READERS GUIDE

A Conversation with Richard Roper
 
1.      What inspired you to write this story?
 
I was in a pub in York, my first post-Covid trip, when I heard a customer complaining to staff, going so far as to invoke “the weights and measures act of 1985”. I know without doubt that this person would follow up by writing a review online, and sure enough they did. I became weirdly obsessed with why people do this, reading lots of one star reviews of things like the Sistine Chapel. But then it struck me that someone who owns a pub or café or shop might be having the worst day of their lives, only to read a review that completely slated them, even though they were doing their best. As I took the train home from York, the character of Brian appeared, and I feverishly wrote down what became the plot of the book. I think the person next to me must have thought I was composing an incredibly intense Whatsapp to someone…  
 
 
 
2.      Your description of owning and running a pub is so vivid. Have you ever worked in a pub or interviewed anyone who has?
 
I am tempted to say that yes, this was all down to some thorough research, but the truth is I just really love pubs. We don’t get much right when it comes to food and drink in Britain, but a beer garden by a babbling brook or a fifteenth century inn with a fire roaring away in winter––that’s where we come into our own…

3.      Do you relate to Brian at all? Or Lily? Were any of these characters based on real people?

Most of my male protagonists tend to have a little bit of me in them, so Brian’s inept attempts to impress women are of course directly inspired by my own experiences. This is why if my books are ever made into films it’s not going to be The Rock playing the lead.

4.      In Chapter 12, Brian imagines what a blue plaque about him would say. What would you want a blue plaque about you to say? Where would you want the plaque to be posted?
 
“Richard Roper, inventor of the colour blue, and the concept of commemorative plaques, was born here.” Ideally on the side of Buckingham Palace, but if not I’ll settle for 10 Downing Street.
 
5.      What was your favorite scene to write, and why?
 
The scene where Brian and Lily first spend time together on Primrose Hill was one of those scenes where it felt like my typing fingers couldn’t keep up with my brain, which was a glorious feeling. (I wish I could say the same about the rest of the book…)

6.      If you were in Brian’s position, seeing the PinkMoonLily1970 review, what would you have done?

I’d almost certainly have had a cup of tea and big old think.

7.      Which of the locations featured in Brian’s trip would you most like to visit or revisit next?
 
I have visited all the places in the book, aside from Stonehenge (unless you count seeing it from a moving car from five miles away).
 
8.      What significance does the Maori phrase “Kia ora” hold for you?
 
I would love to say that it was something more profound than the fact I came up with a funny joke involving that phrase, but alas…
 
9.      If you could give Brian any advice at the end of this book, without any spoilers, what would it be?
Instinctively, I think of Monica’s advice to Chandler: “Be yourself. But not too much.” (I also give this advice to myself quite a lot.)

10.   If you were to cast Brian and Lily as actors in a movie, who would you choose? How about Tess?

As I say above, it’s unlikely to be The Rock for Brian. And then I’ve got younger and older actors to think of! I’ll have to get back to you on that one…
 
Discussion Questions
 
1.      Seven years is a long time to watch a door, hoping that someone will come through it. Is there anything unlikely you’ve hoped for, for such a long time? What made you keep hoping?
 
2.      What did you think had happened to Lily, or where and why did you think she went, early in the novel? How did your opinion change, as the novel went on?
3.    Do you ever leave reviews online? What influences your decision?
4.    How might Brian be different now, if Lily had never left? Did he change for the better or for the worse, when she disappeared?
5.    How do you think Brian being “demographic” acts as a metaphor for his personality? How do metaphors of cryptic signs and permanent words shift through the novel?
6.    What was your favorite scene in the novel, and why?
7.    Early in her courtship with Brian, Lily says, “I suppose we’re all pretending to be people we’re not.” Do you think Lily was ever pretending to be someone she wasn’t?
8.    The username PinkMoonLily1970 is enough to convince Brian that this is his Lily. Which brief username, that doesn’t include your full name, might your loved ones most immediately recognize for you, and why?
9.    What do you think Tess brings out in Brian? What do you think Lily brings out in Brian? How do the two compare?
10.  How might Brian and Lily’s lives have turned out differently if he had approached her by the cliff tops in chapter 53? Would anything have changed?
11.  Were you surprised by the ending?