1. For Carrie, one of the most frustrating recurrences is the unwillingness of her family and friends to believe that she has been visited by the dead. Have you ever had a supernatural experience? How did others react to your description of it?
2. To what extent does their faith and upbringing drive Carrie and John? Does it support or conflict with their actions and reactions?
3. How does Carrie’s past influence her relationship with John and her choice of John as a husband? Do you think Ethan was a better match for her?
4. John and Carrie have very different ways of grieving their son’s kidnapping. Which do you relate to more?
5. Young women who give birth in secret and are in denial about their pregnancies are frequently in the news. Do you think Carrie was in denial about her pregnancy? Or about Ethan’s intentions the night she gave birth?
6. Many people return to their hometowns after college to raise their families there. In Carrie and John’s case, do you think this was a mistake?
7. Carrie and her mother’s relationship becomes distant during Carrie’s teenage years. How does this impact the choices each of them makes? How well do they actually know each other?
8. Much of the novel is told from Carrie’s point of view. To what extent, given her supernatural experiences, does this make her an unreliable narrator?
9. Does the loss of Carrie and Ethan’s child foreshadow the loss of Carrie and John’s? How?
10. It could be argued that there are multiple people stalking others in the book—the killer, John, the detectives, the ghosts. Discuss the themes of obsession, control, and privacy.
11. Spiritual, emotional, and intuitive advisers are sprinkled throughout this novel—from priests to therapists to psychics. What role did Dr. Kenney, Father Paul, Raina, and Carrie’s grandmother each play to move the plot forward?
12. The metaphor of a clean versus dirty car bookends the novel. What other metaphors or symbols did you find throughout the book?
13. As more and more dead people seem to appear in the story, Carrie struggles to determine who may or may not be alive. Did you find yourself doing the same thing? What clues did you use to help decide who was alive and who was dead?
14. After a loved one’s death, the sentiment “If I could have only one more day with them” is often expressed. How does this wish affect Carrie’s time with the people who visit? How does it work against her?
15. The grief showcased in the story is also surrounded by people who could ostensibly help diminish it—the community, the congregation, two families, and a clinical therapist. But Carrie has very few friends and no grief support group. How did each group help or hurt Carrie and John? Would they have fared better if they’d chosen to lean on different types of support?
16. Does Dr. Kenney strike you as someone trying to help Carrie or trying to help John? Is there any evidence he is involved in the investigation or aiding the detectives?
17. Dr. Kenney, John, and Detective Nolan seem to believe that Carrie is losing her grip on reality and perhaps sliding into psychosis. Which other characters grow to share that belief? Which ones grow closer to believing her? What do you believe she is experiencing?