Barbara Erskine - Lady of Hay

11. Ann Clements argues that organic farming will lead people back to common sense, health, and sanity. Do you agree with her argument that regression is necessary for progress to be made, or do you support Joanna’s counterargument that “mass produced, mass packaged, and mass managed” (451) is the only path toward progress?

12. Joanna is very amused by the stories of Moll Walbee, the folk tale version of Matilda de Braose. Moll Walbee seems to be an exaggerated version of Matilda; while Matilda was tall, Moll was a giant. Matilda used spells to keep her children safe, and Moll was described as a witch. Consider the other characters in the novel. What would their exaggerated folk tale personas be like? What would your exaggerated folk tale persona be like?

13. Bet is Joanna’s friend, but she is her editor first and foremost. In what ways does Bet act like a friend? In what ways does she act like an editor? Do you think encouraging Joanna to follow Matilda’s story to the end was ethical?

14. Despite the threat of death from the process, Joanna decides to follow Matilda’s life until the very end. What are some possible motivations that led her to this decision? Would you have made the same choice?

15. What do you think would have happened if Joanna had chosen not to follow Matilda’s life all the way to the end? Would she and Nick still end up together?

16. Joanna and Nick have a tumultuous past, but their relationship is slowly repaired over the course of the book. In the end, Joanna chooses to be with Nick despite their problems. How did you react to her decision? What would you have done in Joanna’s place?

Barbara Erskine is the author of The Warrior’s Princess as well as Kingdom of Shadows , Encounters , and Child of the Phoenix . Midnight is a Lonely Place and House of Echoes were shortlisted for the W. H. Smith Thumping Good Read award, and they were followed by Distant Voices and On the Edge of Darkness . Erskine’s novels Whispers in the Sand and Hiding from the Light were both Sunday Times top-ten bestsellers. Her novels have been translated into thirty languages. Barbara Erskine has a degree in medieval Scottish history from Edinburgh University. She and her family divide their time between the Welsh borders and their home near the coast of Essex.