Topeka, Kansas

Most of the novel takes place in the city of Topeka, Kansas. Jane and Jonathan moved to Topeka to complete postdoctoral fellowships, and they eventually decided to permanently settle there. Adam was born and raised in Topeka. The novel presents Topeka as fairly placid and almost oppressive in its conformity. However, the novel also sheds light on the city’s underlying tensions between progressive and regressive ideas. The Westboro Baptist Church—a real-life organization built around hatred and intolerance—was founded in Topeka, and it occasionally appears in the novel.

Clinton Lake

Clinton Lake is a reservoir located between the cities of Topeka and Lawrence. One of the opening scenes of the novel’s takes place on Clinton Lake, as Adam and his girlfriend Amber ride on a boat across the lake. Later, in a pivotal moment for Darren’s character, Darren is abandoned at the lake...