BOOK CLUB QUESTIONS: That Bonesetter Woman

Welcome to our November 2023 book club questions for That Bonesetter Woman by Francis Quinn

1. How well do you think the author captures Georgian London? Have you learnt anything new about this era?
2. Aunt Ellen tells Durie and Lucinda they are stronger together. ‘All women are. You’ve both seen enough of men to know you can’t count on them. So make sure you can count on each other.’ Do you think women can rely on other women more today than they could in the Georgian era?
3. The author introduces us to the social media influencers of the Georgian era. How do they compare to the social media influencers of the twenty-first century?
4. What do you think about Ellen’s decision not to pass on George’s letter to Durie and then later to tell him Durie had got engaged?
5. Durie suggests she and Lucinda go and see Tom at one of the Foundling Hospital services, but Lucinda refuses. Do you empathise with her or see it as a character flaw?
6. Dr Candleford and his cronies would have been struck off medical registers in modern times for the appalling way they treated Durie. Why did so many people put up with their behaviour?
7. Do you think the Foundling Hospital was right to cut ties with Tom’s family?
8. “Londoners were obsessed with looking at each other.” Do you believe this still to be the case in major cities?
9. Both Durie and Lucinda are badly treated due to being female. Durie is held back from achieving her goals and Lucinda is taken advantage of by her employer. Do you think Lucinda’s looks give her an advantage over Durie?
10. There are several tragic parts to this story. What do you think was worse? Durie’s mistaken belief that she was responsible for her mother’s death? Her naivety that left her vulnerable to manipulation? Or Aunt Ellen backing the wrong horse that led to her marrying Malachy?

Photo by Magda Ehlers: https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-photo-of-skeletal-bones-10106414/