“The tickle. Emmy called it a bad feeling. She’d heard other cops refer to it as a hunch or, instinct or, if the officer was a woman, intuition. No matter the name, what it meant was that either something really bad had happened or something really bad was about to happen.”

The third-person narrator inhabits Emmy Clifton’s consciousness to convey her perception of the kidnapping case. Emmy is working with her experienced father Gerald Clifton, but she has her own outlook on the crime. She has a hunch that something bad is happening even before she discovers what the crime is. Her ability to perceive and respond to danger is a key facet of her character. The passage thus accomplishes important character work.

“That gave the kidnapper a head start of at least eighty-five minutes. Eighty-five minutes to terrify. Eighty-five minutes to torture. Eighty-five minutes to kill. Emmy told herself they were searching for the living. That Madison and Cheyenne were going to beat the odds, but with every passing second, she felt her hope slipping away.”

Emmy’s internal monologue in the hours after Madison and Cheyenne’s disappearance affects a harried narrative tone. Emmy is calculating how long she and her colleagues have to find the missing teenagers before it is too late. The use of anaphora—repeating the “eighty-five minutes” phrase throughout the passage—creates tension and urgency that mirrors Emmy’s state of mind.

“Sure, but also for power, control, manipulation. Small men can’t handle grown women. They go after girls because most girls are pliable and desperate for outside approval. At that age, you’ll do almost anything for attention, even if it feels bad and you know it’s wrong.”

Gerald’s musings on the Broken Angels Case provide subtle subtextual commentary on sexual violence in American culture. Gerald is reflecting on the reasons why men victimize young innocent girls like Madison and Cheyenne. He does not blame the girls, but instead holds the perpetrators responsible for being weak and morally corrupt. The author thus uses Gerald’s character as a spokesperson for her own outlook on such patterns of criminal behavior.

“In the long history of their friendship, there had been heartache and tears, but nothing like this. Hannah started to tremble from the weight of it. Her sobs had a keening quality. The sound was like a razor flaying open Emmy’s heart. She closed her eyes and only saw Madison.”

Hannah and Emmy’s responses to Madison’s disappearance introduce the novel’s exploration of The Challenges of Coping with Grief and Guilt. The friends are familiar with “heartache and tears” but they have never faced such devastation before. Diction like “tremble,” “weight,” “sobs,” “keening,” “razor,” and “flaying” enacts the intensity of the women’s emotions. They are unsure how to respond to their sorrow and despair, causing them to experience great physiological distress.

“Both girls were insular and very clingy, but only with each other. You see that around this age sometimes, where girls are intensely focused on each other. They feed off the drama of being isolated. Us against them. Nobody understands us. We’re smarter than everybody else. I’m glad my girl’s not too wrapped up in that. It’s not an easy way to live.”

Dylan Alvarez’s reflections on teenage girls’ behavioral patterns help Emmy to think about Madison and Cheyenne’s circumstances differently. Dylan speaks with empathy and without judgment. He doesn’t blame Madison and Cheyenne for being victimized, but instead analyzes how going through puberty can render young girls vulnerable. He is using his own experience with his daughter to understand the subjects of the case, too, which reveals his empathetic nature.

“‘I did the cons. The money. Dale’s wallet isn’t big.’ Emmy knew he wanted more. She took a moment to think. ‘If it’s not Dale, it’s someone like him. Someone in the community who hides in plain sight. He’s probably in a bad marriage or divorced. He probably started out watching child porn on his computer, then he decided to act on his fantasies.’”

Emmy’s conjectures about the Broken Angels Case reveals The Fragile Veneer of Small-Town Life. Everyone in North Falls knows each other, which implies that they are all looking out for each other. In this moment, however, Emmy has a revelation about the underlying culture of her hometown. Everyone in North Falls might not be who she thinks they are. Her belief that “someone in the community” is responsible for Madison and Cheyenne’s fates shows her newfound willingness to interrogate the truth of her surroundings and environment.

“She turned around, her breath catching. The sun hadn’t moved. She could still see the glint of gold in the grass. She carefully went to one knee. She reached for the object, but sanity prevailed. Emmy didn’t have to touch it to know what she was looking at. Nor did she have any question about to whom it belonged. The curly gold script spelled out the owner’s name— Cheyenne.”

Emmy’s discovery of Cheyenne’s necklace marks a turning point in the novel. The necklace is a vital piece of evidence in the Broken Angels Case. Since We Are All Guilty Here is a crime thriller, the novel is structured around the investigation into and resolution of the central mystery. Each clue the characters uncover propels the narrative forward. This moment is also emotionally resonant for Emmy, because it compels her to face the truth of Madison and Cheyenne’s fate.

“She whispered, ‘I’m sorry, baby. I’m so sorry I didn’t listen to you.’ Emmy felt tears sting her eyes. There was no relief from speaking words, no lightening of the load, just the heavy burden of all that had been lost.”

