1. Discuss the opening chapter with the four young women in the rowboat. Is it clear that they are trying to rescue the man they come upon on the river? 

2. Why is Inspector Ian Rutledge reluctant to take on the case in Cornwall?

3. What role does Hamish MacLeod play in this series? Why does Inspector Rutledge need him around?

4. How does Rutledge being young, a single, childless man, affect the investigation? Is this a positive or a negative?

5. Class and status play a significant role in this case. How would the story change if these were no longer issues?

6. Small-town secrets play a large role in the plot. Examine each one and their ramifications.

7. The novel focuses mainly on the four young women accused of a terrible crime. How would the story be different if it was told from the victim's point of view?

8. Talk about the nature of justice in this story and how difficult it was to achieve in the face of enormous pressure from those involved with this case.

9. Like the classic film Rashomon, in which a murder is viewed from the point of view of several eyewitnesses, the alleged murder in NO SHRED OF EVIDENCE also contains many vantage points from those present. Examine each one and the potential results.

10. How did your perspective change when additional victims began mounting up? Did you begin to suspect different characters were guilty?