Quiz Jackal Erin E. Adams

Jackal by Erin E. Adams: 20-Question Quiz

This quiz spans the entire novel—from the 1985 prologue to the final confrontation and its aftermath. Questions are divided into four categories: plot/sequence, character motivation, theme/symbol, and synthesis. Use the book overview, questions and answers, and ending explained pages if you need a refresher.

Plot / Sequence Questions (8)

  1. Multiple choice – In the opening chapter (1985), what item does Alice Walker put on just before she disappears into the woods?
    a) A red coat
    b) A denim jacket
    c) A bright orange bandana
    d) A purple scarf

  2. Short answer – What does Liz Rocher find in the woods on the night of Mel’s wedding that immediately makes her realize Caroline is in danger?

  3. Multiple choice – Which character is revealed to have been Keisha Woodson’s secret older boyfriend on Bonfire Night?
    a) Nick
    b) Chris Hartmann
    c) Doug Nowak
    d) Garrett Washington

  4. Short answer – The mothers of the missing girls tell Liz that their daughters vanished from a network of pathways in the forest. What is that network called?

  5. Multiple choice – What is Jack, the entity that has been stalking the woods?
    a) The ghost of a missing girl
    b) A shadow creature that consumes human hearts
    c) A human serial killer with a hunting ritual
    d) A mythical guardian who punishes wrongdoers

  6. Short answer – What weapon does Liz use to kill Jack in the final battle?

  7. Multiple choice – Why does Jack keep Caroline alive instead of killing her right away?
    a) He plans to use her as a vessel
    b) He wants to use her as bait to keep Liz in Johnstown
    c) He is afraid of the search parties
    d) Caroline convinces him to spare her

  8. Short answer – What historical event does Latoya tell Liz about, which she connects to the pattern of missing Black girls?

Character Motivation Questions (5)

  1. Multiple choice – Why does Denise Woodson distrust the official autopsy report on her daughter Keisha?
    a) She has photographic evidence of the killer
    b) She knows that other Black girls have disappeared every June for years
    c) She witnessed the murder herself
    d) She has been told the truth by a supernatural entity

  2. Short answer – What is Doug Nowak’s stated reason for continuing his father’s ritual of killing Black girls?

  3. Multiple choice – Why does Kylie warn Liz that “the truth destroys those who seek it”?
    a) She is afraid that Jack will turn on Liz
    b) She does not want Liz to suffer the same trauma she did after her sister Kayla was taken
    c) She is secretly part of the conspiracy and wants to scare Liz away
    d) She believes Liz is too weak to handle the truth

  4. Short answer – What motivates Marie Rocher to urge Liz to stop investigating and leave Johnstown?

  5. Multiple choice – What does Jack ultimately want from Liz?
    a) To use her body as a vessel so he can become a god
    b) To kill her and consume her heart
    c) To make her the new Fellow
    d) To force her to leave town forever

Theme / Symbol Questions (4)

  1. Multiple choice – The repeated removal of the victims’ hearts most directly symbolizes:
    a) The loss of romantic love in the town
    b) The systematic erasure of Black girlhood and humanity
    c) A medical condition that the killer exploits
    d) The supernatural requirement for Jack to exist

  2. Short answer – In the novel, the rhyme about “the man and his shadow” represents what relationship?

  3. Multiple choice – Throughout the book, stars and constellations (especially the North Star) symbolize:
    a) Scientific navigation only
    b) Guidance, hope, and the bond between Liz and the lost girls
    c) The town’s founding principles
    d) Religious conversion

  4. Short answer – What does Alice’s denim jacket, found blood-soaked in the woods, come to represent?

Synthesis Questions (3)

  1. Multiple choice – How does the Johnstown Flood of 1889 parallel the disappearances in the novel?
    a) The flood created Jack, who later began the killings
    b) Both the flood and the murders were caused by wealthy negligence and then dismissed or covered up
    c) The flood killed the original Fellow, initiating the ritual
    d) The flood led to the racial banishment that started the pattern

  2. Short answer – How does Liz’s experience of domestic abuse with her ex-boyfriend Alex parallel the larger violence in Johnstown?

  3. Multiple choice – The author suggests that the true monster in the story is not Jack but:
    a) The forest itself
    b) The systemic racism and deliberate inaction of the community
    c) The mothers who failed to protect their daughters
    d) The police force as individuals

Answer Key

Plot / Sequence

  1. c) A bright orange bandana – Alice puts on the bandana just before she vanishes; the jacket is already hers but not the trigger.
  2. A blood-soaked ruffle from Caroline’s dress – Liz finds it in the woods near a candle, confirming Caroline has been taken.
  3. b) Chris Hartmann – During the final chase, Liz realizes Chris was Keisha’s older boyfriend on Bonfire Night.
  4. The Rounds – This maze of forest pathways is where the girls’ last-known locations are marked on Doug’s map.
  5. b) A shadow creature that consumes human hearts – Jack is a supernatural entity that partners with the human Fellow to feed on victims’ hearts.
  6. Doug’s hunting knife – Liz uses the knife to cut through Jack’s ribs and tear out his heart, ending the cycle.
  7. b) He wants to use her as bait to keep Liz in Johnstown – Jack explains this in chapter 42; Caroline is a tool to ensure Liz stays.
  8. The 1923 racial banishment of about two thousand Black residents from Johnstown – Latoya connects this erasure to the ongoing abductions.

Character Motivation

  1. b) She knows that other Black girls have disappeared every June for years – Denise is aware of the pattern because her daughter died in June, and she has watched others suffer the same fate.
  2. To protect the town’s racial order and feed Jack’s power – Doug admits he and his father targeted Black girls to maintain a white-dominated community.
  3. b) She does not want Liz to suffer the same trauma she did after her sister Kayla was taken – Kylie’s warning comes from personal grief and a desire to spare Liz.
  4. She is terrified for Liz’s safety after receiving threats (a mutilated deer, popcorn bags) and knowing the town’s violent history – Marie has hidden her own fear for years.
  5. a) To use her body as a vessel so he can become a god – Jack sees Liz’s heart and internal capacity as the perfect container for his power.

Theme / Symbol

  1. b) The systematic erasure of Black girlhood and humanity – Removing the heart is the ultimate act of dehumanization; Jack consumes the hearts to grow stronger, mirroring how the town ignores the victims.
  2. The partnership between the human killer (the Fellow) and the supernatural entity (Jack) – One performs the violence, the other consumes, as described in Kayla’s chapter.
  3. b) Guidance, hope, and the bond between Liz and the lost girls – Liz uses stars to navigate; she teaches Caroline, and the girls’ hearts are ultimately released to the stars.
  4. Innocence and childhood vulnerability – The jacket is a symbol of Alice’s ordinary life, now stained by violence; it foreshadows the loss of many Black girls.

Synthesis

  1. b) Both the flood and the murders were caused by wealthy negligence and then dismissed or covered up – The Author’s Note explains that the flood was ruled an Act of God by the same class that later enabled the racial banishment; the murders are similarly ignored.
  2. Both involve cycles of violence in which powerful individuals harm the vulnerable and the community stays silent – Alex’s abuse is private and hidden; the town’s elite cover up the murders, allowing the pattern to continue.
  3. b) The systemic racism and deliberate inaction of the community – Jack is a symptom; the underlying disease is the refusal of Johnstown’s institutions and residents to protect Black girls and hold perpetrators accountable.