One of the Girls

Bella is Lexi’s oldest friend and the planner of the hen weekend. She is described as glamorous, always in full makeup and designer swimwear, even while at the pool. Beneath her surface-level charisma is insecurity, possessiveness, and self-interest, all of which are exposed as major flaws over the weekend. In Bella’s first chapter, she re-applies her lipstick and notes how good she looks in a bikini, while internally criticizing Robyn. Her primary concern is keeping Lexi to herself. She’s suspicious of Ana and tries to control her access to Lexi, despite Lexi and Ana’s growing closeness through yoga and wedding dress shopping (Bella is not initially aware of who Ana is). Bella hides her sadness behind laughter and forced cheerfulness. Ana sees through her façade, noting Bella’s exaggerated body language. Bella is often unkind without realizing it; when Fen discusses her difficult family background, Bella simply jokes, “more for me.”

Bella has flaws but is also a loyal friend: “She might have been strident and, yes, a little selfish at times, but Bella would have taken a bullet for her friends” (145). Still, her loyalty is often clouded by her desire for control. Bella’s reaction to Lexi’s pregnancy is also framed as selfish, but it’s partly driven by instinct, as Bella feels that something about Ed is off. Bella has her own buried secrets, including a moment shared with Robyn years earlier that Robyn never acknowledged, and her part in Sam’s death. Her relationship with Fen deteriorates over the course of the trip, in part due to her dishonesty about Sam.

On the final day, Bella swims out alone and releases her emotions by screaming into the ocean. It’s a raw attempt to face her pain, but when she finds Fen and Robyn kissing, intoxication and exhaustion lead her to fall from the cliff. Her rescuer is Eleanor, the person most affected by her secret. This act, unintended though it was, becomes a turning point, because if Eleanor can forgive Bella, then perhaps she can forgive herself. Bella begins to process her guilt and, by the Epilogue, works at a care home, showing signs of emotional maturity. Her arc demonstrates how it is possible to grow as a person with honesty and accountability.

Robyn arrives at the villa at a major crossroads in her life. Recently divorced, she is unsure of her purpose and identity and burdened by guilt for leaving behind her young son, Jack. Her loyalty to Lexi is unwavering, and she comes to the island for Lexi’s sake, but her emotional state is complicated. Robyn is deeply sensitive and introspective, and she wears different versions of herself around different people. Her mother harbors misogynistic and anti-gay attitudes that have left Robyn with internalized shame, particularly around her body post-pregnancy and her repressed attraction to women. Robyn admires Fen’s beauty and confidence while feeling envious of Bella’s emotional boldness. These tensions mirror her own inner conflict between duty to her parents and authenticity. Her friendship with Lexi, Bella, and Fen forces her to confront these layers, showcasing The Power and Precarity of Female Friendship. A major shift occurs when Robyn and Fen climb down the cliff and swim naked. In this liberating act, Robyn finally allows herself to be present in her body and feelings: “This was what it felt like to be free. She lay still, submitting to the sea, to the sun” (174).

With Fen, Robyn feels safe and seen. Their connection grows gradually through shared experience and emotional vulnerability. Fen accompanies Robyn to the wading pool, where Robyn opens up about her life, including her strained relationship with her mother. Her mother’s veiled insults and criticisms, especially around her divorce and parenting, have left Robyn doubting her worth. The night after a traumatic head injury, Robyn once shared an intimate moment with Bella, which her mother later dismissed as a sign of brain damage. Robyn internalized that shame and refused to acknowledge the experience, unintentionally hurting Bella in the process. It’s only years later that Robyn realizes the emotional harm her silence caused.

Robyn’s emotional arc reaches its peak when she kisses Fen, described with vivid romantic imagery: “She tasted of night and stars and pine” (332). In that moment, Robyn chooses herself. Her identity, once defined by motherhood, marriage, and external expectations, shifts to embrace authenticity and love. She marries Fen, a symbol of her growth from self-denial to self-acceptance. Robyn’s journey is central to the novel’s exploration of how personal liberation from The Pressure of Patriarchal Gender Norms requires letting go of guilt and fear and choosing truth over performance. Robyn finally becomes who she truly is.

Eleanor is Ed’s sister and is one of the novel’s most dynamic characters. At first, she seems to be a side player, reluctantly joining the hen weekend, haunted by past bullying, and quietly resentful of Lexi’s beauty. Her observations are sharp and self-conscious: “As she looked at Lexi now, she decided that there was something about the symmetry of her features, the precise straightness of her nose, that made you keep on looking, as if beauty were something mathematical you could work out, solve” (47). Eleanor carries deep emotional scars from Ed’s bullying and social isolation and from the social rejection she has experienced as an adult. Her anxiety is described as a “poisonous and deadly” snake (58), coiled inside her whenever she’s reminded of her outsider status. She was engaged to Sam, a man who saw her completely, but he died just 10 months into their relationship. Now, she finds herself on an island to celebrate another wedding while still grieving her lost future.

