The Riddle of the Shipwrecked Spinster cover

The Riddle of the Shipwrecked Spinster

by Patricia Veryan

Possessing neither fortune nor beauty, Cordelia Stansbury seems doomed to spinsterhood until the machinations of her mother land her in a locked room with the rich and highly desirable Gervaise Valerian. He is forced to propose, but, aghast at what her mother has wrought, Cordelia runs away. When she returns after supposedly having been shipwrecked and living with savages for a year, Gervaise refuses to go through with the wedding. His uncle then attempts to force Piers Cranford to take his place, but Piers (the twin brother of Peregrine, hero of *Never Doubt I Love*) has his eye on a refreshingly straightforward young neighbor named Mary. *--Booklist*

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Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?