BOOK CLUB QUESTIONS: The Good Samaritan

Welcome to our October 2023 book club questions for The Good Samaritan by John Marrs

1. “British law decriminalised suicide back in 1961.” How do you feel about this?
2. A recent case involving suicide and texts found the defendant guilty of involuntary manslaughter. Do you think Laura is a killer even though technically she wasn’t at the scenes?
3. How do you feel about Laura’s invasion of her daughter’s privacy and doors open policy?
4. Whose chapters did you enjoy the most – Ryan’s or Laura’s?
5. The Samaritan’s job is to listen. It isn’t to talk people out of dying or break a caller’s confidence. Do you agree with their ethos?
6. “For much of my life, I’d been a survivor, but it was only now I realised that somewhere along the line, the role of victim had taken precedence.” Did you see Laura as a survivor or victim?
7. Following in Charlotte’s footsteps, Ryan could understand that she wasn’t being selfish in taking her own life. “No suicidal person is.” Do you agree with Ryan?
8. How are you relating to Laura, the unreliable narrator? Did you guess the twist that her family no longer lived with her?
9. How could Ryan’s family have helped him more?
10. What did you think of the ‘what goes around comes around’ ending?

Photo by Semih SARIGÜL: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-woman-in-a-payphone-booth-in-red-lighting-18666725/