Point of View

This novel is told from the first-person point of view of two different main characters, Clara and Morgan. Clara and Morgan narrate in alternating chapters, telling the story in their own words in a basically linear form. One narrator picks up the narration at the point that the other ends. For instance, at the end of Chapter 23, Morgan narrates as she kisses Jonah: “My body conforms to his like I’m afraid something will wedge itself between us if I let go. / And then, sadly, it does” (226). Clara picks up at the beginning of Chapter 24: “‘Mom?’ / It’s the only word I can manage to say, but it’s powerful enough to put a five-foot divide between them” (227).

Clara and Morgan tell their story based on what they know. Morgan, for instance, knows that Chris and Jenny were having an affair. Clara does not know...