READERS GUIDE
Reader’s GuideSlashed Beauties by A. Rushby
Discussion Questions:
1. Did you believe Alys to be an unreliable narrator? If so, at what points of the story did you have doubts about her, and did it change your perspective on Alys as a character?
2. The opening vignette positions readers to expect a story about women seeking revenge against men who objectify and abuse women. Were you expecting to read a book centered on multiple murders committed by female antiheroes?
3. About the deaths of Mr. Corbyn and Dr. Chidworth, Eleanor states, “I had looked on with such glee, but now I feel only horror at what we have done.” She also describes Emily’s reaction to killing Mr. Corbyn and Dr. Chidworth by saying, “There was no wicked grin upon Emily’s
face. Instead, tears had stained her cheeks.” What did you make of Eleanor’s and Emily’s complicated feelings? How did their reactions affect your perception of these murders, and Eleanor’s and Emily’s agency?
4. Would you like to see an anatomical Venus in a museum? Would you look at these figures differently after reading Slashed Beauties?
5. On p. 10, Eleanor says, “Those Jack the Ripper tours make me sick to my stomach. I think it’s abhorrent how people relish the tale
of the throat slitting and gutting of five poverty-stricken, vulnerable women stuck in horribly grim existences. Even now they’re seen as ‘just prostitutes,’ these human beings who deserved so much better in life and in death. It truly amazes me how they continue to be served up on a platter for our entertainment.” What do you think of her comments? Do you have anything to add?
6. Elizabeth declares, “We three are strong, capable, independent women. Our new lives begin in this moment. And we decide what they shall be, for we are young and beautiful and in one of the grandest cities in the world. No man shall dictate how we live. We will make our own rules, and everyone else shall bend to them.” Do you believe it would have truly been possible for Elizabeth to offer vulnerable women like Eleanor and Emily a place of support and a “family” in 1769 London if they were working in her sérail?
7. Emily emerges as a complex and powerful character. How does the author develop Emily’s character, backstory, and agency throughout the novel? Do you feel that Emily transcends potential stereotypes to become, as Alys describes her, “the strongest of us all”?
8. Who do you believe to be the hero of the novel? Do you believe it to be Alys, or does Emily’s “final, triumphant act” make her the hero?
9. The novel shows us there is a fine line between beauty and revulsion. How is beauty used as a tool by the characters to achieve their aims?
10. What do you think it reveals about the medical students that some of them respond with sexual interest to the wax figures? Do we still see women being reduced to objects for the male gaze today?
11. What did you think of Eleanor and Emily’s connection? How do you feel about the author’s choice not to develop the romantic aspects of their relationship further?
12. At the novel’s conclusion, Alys has ended Elizabeth’s hold over her, and yet she chooses to rest in peace. What are your thoughts on this ending? How do you feel it reflects the themes of choice, bodily autonomy, and freedom that run through the novel?
