One of the Girls

Lucy Clarke

64 pages 2-hour read

Lucy Clarke

One of the Girls

Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2022

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Character List

Meet the key characters, with insights into their roles, motivations, and relationships—spoiler-free.

Major Characters

Lexi is a 31-year-old former MTV dancer who left behind a wild, untethered lifestyle to settle down. As the bride-to-be at the center of the Greek island getaway, she outwardly appears happy but inwardly harbors growing doubts about marriage and motherhood. She is fiercely loyal to her friends but struggles with the pressure of conforming to the expectations placed upon her.

Key Relationships

Fiancé of Ed

Best Friend of Bella

Childhood Friend of Robyn

Future Sister-in-Law of Eleanor

Friend of Ana

Bella is Lexi's loud, glamorous, and outspoken best friend. She planned the entire trip to the Greek island and is highly protective and possessive of her bond with Lexi. Beneath her polished, designer-clad exterior and forced cheerfulness, Bella struggles with insecurity, a recent job loss, and a desperate need to maintain control over her shifting friendships.

Key Relationships

Best Friend of Lexi

Romantic Partner of Fen

Childhood Friend of Robyn

Rival of Ana

Robyn is a sensitive, recently divorced mother who acts as the collective conscience of her friend group. She arrives on the trip feeling stuck, out of shape, and burdened by maternal guilt over leaving her young son at home. Raised by a conservative and judgmental mother, she battles internalized shame and yearns to reclaim her lost independence and sense of adventure.

Key Relationships

Childhood Friend of Lexi

Childhood Friend of Bella

Drawn to Fen

Mother of Jack

Eleanor is Ed's anxious and introverted sister. She is profoundly isolated and actively grieving the recent loss of her fiancé, Sam. Feeling entirely out of place among Lexi's glamorous friends, she often retreats to drink alone or speak to Sam's ashes, struggling to manage social expectations while carrying the weight of past bullying and trauma.

Key Relationships

Sister of Ed

Future Sister-in-Law of Lexi

Grieving Fiancée of Sam

Friend of Ana

Ana is a reserved sign language interpreter and single mother who met Lexi at a yoga class. She is highly perceptive, easily reading the forced body language of the other women. Uncomfortable in confined spaces and out of place in the lavish setting, she carries hidden motives for attending the hen weekend and already knows she will not be at the wedding.

Key Relationships

Friend of Lexi

Mother of Luca

Friend of Eleanor

Fen is Bella's calm, grounded girlfriend and a fitness trainer. She serves as a sharp contrast to Bella's chaotic energy, preferring to process her emotions alone through running or swimming. Returning to the Greek island where her aunt's villa is located forces Fen to confront painful memories and unresolved trauma from her past, causing her to pull away from Bella.

Key Relationships

Romantic Partner of Bella

Friend of Robyn

Traumatized by Nico

Ed is Lexi's fiancé and Eleanor's brother. He presents an immaculate, successful image to the world, maintaining strict routines like showering twice a day. However, his perfectionism and subtly controlling tendencies create an unarticulated sense of unease in Lexi, and he shares a historically strained and complicated relationship with his sister.

Key Relationships

Fiancé of Lexi

Brother of Eleanor

Supporting Characters

Sam is Eleanor's deceased fiancé, a man who deeply understood her and made her feel safe from the social anxieties that plagued her life. His tragic, sudden death leaves a lasting void in Eleanor's world, rendering her unable to envision a future without him.

Key Relationships

Late Fiancé of Eleanor

Nico is a local man who works at the best taverna in the island's harbor town. He is a figure from Fen's past whose cruel and abusive behavior left her with lasting trauma and severe body image issues that she has spent years trying to overcome.

Key Relationships

Past Abuser of Fen

Luca is Ana's fifteen-year-old son. Recently suspended and beginning to pull away from his mother, his troubled behavior is a constant source of worry for Ana while she deals with the tense dynamics of the hen weekend in Greece.

Key Relationships

Son of Ana

Jack is Robyn's young son. Left in the care of Robyn's judgmental mother, his absence deeply affects Robyn, who struggles with the guilt of taking time for herself amidst her recent divorce.

Key Relationships

Son of Robyn