Point of View

The novel remains consistent with the point of view: a distant, omniscient third person narrator whose voice simply narrates but does not interact with any of the action in the story. Each chapter centers on one character's thoughts and actions despite how many people are involved in the story at a given time. The narrator is entirely neutral and is used to highlight the internal thoughts, feelings, struggles, and fears of each character.

Language and Meaning

Ruskovich uses the concept of music as a driving force throughout the novel. Music becomes, in a way, like an extra character in the narrative. The pacing she provides through her varied sentence structures winds up mirroring music. Some sentences are long, languid and drift on much like slow and smooth woodwinds. Other chapters contain quick and frantic sections, causing the reader to read with the same speedy flurry...