Book Club Questions for Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger

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The following book club questions for Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger will have spoilers. If you haven’t read the novel yet, check out my spoiler-free review first!

FBI Agent Nell Flynn hasn’t been home in ten years. Nell and her father, Homicide Detective Martin Flynn, have never had much of a relationship. And Suffolk County will always be awash in memories of her mother, Marisol, who was brutally murdered when Nell was just seven.

When Martin Flynn dies in a motorcycle accident, Nell returns to the house she grew up in so that she can spread her father’s ashes and close his estate. At the behest of her father’s partner, Detective Lee Davis, Nell becomes involved in an investigation into the murders of two young women in Suffolk County. The further Nell digs, the more likely it seems to her that her father should be the prime suspect–and that his friends on the police force are covering his tracks. Plagued by doubts about her mother’s murder–and her own role in exonerating her father in that case–Nell can’t help but ask questions about who killed Ria Ruiz and Adriana Marques and why. But she may not like the answers she finds–not just about those she loves, but about herself.

Book Club Questions for Girls Like Us

• The story starts off with Nell back home and spreading her father’s ashes with the rest of the police force. What were you first impressions of Nell? Why do you think Nell decided to work for the FBI and get in that line of work?
• Nell and her father were estranged. After reading the story, in what ways are Nell and her dad similar? And how are they different?
• There’s been two murders and they seem connected. Nell starts to suspect her father might have been involved. Why did Nell suspect her dad? What behavior did he do in the past for her to get to that point? Did you suspect her father as well? Or did you think it was someone else?
• When did you start to suspect Dorsey and the other police officers? Did you trust Lee or did you think he was also involved? How shocking was Lee’s death?
• We also learn more about the murder of Nell’s mother. Sean Gilroy admitted murdering her mother but there have been questions that the police forced him to confess and possibly even lie. Is Sean the real murderer?
• This story tackles police corruption—which includes aiding the opioid crisis and receiving paybacks. How true to life do you think this story is with regards to that angle?
• Did you ever suspect Grace was the murderer of the girls? What was her motivation?
• What is the significance of Nell spreading her mother’s ashes in Suffolk County at last?
• Nell finally starts to talk with the therapist about her past and childhood. What did that also show about Nell’s character development?
• Nell and her half-sister Maria move down to Miami. What’s happens next for them? Do you think Nell will settle there?
• If they turn this novel into a movie or TV series, who would you cast for the main roles?
• If this wasn’t fiction, this story totally would have been a true-crime podcast or Netflix series with the police corruption. Do you watch true-crime stories and/or listen to the podcasts?

What to Read Next

After discussing the book club questions for Girls Like Us, check out the following reads next! Both recommendations feature discussion questions as well so your book club will be all set.

If you haven’t read The Banker’s Wife also by Cristina Alger—go order it right now! This is a twisty read set in the world of international finance.

On an early morning in November, a couple boards a private plane bound for Geneva, flying into a storm. Soon after, it simply drops off the radar, and its wreckage is later uncovered in the Alps. Among the disappeared is Matthew Werner, a banking insider at Swiss United, a powerful offshore bank. His young widow, Annabel, is left grappling with the secrets he left behind, including an encrypted laptop and a shady client list. As she begins a desperate search for answers, she determines that Matthew’s death was no accident, and that she is now in the crosshairs of his powerful enemies.

Meanwhile, ambitious society journalist Marina Tourneau has finally landed at the top. Now that she’s engaged to Grant Ellis, she will stop writing about powerful families and finally be a part of one. Her entry into the upper echelons of New York’s social scene is more appealing than any article could ever be, but, after the death of her mentor, she agrees to dig into one more story. While looking into Swiss United, Marina uncovers information that implicates some of the most powerful men in the financial world, including a few who are too close to home. The story could also be the answer to Annabel’s heartbreaking search–if Marina chooses to publish it.

You can order the book on Amazon here. Check out my discussion questions here.

Girl in the Rearview Mirror by Kelsey Rae Dimberg is an original modern noir packed with suspense and intrigue.

They are Phoenix’s First Family: handsome Philip Martin, son of the sitting Senator, an ex-football player who carries himself with an easy grace and appears destined to step into his father’s seat when the time is right; his wife Marina, the stylish and elegant director of Phoenix’s fine arts museum; and their four-year-old daughter Amabel, beautiful and precocious and beloved.

Finn Hunt is working a dull office job to pay off her college debt when she meets Philip and charms Amabel. She eagerly agrees to nanny, thinking she’s lucked into the job of a lifetime. Though the glamour of the Martins’ lifestyle undeniably dazzles Finn, her real pleasure comes from being part of the family: sharing quick jokes with Philip in the kitchen before he leaves for work; staying late when Marina needs a last-minute sitter; and spending long days with Amabel, who is often treated more like a photo op than a child.

But behind every façade lurks a less attractive truth. When a young woman approaches Finn, claiming a connection with Philip and asking Finn to pass on a message, Finn becomes caught up in a web of deceit with the senate seat at its center. And Finn isn’t exactly innocent herself: she too has a background she has kept hidden, and under the hot Phoenix sun, everything is about to be laid bare. . . .

You can order the book on Amazon here. Check out my discussion questions here.

Happy reading!

Feel free to discuss Girls Like Us below!