“I can’t save her without saving myself first, and she might already be beyond rescue. But then I think again about Len, dead for more than a year now, his body crumpled on the shore of this very lake. I can’t let the same thing happen to this woman.”

Len Bradley’s death is a traumatic event in Casey Fletcher’s past, and it haunts her throughout the novel. Although the reader doesn’t get the full context of Len’s death until the end, when it’s revealed that he was the serial killer who murdered the missing girls, his death remains a trigger for Casey throughout, reminding her of the fragility of life.

“Not the first time those adjectives have been used to describe my mother and me. They’ve been employed so often they might as well be our first names. Beloved Lolly Fletcher and Troubled Casey Fletcher.”

The nicknames that the media gives to the Fletchers speak to the idea of reputation and the way in which society can elevate certain individuals to a near-mythical status. However, this reputation can also be a burden, as it creates an expectation for the individual to always live up to their perceived image. Furthermore, the use of the word “troubled” to repeatedly describe Casey implies that there is something inherently wrong with her. This label may be based on her experiences with alcohol and repressed memories, but it also serves to further isolate her from society.

“I prefer the palpable spark between performer and audience that exists only in theater. I feel it every time I step onstage. We share the same space, breathe the same air, share the same emotional journey. And then it’s gone.”

Although Casey tried to avoid following in her mother’s footsteps, she found a natural talent and passion for acting, which this quote expresses. Through her struggles with addiction, this connection she feels with the