The Christmas Train, Week 3

Welcome to Week 3 of the Online Book Club discussion of The Christmas Train. 

This section sure ended with a bang, didn't it? Did you see that ending coming at all? I really didn't. I was shocked when Lelia showed up. 

What do you think about Tom's relationship to Lelia? I don't really understand why they stay together at all. It doesn't seem like they like each other very much. And, obviously, Tom isn't that attached to her if he is willing to try to reconcile with Eleanor. Why do you think Lelia would come all the way to the train to see Tom? That seems like a lot of effort for someone that you aren't really committed to. I thought the whole section where Tom tricked her "full-body therapeutic technician" was really weird. Again, I don't really feel like I like Tom as a character. He was so jealous of that massage therapist and treated him really poorly. And then, he was so willing to lie to Lelia to cover his tracks. I don't think Tom is a very trustworthy person. Do you like him? Are you rooting for him? 

Were you surprised that Max agreed to pay for Steve and Julie's wedding? I thought that was a nice gesture. It's nice that their wedding will be more of an event than they first imagined. It seems like Steve and Julie might have a few reservations about their wedding, so it will be interesting to see how things go as they get closer to the ceremony. 

Who do you think is the mysterious figure who is breaking into cabins and stealing things? I don't have strong suspicions about anyone on the train, even though I know the book is trying to have me think that Agnes it the criminal. I think they all seem like relatively nice people. The Merryweather guy who was so angry about his missing items doesn't seem nice, but he obviously isn't the thief since he had something stolen from his room. What did you think of the fact that they tricked that man with the big snake? I'm not really sure how a snake that big could get in the train in the first place, and I didn't really like that they played that trick on him. It seemed overly mean. What did you think? 

What do you think Tom's story is really going to be about? What parts of the train journey do you think he will end up writing about? Do you think he's having the type of trip that he thought he would? 

What do you think is going to happen in the last section? What will happen with Lelia? And, will Eleanor ever forgive Tom completely, especially now that Lelia has shown up? Who do you think will be revealed as the thief? 

Before you go, check out the clip below to hear David Baldacci talk about writing great characters. Do you think you would classify Tom as a great character? 

I hope you'll let me know what you thought of this section in the comments! Make sure to finish the book before checking back next week!