Book club guide and discussion questions for The Unknown A Mystery Thriller with Twists and Turns by J.W. Lynne |
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Are you planning to
read The Unknown with your book club? Below you will find
everything you need to get started, including information
about the book,
discussion questions,
information about the author,
review excerpts, and
an excerpt from the book. I'd love to hear your questions or comments! You can connect with me on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter! |
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EIGHT CHILDREN WERE
KIDNAPPED. BUT WHY? Eight kids, ages nine to seventeen, awaken to find that almost everything they have ever known has been stolen from them. They were ripped from their beds in the middle of the night and transported to an unfamiliar and unforgiving new world where there are strict rules, and they are punished if they refuse to obey. As the kids grapple with their mysterious new reality, they struggle with disconcerting questions. Where in the world are they? Why were they taken away from their families? Will they ever get to go back home? And the most frightening question of all ... Will this be the place where they die? |
ABOUT THE BOOK The Unknown tells the tale of five girls and three boys who are taken from their homes in the middle of the night and wake up in a frightening and mysterious world full of secrets. The book is narrated from the points of view of some of the kidnapped children, including nine-year-old Goat, twelve-year-old Tiger, and seventeen-year-old Unpleasant. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS *** SPOILER ALERT *** *** Some of the questions below contain spoilers for those who have not read The Unknown. *** The eight children are thrust into a situation that has similarities to a dystopian society. What are the dystopian aspects of their "society"? The author offers very little description of the children's physical appearances (which is a departure from her previous novels). Why do you think that is? Why do you think The Room chose Pax to lead Tiger? Nym to lead Goat? Kev to lead Unpleasant? Would you have gone into The Room? If so, after your first visit, would you have returned to The Room for a second visit? What real-life relationships parallel the children's relationship with The Room? If you were making the decision about when to reveal to the children the reason they were kidnapped, when do you think would have been the ideal time to tell the children the truth? Why do you think the decision was made not to tell the children the truth from the very beginning? If these children had known the reason they were being kidnapped before they were taken away, do you think any of them would have gone willingly? If these children were gathered together under different circumstances (for example, enjoying day at a park), do you think any of them would have become friends? What are the major plot twists in this book? Does the author offer any clues to these plot twists earlier in the book? When the book ends, what do you think is Unpleasant's biggest fear about what is to come? That is to say, what would be her worst-case-scenario for the future? For those who haven't yet read the sequel (The Haven): What do you think happens next? BOOKS IN THE UNKNOWN DUOLOGY: Book 1: The Unknown Book 2: The Haven (note: The author endeavored to bring The Unknown to a satisfying conclusion, without any major cliffhangers. In fact, The Unknown was originally intended to be the only book set in this world. For this reason, The Unknown may be read as a standalone book.) Fun activities to do WITH your book club: Create a book trailer: Using drawings, photos, and/or video, make a book trailer that gets people excited about The Unknown (without including spoilers). Make a fun video: Create a TikTok video about The Unknown that you think your friends would enjoy watching. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Author J.W. Lynne has been an avid reader practically since birth. She became interested in writing novels after falling in love with the Harry Potter series. The Unknown is Lynne's ninth novel and her fifth dystopian novel. She was inspired to write her first dystopian novel, Above the Sky, after being captivated by Veronica Roth's Divergent and Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games. Above the Sky tells the story of an eighteen-year-old who fights to survive in a dystopian future society founded on lies. Reader enthusiasm about Above the Sky encouraged Lynne to continue the story into a four-book series (Above the Sky, Return to the Sky, Part of the Sky, and Beyond the Sky). After completing the Sky series, Lynne was eager to tell a new dystopian story. The result was The Unknown. Reader enthusiasm about The Unknown inspired a sequel, The Haven. Her most recent book is a standalone suspense thriller, The Simulation Game, about families whose lives take an unexpected turn after they are locked in a bunker to compete for a life-changing prize Lynne lives in Los Angeles, California. She can often be found reading books or hiking in one of California's beautiful public parks. (Information last updated in February 2022.) |
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Praise for THE UNKNOWN "I have read hundreds of books and it is extremely rare for me to be surprised or give 5 stars. I almost always anticipate the plot twists. I thought I had this one all figured out from the very beginning. [I] couldn't have been more wrong! An exhilarating, emotional, fast paced read that I couldn't put down. This story was utterly unique." - Justine, Book Catharsis ★★★★★ "Gripping. Unique. Lots of mystery and intrigue. [Dystopian is] one of my favourite genres, but I haven't seen it written so well in a very long time. I finished reading this book in awe." - Carly, Goodreads ★★★★★ "I love dystopian novels, but I have to admit, after a while, they tend to follow the same plotline and twists. This is TOTALLY not the case here. I was shocked." - Gail, Goodreads ★★★★★ "I read A LOT and this book had lots of surprises which I didn't see coming. I definitely could not put this one down! I truly loved this book!" - Michelle, Goodreads ★★★★★ "Lots of suspense, twists, and turns. I never saw the ending coming. It was a total surprise and explained everything!" - Karon, Goodreads ★★★★★ THE UNKNOWN is a unique must-read book for teens and adults who enjoy novels similar to best sellers like THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy (by Suzanne Collins), the DIVERGENT series (by Veronica Roth), ENDER'S GAME (by Orson Scott Card), THE GIVER (by Lois Lowry), THE MAZE RUNNER (by James Dashner), ONE OF US IS LYING (by Karen M. McManus), ELEANOR & PARK (by Rainbow Rowell), SHATTER ME (by Tahereh Mafi), LEGEND (by Marie Lu), UNWIND (by Neal Shusterman), UGLIES (by Scott Westerfeld), MATCHED (by Ally Condie), NOT IF I SAVE YOU FIRST (by Ally Carter), or EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING (by Nicola Yoon), or ABOVE THE SKY (by J.W. Lynne). If you like fast-paced thrillers with mystery, suspense, twists and turns, a dash of romance, and a surprise ending, don't miss this gripping novel for teenage and adult fans of The Hunger Games, Divergent, The Maze Runner, or Stranger Things! THE UNKNOWN is available in Kindle ebook and in paperback. Kindle Unlimited members: Read the THE UNKNOWN ebook for FREE with Kindle Unlimited. |
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This room is about half the size of my bedroom back home.
