PEMBERTON MANOR
What two major personal setbacks force Julia to move into Pemberton?
She loses her job and her apartment.
I am Julia's grandmother, whose declining memory causes concern. Who am I?
Letitia (Letty) Barlow, also called Gram.
What disturbing discovery in Pemberton's backyard makes Julia suspect that the estate is hiding something terrible?
Human bones.
In what year does Caroline Eldridge's storyline begin?
1692.
What two different time periods does the novel alternate between?
The present day and the late 1600s, beginning in 1692.
At exactly what time does the grandfather clock mysteriously stop?
3:41 a.m.
I work at the Woodhaven Museum and develop a romantic relationship with Julia. Who am I?
Henry Ziegler.
What do the old letters Julia discovers reveal about the real Ethel's past?
Ethel became pregnant by a soldier who died in Vietnam, and her family rejected her.
What important secret does Caroline keep from her husband about her pregnancy?
She is pretending to be pregnant.
What is the secret ingredient to Andrea Kneeland's sangria?
A cinnamon stick!
What unusual childhood experience leaves Julia with a permanent physical reminder of Pemberton?
She hears a mysterious voice, and a patch of her hair turns white.
I am a healer whose knowledge of herbs makes the townspeople suspicious of me. Who am I?
Hitty Atkins.
What does the DNA test reveal about the woman Julia believes is her great-aunt?
She is not biologically related to Julia or Letty.
Which servant betrays Caroline by revealing her deception and later testifying against her?
Molly Howe
How does Gram ultimately save Julia's life?
She strikes Celia with a shovel before Celia can kill Julia.
Why is the proposed sale of Pemberton particularly threatening to the person pretending to be Ethel?
Selling the property could expose the human remains buried on the estate and reveal her crimes.
I am accused of being the Night Reaper, but I eventually help Caroline escape imprisonment. Who am I?
Jonas Reeves
Why do Celia and Mick manufacture frightening events at Pemberton?
They want to scare Julia away and prevent the estate from being sold, protecting the secret of Ethel's murder.
Who is actually responsible for the murders attributed to the Night Reaper, and why is this revelation particularly ironic?
Archibald Eldridge. He is a respected man who escapes suspicion while innocent or vulnerable people are accused of wrongdoing
Why does Celia kill Mick, even though he has helped protect her secret for years?
She believes he has betrayed her by exposing evidence of her true identity.
This was the murder weapon Celia used to kill the real Ethel.
What is a pillow?
I appear to be a protective relative who fiercely opposes selling Pemberton. My real identity is the key to a decades-old murder. Who am I, and what is my secret?
Celia Caine. She murdered the real Ethel and assumed her identity.
At the end of the novel, investigators discover three skeletons. Identify the three people and explain the historical identification mistake.
The remains belong to Ethel, Archibald Eldridge, and Molly Howe. The older female skeleton is mistakenly identified as Caroline Eldridge.
Explain the elaborate identity deception Caroline and Jonas carry out after escaping. How does this change the family's recorded history?
They assume the identities of Archibald and Molly after those two die. They eventually return to Pemberton under those names, meaning the family's celebrated ancestral history is built on false identities.
This woman escaped persecution in 1692 and survived by assuming another woman's identity.
Caroline