March 2020 Book of the Month Club

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rubysmama

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it is possible that Hannah was receiving help as well, and it simply wasn't stated.
My e-book loan has expired, so I can't go back to check, but wasn't she already seeing someone at the beginning of the book, when Claire was originally following her. And at least once when she left the baby with Claire. So she probably kept going to those appointments.
 

verna davies

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1. How would you rate the book on a scale of 1-5 *****?

5 without a shadow of doubt

2. Who was your favorite character?

I liked April. She was uncomplicated and kind hearted.

3. Did you have to force yourself to get through the book, or were you unable to put it down?

After the first couple of chapters I couldnt put it down

4. Would you read another book by the same author?

I have already and that was equally as good as this one.

5. Did you learn something you didn’t know before?

Maybe I'm not very good at judging people. I suspected that Claire may have been a bit unhinged and was looking for someone to blame for how her life turned out.

6. Did you find the characters believable?

I struggled to believe that Hannah could have been as weak as the clauthor portrayed her.

7. Is there any part of the book you would change?

The ending didn't seem plausible to me. Claire asking Hannah to move into April's home and Hannah accepting without reservation

8. Were there any points of view you felt the author had that you disagreed with?


Not that I can think of.

A few questions specific to this book

9. Was there a time when you thought both Hannah and Claire's stories of what happened were plausible and were unsure who to believe or did you only believe one story throughout the book and the other fabrication?

Most of the time throughout the book. Both their stories were believable and I jumped from thinking Hannah was telling the truth then Claire's was the truth. At one stage I got frustrated with myself for not being able to make my mind up.

10. Do you think that any father would be capable of murdering his own child the way Harvey planned, poisoning with foxglove leaves or dropping from balcony?

I find it a bit hard to accept that a father would intend to drop his child from a balcony. Maybe I've lead a sheltered life but I found it uncomfortable.

11. Were you surprised with the reveal of Harvey's involvement?

Absolutely. I think his part was well written, there but no there. I loved the parts where Hannah told Claire that Harvey wanted something done but he appeared to not know about it, such as the picnic Hannah said he asked Claire to prepare but when she put it in the car he just shrugged as if it was nothing to do with him.

12. If you had the chance to escape a dangerous situation, like Claire had with the open door, would you stay behind rather than leave the baby, or run for your life?

My instinct says I would not leave without the baby but I don't know what I would have done having to make a snap decision.

13. What would you do if an upset woman carrying a baby begged you to call a hospital and tell them a patient was suffering from a specific poisoning?

I would like to think that I would because if I didnt and the woman was in danger and I did nothing I would spend the rest of my life regretting it. Better to make a bit of a fool of myself than make a mistake.


14. Do you think the ending was realistic with Hannah and Claire becoming friends?

Unlikely in my opinion. Too much had happened with both of them. Each living for years with the knowledge of what had happened changed both their lives for ever.

15. Were you surprised that Claire's father was responsible for the assault on Hannah and the others

Yes. He wasnt portrayed as that kind of man.

16. Were you surprised that Harvey was behind the diary entries, plotting, and murder of Serena?


I was. It was very clever/devious of him to prepare all that groundwork. Thinking of all the proof pointing to the wrong person takes a very organised mind.
 

maeganj

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1. How would you rate the book on a scale of 1-5 *****?
3.75

2. Who was your favorite character?
I didn't really like anyone, but I felt the most sorry for Hannah

3. Did you have to force yourself to get through the book, or were you unable to put it down?
In between, it was for sure entertaining

4. Would you read another book by the same author?
Yes I would

6. Did you find the characters believable?
No

9. Was there a time when you thought both Hannah and Claire's stories of what happened were plausible and were unsure who to believe or did you only believe one story throughout the book and the other fabrication?
I immediately thought Hannah was believable during Claire's stalk fest, especially after Claire's personal flashback with her family moving. She had no concrete memory of Hannah and if her family didn't talk about it with her it means they were hiding the truth from her. Claire was delusional from the get go.

10. Do you think that any father would be capable of murdering his own child the way Harvey planned, poisoning with foxglove leaves or dropping from balcony?
Sure. People are calculating and crazy.

11. Were you surprised with the reveal of Harvey's involvement?
Not really, the author was being too obvious when she was pinning it on Hannah. I knew there'd be a twist.

12. If you had the chance to escape a dangerous situation, like Claire had with the open door, would you stay behind rather than leave the baby, or run for your life?
Yes I'd escape, no sense in getting killed before trying to get my story out there.

13. What would you do if an upset woman carrying a baby begged you to call a hospital and tell them a patient was suffering from a specific poisoning?
Initially be paralyzed with the "what the heck just happened..?" But for sure would call someone.

14. Do you think the ending was realistic with Hannah and Claire becoming friends?
😂no. Hannah was way out of Claire's league.

15. Were you surprised that Claire's father was responsible for the assault on Hannah and the others
No.

16. Were you surprised that Harvey was behind the diary entries, plotting, and murder of Serena?
There was a hint of this when Claire found a bill of "Serena's" on Harvey's desk so I already knew something wasn't adding up. She had suddenly moved to another continent without further contact....🤷‍♀️

I appreciate the recommendation of this book, it was for sure an "escape" and I finished it up during a road trip. It was a little cheesy but the author made it really easy to read and finish.🤩
 

maeganj

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maeganj maeganj . You said that Hannah was way out of Claire's league. In what sense..financial, intellectual?
No, nothing material, more so personality wise, Claire was/is vindictive and a serial liar. Hannah's character seemed a little shy and uncertain so maybe opposites attract but it wouldn't be a healthy relationship. I guess they both went through a lot as children/teens but Hannah made something of herself, Claire lied to and used everyone in her life. If Hannah was a real person, I would hope she'd finally learn to keep her self distanced from the users and liars, enough is enough!
 
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rubysmama

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The discussion period for "The Housekeeper" has "officially" ended, though more comments are welcome, if anyone has additional thoughts to share.

Thanks to everyone who read along with us this month. :hugs:

Our book for next month is a non-fiction book called "Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron" .

We realize it might be difficult to concentrate on reading, when there's so much stressful news all around us, but there's at least 5 ways reading can help you cope with anxiety. So we hope you'll consider joining us in our April book club read.

Here's the thread with more info: April 2020 book of the month club

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