Alma Katsu - The Descent

8. When Lanny arrives in the underworld, she initially is transported to various experiences and relationships from her past. What purpose did these travels serve in her journey? If you could travel to a prior time and place, what would it be and why?

9. During Savva’s visit with Lanny, he says about Adair: “We’re rarely attracted for the reasons we think. . . . There was something in him that we were looking for, each of us in our way.” What do you think Lanny was looking for in her relationship with Adair? Did she find it?

10. Describe some of the qualities of Adair during his youth in Venice studying under the bishop and ultimately Cosimo. What was the main desire that fueled his hunger to learn alchemy? How was the profession of alchemy ultimately a cover for his true identity?

11. During Lanny’s reunion with Luke in the underworld, she reflects that “being alone was what I feared most.” Why do you think someone who was immortal would be afraid of being alone? What was her strategy to avoid aloneness? Is fear of being alone universal? Do you resonate with this fear? If so, what is your strategy to avoid it?

12. When Lanny finally meets Jonathan in the underworld, how is their reunion different from what she imagined? How does her journey to help him turn out to be ironic?

13. Do you think Lanny and Adair are capable of true love and fidelity to each other? Why or why not?

14. What was your response to the end of the story? How did it compare or contrast with your imagined ending?

15. What was your favorite scene or chapter in the book? Explain.

ENHANCE YOUR BOOK CLUB

1. Visit

www.AlmaKatsu.com

to learn more about the author and listen to an interview with her.

2. The author calls The Taker series “anti-romance” in that it reveals the dark side of love. Make a list of examples from the book that connect various characters’ evil/dark actions to a corresponding desire to be loved. Discuss your lists at your next book club meeting. What do you learn or observe from this exercise about the human heart? How do the experiences of the characters in the story compare and contrast with your own experiences with love, or the experiences of people you know?

3.

The Descent

describes Eternity as a breaking apart and disintegration into absolute emptiness. Is this view of man’s place in the cosmos similar to, or different from, that of religions with which you are familiar? Read

The Universe Next Door

by James Sire and contrast the various views of eternity presented. Which view most closely resembles your own? Discuss.

4. Make a list of the things you would do, risks you would take, places you would visit if you knew you were immortal. How is this list similar to or different from your actual bucket list?

AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPH BY TIM COBURN

ALMA KATSU

is the author of

The Taker, The Reckoning,

and

The Descent

. Born in Alaska and raised near Concord, Massachusetts, she holds a B.A. from Brandeis University and an M.A. from the Johns Hopkins writing program. Visit

www.almakatsu.com

or follow the author on Twitter.