Anson Hunt is the deuteragonist and a narrative foil to Rhodes, embodying the self-protective emotional numbness that she actively resists. He is a round, dynamic character whose personal transformation parallels Rhodes’s own journey of healing. Haunted by the murder of his sister, Greta, for which he feels responsible, Anson lives in a state of self-imposed penance. He retreats from a successful career as an FBI profiler, avoids all meaningful relationships, and surrounds himself with shades of gray and black, a stark visual representation of his internal world. This motif of Color and its Absence highlights his emotional numbness and contrasts sharply with Rhodes’s embrace of vibrancy. He chooses to specialize in fire restoration, a job he considers a “messed-up atonement” (23) for his failure to prevent the murder of his sister, Greta. Even while punishing himself, though, he is building something new from the wreckage, a metaphor for his own potential for recovery.

Despite his guarded and abrasive personality, Anson’s past as a profiler makes him exceptionally perceptive and fiercely protective. He instinctively analyzes the people around him, quickly identifying Davis as a controlling threat and recognizing the suspicious pattern of fires long before anyone else. This skill set allows him to see past The Deceptive Nature of Appearances. Initially, his protective instincts manifest as gruff warnings, calling Rhodes’s actions “reckless and stupid” (34) when he finds her in the condemned Victorian. However, this same instinct drives him to shield her from danger, first from Davis and later from the more sinister threat posed by Silas Arnett. His professional past gives him the tools to unravel the mystery, while his growing feelings for Rhodes provide the motivation.

Anson’s journey is defined by his gradual and reluctant return to emotional life, a process catalyzed entirely by Rhodes. While he insists he does not “do people” (71), he reveals a repressed capacity for kindness, most notably in his gentle and patient handling of Rhodes’s traumatized foster dog, Biscuit. His relationship with Rhodes forces him to confront the grief he has suppressed for years. As he lets her in, he begins to dismantle the walls he has built around his heart, culminating in his confession about his sister’s death. Rhodes’s acceptance, rooted in her own experience with loss, provides him with the understanding he needs to begin healing. The pot of pink poppies she gives him is a symbolic turning point, representing the first intrusion of color and life into his desolate world and marking the beginning of his path out of the darkness.

Silas Arnett is the novel’s hidden antagonist, a character who perfectly embodies the theme of The Deceptive Nature of Appearances. Outwardly, he is a known and seemingly reliable member of the Sparrow Falls community, a hardworking member of Shep’s construction crew. This benign persona disguises his true nature as a manipulative and obsessive psychopath. His characterization remains static in its core pathology, though the reader’s understanding of him becomes round and complex upon the final reveal. As The Hangman, a serial killer who has terrorized women across the West Coast, Silas links the small-town suspense plot to a much larger and more terrifying history of violence.

Silas’s motivations are rooted in a narcissistic obsession with Rhodes that dates back to their middle school years. He interprets her simple acts of kindness—tutoring him in Spanish, sharing her lunch—as proof of a special bond. When Rhodes’s attention is directed elsewhere, he perceives it as a betrayal and retaliates with acts of arson in an attempt to punish and control her. The fire that killed Rhodes’s family was the ultimate act of this possessive rage. His actions are driven by a profound psychopathy; he derives pleasure from others’ pain, admitting, “I’m the only one who gets to hurt you, Little Phoenix. Your pain is mine alone” (333). This chilling confession reveals that his fixation is not on Rhodes’s happiness but on his ownership of her suffering, making him a dangerous and unpredictable foe.

Shepard (Shep) Colson is a key supporting character who functions as a bridge between Rhodes and Anson. As a round, static character, his core traits of loyalty and protectiveness remain constant throughout the narrative. Having been abandoned at a fire station as an infant, Shep is driven by a deep-seated need to create the familial stability he was denied. This makes him the “ultimate caretaker” (16) of his found family, always ensuring everyone’s physical and emotional well-being. His profession as the owner of Colson Construction, a company that builds and restores homes, serves as a metaphor for his role in helping those around him rebuild their lives. He provides Anson with a job and a place to land when he is at his lowest point and facilitates the restoration of Rhodes’s family home, the central symbol of her healing journey. Shep’s unwavering support and his connection to both main characters make him an essential anchor in the story.

Collectively, the Colson family represents the core theme of Finding Sanctuary in Chosen Family. Described as a “patchwork family” (16), they demonstrate that the strongest bonds are forged through love and mutual support rather than blood. The matriarch, Nora Colson, is the architect of this sanctuary, a foster mother who opens her home to children who have experienced profound loss and trauma. Her mother, Lolli, provides eccentric wisdom and comic relief, using her unconventional humor, such as the “dick flower” (18) art piece, to bring light into dark moments.

The siblings—Fallon, Trace, Cope, Kye, and Arden—each carry their own scars, and the collective wisdom they’ve gained from past trauma allows them to form an empathetic support system for Rhodes. Fallon, Rhodes’s best friend since childhood, acts as her primary confidante and emotional anchor. Trace, the protective older brother and county sheriff, is driven to keep his family safe from the dangers he knows exist in the world. The other siblings complete this dynamic, their boisterous and loving interactions providing Rhodes with a sense of belonging she lost with her biological family. Together, they are the living embodiment of the novel’s argument that true healing is found not in a place, but in a community of people who offer unconditional love.