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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to Pen, what is her husband unable to do?

2. What is Hawthorn Lodge?

3. What is Barbara Havers's rank?

4. When Lynley returns to the crime scene, what does he notice nearby where Elena's body was found?

5. What is the name given to people unaffiliated with Cambridge University?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Elena's difficulties in adjusting to life at Cambridge manifest themselves?

2. As the story opens and Elena is running, why is she running alone?

3. In Chapter 7 when Harry Rodger returns home, why does he leave for Cambridge shortly after arriving home?

4. According to her sister, what does the large wooden puzzle that Helen and Christian are working on say about Iris's tastes?

5. According to Terrence Cuff, what is frequented by people living in town but not by university students?

6. During his meeting with Lynley, what is the Master of St. Stephen's College reluctant to speculate on with Lynley?

7. What does the preliminary report into Elena's murder state?

8. How does Glyn Weaver respond in Chapter 9 when the police deny her second demand?

9. Why did Pen originally decide to become a stay-at-home mother?

10. According to Chapter 2, why is Daniel Sheehan edgy about investigating Elena's murder?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

George uses this story to examine the role that truth plays in our daily lives. Examine the author's beliefs through her storytelling. Why would the author choose this story to overlay his demonstration of the consequences realized when the truth is distorted or hidden? What did you learn from the author's discussion on truth? What other avenues, if any, could the author have used to express her beliefs? Would those avenues have been as effective as the story?

Essay Topic 2

Thomas Lynley and Barbara Havers can be seen as kindred spirits. Although they are not quite the same, they share a number of similarities. Identify and describe these similarities. Then, based on your discussion of their similarities, identify the ways in which these two police officers' similarities facilitate the plot's development and move the story forward.

Essay Topic 3

One of the main themes is this novel involves deceptive appearances.

a. Identify three characters that use deceptive appearances to further their interests.

b. Why do these characters rely on deception?

c. What is the outcome for these characters? Were they successful in their endeavors or would they have been more successful if they had not been deceptive?

(see the answer keys)

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