Eleanor spends her nights at home alone, drinking secretly and talking to Sam’s ashes. Her bond with Ana on the trip becomes a rare light. Ana encourages her to stand up to Ed, helping her rediscover her voice. Slowly, their friendship blooms: “The interesting thing about a spark, Eleanor thought as she looked at Ana, was that it either burns out, or begins to smolder—and then flame” (150). When Eleanor discovers that Ana was keeping secrets about Ed, including her past relationship with him and her child, she feels betrayed and manipulated. Her anxiety and grief reach a peak when she takes a rowboat out alone during the fire. The moment is haunting: “She lay in the boat, feeling it rock beneath her, knowing there was a bottle of vodka to drink, a thousand memories to lose herself in. The warm glow of the beach fire had slipped from view altogether, so now it was only her and the sea” (319). As she contemplates her pain and the possibility of death, the stars make her problems feel small.

The climax comes when Ed arrives, his many secrets are revealed, and he hits Ana. Eleanor, inspired by fury and grief, pushes him. She doesn’t mean to kill him, but she does mean to hurt him, and it becomes an act of emotional and moral reckoning. Eleanor’s arc is one of transformation through grief, rage, and release. She comes to accept that “life was fragile and fleeting and mostly out of your control, and all you could do was surround yourself with good people, do your best” (423). Eleanor becomes someone reborn through tragedy, and her journey is about reclaiming agency and choosing life over loss.

Ana is introduced as Lexi’s grounded and compassionate friend, shaped by her experiences as a single mother who worked her way through night school. She is quiet and reserved, often expressing discomfort with confined spaces or locked doors, a subtle indication of past trauma with Ed. Ana’s perceptiveness stems from her role as a sign language interpreter; she picks up on small cues, like Bella’s forced smiles or tense gestures. She bonds closely with Eleanor during the trip and is one of the few characters who affirms her feelings of grief and isolation. Their connection helps Eleanor find a sense of strength. Ana’s friendship with Lexi seems genuine, but it is later revealed that Ana had observed Lexi from afar before they met. She knew of Eleanor as well through Ed.

Like the others, Ana has her own secrets. She is the mother of Ed’s son, Luca, a fact she has kept hidden. Her initial reason for joining the trip is ambiguous, and when her connection to Ed becomes known, the group is shaken. Lexi feels betrayed, especially since Ana kept the pregnancy secret while getting close to her. As the truth surfaces, Ana’s behavior becomes more withdrawn and tense. Ana reveals that her child with Ed involved rape and that she has spent years trying not to name what happened to her. When Ed arrives, Ana tries to stand her ground and defends Eleanor. Ed lashes out, hitting her. This action prompts Eleanor to intervene, and Ed dies.

Ana’s story is about survival in silence, and the cost of burying trauma for the sake of normalcy. By telling the truth, Ana reclaims her agency. Though her relationship with Lexi is temporarily damaged, Ana remains a part of the group, connected through shared experience and resilience. Her story demonstrates the power of speaking out and the emotional labor required to live with hidden wounds. As a character, she embodies Secrets as Bond and Solvent, as her secrets both isolate her and weave her into a tight-knit community of women.

Fen is introduced as Bella’s girlfriend, but she exists in contrast to Bella’s chaotic energy. Fen is calm, grounded, and deeply intuitive, often trying to maintain emotional equilibrium even when surrounded by tension. She appears apprehensive on the journey to the villa, a place that holds both fond and painful memories for her. The villa, owned by her aunt, triggers discomfort the moment she arrives. Fen is upset by Bella’s dishonesty and becomes increasingly distant, which causes friction in their relationship. She often removes herself from drama, going for runs to process her emotions alone. Her character reflects someone both emotionally strong and internally wounded. Fen was once assaulted by a man named Nico and told she was disgusting, leading to body image issues. After overcoming physical and emotional challenges, she became a personal trainer to help others find their strength, overcoming The Pressure of Patriarchal Gender Norms.

A significant turning point occurs when Fen and Robyn descend a cliff to swim nude in the sea. The moment is deeply symbolic, as it represents a shedding of fear and constraint, and the beginning of a bond between two women at different stages of self-discovery. Robyn sees Fen’s vulnerability and beauty: “Water droplets were caught in the ends of Fen’s lashes, sunlight glinting off the perfect clear beads, making her green eyes look like they were sparkling” (105). This moment establishes Fen as both a guide and mirror to Robyn’s emotions. Later, Fen accompanies Robyn to the wading pool, continuing to support her with empathy and curiosity. Fen also confronts her own past by facing Nico at the local taverna. Robyn’s earlier bravery inspires her to do this, completing a circle of empowerment. After confronting Bella’s dishonesty and realizing they are emotionally incompatible, Fen ends the relationship.

By the story’s end, Fen has not only found peace but also love, entering a healthy and affirming relationship with Robyn. Their marriage solidifies both women’s personal growth. Fen represents the possibility of healing through honesty, courage, and mutual care. Her story also explores the importance of self-worth after trauma. Fen does not merely survive; she builds something better.