The narrator uses figurative language to convey Emmy’s intense emotional response to finding Madison’s and Cheyenne’s bodies in Millie’s pond. Diction including “load,” “heavy,” and “burden” echo Emmy’s weighty feelings. She is overcome by sorrow in this scene for failing to save the girls, particularly Madison. The moment underscores The Challenges of Coping with Grief and Guilt.

“I love you, too, baby. But change doesn’t stop just ‘cause you’re standing still. It’s gonna happen. You know that as well as me. Turn it into a good thing. Fresh blood. New ideas. Computers. Internet. Podcasts. Snapchat. Tic Tac.”

This scene of dialogue between Gerald and Emmy depicts Gerald as the archetypal guide in Emmy’s story. Gerald is not only Emmy’s father, but her mentor. She relies on his love, guidance, support, and direction. He is offering her wisdom and insight as they prepare to reopen the Broken Angels Case following Adam’s release from prison.

“Hannah could see it, too. That was why she was holding Emmy’s hand. She had come to Adam’s house because she was scared, because her heart was broken, because another precious thing had been taken from another terrified mother.”

Emmy and Hannah’s fleeting interaction outside of Adam’s house underscores The Impact of the Past on the Present. Due to everything that happened 12 years prior, history is repeating itself. Emmy realizes that she has not in fact resolved the trauma of the past because another little girl has been taken and another mother’s heart has been broken. The past and present are colliding in this scene.

“She reached under the sheet. Held onto his cold hand. Waited to feel something, anything, that told her this was their final moment alone. It felt nothing like what she’d read about in books and seen in movies. The sense of closure. The feeling that his spirit had stuck around long enough to say goodbye. That he would still watch over her. Listen to her. Hold her in his gaze.”

Emmy’s last moments with her late father invoke The Challenges of Coping with Grief and Guilt. Emmy is saying goodbye to Gerald’s body, but she is overcome by longing to speak to him again. The fragmented syntax of the passage enacts Emmy’s fractured emotional state. She is grieving her father, while trying to come to terms with his sudden absence from her life. This scene underscores what a significant role Gerald played in Emmy’s life and how difficult it will be for her to navigate the future without him.

“Jude felt a strange kind of emptiness in her body, a pull to disassociate. She’d forgotten the sensation over the decades. This family. This town. These people. Her soul held onto the memory of the pain they’d caused. Some things you could never leave behind.”

Jude Archer’s return to North Falls decades after she left home underscores The Impact of the Past on the Present. Although it has been decades since she departed, she finds that “the memory of the pain” her townspeople caused her has not gone away. The town’s past is still lodged in its present culture and atmosphere, forcing Jude to confront what happened to her years prior.

“The sense of unease returned to her body. Tommy had said that Gerald had changed because of Emmy. That Myrna had gotten better. That Emmy had brought a ray of sunshine into their lives. What her brother hadn’t said was the obvious: the light had only broken through after Jude’s darkness was gone.”

Jude’s reunion with Tommy and Emmy complicates her sense of self. Jude has spent over decades away from her family and hometown creating an independent and healthy life for herself. Upon her return, she discovers that everyone seems happier without her. This revelation unsettles Jude and speaks to The Impact of the Past on the Present. Who she is today is a result of her past experiences.

“In truth, she wanted Hannah to do the same for her. There had been so many times in the past twelve years that Emmy had ached for the comfort of their friendship. When Myrna had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. When she’d really started to decline […] And now this insanity with her older sister suddenly back in town less than twenty-four hours after their father had been shot dead in the street.”

Emmy’s internal monologue conveys The Challenges of Coping with Grief and Guilt. Emmy has not only lost her parents, she has lost her best friend. Without Hannah’s support these past 12 years, Emmy has felt unmoored. She is meditating on everything she wishes she could share with her friend, and how different she’d feel if she had Hannah’s closeness. She has yet to reconcile with their estrangement and is still seeking a way to heal from this loss.

“‘Emmy.’ Jude tempered her tone. ‘I can’t imagine what the last twenty-four hours has been like, but you need to listen to me if you want your job when this is over. You’re all over the place. You need to rein yourself in. You’re going to miss the important details.’”

Jude employs a direct and blunt tone with Emmy when addressing her about her career. Jude wants Emmy to take her job seriously and to respect herself. She is urging Emmy to stop handing over all of her power to her colleagues. She uses anaphora—beginning each sentence with “you” or “you’re”—to affect an urgent and sincere tone. She wants Emmy to see herself the way that she sees her: as a capable woman.

“Twelve years ago, Dylan Alvarez had been on Emmy’s periphery, her what if. What if she wasn’t married to Jonah? What if she asked Dylan out after the divorce? What if she waited until Cole was out of high school? What if Dylan wasn’t dating someone else? What if Emmy wasn’t good enough for him? What if she only knew how to be with a bad man?”

Emmy’s questions about her romantic relationships reflect her personal dilemmas, with the series of rhetorical questions speaking to her regrets and unresolved tensions. Emmy is musing on what happened between her and Dylan and the devolution of her and Jonah’s relationship. She is actively probing the annals of her past in order to better understand her circumstances, relationships, and identity in the present. The moment of internal monologue conveys Emmy’s desire to change and the internal work she’s doing to grow.

