in chapter 19 was inspired by the beautiful prayers of Jane Austen.
For sailing descriptions and terms, I owe a debt of gratitude to experienced sailors Heidi and Mark Green, and to Richard Woodman and his book A King’s Cutter.
If you’d like to read more about the history and traditions of Cornwall, I recommend Cornish Wrecking by Cathryn Pearce and any of the books quoted in the epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter.
Thank you to my editors, Karen Schurrer, Kate Deppe, Jolene Steffer, and Raela Schoenherr, and my entire team at Bethany House Publishers, including Jennifer Parker, who designed yet another gorgeous cover. Thanks also to my first reader, Cari Weber, as well as Anna Paulson, Michelle Griep, and my agent, Wendy Lawton.
Finally, thank you for reading A Castaway in Cornwall. I appreciate you! For more information about me and my other books, please follow me on Facebook or visit my website, www.julieklassen.com.
Discussion Questions
1. Did you enjoy the novel’s seaside setting? Are you personally drawn more to the beach, mountains, woods, or some other setting?
2. How did these opening Bible verses play out in the book?
“What woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’”
Luke 15:8–9 NKJV
3. Who would you say is the castaway in the novel? Alexander, Laura, or both? Explain your answer.
4. Who was your favorite character? Least favorite? Did your opinion of any of the characters change throughout the course of the novel?
5. Have you visited Cornwall? If not, are you more or less interested in doing so after reading this novel?
6. Which historical tidbit (e.g., about smuggling, prisoners of war, Cornwall, Jersey, Brittany, etc.) intrigued you or made you want to learn more? Did anything surprise you?
7. In chapter 16 Miss Roskilly tells Laura, “You have made no secret of wishing to be anywhere but here since you arrived. Why do you think you were never fully accepted?” Do you agree or disagree with her assertion? Was Laura’s original disdain of Cornwall and its customs the reason she’d never belonged? Or was the explanation more complicated?
8. Alexander says he loves his brother and wants to help him even though they strongly disagree politically. Is this a relevant situation in today’s world? Have you experienced anything similar, striving to relate with family members or friends whose beliefs and views differ from your own?
9. Laura was made to feel like an outsider by her uncle’s wife, Mrs. Bray. Through a second marriage or other circumstance, are you a part of a blended family? If so, has your experience been similar, or is it one of general acceptance and fondness?
10. After experiencing loss (the deaths of her brother and parents) Laura’s trust in God wavered, and she doesn’t really believe God hears her prayers and acts in her life. Have you struggled to persevere in faith when it seems your prayers go unanswered? What would you say to someone struggling in this way?
Look for Julie Klassen’s
next historical romantic mystery
coming in December 2021!
In a grand hotel shadowed by secrets, a lady’s companion must face an old love and a murder where everyone is a suspect . . . including her. Will she lose her heart, and everything else as well?
That afternoon, Benjamin found himself bounced, jostled, and thoroughly shaken on the Emerald, a day-coach traveling westward from London. The journey into Berkshire was only some thirty miles, but it felt interminable. Ben worried he would become ill or, heaven forbid, have one of his . . . episodes.
Ben closed his eyes, drawing deep breaths of fresh air, trying to stave off his own nausea. Again and again, he inhaled deeply and exhaled with a long “Hooo.” The spell began to pass.
He hoped the worst was over, for he wanted to perform this assignment well and make Mr. Hardy proud. To do so, he needed to arrive on Belle Island looking the picture of a competent, composed lawyer.
If he concentrated, he could still feel Mr. Hardy’s comforting hand resting upon his shoulder after his failure. It was the closest thing to fatherly affection Benjamin had experienced in years. He supposed he should have been the one offering comfort, since Robert Hardy