“And just like that, Ethan relaxed. After a few minutes on the water, and amidst the hunt, his anxiety about the upcoming parole hearing for the man who killed his father, and had nearly taken Maddie’s life, drifted away. Ethan Hall was, for at least the long Memorial Day weekend, a man without a worry in the world.”

Ethan’s arrival at Lake Morikawa underscores the value that his cottage holds for him. As he works in the stressful world of emergency medicine, while also still suffering from the loss of his father, Lake Morikawa symbolizes a retreat and escape from his everyday life. The passage states that Ethan’s worries “drifted away,” evoking imagery of the water literally sweeping them away.

“Every time I close my eyes. The girl probably knows I’m dying because ever since they slapped me with my diagnosis, Callie Jones is there every night I go to sleep. It’s almost like she knows I’m the only one on this planet still looking for the truth.”

When Ethan’s old partner, Pete, comes to Ethan for help with Callie’s disappearance, his character introduces the theme of The Lasting Impact of Trauma. His dreams represent his subconscious, which is still grappling with his perceived failure during the investigation. In this way, Ethan and Pete are linked: Both still struggle with the impact of the crimes they investigate, which explains the sympathy that Ethan holds for Pete and his reasons for taking the case.

“She closed her eyes and pulled. The lock gave way, and with the disengagement came a sudden surge of heat and moisture between her legs. As she opened the top of the footlocker, a shiver ran down her pelvis and brought with it warmth between her thighs. It was then that she realized the hold Francis Bernard had on her.”

In this scene, Harriett goes to the warehouse to the locker to retrieve what Francis left there. Her character is repeatedly linked to sex, connecting it to violence and murder, as it is here when she realizes her arousal. This fact underscores Harriett’s status as a stereotypical villain, driven only by her desire to help Francis kill, while the imagery reveals the physicality of her reaction to their crimes.

“From the middle console she removed a pair of latex gloves and slipper her hands into them. Then she pulled an envelope from the glove box. It was addressed to Maddie Jacobson. She dropped it through the slot in the mailbox, assuring that the letter—like all the others—would have a Boscobel postmark.”

Harriett’s role in the novel emphasizes the theme of Appearance Versus Reality. Here, she mails the letters to Maddie carefully, making Maddie and Ethan believe that they are somehow magically coming from Francis without any evidence or a trace. In reality, Harriett is doing what she does for much of the novel: Acting for Francis in order to create the dangerous, mystical quality that surrounds him and contributes to Ethan’s uncertainty and the danger he is in.

“Now, two years later, she and Ethan were more than lovers. They were soulmates, initially united by grim circumstances, but forever tied to one another by a mutual determination to prevent the evils of one man from dictating their lives or happiness.”

Maddie’s thoughts convey the value of the relationship that they have. Because they both suffered at the hands of Francis, they experience lasting trauma, and they find comfort in each other. Additionally, their relationship conveys the theme of the interplay between closure and justice: Although they received justice through Francis’s prison sentence, they still struggle to find closure without the truth of what happened.

“‘The law is the law.’

‘I don’t care about the law,’ Callie said, unbuckling her seatbelt so that she could cross over the middle console.

She kissed [Blake] again and felt him resist for a moment. But she was persistent and before long she felt his hands grab her thighs and slide up her jean shorts as he pulled her across the console and onto his lap.”

The first flashback in the novel shows the beginning of Callie and Blake’s relationship. Although Callie insists that it is okay, Blake quickly gives in to his resistance, facilitating and encouraging a relationship with his underage volleyball player. This introduction to Blake is designed to illustrate his transgression, setting the stage for his characterization as the lead suspect in Callie’s death.

“[Ethan had] met with Damien Laramie, Callie’s stepdad, who was still angry and bitter that Callie’s ‘selfishness that summer,’ as the man put it, had led to his wife’s taking of her own life. There was a lot to unpack.”

Similar to how Blake is portrayed, Callie’s stepdad is similarly described and portrayed as “creepy.” His bitterness toward Callie and his continued representation of her as selfish despite her death emphasize the fact that he has little trauma or sadness from her death. This characterization sets up Damien as another suspect, continuing to build the novel’s cast of possible killers.

“The sun was setting, and long shadows crept across the roads. Ethan crossed a set of freight tracks and turned right onto a dilapidated road riddled with potholes. Fog seeped from manhole covers before disappearing into the head of the evening.”

