1. Twenty-four hour news networks have been accused of broadcasting inaccurate information in the effort to fill their hours of programming. In UNDONE, Amanda is questioned about the “Kidney Killer”, a misleading name, about whom articles were published without fact-checking, in order to grab the public’s attention. How do you think the public is served or mis-served by these twentyfour hour news networks? Should they be held responsible for all information they broadcast or does the public’s desire for up-to-the-minute news allow the networks to take liberties with the information they hold at a given moment?

2. Sara notes that ‘Whether it was Laci Peterson or Natalee Holloway, the world seemed to pay more attention when a beautiful woman disappeared.’ Why do you think this is so and what other cases have recently gained worldwide attention that substantiate or refute this statement?

3. Faith says that one of the codes within the police force is ‘When your partner or your squad was attacked, you defended him no matter what. Us against them, damn the truth, damn what was right.’ Why do you think this unofficial policy exists? Do you think this is right or fair? How does this policy affect us as citizens?

4. Faith refuses to accept or discuss her diagnosis as a diabetic and also seems in denial about her pregnancy. Will continues to struggle with his dyslexia and crippling embarrassment of his disability. Why do you think Faith and Will are unable to confide their problems in one another, despite the fact that they both greatly trust and respect one another as partners?

5. Sara says ‘Blood, fluid, organ, tissue – each component contributed a piece to the puzzle. A body could not lie. The dead could not always take their secrets to the grave.’ What do you think are the benefits of DNA technology? What are the shortfalls? Later, it is said that ‘Almost 80% of the crimes solved by DNA evidence were actually burglaries, not assaults…With stranger rape, where the victim had no previous contact with the assailant, it was looking for a needle in a haystack.’ That being said, do we place too much emphasis on DNA in the search for criminals? What can we do to change this?

6. When Will attacks Simkov, he becomes the ‘kind of cop he had never wanted to be’. What do you think this means for Will’s future? Now that he has snapped once, do you think he will find it easier to do so again? If not, what about this case and this witness make this time different?

7. When Will tells Sara about his attack on Simkov she was ‘understanding. She acknowledged that he had made a mistake, but she hadn’t assumed that it defined his character. What kind of person did that? Not the kind of person Will had ever met. Not the kind of woman Will could ever understand.’ Do you think Sara should have been more harsh or judging of Will? Do you think Will really believes he can’t understand Sara or is just afraid to admit his interest in her?

8. When Will and Faith create their profile for the killer, it ultimately proves quite accurate. To what extent do you think profiles are helpful to the police? Do our actions always speak of who we are and where we come from, as in a profile, or can we rise above our histories?

9. The kidnapped women all became anorexic as a means of controlling their environments but when they were kidnapped, they had no control over any aspect of their captivity. What long-term effect do you think this would have on someone who desires control above all else? After Anna’s baby is returned to her, she doesn’t express gratitude and in fact, behaves quite hatefully and ungratefully. Given what we know about Anna’s personality, was this response surprising? Do you think she was changed at all by her experience?

10. Will says that when questioning a witness, he ‘forced himself to slow things down. The first rule of interviewing was to be calm, because it was hard to spot whether or not someone else was tense when you were tense yourself.’ What else does Will do in order to work an interview to his advantage? What are his strengths and weaknesses as an investigator?