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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 is the average number of murders a day in the past year in New York as mentioned in Chapter 14?

2. What confidential piece of information does Smithback reveal to Margo that he knows about the two bodies from the river?

3. Where do Smithback and Margo have drinks after he runs into her while she is jogging?

4. What is the ever-present threat in the tunnels?

5. What is the name of the waterway in which Snow goes on his first dive?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is the homeless man who invades D'Agosta's office, and what is his reason for being there?

2. Why do you think the author mentions his previous book, "Relic"?

3. What is the irony in the author's naming the leader of the Route 666 group Mephisto?

4. How might Margo's expertise in ethnopharmacology be an example of foreshadowing?

5. Why does Hayward say the tunnels are dangerous? Cite examples from the text.

6. Do you think that Bill Smithback would do anything to get the exclusive on a murder investigation? Why or why not? Do his tactics seem moral or sensationa? Why?

7. In Chapter 8, an unknown person develops extra sensitive senses, apparently by ingesting some unknown drug. What do you think is the purpose of this character's in-depth description and failing to tell the reader who he is?

8. How does D'Agosta take Waxie's assignment as team leader for the investigation? Why does he feel it might be a good move for all concerned?

9. To what does Dr. Frock attribute the Mbwun's existence and its unlikely appearance in New York?

10. What is ironic about using the muse of rhetoric, Polyhymnia, to name an ornate club in Chapter 10? Does its patronage seem to have anything to do with it?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The flooding of the tunnels to destroy the creatures is an extreme step, especially given the number of innocent people who could be in danger from the flooding. What purpose do you think this moral ambiguity will serve? Do you see it in any other situations in the book? Do you think it serves the same purpose in that instance?

Essay Topic 2

Frock is unmasked as the shaman, the man behind the propagation of the Wrinklers. Why is this such a shock to the people trying to stop the Wrinklers? In hindsight, does it make sense? What reasoning does Frock give for his transgressions? Do you feel he has a valid point, or do you think he's simply another drug addict? Why?

Essay Topic 3

The New York Museum of Natural History is a stunning backdrop to not one, but two, horrifying stories. While "Reliquary" isn't as dependent on the Museum as its main setting as it was in "Relic," it exudes a frightening air, which only enhances the atmosphere of the book. What is it about the Museum, which makes it a frightening place, and why is it used so frequently?

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