Introduction

Rinette Leslie of Granmuir has the ancient gift of divining the future in flowers, but her gift cannot prepare her for the turmoil that comes when the dying queen regent entrusts her with a casket full of Scotland's darkest secrets. On the very day she means to deliver it to newly crowned Mary, Queen of Scots, Rinette's husband is brutally assassinated.

Devastated, Rinette demands justice before she will surrender the casket, but she is surrounded by ruthless men who will do anything to possess it. In the end, the flowers are all she can trust-and only the flowers will lead her safely home to Granmuir.

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Discussion Questions

1. Mary, Queen of Scots has been portrayed in many movies, plays and novels. Compare the portrait of her in THE FLOWER READER compared to other portraits with which you are familiar.

2. Discuss the ways in which Catholics and Protestants co-exist and make accommodations for each other in Mary’s court. Can you think of ways in which we make accommodations for other religious beliefs in contemporary society? In what ways do we fail to make those accommodations? Is there a point where adjusting to other beliefs imperils your own?

3. Throughout the novel, Rinette wants to go home to Granmuir, her castle by the sea. Is there a place that acts as a similar refuge and touchstone in your life? If not, can you imagine one?

4. The hand-lettered and hand-painted book of French fairy tales that belonged to Rinette’s mother is very significant to Rinette, and when Nico copies it, it becomes a symbol of her new life. Is there a book that particularly symbolizes your childhood to you? If you could have it reprinted, would you change it? How?

5. Nicolas de Clerac goes to great lengths to honor a sacred vow he made to his grandmother. Do you admire him for keeping the vow or do you think he should have been more flexible in reaction to events? In contemporary society, does our reluctance to make sacred promises tend to make us less responsible and mature as adults?

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»	Check out the Publisher's book info
»	Visit author Elizabeth Loupas's web site
»	Read the first chapter

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