And so it ends!

1. What do you make of the ending? Even if the reunion between Maximilien and Valentine felt predictable, did the manner (hashish séance in the grotto) work for you?

2. In this last chapter, which focuses on the agonies of Maximilien and the count and only briefly describes those of Haydée and Valentine, we see women again getting short shrift… is this problematic? Or do we simply accept authorial choices for the stories they produce?

3. The count justifies dragging Maximilien through hell and back by saying that one needs to experience the most profound sadness in order to appreciate the most exquisite joy… but is this a lesson that Maximilien needed to learn? Or the count himself?

4. Do you find the closing message (“‘wait’ and ‘hope’”) uplifting?

Final sentence of book:

“‘My dearest,’ said Valentine, ‘has the Count not just told us that all human wisdom was contained in these two words - “wait” and “hope”?’”

previous chapter discussion