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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. What does the author say walking into Miriam's house is like walking into?

2. What does Olivia say her mother labeled her in?

3. Where does Ritchie's wife live?

4. What does Helen's hair feel like between Lynley's fingers?

5. What country is Bhimani from?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Olivia say that on the outside her mother had an admirable social conscience?

2. What does Miriam know about the night of Kenneth's death?

3. How did Olivia meet Richie?

4. What details do the police have about Kenneth's private life?

5. What does Olivia remember about her mother's relationship with Kenneth?

6. What kind of relationship did Hugh have with his wife Gabriella?

7. What problems is Lynley having in this section?

8. What does Flo say in her phone message to Havers?

9. How did Chris help to change Olivia's life?

10. What does Jean say to Derrick on the phone?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In what way does the novel suggest that helping people can lead to the neglect of others? How could people like Miriam have achieved more of a balance in their relationships?

Essay Topic 2

How does the author describe Celedine Cottage? What kind of tone does her descriptions create? What is significant about about a murder happening here? How would the meaning of the story change if the murder happened elsewhere?

Essay Topic 3

In what does Olivia's relationship with Chris parallel her mother's relationship with Kenneth? What does this parallel say about the relationship between mother and daughter?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 843 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample