READING GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDE

1. Why do you think Valentina's father chooses to blame her for her sister's injury?
2. Despite working with the rebels, Arkin still can't help but feel compassion for the Ivanov women. Discuss the disparate nature of his behavior throughout the novel. Why do you think the Ivanov women affect him the way they do?
3. Why do you think, after their initial meeting, Valentina continues to visit Varenka and give her aid, despite her Bolshevik ties?
4. How do you believe Valentina's desire to become a nurse is informed by her guilt over both her sister's injuries and the death of Madam Davidova in the mine explosion? Do you think she would have still made the bargain with her father had Madam not died in the mine?
5. Discuss the relationship between Valentina and her mother. Why do you think Elizaveta acquiesces so readily to her husband's demands, while Valentina rebels against him?
6. Despite their opposing political views, Arkin and Valentina do on occasion see eye to eye. Discuss the similarities between the two characters.
7. The Ivanovs are injured and tormented by the revolutionaries throughout the novel. What do you think it is about their family specifically that makes them constant targets?
8. Do you believe that Valentina should simply have allowed Jens to kill Arkin following Katya's death?
9. Discuss Minister Ivanov. What about him makes him so ruthless in his pursuit of power and money? Had he allowed Valentina to simply make her own choices in life, do you think things may have turned out differently for the family?
10. When Valentina finds the box of explosives in her family's shed, she chooses to warn Arkin through Father Morozov instead of turning him in. Why do you think she made that decision?
11. Discuss the relationship between Elizaveta and Arkin. Do you think the tumultuous climate of the time informed her decision to be unfaithful after so many years of marriage? What do you believe it is about Elizaveta that draws Arkin to her, and vice-versa?

1. Despite her being a European girl, and therefore less than nothing to his people, Chang saves Lydia's life at the beginning of the novel. Why do you think he does so?
2. Lydia's stubborn bravery at the beginning of The Russian Concubine is described as foolhardy by many of the people she encounters. Do you agree with this assessment? Do you think that other people's opinion of her changes by the end of the book? Why?
3. How does Theo serve as a bridge between the Chinese and Western worlds he lives in? How does acting in that capacity take its toll on him towards the end of the novel?
4. Discuss the sacrifices and moral compromises that each character makes for what he or she believes is the greater good. For example, Theo becomes an opium runner in order to earn money to keep his school open, educating the European children in China. Do you think that the characters' actions in their respective situations help make them stronger people, or do their actions lessen them as humans?
5. Lydia and Chang get caught up in the turmoil of the political situation in the 1920s. Do you think that the poverty levels in China made it easy for young men to become Communists? Did the presence of the expatriate Russians make a difference in their political leanings? Discuss how Chang's Communist beliefs war with his love for Lydia.
6. Toward the end of the novel, Valentina reveals the secret of Lydia's scholarship to the Willoughby Academy. Do you think that her sacrifice for her daughter is an example of her strength as a mother, or her weakness as a woman?
7. When Lydia first meets Liev Popkov, she's facing him at a line-up after her lie regarding the stolen necklace at the Ulysses Club gets him arrested. Later, she hires him as her bodyguard, but their relationship develops into a friendship beyond employer/employee. Why do you think that Liev becomes so protective of Lydia after he meets her?
8. In many ways, Alfred is the first stable male influence in Lydia's life. What kind of life do you think Lydia would have led had Alfred entered her life earlier? Do you feel his nature/personality was as influential as his money? Does his money play a positive or a negative role in shaping their relationship?
9. The theme of freedom is prevalent throughout the novel. In what ways are Lydia and Chang caged, even before they are kidnapped by the Black Snakes? How does their love for each other help to set them free? Do you think that their relationship mirrors the political situation in China at all?

READING GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDE

1. In her girlhood Anna looks up to Vasily, seeing him as a hero - even if she doesn't fully understand his cause. How do you think the novel addresses the idea of heroism; of fighting for the things that are important?
2. What do you think drives Sofia to escape the camp and find Vasily? Do you think her motivations change as the novel progresses?
3. Throughout the novel Anna remains convinced that Sofia will come back for her, even when the other prisoners doubt her return. Do you think this conviction stems more from a deep binding trust between the two friends, or from desperation and blind hope?
4. Work is an Act of Honour, Courage and Heroism. Stalin's words are emblazoned over the gates of the Davinsky labor camp. How does the reality of prison life for Sofia, Anna and their friends differ from this idea? What do you think the Communist regime was trying to encourage - or discourage - with this statement?
5. At the end of the novel Sofia resolves to stay in Tivil and accept her part in its future. Would you have made the same decision?
6. Do you think Sofia really believes in the magical powers of Rafik, or is she just going along with it because it gives her a sense of belonging?
7. What do you think the relationship is between Sofia and Pyotr? How do you think he feels about her by the end of the novel?
8. The tangle of misunderstandings surrounding Vasily, Alexei and Mikhail springs from something quite incidental: a forgetful moment on Maria's part. Do you think Under A Blood Red Sky is a novel about the individual, or a novel about the collective? Do the actions of the individual carry repercussions for the whole, or is it the other way round? How does this relate to the novel's exploration of Communism?
9. The end of Under a Blood Red Sky sees Anna and Vasily/Fomenko reunited. Do you think he would eventually forsake his Communist ideals and become a leader of resistance to Stalinist terror?
10. Can Mikhail adapt to his new role in the village or will his refusal to conform bring more danger to the people of Tivil?