Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses murder, sexual harassment, sexual assault, child abuse, and trauma.

“Nothing ever happens in sleepy little Fairhill, Vermont. Until it does.”

The opening lines of the text set up the suspense for the novel to follow and establish the importance of the setting. It is a small town that will be greatly impacted by the events of the novel, introducing from the very beginning the theme of The Impact of Tragedy on Communities.

“One stares malevolently at him, face bloodied, but the other is busy feeding, head down, ripping at flesh. The dog sticks closer to the tractor.”

The personification of the vultures and their “malevolent” stare establishes their symbolic importance, as they will later be compared to people in the novel. Additionally, the imagery created by the vivid description sets a tone of anger, violence, and disgust—all of which are prevalent throughout the text.

“It feels like she’s slamming the lid down on Pandora’s box far too late. All the evils of the world are already out there for them to see, to participate in, with the touch of a finger. Even here in their quiet, friendly little town.”

Although Paula is specifically talking about technology, she is acknowledging the horror and danger that exist in the world—much of which her students are secluded from in Fairhill. “Pandora’s box” is an allusion to Greek mythology; Pandora was the first human woman created, and she was overwhelmed by her curiosity and chose to open a container, unleashing evil upon humanity. Today, it is an idiom that relates to people letting their curiosity get the best of them and facing the consequences of acting on it. Here, Paula is referencing technology as the “box,” which her students cannot resist, but it also foretells the “evils” that will unfold in the novel in Fairhill.

“They each left work to be here for their son, Cameron. It’s a terrible thing—his girlfriend has been murdered. It’s hard to take in. Such a lovely girl. Their son will need all their support through this.”

Cameron’s dad initially believes he needs to support his son in his grief. However, due to the shifting perspective, this is an example of dramatic irony, as the reader knows that he is being called in for questioning as a suspect. This quote also foreshadows Cameron’s parents’ willingness to give “all their support”—even if it means lying and hiding evidence from the police.

“‘Fairhill isn’t the kind of place you have to lock your doors.’ She pauses, because she knows now that that isn’t true. Brenda used to lock up at night, but now she goes to work and leaves it to her daughter. It never occurred to her that they weren’t safe. She knows better now. Now that it’s too late.”

These thoughts from Diana’s mother reflect the impact that the setting has on the novel. She previously was unconcerned about their small community but now will deal with both her grief and her fear of what could happen, even in Fairhill. This conveys the theme of the impact of tragedy on communities.

“[Brad] stands at one of the sinks and stares at himself in the mirror, allows his fear and panic to show for a moment, distorting his usually handsome, confident face. He stares at himself as if mesmerized. Is this really happening?”

The first time that Brad is introduced, the reader does not know about the allegations against him; however, Shari Lapena foreshadows them by his “fear” and “panic” as he desperately tries to speak with Principal Kelly. Additionally, the use of a mirror—with Brad and his reflection—is a metaphor for the two sides of him: the one he wants to show the public that is “confident” and the one that hides his secret attraction and sexual abuse of his students.

“Paula left the school feeling uneasy. Kelly seemed certain that there was nothing to Diana’s allegations, but maybe he wasn’t the best judge. And Diana didn’t seem like the sort of girl to make a complaint of that sort—of any sort—that was without foundation.”

Even with very little information about Diana’s complaint, Paula still notices how “uneasy” it makes her feel, revealing her emotional intelligence. Paula becomes the moral pillar regarding the theme of The Complexities of Sexual Assault Allegations, as she can better understand her female students and the bias that Kelly holds as a man, receiving a report from another man. Her first instinct is to trust Diana’s accusation rather than the all-too-common reaction of disbelief.

“Joe Prior gets in his truck at quitting time and catches his foreman watching him. Joe wonders what the wiry bastard is thinking. […] Shit. The picture of him had to be a still from video surveillance from the fucking Home Depot.”

The first time Joe is introduced to the reader, his perspective is the first—and one of the only—to use abrasive language. This instantly characterizes him in sharp contrast to the other characters, setting him up as a one-dimensional villain and suspect in Diana’s murder.

“This whole day has unraveled like a dirty bandage off a wound, revealing unspeakable horror. Every time she thinks of Diana’s last moments, she feels a breathless panic as if she, too, will die. But she’s still here. Stuck in this awful purgatory, reliving her daughter’s death over and over again.”

