Although Lindsay is adopted, she and her adoptive mother, Grace, have many characteristics in common. Throughout the novel, Lindsay also discovers traits she shares with Claire and Trey. What do you think the role of nurture vs. nature plays in who a person becomes?

Claire goes to very drastic measures to keep the Price family from finding out about Lindsay’s birth. Was it worth it? What do you think would have happened if the Price family found out? What would you have done in Claire’s situation? What about Trey’s?

Many characters including Claire, Trey, Grace and Lindsay are keeping secrets. When is it appropriate to keep a secret and when is it not?

The title The Sunken Town refers to the remnants of the town hidden beneath Lone Loon Pond, but it also could be a larger metaphor. What do you think The Sunken Town represents? 

Lindsay is not interested in having children. At one point her mother, Grace, tells her “Too many generations of women were expected to be wives and mothers. I’m happy that you’re of a generation who can choose.” Do you agree with this?

Lindsay never gets to meet her birth mother Claire, but after her death, Lindsay learns about Claire through her home, friends and journal. What does Lindsay learn? What do you think the people and objects you leave behind would say about you? 

Both Claire and Lindsay experience the cultural differences between California and Maine. What are these and what distinctions have you noticed when travelling between different regions of the country?

At the end of the book, Lindsay says, “I had a farmhouse and garden to learn to care for in Maine. I had a cottage with a red door and a jewelry studio waiting for me in California. And I had a dog to accompany me to both homes.” What do you think she should do next?

There are several Godfrey College traditions mentioned in the novel. Are they specific to Godfrey? What were your college’s traditions?

The Inca believed that certain spots on the earth have energy vortices including Machu Picchu. Do you believe this? Have you ever experienced a phenomenon that you couldn’t explain?