Great Big Beautiful Life

The novel initially introduces Alice’s professional rival and romantic interest, Hayden Anderson, as a focused, slightly grumpy character whose dedication to his work is matched only by his reluctance to become emotionally entangled with anyone, especially Alice: “He has a presence like that, a magnetic field he carries with him always, but mostly tries to play off as a force field, a barrier to entry rather than an invitation” (176). As the story unfolds, Alice learns that his guarded nature comes from his childhood and being in the public eye due to his father’s political career. His professional rivalry with Alice and their constant proximity on the small island sparks a romance. However, Hayden is reluctant to commit because he feels a professional duty to adhere to Margaret’s request for them not to share information. The revelation about Hayden’s familial connection to Margaret creates a personal and professional barrier for Alice since the NDA prevents her from telling the truth. He’s no longer just a detached journalist competing for a story but a member of the Ives family who has personal stakes in Margaret’s history and legacy.

Hayden’s relationship with Alice challenges him to reconcile his conflict between duty and desire. Initially, he sees the competition for Margaret’s biography as a clear-cut matter of professional duty. As he grows closer to Alice, however, he starts to see her not just as a rival but as someone who unexpectedly challenges and complements him. He encourages her to be more open about her mom, and she sees his soft center: “Below that stony face and beneath that equally stony chest, there’s a soft thrumming, hopeful heart” (219). Through Alice, Hayden learns to embrace love, and his actions show that he’s willing to sacrifice for something more meaningful than professional success. His journey thematically reflects The Importance of Balancing Ambition and Personal Growth and highlights the transformative power of love and connection.

At the heart of the novel is the legendary figure Margaret Ives. Once the glamorous face of the Ives media empire, Margaret is now a woman in hiding, having retreated to Little Crescent Island in the aftermath of decades of public scrutiny and personal trauma. Though no longer active in the public eye, her influence persists as a mythical figure whose life is shadowed by scandal and shrouded in mystery.

When Alice Scott arrives to write her biography, Margaret appears guarded and uninterested in telling her entire story. Alice expects to hear “[w]hat it was like to be born into a world of silver spoons and golden platters, of actors drunkenly swimming fully clothed through your indoor pool and politicians making handshake agreements across your antique dinner table” (5-6). However, as the plot unfolds, Margaret emerges as a woman shaped by the loss of privacy, the loss of loved ones, and the loss of a version of herself she could never fully protect from the spotlight. Alice moves from being starstruck by her childhood idol to feeling empathy for a woman trapped in a life she never wanted, a victim of fate and others’ choices. Margaret changes Alice’s life by redirecting her focus on journalism and writing, inspiring her to repair her relationship with her mother, and bringing her and Hayden together.

Margaret’s character symbolizes the power of truth and female resilience: “At some point, while I’d been hiding, I’d crossed that age where women turn invisible. From ingenue to femme fatale to old crone” (390). She’s a product and a victim of the Ives dynasty. Her awareness of the destructive power of legacy makes her skeptical of journalists and her role in telling the story. However, through her slowly evolving relationship with Alice, Margaret reclaims her narrative, choosing what to reveal and withhold, not out of manipulation but as a form of self-preservation and healing. Margaret is haunted by the deaths of her husband, Cosmo, and her sister, Laura, and by her great sacrifice of giving up her daughter to shield her from harm. Margaret evolves from a tragic, glamorous figure to a survivor. She becomes a woman who finds redemption in finally speaking her truth after decades of silence.