Thorn in My Heart

About Liz Curtis Higgs

In her best-selling series of Bad Girls of the Bible books, workbooks, and videos, Liz breathes new life into ancient tales about the most infamous—and intriguing—women in scriptural history, from Jezebel to Mary Magdalene. Biblically sound and cutting-edge fresh, these popular titles have helped more than one million women around the world experience God’s grace anew.
 
Her best-selling historical novels, which transport the stories of Rebekah, Leah, Rachel, Dinah, Ruth, and Naomi to eighteenth-century Scotland, also have invited readers to view these familiar characters in a new light. Now, with The Girl’s Still Got It, Liz offers a twenty-first century take on the book of Ruth, dishing out meat and milk, substance and style, in a highly readable, always entertaining, and deeply personal journey with one of the Good Girls of the Bible.
 
Liz is the author of nearly 30 books, with more than 3 million copies in print. Her popular nonfiction books include Bad Girls of the Bible, Really Bad Girls of the Bible, Unveiling Mary Magdalene, Slightly Bad Girls of the Bible, Rise and Shine, and Embrace Grace.

She’s also a best-selling novelist, creating both contemporary and historical fiction, including her latest award-winning novels, Here Burns My Candle and Mine Is the Night. And she’s written five books for young children, including Go Away, Dark Night.
 
Her children’s Parable Series received a 1998 ECPA Gold Medallion for Excellence, her nonfiction book Embrace Grace won a 2007 Retailers Choice Award, and her novel Whence Came a Prince received a 2006 Christy Award for Best Historical Novel. Here Burns My Candle was named 2010 Best Inspirational Romance by Romantic Times Book Reviews, and her 2011 novel, Mine Is the Night, was a New York Times bestseller.
 
Liz was also an award-winning columnist for Today’s Christian Woman for ten years. Additional articles by Liz have appeared in Faith&Friends in Canada, WomanAlive in Great Britain, and Enhance in Australia. And more than 4,500 churches nationwide are using her video Bible study series, Loved by God.

A gifted professional speaker, known by her audiences as An Encourager®, Liz has presented more than 1,600 inspirational programs in all fifty United States and fourteen foreign countries, including Israel, Thailand, Portugal, and Indonesia. When the National Speakers Association honored her with their Council of Peers Award for Excellence, Liz became one of only thirty-five women in the world named to their CPAE-Speaker Hall of Fame. Her alma mater, Bellarmine University, presented her with a Distinguished Alumni Award in 2005, and she received an Honorary Doctorate from Georgetown College in 2010.

Feature articles about Liz have appeared in more than 250 major newspapers and magazines, as well as on Salon.com, Beliefnet.com, Spirituality.com, HopeforWomenMag.com, Kyria.com, and many other websites. She has been interviewed on more than 600 radio and television stations, including guest appearances on PBS, A&E, MS•NBC, NPR, TBN, CBC Canada, BBC Radio Scotland, Shine TV New Zealand, Radio Pulpit South Africa, Focus on the Family, Life Today, 100 Huntley Street, and Midday Connection on the Moody Network.

On the personal side, Liz is married to Bill Higgs, Ph.D., who serves as Director of Operations for her speaking and writing office. Liz and Bill enjoy their old Kentucky home, a nineteenth-century farmhouse in Louisville, and are the proud (and relieved!) parents of two college grads, Matthew and Lillian. Visit Liz’s Web site: www.LizCurtisHiggs.com.

Discussion Guides

1. Rowena McKie appears through only the first seven chapters of the book, but her influence is felt throughout the story. In what ways does she shape Jamie’s past, present, and future? What, if anything, makes her a sympathetic character? How is she like her brother, Lachlan, and how is she different?

2. Rowena clearly considers her deceptive plan to be necessary. How does she justify her actions? What does her behavior reveal about her relationship with her husband, Alec? And what of her other son, Evan? How has she convinced herself that he deserves such ill treatment?

3. To what extent is a man like Jamie McKie—heroic one minute, cowardly the next—a believable character? When does Jamie behave heroically, and when do his weaknesses surface? How would you describe his overall character? What changes take place in Jamie’s character from the first chapter to the last, and who or what brought about those changes?

