The Wedding Garden (17 page)

Dear Reader,

Thank you for reading
The Wedding Garden,
book two in my new series, REDEMPTION RIVER. Sloan Hawkins is a special character, a hero I won’t soon forget. He and his inner wounds arrived in my head fully developed and he insisted on having his story told. When a character really gets to me the way he did, I’m always a little sad to let him go when the book is finished. At the same time, I was glad to give Sloan his happy-ever-after with Annie and the children, though I shed a few tears on the journey. I hope you did, too.

I love hearing from my readers so feel free to contact me at Steeple Hill or through my website at:

www.lindagoodnight.com.

Thank you again for reading, and don’t forget to meet me again in Redemption River, where healing flows.

1. This book takes place in a fictional Oklahoma town founded during the Land Run of 1889. How did you envision the setting? How was it significant to the story?
   
2. Who is your favorite character in
   The Wedding Garden?
   Why? Describe him or her. What made that particular person stand out?
   
3. Who are the main characters? Did you like them? Could you empathize with them in any way? What are their issues?
   
4. Annie claims that Sloan has a skewed perception of his hometown. What did she mean? Do you agree?
   
5. The Wedding Garden is significant to the story both literally and symbolically. Discuss this significance, especially as it relates to Sloan’s character.
   
6. Sloan believed the citizens of his hometown judged him for the sins of his father and mother. Did they? How did his perception affect his life, both past and present?
   
7. Aunt Lydia told Sloan that the truth would set him free. What did she mean? Was she correct? Is there a scripture reference for this?
   
8. There was great animosity between Sloan and Annie’s father, Police Chief Dooley Crawford. Discuss some of the reasons for this hostility. Do you think Dooley’s guilt had anything to do with his treatment of Sloan?
   
9. Sloan considered himself “a bad seed” because his father was a murderer. Is such a thing possible? Can a child bear the consequences for a parent’s actions? How?
   
10. Did you suspect that Justin was Sloan’s biological son? Do you think the revelation was handled realistically?
    
11. Justin is an angry boy. Why? Could Annie or Sloan have done anything more to help him heal? Did Sloan do the right thing by expecting Justin to work and pay for the broken windows?
    
12. The Wedding Garden
    is full of small town secrets. Discuss some of them. How did each dark secret affect the lives of the main characters?
    
13. Sloan says getting run out of town by Chief Dooley was the best and worst thing that could have happened to him. What does he mean?