The only way in or out of here seems to be via hatches: four
on the floor and two on the ceiling. On either side of this
narrow space, there are four chairs and four small tables,
all of them bolted down to the floor. Everything is pure
white, except for a silver sink in one corner with eight
silver cups set above it. Eight rectangular windows reveal
that we are in some kind of aircraft, flying high above a
body of water. An ocean, maybe. But which ocean? End of excerpt Read more of The Unknown by J.W. Lynne at Amazon.com!
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Other books by J.W. Lynne: | |
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HER FIRST EIGHTEEN YEARS WERE FILLED WITH LIES. SHE IS ABOUT TO DISCOVER THE TRUTH. Eighteen-year-old Seven and her best friend, Ten, live where all is peaceful ... except for the violent war raging above the sky. Lifelike humanoid robots and self-operated drones tend to everyone's needs, leaving people free to spend their time stimulating their minds and enjoying life's pleasures. But there are strict rules and few choices. There are also secrets. Seven is about to discover how dangerous secrets can be. What readers are saying about ABOVE THE SKY: "5 Stars!!!!!! Unputdownable!! My new favorite book. If YOU love a good dystopian + romance, then you need this book in your life." -- Megan, i fall in love book blog |
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THEIR LIVES ARE ABOUT TO
CHANGE FOREVER. Sixteen-year-old Lois is about to embark on a simulated lunar mission with her mom, dad, and thirteen-year-old sister, hoping to win a life-changing prize. They will be locked up with nine other families in a state-of-the-art bunker, where their every move will be judged by anonymous evaluators. Families that don’t have what it takes will be eliminated. Lois thought that being eliminated from the competition was the worst thing that could happen to her. She was dead wrong. What readers are saying about THE SIMULATION GAME: "One of the best books I have read. Great story, characters, terrific balance between narrative and dialogue and an ending that you will never see coming." - Christine, Goodreads |
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SOMETIMES YOU FIND HOPE WHERE YOU
LEAST EXPECT IT. Just weeks after eighteen-year-old Erin tragically loses her best friend, she is brutally betrayed by her high school crush. Plagued by crippling panic attacks, Erin travels to Los Angeles, searching for a sign that life is still worth living. Shortly after she arrives, she meets Ben, a mysterious man who captures both her curiosity and her heart. As they explore Los Angeles together, Ben reveals shocking secrets of his tragic childhood and helps Erin believe that she can heal from the wounds of her traumatic past. But Ben is hiding one horrible secret. A secret that could destroy her. Praise for LOST IN LOS ANGELES: "The best part was the twist at the end. It completely caught me off guard!" -- Ashley, Wholly Books! |
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SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO ABANDON
YOUR COMFORT ZONE TO FIND THE PLACE WHERE YOU BELONG.
Nineteen-year-old Erin is hoping that her visit to Japan with her best friend, Adam, will be life-changing. Fifteen years ago, Erin's mother mysteriously vanished. The only clue she left behind is a handwritten itinerary for a dream trip to Japan, a trip that Erin doesn't know if her mother ever had the chance to take. Erin has decided to carry out this itinerary, believing that it might help her find her mother. But her trip won't be going according to plan. Praise for LOST IN TOKYO: "The relationship between Erin and Adam was amazingly sensual and slow building. It kept the pages turning like crazy." -- Amanda, Goodreads |
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BEING A DOCTOR ISN'T EASY, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU'RE FOURTEEN
YEARS OLD. Connor became a doctor just two days ago--along with all of his friends. They are child prodigies who were hand-selected at just three years old to undergo intensive medical training as part of a controversial experiment called Kid Docs. KID DOCS tells the story of fourteen-year-old Connor Hansen's first days as an ER doctor. Connor learns to save lives and discovers that some lives cannot be saved. Praise for KID DOCS: "Plenty of plot points kept me reading: finding out how the kid docs will react to the pressure, the fate of the patients who come into the hospital, and even the fate of one of their own." -- Jennifer Donovan, 5 Minutes for Books |
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AT THIS SCHOOL, EVERY LESSON IS
AN ADVENTURE. Sixteen-year-old Jessica Rainville's dream of working with exotic animals is about to come true. She's signed up to spend a summer learning to train and care for tigers, lions, leopards, bears, and elephants at an exotic animal ranch. She will pet tigers, train grizzly bears, ride bareback on elephants, and, despite her best efforts, she will fall in love. But Jessica's summer at the exotic animal ranch will test her in ways that she never imagined. And just one mistake can mean the difference between life and death. Praise for WILD ANIMAL SCHOOL: "Loved this book! Had me hooked all the way to the end! Animal lovers delight!" -- Pepper, Goodreads |