4. Rowena favors Jamie; Alec favors Evan. Can you recall specific examples of parental favoritism evident in Lachlan’s treatment of Leana and Rose? And how do the sisters respond to their father in distinctive ways?

5. Leana McBride has many positive qualities, but she is by no means perfect. What are her strengths, and what are her weaknesses? To what extent is she a heroine? a victim? a fallen woman? Regarding her relationship with Jamie, is she naive? foolish? obsessed? What outcome were you hoping for in Leana’s life?

6. Rose and Leana are vastly different—as opposite as Evan and Jamie—yet the sisters have a much healthier relationship. What words would you use to describe young Rose, and how did you feel about her as you got to know her? Did your opinion of her alter as the story unfolded? Which scene struck you as most true to life for two sisters living under the same roof?

7. Despite Lachlan McBride insisting, “There are to be no saicrets in this household,” Auchengray overflows with secrets. What secrets does Leana keep? What are Jamie’s secrets? And Rose’s? As for Lachlan, secrets, lies, and deception are his currency, used to manipulate and coerce. How might you explain Lachlan’s need to control the lives of those around him?

8. The epigraphs that introduce each chapter were carefully chosen. My personal favorite is the Scottish proverb, “A winter’s night, a woman’s mind, and a laird’s purpose aften change.” For you, which quote best captures the essence of the novel, and why?

9. On her wedding night, Leana convinces herself she must climb into Jamie’s bed. Were you surprised by her decision? appalled? Which, if any, of the reasons she offers in chapter 48 are valid? Did you find yourself scolding her…or rooting for her? What motivation, above all others, sent Leana tiptoeing into Jamie’s room to “seek his blessing”?

10. When he was a lad of seventeen, Robert Burns wrote:
Such was my life’s deceitful morning,
Such the pleasures I enjoy’d!
But lang or noon loud tempests, storming,
A’ my flowery bliss destroy’d.
Jamie McKie might have penned those very sentiments himself on the first day of 1789. Why is Leana the target of his anger? How would you describe Lachlan’s conduct toward Jamie that morning? Who is most to blame for this tragic turn of events—Lachlan, Jamie, or Leana? Even though she is not on the scene until later, how might Rose have contributed to this debacle?

11. Neda and Duncan Hastings both serve as a moral compass for the story. Especially in chapters 59 and 67, how do they provide a sense of true north for Leana and Jamie? In what other scenes do Neda’s willing ear and Duncan’s ready wisdom offer much needed direction and stability?

12. At what point in the story did the significance of the title, Thorn in My Heart, come alive for you? Leana eventually defines that thorn as her love for Jamie—“the love that would not stop”—but each character could claim to have a “thorn” in his or her heart as well. What might Rose’s thorn be? And Jamie’s? What thorns press upon Lachlan? Rowena?

13. Three hundred years ago Matthew Henry wrote, “Whom God loves he never leaves.” That same truth, inspired by Genesis 28:15, echoes throughout the novel: I will never leave you. Even when Jamie’s behavior is less than honorable, those words from his heavenly dream keep coming back to him. How does Jamie react each time he remembers that assurance? How might those words encourage you in your own spiritual journey?

14. Leana came to a point of desperation before she came to a place of peace. What is the “dark moment,” the lowest point of Leana’s trials? When does she begin to climb out of that darkness and move toward the light of hope? How does Rose aid her sister in that painful process of maturing? And how does Rose hinder Leana’s efforts?

15. In desperation, Jamie prays, “Please, God, help me love her in return.” What evidence do you see of such love for Leana in the final chapter of the novel? What does he say to her that suggests his heart is changing? What is his relationship with Rose at story’s end? Which issues and conflicts are resolved by the last page, and which are merely on hold? What might the future hold for this thorny triangle?

16. The one constant that permeates the story from beginning to end is bonny Scotland itself. Which passage in particular brought the Scottish Lowlands of the eighteenth century to life for you? In what ways are time and place critical to the telling of this story? In what ways does Thorn in My Heart transcend time and place?