As Brenda attempts to deal with her daughter’s death, these internal thoughts reflect the theme of the impact of tragedy on communities. The metaphor—comparing her life to purgatory, the place in between heaven and Hell—conveys the idea that she is overwhelmed by grief over her daughter. She is unsure how she can continue to live without her or ever move on, away from her death and back into normal life.

“[Ellen’s] lighthearted by nature, but a shadow has been cast over all of them tonight. It has reached even into here, their familiar, homey kitchen, with the checkered oilcloth on the table, and the dog lying in her bed in the corner.”

This vivid description of Ellen’s parents’ home conveys the theme of the impact of tragedy on communities. Their small, quaint home—with the “checkered” tablecloth and their dog—has always brought them peace, but now, in the wake of the tragedy of Diana’s death, their lives are being affected as they question the safety of Fairhill.

“[Ellen] would support [Brad] through this. Most men, she thought, had trouble expressing grief. They weren’t like women, who were allowed to show their emotions. […] And Brad was a jock, a gym teacher—he wasn’t exactly the touchy-feely type. She was the only one he had to confide in. He’d probably been bottling it up inside at school all day.”

After Brad angrily snaps at Ellen, she justifies his behavior by assuming he is holding in his emotions over Diana’s death. This quote shows the “traditional” side of Ellen—her belief that men aren’t supposed to show emotion—and her lack of understanding of Brad’s stress. Ironically, she believes he is upset about Diana dying. In reality, he is stressed about his assault against high school girls being revealed.

“Edward waits, his heart pounding. He wishes he was anywhere else; he wishes he hadn’t started this. He feels like he’s on the edge of a precipice; the fall will be catastrophic.”

This simile—comparing Edward’s feelings about his son to standing on the edge of a cliff—conveys the way that Edward grapples with whether to help his son if he did indeed kill Diana. He feels like he needs to ask Cameron about where he was the night before and get information from him to help him, but he also feels like he will potentially have to incriminate himself if he lies to protect Cameron. This simile also conveys the theme of The Consequences of Secrets and Deception; Cameron felt as though lying to the police would protect him, but instead, it has led to further questions and affected his father, who will be forced to choose justice or standing by his son.

“[Kelly] hopes this matter of Diana’s complaint doesn’t come out publicly, because he doesn’t want to be under scrutiny for the way he handled it. He should have reported it, even if he found it unbelievable. It’s not always easy to do the right thing, or to know what that is.”

These thoughts show the type of person that Kelly is throughout most of the novel. He does not think of Diana’s death or how the assault affected her; instead, he is only concerned with his job and how community members will perceive his actions. Notably, he uses the word “right,” but instead of meaning the actual “right” thing—protecting Diana—he means the “right” thing to protect his job.

“Brad Turner is drinking coffee and chain-smoking at his small kitchen table in his apartment on Saturday morning. It’s almost noon. He slept poorly. He’s disabled the smoke detector, given up smoking by the window.”

Brad’s progression with smoking—from one to a few by the window to “chain-smoking” right in the kitchen—is a metaphor for his deteriorating mental state. It is reflective of the theme of The Consequences of Secrets and Deception, as his lies have started to catch up with him and are mentally and physically taking their toll on him.

“Joe has been watching [Josie] for a while. He likes to spread them out. Josie here in Littleton, which is over the state line in New Hampshire. Kayla in Magog, in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. He does a lot of driving. But that’s okay, he likes driving his truck, uses the time to think, to go over his fantasies in his mind.”

In one of the few instances where the reader gets the perspective of Joe, he is seen stalking a young girl in Quebec. He unapologetically watches, follows, and visits the homes of several young girls, fantasizing about breaking into their homes. This sets Joe up as the stereotypical villain, with little depth or remorse for his actions. It also sets him up as a red herring in Diana’s death.

“Riley and Evan—I would trust them with my life. I’m afraid, though, that I was wrong to trust Cameron. Cameron might have put me here, floating on the fringes, in this sort of half life, watching people who love me grieve.”

Ironically, Diana claims to trust Evan “with [her] life,” despite the later revelation that he killed her. However, her point of view is important to the text because it mimics the thoughts of the reader. At this point, Lapena leads the reader to believe that Cameron, Brad, or Joe are guilty—pulling suspicion away from Evan. This builds suspense, as well as future shock, toward the revelation of Evan’s actions.

