1. The Lightkeeper’s Wife introduces Hannah Snow, who rows into a storm to save a shipwrecked sailor. How does Hannah’s determination carry through the rest of the novel, and how does it save or undo her?
2. William Pike remembers Annie in his dreams. At what point do you figure out that Annie/Blue is in fact William Pike? How believable is his/her transformation from a wife to a pirate to a man? At what points do you notice the changes, both inner and outer?
3. When John goes missing and is finally believed dead, Hannah experiences an ocean swell of grief. How does she handle it? What are the ways in which her emotions are clear, and what are the ways in which they are misplaced?
4. Hannah and Tom have an attraction between them and a past that we learn about in a flashback. Why won’t Hannah accept his marriage proposal when she clearly cares for him? Why doesn’t she want to marry again?
5. What do you think of Hannah’s decision to take over the care of the lighthouse and pursue her rescues? What motivates her daring on the sea? Is she reckless, brave, compassionate, strong? What are her strengths and weaknesses in regard to her performing the rescues?
6. What does Annie learn from her experiences in Jamaica when her infant child dies? How does her experience there change her relationship with her husband? How does meeting Therese’s society of strong women impact the rest of Annie’s story?
7. Billy is haunted by his life aboard the Alice K. How does his life at the lighthouse help him come to terms with his past actions? Can he ever escape his past or make up for the things he’s done? What are some of the ways in which his past catches up with him?
8. When is the first time we get a glimpse of the attraction between Hannah and Billy? What initially attracts them to each other, and how does their interest evolve throughout the story?
9. Billy drinks to escape his demons. Hannah’s father drinks to cope with pain and not being able to work. What is the role of alcohol in the story? How does drinking impact the lives of the characters?
10. The Lightkeeper’s Wife is initially told in flashbacks. Why do you think the author unfolded the story this way? What did she want to accomplish by withholding the fact that Billy is in fact Annie/Blue?
11. What elements of the characters’ lives do you think are universal? What aspects of the characters do you identify with? Are there characters you see as “good” or “bad”? What is the role of evil in the story?
12. The characters often fail: Annie at protecting her husband’s ship, Hannah at saving a little girl at sea. Men are murdered. Sailors are rescued, while some are lost. What does this tell you about life and the lives of the characters? What do the characters learn through their failures?
13. The novel takes place in Dangerfield, Barnstable, the Caribbean Sea, and Jamaica. How palpable is the sense of place? What is the role of place in the narrative? How does place impact the lives of the characters?
14. Gender and sexuality are large themes in the novel. How would you describe Billy’s gender throughout the course of The Lightkeeper’s Wife? What about Hannah? How does Billy’s relationship to sex evolve throughout the narrative? How does Hannah come to accept and love Billy for who he is? Does reading the novel change how you think about gender or sexuality?
15. The story ends with Hannah and Billy coming together both in how they do the rescues and in how they form an intimate connection. How does their relationship in carrying out the rescues impact their love relationship?