When Ethan first goes to the warehouse at Francis’s insistence, the setting is described through specific imagery to create a foreboding atmosphere. This diction sets up an unsettling feeling within the reader and a tense atmosphere. Because the information came from Francis, Ethan’s actions are surrounded by feelings of discomfort, leading Ethan to wonder if Francis can be trusted.

“Ethan made it through security and stared through the glass at the empty seat in front of him. He worked to hide his frustration that he was in the position of needing information from his father’s killer.”

Ethan’s thoughts emphasize the irony of the situation that he is in. To solve a case that is only 10 years old, he finds himself in a position where he needs help from someone who has been in prison for over 30 years. Additionally, this man is responsible for the death of Ethan’s father as well as several other women, creating a unique circumstance where Ethan is relying on someone he despises for information. However, his work to “hide his frustration” also highlights how important he knows it is not to reveal anything to Francis.

“Hurry, Special Agent Hall. Callie Jones is dead and buried, but the clock is tic tic ticking on this one.”

When Ethan returns to the warehouse the second time, he finds a picture of Portia with this note from Francis. These words create both a sense of discomfort and a sense of urgency within Ethan. The fact that Francis can have these words left for him while in prison is unsettling, as is the fact that Francis has now instilled a timeline to force Ethan to investigate.

“Yeah. I told the other detective about him. Guy’s name was Blake Cordis.”

These words, spoken by Portia’s ex-fiancé, end Chapter 41, creating a cliffhanger through this shocking revelation. At this point, the reader knows that Blake was in a relationship with Callie and contacted her through a disposable phone, making him the prime suspect. With this revelation, the reader further learns of Blake’s involvement, building the suspense in the novel.

“She had just a few more tasks to complete before next Monday. She climbed into her car and adjusted the rearview mirror so that the unmarked police car came into view. She had learned the man behind the wheel—an older gentleman with a limp—was Pete Kramer, a special agent with the Department of Criminal Investigation.”

As the reader sees the woman who took Eugenia’s identity complete different tasks, the narrative offers an outside perspective on Pete and Ethan’s activities and progress in their investigation. However, these thoughts from the woman emphasize just how dangerous she is. Through dramatic irony, the reader now knows that she is aware of Pete following her, which means she could create danger for him or give him false information.

“She climbed through the window, carrying with her a Callaway 9-iron golf club, and headed straight for his office. […] She opened the closet in the front foyer and placed the 9-iron in the back corner. She grabbed a package of Saratoga 120 cigarettes off the coffee table on the way out, caring little if Blake Cordis questioned why.”

Because of the shifting point of view in the novel, the reader is able to see moments like this, where an unnamed woman enters Blake’s home and plants evidence. However, this moment also underscores the theme of Appearance Versus Reality and how Donlea uses it on a more metafictional level: While the reader thinks that Eugenia is doing this, the truth is later revealed that it is Lindsay, creating a multi-layered puzzle of deception that hides the truth, even from the reader.

“It was her life, and no one would tell her how to live it any longer. She’d spent years listening to the plans other people made for her. From volleyball and how to spend every waking moment—at the gym or on the court—to her students and her future. […] [F]or the first time in many years, Callie Jones was excited about her future. She walked to the end of the pier and stepped off the dock. Cicadas buzzed and echoed into the night. A dog barked in the distance. And a twig snapped behind her.”

Ironically, Callie dies just as she feels as though she is finally finding happiness and fulfillment in her life. This moment, where Callie thinks of how happy she is then is immediately murdered, offers insight into Callie’s character and an opportunity for the reader to connect with her, despite the fact that she is dead in the novel’s present timeline. With this information, the stakes are raised for Callie’s case to be solved.

“Ethan’s mind was churning, and his gut was telling him that he had things wrong. That Blake Cordis was not the man he was looking for, and that some other insidious puzzle was unfolding in front of him. The time he needed to unravel the mystery, he knew, was gone.”

When Ethan leaves Blake after confronting him with the truth of Callie’s baby, he struggles with whether to believe Blake or not. His impulse to follow his “gut,” a key trope of detective fiction novels, points away from Blake, emphasizing the theme of appearance versus reality. While all the events point toward Blake, Ethan’s detective skills lead him in a different direction, highlighting his confident and intuitive sense of his investigative skills.

“Ethan sprinted through the doors of the prison and into the parking lot. Maddie waited in her unmarked squad car. Ethan jumped in and slammed the passenger door shut.”

