As Maven’s “enemies-to-lovers” romance interest, Ronan Croft is a primary source of conflict and romantic tension. He is a quintessential Byronic hero: handsome, intelligent, brooding, and possessing a dark, troubled past. He also exhibits a distinctive duality as he oscillates between sardonic charm and menacing intensity. From his first appearance outside the Blackthorn gates, he is an enigmatic and formidable presence, a fact the narrative emphasizes by describing him as being “striking in the way of a Caravaggio painting, all dramatic contrasts of divine light and velvety shadow” (37). This description captures his complex nature as he simultaneously antagonizes and protects Maven, blurring the line between villain and hero.

Ronan engages in a relentless pursuit of Maven and the truth about their daughter, Bea, leveraging his family’s immense wealth and power to manipulate circumstances in his favor. For example, he orchestrates the shutdown of the funeral home to force Maven to rely on him, exhibiting a possessiveness that proves to be a core element of his character. He even views both Maven and Bea as his, declaring, “What’s mine is mine” (63). This drive is based on his deep, unresolved history with Maven, and he confesses that his return to her life has “jolted all [of his] darkest instincts to life” (43), tying his desire to their traumatic history and mutual attraction.

Beneath his arrogant façade, Ronan is burdened by secrets, most notably the generational curse that transforms him and the other Croft men into monstrous creatures. This hidden affliction explains his erratic behavior and the secrecy surrounding his family. His internal struggle with this monstrous side adds a layer of tragedy to his character and reflects his psychological conflict between maintaining an image of total control and becoming vulnerable with Maven. While he uses manipulation and intimidation to further his own aims, his actions are also driven by a protective instinct toward Maven and Bea. In essence, he is a man at war with his own nature, his family’s dark legacy, and the ancient feud with the Blackthorns, and his capacity for both tenderness and brutality keeps Maven off-balance.

Esme and Davina, Maven’s aunts, function as a unified entity, for their devotion to the toxic traditions of the Blackthorn coven makes them the hidden yet primary antagonists of the novel. As static characters, their fundamental nature never changes, but it is only gradually unveiled over the course of the narrative. Initially presented as eccentric outsiders to the community, these independent women are protective of their family and jointly embody the theme of Matriarchal Power as a Form of Resistance. They live in an all-female household, treat men as nothing more than tools for procreation, and openly defy the patriarchal norms of Solstice, embracing their status as “the town outcasts” (13). However, they are also performative, attending church to provoke the locals, and these antics show that their own image is paradoxically dependent on the very social norms that they seek to resist. Their identical appearance and their tendency to speak and act in unison reinforce their role as two halves of a whole, and their main purpose in life is to guard the secrets of their lineage within the chaotic walls of Blackthorn Manor.

The conclusion of the novel reveals the monstrous and self-serving motives behind their otherwise charming eccentricities, which serve as an outward mask for their fanatical devotion to “the master.” From the very beginning of the novel, they casually wield magic to indulge in petty revenge, as when the narrative hints at their involvement in the fire at Becca Campbell’s house. They also manipulate Maven’s perception through spells and drugged tea. However, the climactic reveal of their sacrificial rituals in the cellar exposes the true horror of their matriarchy. They are members of a violent cult that has sacrificed its own male children and outsiders for generations in order to maintain its power. By murdering children and using sex to control men, Esme and Davina devolve into a depiction of stereotypical witchcraft, reinforcing the same behaviors that they claim to subvert.

Beatrix, Maven’s daughter, serves as the catalyst for much of the novel’s central conflict. Her existence drives a wedge between Maven and Ronan and is the primary reason for Maven’s protective and guarded nature. A precocious and observant child, Bea is fascinated by true crime and often voices incisive and accurate theories, such as when she suggests that the funeral home might be operating an “illegal body farm” (51). While her agency is limited due to her age, her presence forces the adult characters to confront their pasts. On the whole, however, she remains an innocent pawn in a much larger, darker game.

Bea’s character is also a key conduit for the novel’s supernatural elements. Her recurring dream of being a “big black dog” (49) is a significant omen within the Blackthorn family’s mythology. Furthermore, her physical traits—particularly her pale ice-blue eyes, which she hides with colored contacts— serve as a tangible link to her Croft paternity, a truth that Maven desperately tries to conceal. The final revelation that she is the prophesied queen for the Blackthorn family’s demonic master makes her an unwitting prize in the generations-long conflict of her family, and in a way, she is the object of all other characters’ aims.

As Ronan’s father and the patriarch of the Croft family, Elijah Croft functions as a key antagonist and a symbol of the deeply entrenched patriarchal powers that have feuded with the Blackthorns for centuries. Defined by his arrogance, hatred, and obsession with control, he has a personal stake in the historical animosity between the families, and his confrontation with Esme and Davina at Lorinda’s viewing showcases his aggressive nature when he declares, “Did you think I’d cower like the rest of them?” (27). He is a man who despises any challenge to his authority, viewing the Blackthorn women’s matriarchal power as a threat. In the end, Croft’s fears of the Blackthorn women are validated, and when Ronan saves Maven from Esme and Davina, this event subverts the expectation that the Croft family, led by Elijah, is the primary antagonist of the novel.

The mystery surrounding Elspeth Blackthorn’s death is inextricably linked to Elijah due to the discovery of his wheelchair tracks near her body. Though he is cleared of wrongdoing in the final chapters, he nonetheless represents the corrupt and hidden history of the Croft family: a legacy of power that has been maintained through intimidation and the suppression of truth. His visceral hatred for Maven hints at a more complex and personal history with her mother, Elspeth, though this past is not fully explored in the novel.

Quentin is the silent, enigmatic caretaker of Blackthorn Manor and a loyal retainer to the family. He is tall and unnaturally pale, and because he moves with a stiffness that suggests “rigor mortis has set in” (7), his austere presence contributes significantly to the Gothic atmosphere of the novel. Despite his strange appearance and his lack of speech, Q serves as a guardian figure for Maven and Bea. He communicates through nonverbal cues, offering a silent warning to Maven upon her arrival: “Be careful. They already know you’re here” (7). His timeless, quiet omnipresence make him an integral part of the ancient manor itself, but his seemingly benevolent role is subverted in the climax when he is revealed to be a willing participant in the family’s brutal sacrificial rituals. This moment demonstrates that his loyalty is not to Maven but to the corrupt matriarchal power of the aunts and the dark master they serve. Q ultimately represents the concept of a “thrall,” for he is a lifelong servant to the Blackthorn coven, and the narrative’s implication that he will rise to become “the master” reframes the coven itself in patriarchal terms.