This Is Why We Lied: A 20-Question Quiz
Quiz Instructions
This quiz covers the entire novel This Is Why We Lied by Karin Slaughter. Answer each question based on the story’s events, character motives, themes, and broader meaning. There are 8 plot/sequence questions, 5 character motivation questions, 4 theme/symbol questions, and 3 synthesis questions. Mix of multiple-choice and short-answer. Complete answer key with explanations follows all questions.
Plot / Sequence Questions (8)
1. During the family meeting in Chapter 1, what does Mercy threaten to expose?
- A) The bootlegging operation
- B) Family secrets that could destroy them
- C) Dave’s history of violence
- D) Papa’s affair with Delilah
2. At what time does Mercy make her final voicemail to Dave, according to the timeline?
- A) 10:30 PM
- B) 11:28 PM
- C) 12:15 AM
- D) 11:00 PM
3. After the murder, where does Will find the broken red knife handle?
- A) In the burned cottage
- B) Hidden in Keisha and Drew’s toilet tank
- C) In Dave’s backpack
- D) Under Mercy’s body in the lake
4. What is the cause of Chuck’s death in Chapter 14?
- A) Stabbing
- B) Drowning after being poisoned with tetrahydrozoline
- C) Heart attack
- D) A fall from a cliff
5. Who is revealed to be the woman Mercy killed in a car crash seventeen years ago?
- A) Bitty’s sister
- B) Gabriella “Gabbie” Ponticello
- C) A camp counselor
- D) Monica’s daughter
6. In the final chapter, what does Jon confess to Will?
- A) That Dave forced him to stab Mercy
- B) That he killed Mercy because she always chose Dave and never loved him
- C) That Cecil committed the murder
- D) That the knife handle was planted by Bitty
7. What crucial evidence does Faith find on Dave’s phone?
- A) A photo of Mercy with the killer
- B) A voicemail from Mercy that exonerates Dave
- C) Directions to a hidden shelter
- D) A text from Bitty confessing
8. What does Will learn from Paul Ponticello in Chapter 19?
- A) That Paul is Gabbie’s brother and that Cecil McAlpine raped and killed her
- B) That Paul is an undercover FBI agent
- C) That Mercy had been stealing from the lodge for years
- D) That Dave paid Paul to lie about Mercy
Character Motivation Questions (5)
9. Why does Mercy initially refuse to support the lodge sale?
- A) She wants to run the lodge herself and preserve it for Jon
- B) She wants to burn the place down for insurance money
- C) She is being blackmailed by Dave
- D) She plans to sell it secretly to a different buyer
10. Why does Dave choke Mercy in Chapter 3?
- A) She refused to give him money
- B) She blocked the family vote to sell the lodge
- C) He discovered she was pregnant with another man’s child
- D) She threatened to call the police on his bootlegging
11. Why does Bitty fire Mercy from the lodge in Chapter 5?
- (Short answer) Hint: Family tension and control
12. Why does Christopher (Fish) create a secret trust fund for Jon?
- A) To bribe Jon into supporting the lodge sale
- B) To protect the money from Dave
- C) To hide his own illegal earnings
- D) To fund Mercy’s escape plan
13. Why does Mercy decide to leave the lodge with Jon thirty-seven minutes before the murder?
- (Short answer) Hint: She discovers a horrifying secret about Bitty and Jon
Theme / Symbol Questions (4)
14. The broken red-handled knife found in the toilet tank most directly symbolizes:
- A) The family’s financial greed
- B) The domestic violence and overkill of Mercy’s murder
- C) The failed escape attempt
- D) Jon’s childhood innocence
15. The repeated use of the nickname “Trashcan” for Will Trent relates to the theme of:
- A) Redemption and forgiveness
- B) Identity and the lasting power of childhood trauma
- C) Class struggle
- D) The unreliability of memory
16. The story’s title, This Is Why We Lied, most directly refers to:
- A) Mercy’s lies to protect Jon from Bitty’s abuse
- B) The McAlpine family’s cover-up of Gabbie’s murder and other secrets
- C) Will and Sara’s fake identities as honeymooners
- D) Dave’s lies to the police
17. What does Mercy’s pregnancy (revealed in Chapter 12) symbolize in the context of the novel?
- A) Hope for a new beginning
- B) The cycle of abuse and control continuing into the next generation
- C) Mercy’s affair with Alejandro
- D) The financial burden on the lodge
Synthesis Questions (3)
18. How does the voicemail Mercy leaves Dave both exonerate him and implicate someone else? Explain briefly.
19. In what way does Mercy’s dying plea—“forgive him” and “get him away”—turn out to be tragically misinterpreted by Will? What does she actually mean?