As Francis is transferred, he gives Ethan one final location to find evidence about Callie and Portia. From there, Ethan’s reaction, as he “sprinted” and “jumped” is depicted viscerally to underscore the sense of panic that he now feels. Over the next several chapters, the stakes are raised as Ethan finds himself in a race against time: solve the mystery before Francis is officially transferred.

“Hours and days would sand the edges of her memory of the knife slicing through the woman’s neck. Months would erase the sickening feeling that remained in her hand from when the knife struck bone and cartilage. And eventually years would wash away the sadness and swirl her melancholy down the drain of time.”

Even within the antagonists, Donlea emphasizes the theme of the lasting impact of trauma. After Harriett kills Eugenia, she is shocked by how much of an impact it has on her. Although she did it for Francis, she knows that it will take time for the memory of the trauma to leave her, emphasized by her movement from “hours” at the beginning of the quote to “years” by its end.

“Over the woman’s shoulder, Francis Bernard’s face appeared. The woman had removed the transport helmet and Francis’s expression offered neither anger nor concern. It was simply matter-of-fact serious. And then he smiled.”

Francis is portrayed as a stereotypical, static, and flat villain, even more so once he has been freed from the prison transport. When he “smiles” at the prison guard, his expression stands in stark contrast to his thoughts or his coming actions. From here, the reader knows that Francis has become a threat to Ethan and Maddie again—even if they do not yet realize it themselves.

“‘Portia?’ he said through the slot.

The woman did not move.

‘Portia Vail,’ he said again, louder this time. ‘I’m Ethan Hall with the Department of Criminal Investigation.’ […]

Finally, miraculously, Portia Vail sat up and squinted at Maddie. ‘Am I dreaming?’ the woman said.”

In a plot twist, the narrative reveals that Portia is still alive, despite the implication that Eugenia killed her. This moment subverts expectation, revealing that the plot is much more layered than the reader originally believed. This plot twist is a typical trope of detective fiction, in which the reader is intentionally misled to create surprise and suspense as the mystery unfolds.

“[Lindsay] tried again after she graduated and started her business, stupidly believing that Blake would be impressed with her success. Eventually, though, over the years Lindsay understood that no matter how badly she wanted to recapture the magic they had once shared, Blake did not. So, after years of rejection, Lindsay’s impetus morphed from lust to revenge.”

After Lindsay is revealed to be Callie’s killer, she is given several pages of monologue, in which she unveils her past and her plan to the reader. Here, her character underscores two key themes: The Interplay Between Closure and Justice and The Lasting Impact of Trauma. For years, she has harbored anger and resentment—tied to love—for Blake, starting with his unwillingness to have a relationship with her. As a result, she has carried that trauma with her for years, with the events of the novel largely her plan to finally seek justice and closure for herself.

“[Lindsay] had taken the package of cigarettes the night she broke into his cottage to reroute the encryption software to the IP address of Blake’s computer. Together with the prepaid phone she had planted in the warehouse, and the photos she had snapped of Portia Vail chained to the bathroom door, it would be enough for the authorities to take Blake into custody.”

Lindsay’s exposition underscores the theme of Appearance Versus Reality and exposes the novel’s use of this disparity on a metafictional level. In Lindsay’s point of view chapters, she was always referred to as “she,” leading the reader to believe that her actions were those of Eugenia. However, in a plot twist, it is revealed that Lindsay also had a hand in setting up many of the events of the novel.

“Ethan maneuvered the Bronco around the fallen branches that littered the road. The rain came in sheets, and, had Maddie not been at the cabin alone, he would have pulled to the shoulder until the torrent subsided. Instead, he twisted the truck around a large tree limb that blocked the eastbound lane, splashed through a twenty-yard-long puddle, and continued on.”

Ethan’s drive back from the store on Lake Morikawa is littered with tension and suspense, which are further deepened by the storm that rages around him. As the narrative shifts between Ethan and Maddie, the novel builds the sense that Ethan has very little time to make it back to save Maddie. As a result, his fight against the storm is also a race against time, with the dangerous route reflecting the dangerousness of Maddie’s situation.

“[Ethan] was aware, however, that the esthetics could be changed in a single season, but the memories of what had transpired there would take much longer to fade.”

This thought from Ethan underscores the value that Lake Morikawa holds to him as his form of escape, as well as its shift as an important symbol in the novel. After the events that happened there, he tried desperately to change it by renovating and redecorating. However, he was unsuccessful, emphasizing The Lasting Impact of Trauma. Although Ethan changes the look of the cabin, the lake will likely never serve as a sanctuary for him again.