There Is No Devil

These chapters focus especially on the fusion of art, trauma, and identity, illustrating how creative expression becomes a strategic tool in the characters’ pursuit of control and recognition. Mara’s first solo show marks a pivotal moment in her development, as her art transitions from abstract escapism to confrontational autobiography. The exhibition centers on her past suffering, with pieces like an oversized painting of a charred teddy bear and The Two Maras, which explicitly references Frida Kahlo’s famous work on dual identity. In Mara’s version, her traumatized self confronts a powerful, “ferocious” reflection that embodies the person she is becoming. The novel presents this public display as a deliberate therapeutic act of rebranding. By transforming her private pain into public art, Mara seizes control of her own story, converting trauma into a source of professional and personal power. Her mother’s subsequent media statement, which dismisses the abuse claims as a “filthy, deceptive fantasy” (153), underscores that this is a battle over narrative authority, memory, and self-perception. Mara’s art becomes her most potent weapon, allowing her to define her own reality against the gaslighting that characterized her upbringing. The theme of Art as an Expression of Identity and Experience is thus realized as a powerful act of self-authorship.

The novel further complicates its exploration of extralegal violence by framing it as a form of therapeutic justice, meticulously performed for a specific audience. Cole’s murder of Randall is depicted as a choreographed spectacle designed to provide Mara with catharsis, and it is presented to her as both a gift and an object lesson in murder. The video recording transforms the murder into a piece of media intended for a single viewer, Mara, and as a test of trust between them. Cole’s purpose is explicitly didactic; he forces her to watch the violence to desensitize her for their plan to kill Shaw. This curated violence serves the theme of Vengeance as a Dark and Alternative Form of Justice, suggesting that true closure for trauma requires an active, violent exorcism. Cole’s assertion that anger must be killed directly—“If Randall had died of old age, the anger wouldn’t have died with him. You have to kill it” (182)—cements this philosophy. The act becomes a shared secret that binds the couple, making Mara an accomplice when she destroys the evidence and solidifying her transition from victim to active participant in their violent pact.

The theme of Redefining Love Through Control and Submission is developed by portraying acceptance—of the self and others—as a source of love and safety. When Mara finds out that Cole has drugged her under false pretenses, she accepts his nature and adopted role as the paternalistic protector she never had. Her internal monologue reveals her acceptance of this dynamic, reflecting on her need for a teacher and protector. For a survivor of the chaotic abuse that defined her youth, Cole’s meticulous control offers adult Mara something that she is still seeking. Although Mara’s submission could be read as a perpetuation of abuse, her perspective shows her to be self-aware and self-accepting about the effects that trauma has on her choices.

The narrative pacing toward the end of this section quickens dramatically, moving from the tension of the art show to the brutal murder of Randall and finally to the high-stakes action of the Christmas Eve trap. This acceleration mirrors the characters’ psychological journey from contemplation to decisive action, making the climactic confrontation feel both inevitable and necessary.