20. The novel ends with Will deciding not to help Dave after Dave offers information for a lighter sentence. How does this choice reflect Will’s personal growth and the book’s central message about change?
Answer Key
Answer 1: B) Family secrets that could destroy them. Evidence: Chapter 1 outline states Mercy threatens to expose family secrets to stop the lodge sale.
Answer 2: B) 11:28 PM. Evidence: Chapter 11 outline notes the voicemail was left at 11:28 PM, two minutes before Mercy's estimated time of death.
Answer 3: B) Hidden in Keisha and Drew’s toilet tank. Evidence: Chapter 16 and 17 outlines detail Sara finding the broken red knife handle in the tank.
Answer 4: B) Drowning after being poisoned with tetrahydrozoline. Evidence: Chapter 15 and 16 outlines state Chuck was poisoned and died by drowning.
Answer 5: B) Gabriella “Gabbie” Ponticello. Evidence: Chapter 3 and 18 outlines reveal Mercy killed Gabbie, and later it's discovered Cecil raped and staged the crash.
Answer 6: B) That he killed Mercy because she always chose Dave and never loved him. Evidence: Chapter 21 outline: Jon admits killing her for always choosing Dave. Shorter answer also includes that he felt unloved.
Answer 7: B) A voicemail from Mercy that exonerates Dave. Evidence: Chapter 11 outline: Faith listens to the voicemail which places Mercy alive moments before death and shows Dave wasn’t there.
Answer 8: A) That Paul is Gabbie’s brother and that Cecil McAlpine raped and killed her. Evidence: Chapter 19 outline: Paul reveals Cecil raped Gabbie and the car crash was staged.
Answer 9: A) She wants to run the lodge herself and preserve it for Jon. Evidence: Chapter 1 outline and Chapter 5 outline indicate Mercy’s determination to keep the lodge for Jon’s future.
Answer 10: B) She blocked the family vote to sell the lodge. Evidence: Chapter 3 outline: Dave attacks Mercy for blocking the sale and threatens Jon’s future.
Answer 11: Bitty fires Mercy because she is asserting control and dominance, wanting to force Mercy out of the lodge and the family. Evidence: Chapter 5 outline states Bitty fires Mercy and orders her out by Sunday, demonstrating family tension and control.
Answer 12: B) To protect the money from Dave. Evidence: Chapter 18 outline: Christopher set up a secret trust fund for Jon to protect it from Dave.
Answer 13: Mercy leaves because she finds Bitty in bed with Jon, confirming that Bitty has been sexually abusing him. Evidence: Chapter 24 outline: Mercy sees Bitty abusing Jon and forces him to flee.
Answer 14: B) The domestic violence and overkill of Mercy’s murder. Evidence: The knife handle is linked to the murder weapon; earlier outlines describe over twenty stab wounds and a broken blade, emphasizing brutal violence.
Answer 15: B) Identity and the lasting power of childhood trauma. Evidence: Chapter 2 outline shows Dave gave Will the nickname “Trashcan” at the children’s home, and Will’s trauma resurfaces throughout the novel.
Answer 16: B) The McAlpine family’s cover-up of Gabbie’s murder and other secrets. Evidence: The title is stated by Dave in Chapter 10 regarding lying about abuse; but the overarching lie is the family cover-up of Gabbie’s death and Bitty’s abuse. Also Mercy’s lies to protect Jon.
Answer 17: B) The cycle of abuse and control continuing into the next generation. Evidence: Chapter 12 outline notes Mercy’s pregnancy as a shock; coupled with the lifetime of abuse she suffered, it shows the cycle may continue.
Answer 18: The voicemail shows Mercy desperately asking for Dave’s help moments before she is killed, proving Dave was not present; but it also captures her fear of someone else approaching—“Dave will be here soon”—implying the killer was someone else, likely a family member. Evidence: Chapter 11 outline describes the voicemail content.
Answer 19: Will initially hears “forgive him” as referring to Dave, and “get him away from here” as from the lodge. Actually, Mercy means she wants Jon to be forgiven for killing her, and to be taken away from Bitty, who has been abusing him. Evidence: Chapter 21 and 24 outlines reveal the misinterpretation.
Answer 20: Will’s choice to not help Dave, despite Dave’s offer, shows he has broken the cycle of trying to save broken people. He recognizes that not everyone wants to change, and he chooses his own happiness and new family with Sara over past trauma. This reflects the book’s theme that real change is possible only when someone is ready to accept help. Evidence: Chapter 25 outline details Will’s reflection and decision.
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