Bookclub Questions for ‘The Midnight Rose’

1) ‘Love’ is a powerful thread that runs through The Midnight Rose, especially that of the friendship between Indira and Anahita. Have you yourself experienced such a strong friendship of your own?

2) Do you think the relationship between Indira and Anahite is equal given that it’s between mistress and maid? And are there parallels with Lord Anthony and Mrs Trevathan’s relationship?

3) Maud has an obvious prejudice to both her children’s choice of partner, Donald with Anahita and Selina with Henri. Anahita also experiences prejudice when she visits the Royal Academy of Arts in Lonon. How has the world’s perception changed towards this over the 100 years?

4) Do you believe in a sixth sense? Have you ever felt the pain or death of a loved one?

5) Do you agree that the lack of a loving childhood can affect how you become as an adult? E.g. Rebecca and how strong she becomes after having an alcoholic mother for the first five years and Lord Anthony and the problems he suffers in adulthood after being raised by Maud and Daisy. Is it nature or nurture that dictates your personality?

6) A strong theme in the book is Ayurverdic medicine and it’s health benefits. Do you share the same beliefs in alternative medicine as Anahita?

7) Do you agree that Lord Anthony should have married Violet, or should he have waited for Anahita?

8) Do you think that Donald did love Violet? Or was his grief-stricken reaction to her death the guilt of his relationship with Anni?

9) Rebecca is shocked to discover that the world know of her supposed engagement to Jack when she arrives in England. What do you think the effects of social media and immediate press coverage have on today’s celebrities?

10) Anahita helps her best friend, Indira, elope to Paris with Prince Varun. Do you think her loyalty was right lying with Indira or do you think she should have been loyal to the Marahani, the closest thing she had to a mother?

11) Anahita experiences a strong mother’s instinct that her son is still alive. Do you believe in maternal instinct? Do you think women are generally more instinctive than men?

12) Anahita, Donald and Violet are part of a classic “love triangle”. In your eyes, did the depth of Donald’s love for Anahita make it acceptable for him to have a relationship with her outside his marriage?