BOOK CLUB KIT
DEAR READER, Thank you so much for choosing My Summer Darlings for your book club. I’m feeling all the feels that this novel I began writing in the fall of 2019—long before any of us knew about the looming pandemic—is now in the hands of readers! One of my very favorite thriller writers, Riley Sager, always uses a film as inspiration for his books, and when I sat down to try to figure out what I was going to write next, I decided to adopt his approach. And the movie The Witches of Eastwick came to mind. I love the setup of that plot where a mysterious, handsome stranger moves to town and upends the lives of three close friends. So I wanted to explore that minus the paranormal aspects of the film. Like with my previous novel, The Hunting Wives, I wanted to do a deep dive into adults behaving badly and twisty, complicated female friendships. I also was keen on writing a neighborhood suspense, and challenged myself to create a neighborhood that was interesting enough—or at least enough of a pressure cooker—for the entire novel to take place
there. And as with The Hunting Wives, I wanted to create a sizzling summer read. A guilty pleasure. An explosive, erotic thriller that could be enjoyed poolside or at the beach with a strong cocktail in hand. I had so much fun getting into the minds and hearts of my three main characters—Kittie, Cynthia, and Jen—and had a blast writing from three different points of view. What secrets were they keeping from each other? What lies did they tell themselves and to one another? And how far would they each follow their obsession? I also had great fun creating the sexy and worldtraveled villain, Will Harding, who I’m hoping readers will fall for as much as Kittie, Cynthia, and Jen do. Well, at least until it’s time to hate his guts. And because I can’t seem to escape the lush, eerie woods of my childhood home—the piney woods of East Texas—I wanted to set another thriller with the forest as a backdrop to the story. The novel opens, in fact, with a woman dying in the forest, but you’ll have to read to find out which one it is. Raising my glass to yours and sending gratitude! Wishing you happy reading!
MAY COBB
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1.
Early in the novel, we learn that Kittie is mourning the passing of her once-striking looks. Even though she is still stunning, in her mind her beauty has faded, and we find out that she’s actually jealous of her teenage daughter’s figure and good looks. Could you relate at all to her feelings? What did this make you think about Kittie?
2. When the novel opens, Jen—recently divorced and for all purposes a single mom—has moved back to her hometown and into her parents’ rental house. Unlike the well-to-do Kittie and Cynthia, Jen is in financial straits. Did her plight make you feel more sympathetic toward her than the other women?
3. Each
of the main characters—Jen, Kittie, and
Cynthia—eventually falls for and becomes obsessed with Will. In Kittie’s and Cynthia’s cases, they even go behind each other’s backs. Were you rooting for any of the three women, and why? Which of the women did you relate to the most?
4. What role did the insular East Texas setting play in the novel?
5. Each of the women falls pretty hard and fast for Will. Could you see this playing out in real life?
6. How did you feel about Cynthia making the drastic decision to leave with Will?
7.
One of the themes of the novel is the increasingly toxic relationship between teens and their parents. This is especially shown with Kittie and Chloe’s relationship. Did you find yourself understanding both Kittie’s and Chloe’s strained feelings about the other? Was there a teen you related to the most?
8. Were you shocked to discover what Will was actually up to?
9. Were you surprised when you discovered who the victim was (or victims were)?
P H OTO © S T E V E N O R E Y KO 2019
MAY COBB
earned her MA in literature from San Francisco State
University, and her essays and interviews have appeared in the Washington Post, the Rumpus, Edible Austin, and Austin Monthly. Her previous novel is The Hunting Wives. A Texas native, she lives in Austin with her family. M AYCO B B .CO M M AY KCO B B •
M AY _ CO B B