I continued to work at that surgery on Great Whyte, on and off, until 2016, when I left veterinary practice to start writing fiction. During that time, I learned about some of the other side effects of fenland drainage, both on the region’s threatened wildlife and on the land itself. Year upon year, as the water continues to be drawn out, the peaty soil shrinks and the land sinks still farther.
In recent years, I’ve taken my children to Holme Fen to visit the lowest point in Great Britain, where a four-meter-high iron post marks the fall in land level between 1851 and now. I’ve explored some of the nature reserves in the region, and I’ve read about schemes to reflood parts of the Fens in winter months, not least to lock carbon into the peat to prevent its release from contributing to global warming. I’ve even tried a bit of wild swimming in the chilly fenland waters.
Little wonder that when I started mulling over ideas for the setting of The Perfect Guests, it was a patch of fenland that sprang to mind: an isolated house next to a remnant of what was once a great lake, surrounded by fields and water channels in every direction. Here, a child could grow up roaming freely but still be hidden away from the world. Here, no one could approach without fear of being spotted. Here, a fire could take hold without alerting the neighbors . . .
Raven Hall is a fictitious house set in a very real landscape. I hope, if you haven’t already, you might one day get the chance to visit the Fens—to marvel at the richness of its wildlife and its wonderful conservation projects, to catch a fascinating glimpse of its history, and most of all to soak up the glorious sense of open space under that huge dome of a fenland sky.
Questions for Discussion
1. In the early stages of Leonora’s relationship with Markus, she worries that she’s a bad person, and she hopes that Markus might help her “to change, to improve, to become more like him.” Do you think Leonora’s desire to be a good person counts for anything? Is it fair to say that in the end, it’s Markus who becomes more like her?
2. Who was responsible for the cracks that formed in Beth and Nina’s friendship? Do you think it was inevitable that things would go wrong?
3. Nina tells Beth, “My mother always loved this house more than she loved me.” Do you think that’s true? Does it fit with Leonora’s behavior when she ignores Markus’s instruction to phone the fire brigade and rushes upstairs into thick smoke to search for Nina?
4. Stephanie tried to be a good friend to Leonora, protecting Nina’s identity and warning Leonora about Hendrik’s visits. Do you think Stephanie did the right thing? If she’d decided not to keep Leonora’s secrets, might the outcome have been better for Nina?
5. Do you feel Leonora and Markus bear equal responsibility for the initial “game”? Was it reasonable for them to assume it would be harmless for Beth?
6. If you could explore the life of one of the minor characters, which would you choose?
7. How do you feel about the choices Caroline made, both before Beth was born and afterward? Do you feel any sympathy for her?
8. In the aftermath of the 2019 events at Raven Hall, Beth says about her childhood there: “Most of the time—it was a pretty wonderful place to live.” Does this statement surprise you?
9. Near the end, Sadie wonders whether it’s worse to be a targeted victim of a crime or to be thought of as collateral damage. What do you think?
10. What would you like to see happen at Raven Hall in the days and weeks following the final chapter?
Emma Rous is a Cambridge University graduate who spent eighteen years working as a veterinary surgeon before starting to write fiction. Her first novel, The Au Pair, was a USA Today bestseller. Emma lives in Cambridgeshire, England, with her husband and three sons, and she now writes full time.
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