I thought she had arranged to meet him there. It's been a while since I read the book but that's what I thought. Some readers may have better memories than I and contradict that!

I don't think he was murdered at all. I think he was drunk and fell. It was admitted in court that there was no actual evidence of murder. He was just found dead with no explanation. I think that since they were going out of their way to pin this on Kya, they would have done so in this witch hunt. This was ignored in court because that's not what people wanted to have happened. Just my two cents.

Yes she killed him. She arranged what she needed and did make the tight time line. She pushed him down that trap door just as they speculated the buddies did when they first found the body. It's all laid out in the last chapter when her husband finds her treasure box.

Been a while for me since I read the book as well, but I think arcy is right. I am pretty sure she did in fact kill him- and there was just a VERY tight time line which worked. They left a lot unexplained but I am pretty sure she did do it. I was really shocked because I had started to think of others (especially that scene with the police in the boat ....but that was a distraction). YES the treasure box!!!

Yes she admitted it in the treasure box. Is there anything that says that she was to meet Chase though?

Yet, none of the bus drivers remembered her.

Yes, Lulu that is another question. Tate is picked up by the police in the boat. Yet, nothing happens with this information?

Yes, Tate found the necklace in the treasure box after Kya’s death. The police came to get Tate because his father died, not for any other reason. She apparently did disguise herself on the bus, but no one could identify her as being on the bus or having left the city or motel where she was staying. The fishermen thought they saw her but it could not be proved.

I don’t recall anything that mentioned she was to meet Chase either.

I seem to remember that the police handcuffed him as he went onto the boat? Or was that just Kya imagining she saw this?

Yes, she spelled it out in the poem that she wrote that was in the treasure box. She lured him to the fire tower, “it was so easy.” I had to reread the poem to “get it”. (Wish I’d have saved it)

All those poems throughout the book attributed to another author, were written by Kya herself, & were published in the newspaper (?) under a pseudonym. I skimmed past most of them, but that final one was very revealing.

There's a good site with answers HERE

The final poem in the book:

Edited ...

I had posted the poem but deleted...might be copyright infringement.

(Thanks F2BH)

@bee0hio I had posted the poem, but I deleted it and added a link to it instead because I think it's copyright infringement to reprint the poem without permission, isn't it? Of course, the copyright enforcers probably aren't visiting here, but still...

I read this a few months ago for book club, so I am not 100% sure if I remember it all, but I think he was NOT in handcuffs. The description really suggested that he was being arrested but in fact it was the police finding him and notifying him on the death. There were lots of open ended bits like the timeline and the bus trip and all, which were definitely not spelled out but suggested. The treasure box really did fill in the dots without going into total detail .

The link that Fun2behere shared is really quite good. I also find sometimes that there are good discussions on goodreads as well.

That really was a very good book.

Had book club today so my questions were answered. Next up: Barbara Kingsolver's Unsheltered.

Thanks everyone.

And did you all get the "hints" -- all of the female bugs and animals that killed the male? For example: "She saw a _____________. She knew it was an insect that killed it's mate before the eggs hatched." There's 3 or 4 references to that type of thing -- a female killing a male.

Yes we did!