1. In the first chapter, Marietta learns devastating secrets about the Hugheses. Have you ever learned something about someone that completely redefined your relationship?
2. Would you ever join a secret society? Why or why not? What type might you consider being a part of?
3. Who is your favorite character and why?
4. Brotherhood is a central theme in the book, represented in many different ways. Have you experienced any of the varieties of sibling relationships—or spiritual brotherhood—that the characters have?
5. Marietta’s amazing memory was inspired by true stories I heard of people reading with their eyes closed after glancing at a book’s pages. What are some amazing stories of the human mind that you’ve heard?
6. Slade and Marietta both have what could be called checkered pasts. How do you think the Lord took their flaws and used them to His glory?
8. Walker and Cora and their family will face many changes in the next years, as the nation adjusts to new laws…and in some ways changes very little. What do you think their future will look like? What do you think will become of Elsie?
9. Slade learns by the end of the book that he cannot do anything alone. How have you found that family and friends affect your goals?
10. The secret workings of the Knights of the Golden Circle were really referenced in one of Lincoln’s speeches as “the fifth column”—an actual, if invisible, part of the Confederate war machine. Why do you think they had the successes they did? Why do you think they experienced so many failures? How does this relate to the successes and failures of all the characters in Circle of Spies?