Recurring images of handwritten letters act as a motif that develops The Importance of Trust and Emotional Vulnerability to Building Intimacy. At the novel’s start, Camille Aubert finds Jack St. Claire’s love letter to Emmaline Rochefort in the pages of an old book at the bookstore. The letter is so intimate that Camille stops herself from reading the entire thing, convinced it “would be an invasion to keep reading” (11). The letter is so moving to Camille because it captures the obvious intensity of Jack and Em’s connection. The note is “so personal. So intimate. Whatever he wrote on that paper is meant for her eyes only” (12). Indeed, Jack was in love with Em at the time of writing the letter and wanted to pour out his heart to her—specifically to compel her back to Paris from Giverny. The letter captures a time in Jack’s life when he was more willing to be trusting and vulnerable with others.

The letters Jack and Camille write to each other throughout the novel similarly capture the lovers’ deepening connection and trust. When they first start exchanging the missives, they write about their desire to be together and their sexual fantasies. Over time, the letters become more complex and layered. They start to write about their feelings, their memories, their mistakes, and their longings. The letters offer Jack and Camille a safe space to show their vulnerability. They help the characters to connect without fear or expectation. These epistolary portions of the novel—peppered throughout the traditional narrative prose—act as a counterpoint to the lovers’ explicit sexual relationship. The latter is more taboo and erotic, while the former are sweeter and more obviously intimate.