shows more as we progress through the book and she begins to trust again. Even though sometimes it is misplaced, it shows to me she is healing and trying to find a middle ground.  It also helps explain some of the "mistakes" I, as a reader, feel she made (sometimes too trusting but sometimes extremely paranoid).

[bex]

Nov 1, 2018 10:49:01 GMT -5 wesleycrusher said:

Oct 31, 2018 13:23:47 GMT -5 mrspez07 said:

I liked that Gwen was a strong character. So many of the recent suspense/unknowing wife books have the women as helpless or floundering until they suddenly wake up. She is strong from the beginning of the story with her boundaries (mostly), and with her parenting,etc. her anxiety was a little much at times, but I think her paranoia was a plot device to make the reader doubt Everyones intentions (even the old man saying hello).

This is interesting to me and really got me thinking.  A few people in this thread have called her "strong." 

So she is a wife who plays into this "perfect life" role- successful husband, good kids, etc- and does it so much so that she never questions anything. She has this horrible revelation occur and which forces her to start to questioning EVERYTHING.  Thinking about it as a fear response, her extreme paranoia makes more sense (but in turn Absalom makes even less sense).   I would not say she is a strong character from the beginning- I think her strength shows more as we progress through the book and she begins to trust again. Even though sometimes it is misplaced, it shows to me she is healing and trying to find a middle ground.  It also helps explain some of the "mistakes" I, as a reader, feel she made (sometimes too trusting but sometimes extremely paranoid).

This is an interesting take, that she got stronger as we saw her relax a bit about some things and trust more. It obviously takes a great deal of strength to be able to move around like she did and basically be the sole support network for your kids, with no one for yourself, but I like the idea that as she was able to let people in, she was stronger.

I think her paranoia overall would have been more understandable without the Absalom character. I'm not entirely sure what that did to the storyline (someone could have stalked her and found her without his help, Graham could have found out who she was without him, etc.) except really set up the next book because now you know the person helping her husband knows EVERYTHING about her - but I feel like there could have been a way to do that without Absalom.