Hideaway

Catholicism and the town cathedral both play pivotal roles in Hideaway, providing a pointed contrast with the main characters’ morally questionable actions and thoughts. The backdrop of religious dogma also provides a judgmental counterpoint to many of their debaucherous acts, given that these activities often take place in ostensibly Christian settings like the cathedral and its confessional space. Additionally, Kai’s complex relationship with the church reflects his internal struggles and his ongoing search for the resolution of his regrets. He appreciates the quiet of the cathedral but dislikes the preaching and lecturing that the congregation must necessarily endure. Privately, Kai wants to be a better person and hates the fact that he has disappointed himself and his family, and for these reasons, religion—or at least the idea of religion—remains an important part of his family culture and his past.

The cathedral also invokes multiple versions of “confession,” from the Catholic ritual itself to the edgier, more personal version that characterizes Kai and Banks’s initial meeting, when they share an intimate moment through the confessional screen. This encounter also marks the beginning of the novel’s focus on The Psychological Impact of Toxic Power Dynamics that define the pair’s bond, setting the stage for many additional encounters that challenge the boundaries of conventional morality. The confessional, which is traditionally a place in which to seek divine absolution, becomes a place for the two to confess their most sordid hidden desires. Ultimately, they engage in a confession of a more physical kind when they have sex here and solidify their bond. In the end, the couple’s shared experiences within the cathedral are connected to their more abstract journey toward understanding and reconciliation.

The Pope Hotel acts as a repository of the characters’ past traumas and secrets. The hotel was always a failed establishment, as it was built for a stadium that was never finished. The hotel is now abandoned, becoming a physical manifestation of the emotional despair and isolation of the main characters who find themselves returning to its silent, foreboding halls. The Pope Hotel also has a presence of its own, looming over the city, casting its shadow, and refusing to be ignored despite its uselessness. With its “hundred rooms that now sat quiet and empty” (12), the building reflects the emotional and spiritual voids in the characters’ lives, highlighting their unresolved issues.

The hotel is said to have a 12th floor that is inaccessible to the public and is only used by the family who owns it. Kai learns this tidbit from Banks during their first encounter six years ago, when she mentions the story as though it is an urban legend. Kai and Banks’s investigation of the hotel ultimately represents an exploration into their respective pasts.