Did the plot twist about Hubert's daughter surprise you?

For Hubert, it was the death of his daughter that led him to a life of loneliness. Did the fact that she was deceased surprise you? Who in your life inspires you to live life to the fullest?

Yes it surprised me. Is this what loneliness does to you? I am sure we have all been lonely but he was into the depths....

Yes! I had no idea that it was even a possibility until it came out.

Sometimes I dream about my loved ones who have died. When I wake up I want to go back to sleep to see them in my dreams.

Right now, no one inspires me to live life to the fullest. My daughter’s recent death has me so unsettled trying to face it and trying to figure things out

Yes, I was surprised by her death. His love for her kept him going; he wanted to live a life that would have made her happy.

I was very surprised by Rose's death. I thought it was so interesting that Hubert kept her "alive" to himself in weekly calls where she wanted to know all about his daily life. He knew that both Joyce and Rose would have wanted him to be living a good life not sitting alone in his house and yet didn't know how to start again after cutting himself off. I loved that he decided to be open to the people around him and that started his new adventure.

I was stunned to see that Hubert's daughter was deceased. I've experienced a sense of close loved ones still with me and sometimes in dreams it is so real. His extreme denial of the death is so sad. I think that something in the interactions with the new found neighbor reminded him of his own daughter, and perhaps that nudged him to create the need to let others into his life, living it to the extent that his wife and daughter would have done had they had the chance. It is also sad to see that things could have perhaps been better for him if he, and those like him, had been more welcomed into the country, and that services would have been offered to him to help him get through the transition. Instead, he was a beaten man, literally, and found safety and some happiness in his memories, his artificial world.

Unfortunately, I took a look at the discussion questions partway through the book, which spoiled that part of the plot. I was convinced it was a typo ("Surely they mean Joyce. Hubert talks to his daughter once a week!") so I skipped ahead, only to discover that yes, indeed, the discussions never happened. That allowed me to read the rest of the novel looking for hints that Rose was deceased but the only clue was that any time someone offered Hubert sympathy for something that happened five years ago, he quickly changed the subject.

I don't think anyone really inspires me to "live life to the fullest." I guess the phrase is pretty subjective. If I'm busy all the time, does that mean I'm living life to the fullest? Does it mean traveling? What, exactly, IS a full life?

Yes, very surprised and made me feel so bad for Hubert. But I guess it was his way to cope with his loneliness. I feel my close deceased relatives are with me everyday in spirit.

I was surprised Rose was deceased. The story began with Hubert wanting to please his daughter when she was coming to visit. It all seemed so real. Sorrow affects each person differently. Pretending she was alive evidently helped him deal with his grief.
My husband passed from a long illness in January. My faith has been my strongest support, along with family and friends. I find that seclusion isn't good for me, although I do need some down-time from others. We all cope in different ways.

Yes, the revelation that his daughter was dead completely surprised me. The fact that he had been spinning tales to share with her, as well as trying to find a way to introduce her to the characters in those stories, when neither was possible, was so very sad to discover.
I don’t feel that anyone in my life inspires me to lead a fuller life. I am sorry that Hubert’s was so empty at the story.s onset.

Yes, this took me completely by surprised. When something like this happens, I always wonder if I was the only one who didn't have a clue. Rose's death was a jolt and took on a different path with Hubert. I'm sorry for the readers who read reviews with spoilers before they finish a book. i've done that myself and always have regretted it;

I had a lingering thought in the back of my mind that there was something wrong with Rose having been in Australia for half a dozen years without coming home, given that she'd been such a support during the time when Joyce was dying, and she would have had ample vacation time in order to travel home; but I'd written it off as a weakness in the plot. So, yes, it took me by surprise too.

It surprised me very much. I thought it was heartbreaking.

I was shocked by that twist and it actually made me not like the book as much. I do not know why the author put that twist in there. I think it would have been wonderful to have the daughter visit and see how that unfolded. It could have been really funny. Up until the twist, I really loved Hubert, but after the twist, I thought of him more as someone who was nice, but had mental problems. He was pretty dishonest a lot of the time.

If Rose had been alive and had come to visit, I think the book could easily have degenerated into just another run of the mill "uplifting" novel--in fact, I was assuming that I'd probably be skimming the last section of the book as all the bits fell happily into place. It was only by learning of Rose's death and David being alive but unreachable, that we could fathom the depths of Hubert's despair. I thought it was a much stronger story because of this.

I was surprised that she was deceased. After discovering that, Hubert's story and actions made more sense.

Yes, the fact that Rose was dead and Hubert made up the phone calls surprised me a lot. I guess that was his way of coping with the total loss of family.
My daughter is the one who inspires me to get out and socialize and exercise. She has fought a hard battle with cancer and so far is beating it.

Yes, I was surprised to learn that Rose was dead. My husband inspires me to live life to the fullest - and we do, I believe, live our lives to the fullest!

I was very surprised to learn that Rose was deceased. This writing technique of Hubert talking weekly on the phone to Rose was similar to Eleanor talking weekly to her mother, who was deceased, in Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. I was disappointed that Rose would not be coming home to meet his friends.

I was shocked! He went out and made friends for Rose's visit. He was ready to admit to his lies. Then the structure he maintained for himself was destroyed by the vandalizing of his home. He lost control of his life and had to pull away and isolate himself.

My faith is responsible for my living life to my fullest. I cannot waste the precious gift of life that God has given me. I must make the world better in some way, no matter how little, by just my being in it.

I was totally surprised to find out that Rose had been dead for five years. I had to reread that part when Hubert told Ashleigh about it to read Hubert's thoughts and self-talk before he came out with it to make sure he wasn’t telling another lie, because he couldn’t really admit it to himself. But I was glad to see it was the truth, even though it was devastating news. I don’t think there is anyone in my life who inspires me to live my life to the fullest. I am internally driven (always have been!) and want to do what I can for myself, my family, and others.

I was completely surprised by Rose's death. I agree with others who said that Hubert had to keep Rose alive in his mind in order to get through each week. He did not feel that he had any other support system, but he was wrong on that count! The fact that he opened up to Ashleigh about Rose's death was the beginning of a new life for Hubert.

Yes Rose’s death surprised me, yet it made perfect sense at the same time.

Wow! I did not see that coming! I think Hubert became so lonely that he developed another life story as a way to cope. It took time and energy to create and carry on this alternate life. Ultimately, it turned his life around because he felt he had to create this imaginary life for real.

I was COMPLETELY shocked. I had been assuming something terrible had happened with Hubert's son, since he was having regular conversations with his daughter and was totally panicked about her coming to visit and finding out his social life was a lie. So the revelation that those conversations were imaginary was stunning, to say the least. The fascinating thing to me then was that even within his delusions there was a voice urging him to get back out and reconnect with the world. I wonder how long he could have sustained that fiction if the break-in hadn't occurred and thrown him back into full-blown isolated depression, leading to the chain of events that caused him to finally admit the truth.

It's my kids who prompt me to live my life to the fullest. Or at least to get up and interact with the world instead of hibernating in my house. I cannot imagine how I would cope if I lost either of them. Or both, as Hubert effectively lost both of his kids. I know people who have, and I'm awed that they can ever get out of bed again. So I can see how it was a strong coping mechanism for Hubert to pretend to himself that Rose was simply still on the other side of the world and not the other side of the veil, so to speak, especially since there were no close family or friends to enforce reality.

Yes! I was shocked. But after that shock, I realized that Hubert himself didn't admit his daughter had died until that moment. His mind had been helping him cope by "making up" the phone conversations and the imminent arrival of his daughter for a visit.