The Rose Code Book Club Questions
Welcome to the Buddy Book Club – we have a light-hearted comedic podcast that covers a variety of books. The Rose Code by Kate Quinn is a World War II historical fictional novel about the code breaking efforts that took place at Bletchley Park. The specific focus is on the unsung women at Bletchley Park that helped to save millions of lives. The Rose Code has a little bit of something for everyone: romance, espionage, historical fiction, and mystery. We were big fans and a book I think you could recommend to anyone. If you’re interested, you can check out our podcast on the book.
Our book club questions try to be a little more outside the box/comedic than your typical book club questions – hopefully you enjoy them.
Book Club Questions – The Rose Code by Kate Quinn
-> We’re you a bit jealous of the characters and their roles at Bletchley Park? Do you think you would fit in?
It seemed like a utopia for smart people, unfortunately I wouldn’t meet the prerequisites, but I think it would be awesome to be part of this secret community.
-> If you’re in a book club, do you have a book club name? What would yours be? Because the Mad Hatters is an awesome name for a book club.
Not as good as the Buddy Book Club though…
-> In the book Mab, Beth and Osla, work a ton of hard hours. They even say they used to slack off at their old jobs, but can’t because it’s a war. Is slacking off at your job okay as long as you’re not in a war?
Yes, the biggest takeaway from this book is it’s okay to slack off at your job as long as we’re not in a war. Say no more.
-> Did the Bletchley Bletherings remind you of Gossip Girl? No just me?
Great show, xoxo Gossip Girl. (Yes, I’m a 35 year old guy).
-> Speaking of being a guy, did men in general take an absolute beating in this book? Pretty much all of them were awful other than Harry and Francis (and both of them weren’t even men, they were super hero’s).
Just a terrible look for guys in this book, with Beth’s father being the worst of them all.
-> We’re you mad at Harry for going off to war?
A country that really never accepted him telling him it’s his duty to go off to war? No, thanks. I was upset he didn’t have a bit more spite in his heart like myself. I’d tell those “mad” at him to go kick rocks.
-> What did you think of the author’s note at the end explaining the basis for the book?
This was one of my favorite parts of the book. Seeing all the research Kate Quinn did and how these characters were based on real people at Bletchley Park made the book even better. All historical fiction books should have this (and all comedies movies should have blooper reals) at the end.
-> Did you think Mab’s anger at Beth and Osla was justified?
The anger at Beth I get, but I think it was completely unfounded at Osla. Mab was the one that made her come babysit her daughter, and why couldn’t Mab hold her own daughter? What’s the statute of limitation on blame once they found her daughter safe at their home?
-> Who was your favorite character in the book?
For us it was Olsa. She could have stayed home safe in Canada, but choose to help. She’s funny, fiery, and puts up with a lot of ‘silly deb’ bullshit. She is also key in saving Beth.
-> There was a lot of British slang in this book and as an American I appreciated it. What was your favorite British terms?
We argued about the usage of “torch” (to mean flashlight) on the podcast.
-> Where does this rank for historical novels you’ve read? Would you recommend this to a friend?
Our favorite is still City of Thieves but this was a great novel and one I think you could recommend to anyone.
-> Who would you cast in The Rose Code Movie?
Need inspiration? We’ll have a Make it a Movie blog coming out shortly.
Did we miss some questions? Reach out to us or check out our podcast.