“[Paula] frets about the people who were closest to Diana. Her mother. Her boyfriend, Cameron; her friends, Riley and Evan; the girls on the track team. Her heart breaks for all of them. It’s so dreadful that murder has come to their small town. She’d thought they were safe here.”

These thoughts from Paula exemplify the theme of the impact of tragedy on communities. She thinks of all the people affected by Diana’s death, as well as the broader community that will now feel unsafe due to the murder. This is also an example of irony, as she does not yet realize that, in addition to Diana’s murderer, there is also the threat of Brad and Joe on their community.

“Ellen is saying how awful it is about Diana, and how upset he’s been about it. She seems to be excited to be talking to a minor celebrity in these parts. This person who’s going to destroy him. He feels the most awful rage toward the two women in his living room. […] ‘Diana was a natural athlete,’ Brad says, wishing Ellen would shut the fuck up.”

The diction here—the jarring use of the word “fuck” and the description of Brad’s “awful rage”—conveys the identity that Brad hides from the world. Despite Ellen’s belief that she is going to build a life with him, he slowly unravels, and his true identity is revealed.

“If there’s any chance that he molested these girls, it’s over. And she will have to cancel the dream wedding and give up the cute house that she’s been redecorating in her mind, as well as the bright future they’d been planning together.”

After Ellen goes over and over the accusations against Brad in her mind, these thoughts mark the beginning of her change. For the first time, she is contemplating giving up the life she has planned as she uncovers more and more about Brad. Her fairytale view of the world is being slowly broken by the consequences of secrets and deception as Brad’s predatory past is revealed.

“I’m thinking about that text and whether Cameron could have sent it. Riley says the detectives thought it was a sign of hubris, and yes, I can see that. Would Cameron be that arrogant? Possibly.”

After finishing the novel, this quote from Evan shows the true unreliability of his narration. Even though he knows Cameron is innocent, he still writes in his journal that Cameron has the “hubris” to text Riley from Diana’s phone—knowing that he is the one who did it. This quote also reveals Evan’s delusion and lack of remorse, as he coldly turns the blame on Cameron, even in a diary that no one will ever read.

“A shitstorm is about to come down on Graham Kelly’s head. [Paula] thinks that he probably deserves it. He hadn’t handled it properly, and it looks like he will have to pay the price. He will probably lose his job over this. He may never be able to work in education again. She suspects a female principal might have handled it differently.”

This quote portrays Paula as the moral compass within the novel. Despite the fallout from Kelly’s decision, she is adamant that the truth still needs to come out—and that Kelly will be deserving of whatever punishment he receives from it. This also contributes to the theme of the complexities of sexual assault allegations, as she recognizes that Kelly’s gender likely hindered his ability to properly assess Diana’s allegations, a trend that is common with sexual assault allegations.

“[Joe] smells of days-old sweat, as if he doesn’t bathe enough or wash his clothes. I recognize that stench, from when he bothered me at Home Depot. I could always smell him coming.”

Lapena again uses Diana’s first-person narration to push the reader toward believing that Joe is guilty. Here, she plays into the trope of the flat villain, known by his repulsive physical characteristics.

“The door finally opens, and she’s appalled at the visible change in the bereaved woman. The last time Paula saw her, in the spring, was at a parent-teacher conference. […] She was so supportive of her daughter, so proud of her. She is a mere shadow of that woman now. Her face is colorless and slack, her hair limp and untidy.”

Like Brad, Brenda has gone through a physical change throughout the novel, reflecting the internal struggle she is having. For her, the impact of tragedy on communities is clear, as Diana’s death has driven her into complete grief and despair, demonstrated here in her inability to properly care for herself.

“They had discussed whether they should even go to the funeral but had decided that more harm would be done by staying away. People would talk either way. Better to put in an appearance, to hold up their heads. And so the three of them, in their mourning clothes, get into the car together.”

The funeral marks an important point in the novel for many of the townspeople, particularly Cameron and his parents. Because of the impact of tragedy on communities, they are unsure whether they should attend the funeral and give the community something to gossip about or avoid the funeral and not give themselves a chance to grieve Diana. Similarly, Brad and Ellen also battle this dilemma, as the impact of the community, its opinion, and its gossip in the wake of Diana’s death play a large role in all the townspeople’s actions.