In the novel, Cass finds herself having to lie and keep secrets—from her grandfathers, from her mother, even from Max-Ernest when she initially lies about her father. At the end of the novel, the letter from P. B. reveals that the Secret must be kept from the Midnight Sun to prevent them from doing evil with it. Are there circumstances in which lying and secret-keeping are justified? Can secrets be either a positive or negative force? What does the narrative appear to say about secrets, thematically?

Throughout the novel the narrator refuses to share any details that he thinks will enable the reader to identify places or people. He reasons that he does this to protect the reader—however, this does not prevent him from continuing the story and involving the reader in it. What are the narrator’s goals in conveying this story? How do they affect the way the narrator is characterized and the way the reader reads him as a character? Alternatively, how does this lack of detail affect the way story’s setting and worldbuilding? What other methods does the author use to worldbuild instead? What is the purpose behind the author’s choices?