Reading Group Guide
READING GROUP GUIDE
EDEN IN WINTER concludes the trilogy that began with Fall From Grace and continued with a prequel, Loss of Innocence. Against the starkly beautiful background of Martha’s Vineyard in wintertime, this third book traces the consequences of Benjamin Blaine’s suspicious death on his troubled family who never seemed to meet his high expectations. It also completes the deep psychological portraits of Ben’s nephew Adam, his son Teddy, his brother Jack, and his mistress Carla Pacelli (not to mention Ben himself).
1. What are the similarities between Adam and Benjamin Blaine? How did their similarities influence Ben’s treatment of his nephew?
2. While Ben projected an “alpha male” persona, some details from his past suggest his bravado was in part a cover for embarrassing or traumatic past events. Discuss what some of these are and how they affected his adult character.
3. Adam tells Dr. Glazer that even though he knows that Jack is his biological parent, he still sees Ben’s face in his mind’s eye when he hears the word “Father”. Do you think this will change as the revelation that Jack is his father sinks in over the following years?
4. Carla points out that Clarice is hypocritical to criticize her affair with Ben, since decades ago a younger, wilder Clarice similarly “stole” him from Whitney Dane (described in detail in Loss of Innocence). How does this consideration affect your level of sympathy for Clarice—who is now a mere shadow of her former fiery, devil-may-care self?
5. Does District Attorney George Hanley seem to be solely concerned with the even-handed pursuit of justice in his desire to prove Ben’s death was murder, or do there appear to be any personal reasons for his fervency?
6. What is it about Carla Pacelli (other than her disarming beauty) that enables her to succeed where many others fail at getting past the emotional defenses of two very guarded men—Ben and Adam Blaine?
7. How does the sense of place in the novel—both the serenity of Martha’s Vineyard and the contrasting turbulence of Afghanistan—contribute to the development of both plot and character in EDEN IN WINTER?
8. To what extent do you agree with Ben’s general assessment of his brother Jack as a “loser”, and his specific charge that Jack’s affair with Clarice was motivated by a desire to get Ben’s money when he died? Is this just an expression of Ben’s typical aggressive, bullying personality, or would you say there is truth underlying it?
9. Early in the book Adam tells Dr. Glazer he is completely prepared for his own death. But by the end of the novel, he appears ready to embrace a long future with his new family. What changes in his mental and emotional state over the course of EDEN IN WINTER that accounts for this transformation?
10. As a supporting character, what is Teddy’s primary function in this story? What do his interactions with Adam, Ben and Clarice reveal about each of them?
