I Found You

“Alice Lake lives in a house by the sea.”

This is the first line of the novel. It introduces the protagonist and the symbolic setting. The sea is a positive force for Alice; she fashions her identity around it. It also foreshadows the role the sea will play in Frank’s story.

“Alice is a woman often described by men as sexy. Dirty too. She’s never traded on being pretty.”

This passage develops Alice’s character. She is not dainty or reserved, but projects heteronormative female sexuality. Jewell establishes Alice’s lustful nature here to foreshadow how she will sleep with Frank shortly after meeting him, and while he still has no memory of who he is.

“But she was suddenly quite desirable—he could see that—raw and new like a half-blossomed flower, embarrassingly beautiful, in fact.”

Gray realizes his little sister has physically grown up but is still psychologically innocent. Jewell uses a simile, or direct comparison, to connect Kirsty and a flower that is blooming. Flowers are often associated with female genitalia and virginity, and Jewell uses these associations to develop Kirsty’s character.