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In the book, we learn about Tom's distant relationship with his daughter, Becky. We later learn that Sarah faced some of the misfortune that Becky went through.

Do you think Tom regrets how he was with his daughter. Do you think he'll be a better parent to Sarah than he was to Becky?

Honestly, I think he regrets not knowing her as well as a father should. I also think that after Sarah sheds light on what Becky went through, Tom feels guilty that he didn't step in. He didn't help. He didn't see any signs. That is something that he is going to hold on to and I think that is going to drive him to help his granddaughter in the future.

I think he definitely regrets his past with his daughter. He has more insight now and will be more careful with Sarah.

I agree. I think he does regret his past with his daughter, so he plans to compensate it by treating his grandchild better.

I think he will always feel like he could have done more, that he could have been a better father to her.

I also agree with others here - I think he regrets in not really understanding his daughter and how he raised her. Therefore, he will try to be a better grandparent for Sarah.

I think at one point, Tom comes out and says that he should have, and could have, done more for his daughter. So, I definitely think he felt regret.

Christina Rose wrote:I think at one point, Tom comes out and says that he should have, and could have, done more for his daughter. So, I definitely think he felt regret.

I agree. I wonder if in the sequel readers will learn more about Becky.

Yes he does especially because Fletcher's abuse of Becky caused her to run away from home and grow up away from Tom and now Fletcher had tried to rape Sarah but she defended herself against her assailant.

-- 03 Oct 2017, 07:01 --

Gikonyo Caroline wrote:Yes he does especially because Fletcher's abuse of Becky caused her to run away from home and grow up away from Tom and now Fletcher had tried to rape Sarah but she defended herself against her assailant.

"What does not get healed gets passed down" anonymous

Every father would have regrets in this situation but we don't get any real feeling from Tom's character as to what he 'feels'. He is concerned for Sarah's wellbeing but whether he could be a better parent is impossible to gauge as we have no insight into what his relationship with Becky was like.

Tom certainly seems to regret his past with Becky. Knowing what he knows now, he realizes that he could have probably saved her.

He regrets that they were estranged and that he didn't realise why Becky didn't include him in her life. Of course, he regrets not bridging the gap, but he must have felt rejected too.

Amagine wrote:

Christina Rose wrote:I think at one point, Tom comes out and says that he should have, and could have, done more for his daughter. So, I definitely think he felt regret.

I agree. I wonder if in the sequel readers will learn more about Becky.

I hope so. One of the issues I have with this novel, is not knowing enough about the characters and their background stories.

I believe Tom loved his daughter. He remembers her on many occasions in the story. Reading between the lines, I felt that he did regret that he wasn't able to keep the family together. The wonderful father-child relationships between Eye and Myra and Sergei and his father are shown in contrast.

Christina Rose wrote:

Amagine wrote:

Christina Rose wrote:I think at one point, Tom comes out and says that he should have, and could have, done more for his daughter. So, I definitely think he felt regret.

I agree. I wonder if in the sequel readers will learn more about Becky.

I hope so. One of the issues I have with this novel, is not knowing enough about the characters and their background stories.

I agree. I kind of feel like you justbget plunged into the story with with brief introductions to everyone, and little is built or developed after that.
But to answer the main question, yes I do believe Tom has some regrets on how he handled Becky growing up and you see him try to compensate by treating Sarah differently.