We Begin at the End

Duchess Day Radley is a thirteen-year-old self-proclaimed outlaw. Rules are for other people. She is the fierce protector of her five-year-old brother, Robin, and the parent to her mother, Star, a single mom incapable of taking care of herself, let alone her two kids.

Walk has never left the coastal California town where he and Star grew up. He may have become the chief of police, but he’s still trying to heal the old wound of having given the testimony that sent his best friend, Vincent King, to prison decades before. And he's in overdrive protecting Duchess and her brother.

Now, thirty years later, Vincent is being released. And Duchess and Walk must face the trouble that comes with his return. We Begin At The End is an extraordinary novel about two kinds of families—the ones we are born into and the ones we create.

This book of the month and discussion guide is shared and sponsored in partnership with Henry Holt.

Book club questions for We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker

Use these discussion questions to guide your next book club meeting.

Duchess says to Walk, “There’s always a man. Whenever anything fucked up happens in the world, there’s always a man.” (chapter 1, p. 10). Later, Duchess thinks about Darke: “She knew what men could do, all of them, capability was enough.” (chapter 24, p. 199). What do you make of the portrayal of each gender in this book? Are men or women worse in this novel, or might they be equally good or bad?

Star tells her daughter, “Selfless acts, Duchess. They’re what make you agood person.” (chapter 5, p. 42), yet she seems to be entirely selfish in many of her actions. Why do you think this is? Do you agree with Star? What makes a good person good?

Hal asks Duchess, “If the good stand by idle, are they still good?” (chapter 25, p. 204). What do you think? Are there any ostensibly good characters in this novel who lose their goodness by standing by?

Hal tells Duchess: “I am a constant disappointment to myself.” (chapter 25, p. 207). Why do you think he feels this way? What could he have done differently in his life? Is self-disappointment what makes people decent?

Considering Walk’s intervention, Duchess thinks: “...sometimes adults though watching out meant doing shit that’d lead to the kind of consequences that rippled far from them.” (chapter 6, p.48). In this novel, are good intentions a dangerous thing?

Duchess addresses Vincent: “‘Freedom’, she said. ‘Is it the worst thing to take? Worse than anything. Maybe it is.’” (chapter 6, p. 53). Later, talking about Vincent, Hal tells Duchess: “After that night, after what he did, he knew none of us would find freedom again.” (chapter 25, p. 208). Why do you think Duchess asks Vincent this? What could be worse than losing freedom? Do any of the characters reclaim it?

Star says to Walk: “You’re like a kid. Better and worse. Bad and good. None of us are any one thing. We’re just a collection of the best and worst things we’ve done.” (chapter 8, p. 67). Later, Duchess talks about Dolly’s abusive father to Hal: “Some people are all dark.” (chapter 25, p. 203). But Hal, thinking about Sissy, tells Duchess, “But with children . . . there is no bad.” (chapter 25,p. 206). Are any of the characters in this novel morally pure in either direction?

Star believes “the universe finds a way to balance the good and the bad”(chapter 8, p. 67). Thinking about the story, do you agree with her?

Warden Cuddy and Walk discuss morality (chapter 13, p. 114): “But then maybe there aren’t degrees of bad. Maybe it doesn’t matter by how much you cross the line.” “Most people get near. At least once in their life.” “Not you, Walk.” Is there a moral line that, once crossed, cannot be retraced?

Cuddy tells Walk that he sees himself in Vincent: “His life and mine. They aren’t all that different, save for a single mistake.” (chapter 13, p. 114). Later, explaining to Duchess how Star found out that he’d sent Baxter to kill Vincent, Hal says, “All and everything. A single act on a distant night and here we are because of it.’” (chapter 25, p. 217). Is it fair for one mistake to forever change a life? What does this novel say about the possibility of forgiveness for mistakes?

Is Duchess right to tell Robin several times that he doesn’t ever need to apologize to her? Why does she tell him that?

At school, Duchess learns that the triangle is the strongest shape (chapter 23, p. 189). How is this fact reflected in her life? What’s the strongest trio of characters in this novel?

We Begin at the End Book Club Questions PDF

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“Ravishing, pulse-raising suspense.” ―O, The Oprah Magazine

“Couldn’t put it down. Incredible writing, characters so brilliantly drawn they jump off the page. Outstanding.” ―B. A. Paris, bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors

“A beautifully written mystery, packed with unforgettable characters. An intricately woven portrait of small-town intrigue where old and new sins collide.” ―Jane Harper, New York Times bestselling author of The Survivors

“I LOVED this book. From the riveting plot to the beautiful writing. But mostly what kept me longing to get back to it each day were the characters. This is a book to be read and reread.” ―Louise Penny, New York Times bestselling author