Introduction

For fans of Paulette Jiles, Charles Frazier, William Kent Krueger, and Larry McMurtry, this is a fast-paced adventure story with depth.

When a plane crash brings new clues to an old treasure map, Van Weathers and his teenage son Josh embark on a journey into the majestic Big Sur wilderness to search for treasure and try to repair their fraught relationship.

They soon find, though, that the plane crash wasn’t an accident, and they’re not the only ones searching.

Darker Than the Sky weaves action and danger into a moving story about what truly matters: the unbreakable bond between parent and child.

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Excerpt

Chapter One
BLOOD

Every blessing brings the possibility of loss, and my thoughts that hot August morning in 1977 were of what had been taken from me. Sorrow and regret ran through my mind like the words of a song whose melancholy melody was familiar and calming. Sadness enveloped and protected me. Shielded me from the whims of fate. Comforted me. Jenny could think what she wanted; my strategy was working for me. ... view entire excerpt...

Discussion Questions

From the author:

1. What was the bear for each of the main characters? Russ? Van? Josh?

2. Did Jenny have a bear?

3. Was Russ bad or good? Why?

4. In the bakery, Carl was “presented to the gods of grain and yeast and pronounced special.” He had found his calling. Do you think we all have a calling if we can just find it?

5. Van is a very moral character. Were there points where he wasn’t following his inner moral compass?

6. Although Van’s preoccupation with fate taking away something he loves just when his life seems to be going well is extreme, it isn’t an unusual thought. How does that theme play out in real life?

7. Who was scarier, Frank (the son) or Murray (the father?)

8. Did you feel bad at all when you realized Frank and Murray had died in the fire, or did they deserve everything they got?

9. Around the campfire, Russ said, “Ed knew what he meant to you as a kid without a dad.” Then Van said, “A lot of times in life you don’t get to see the reverberations of what you do in the lives of the people you affect. It comes as a surprise when they tell you how much it meant to them because it had seemed to you like such a small kindness at the time.” Which is true?

10. Van had two huge epiphanies in the book. The first was looking out at the ocean after his father died and he realizing he was able to watch his emotions and to feel them without being overwhelmed by them. The second was on top of the mountain watching the fire racing toward his family when he finally accepted fate and was thankful for it in advance. Have you ever had a moment of almost surreal knowing that affected your life afterward?

11. When, if ever, did Van release the gold? When Josh got trapped? When they cached it to go save Julie and Kim? When he told Russ about it after Russ saved them from Frank and Murray? When they left it on top of the mountain to race down and save their family? When he told Russ how to find it the night of the fire? When he realized it was buried for good by the fire crews?

12. When he let Van out in Eureka, the truck driver said, “People can smell cash, and even the honest ones want a piece.” Is that true? Does the prospect of easy money change people?

13. Acceptance is a huge theme for Van. Finally accepting what had happened in his life and what may come, but also, unconditional acceptance of Josh and who he is. How did Van’s life change through unconditional acceptance? Is there a downside to unconditional acceptance?

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