“Jude rested her hand on the back of the chair. Melancholy threatened to take hold. She looked at the doorjamb. The marks were still there where Myrna had tracked the progress of their growth. Tommy. Henry. Martha. Jude felt a sadness over the relatively new additions. Emmy. Cole. She’d missed everything.”

Jude’s response to revisiting her childhood home reiterates The Impact of the Past on the Present. Decades have passed since Jude has been home but the house retains the memories of her life there and the years she missed being with her family, turning Clifton House into an important symbol in the text. Her melancholic state reveals how heavily the past continues to weigh on Jude’s psyche. She has been unable to confront this emotional burden until returning to her family home.

“Jude had never considered telling her father. Gerald would’ve been mad at her for sneaking out, for being drunk, for putting herself in such a vulnerable situation. ‘I didn’t even tell Henry until a month later. We were at the Falls. He wanted to beat the shit out of you, but I wanted to get drunk. I passed out and he went into the water. We didn’t find his body for six days.’”

Jude’s encounter with Adam Huntsinger reawakens the trauma she experienced decades prior. Adam not only raped Jude; his crimes in turn led to Henry’s death—another great loss and trauma for Jude. When she goes to the bar to see Adam, she is confronting these harrowing aspects of her past. She is using her voice to articulate her experience. In these ways, Jude is taking steps towards acknowledging The Impact of the Past on the Present and towards healing.

“Making sure you didn’t drown. Emmy felt a fresh wave of tears. She was overwhelmed with gratitude for his kindness. For the temporary feeling of safety he’d afforded her. There was no way she could put that in a text. She could barely say it to his face.”

Emmy’s emotive response to Dylan’s text conveys her longing for support, compassion, and love. Emmy has had a difficult life. Dylan’s genuine investment moves Emmy because she feels starved for companionship and care. Her acknowledgement that she feels unable to text her feelings to Dylan, and “could barely say it to his face,” speaks to important elements of her characterization: Her habitual emotional reserve and her fear of vulnerability, which sometimes leaves her unable to connect, even when she wants to.

“It wasn’t exhaustion but anxiety that seemed to be eating [Emmy] from the inside out. Jude knew what it was like to read through old cases, the memories that could resurface along with the brutal details. There was a sort of dreaded relief when you located a body. You’d achieved a goal, your soul-crushing quest was finally over, but at a horrible expense. You carried those memories with you for the rest of your life.”

Jude’s ability to empathize with Emmy’s character in this scene foreshadows the novel’s twist ending. At this juncture of the novel, Emmy has been led to believe that Jude is Emmy’s estranged older sister. In reality, she is Emmy’s birth mother. Jude is studying her daughter and experiencing her emotions along with her. Her soulish connection with Emmy in this scene implies more intimacy between them than the narrative has so far revealed. Further, Jude’s reflections on “reading through old cases” underscores The Impact of the Past on the Present. Memories don’t simply dissipate with time or distance; they remain present inside the individual’s body.

“Emmy started jogging toward the house. Her eyes glanced across the dark stain on the asphalt where Gerald had fallen. The feeling of cleaving threatened to return, that sense of sudden emptiness. She knew with every fiber of her being what her father would want her to do right now.”

Emmy summons her late father to find courage and strength in this climactic moment. Emmy is on the verge of solving both the Paisley Walker and the Broken Angels Case. To get to the truth, Emmy must recall all that Gerald taught her. She must also channel who Gerald was and what he would have wanted. He remains Emmy’s archetypal guide even after his death. Therefore, Emmy is beginning to accept The Challenges of Coping with Grief and Guilt.

“He had offered to track down Dale Loudermilk’s prison contacts because he knew one particular name would appear on the list: Virgil Ingram, a white man working in a skilled position that required education and training. Whose job brought him into frequent contact with children. Who was married with kids of his own.”

Emmy’s revelation about Virgil Ingram’s involvement in the Broken Angels and Paisley Walker cases acts as the narrative climax. Emmy is coming to terms with the truth, no matter how difficult it is for her to believe. Recognizing that Virgil is not the man she thought he was also conveys The Fragile Veneer of Small-Town Life. Virgil has hidden behind his “good cop” persona and the reliable, paternal figure he’s played in North Falls. However, he has used his reputation and power to manipulate everyone in the community—including Emmy.

“I miss them so goddam much, Dylan. I’ve dreaded losing them for so long, and suddenly, it’s like somebody snapped their fingers and both of the clocks stopped at the same damn time, and they’re just gone. And the worst part is that I’m so fucking relieved it’s finally over so I don’t have to live with that constant ticking anymore.”

Emmy’s ability to open up to Dylan about her true feelings captures her character’s growth. Throughout the majority of the novel, Emmy pulls away from the people in her life. She intentionally hides her feelings or avoids getting close to people. She is afraid of her own emotions and terrified that her real feelings will alienate her. In this moment, however, Emmy is coming to terms with what she feels and what she needs.