Point of View

The point of view is first-person, from the perspective of Toby Hennessy. Toby is an unreliable and immature narrator who misses some key details about his situation thanks to his brain damage and his privileged position in the world. For example, he dismisses his peers' experiences of trauma, and appears unaware of Melissa's unhappiness as the investigation progresses despite hints which are obvious to the reader. Thanks to his brain damage, he also experiences memory loss, which leads to ambiguity regarding his role in Dominic's murder.

Toby narrates the novel in the past tense from the present. Thus, his internal monologue offers insight into the events of the novel from the perspective of the present, although these insights are often presented without context and therefore only become meaningful in hindsight. The reader becomes emotionally invested in Toby and his family, although it is also clear...