Mistletoe as a Symbol of Emotional Expression in Good Spirits

What Is the Mistletoe?

In Good Spirits, mistletoe is a real, physical plant—small green leaves with glossy red berries—that becomes a recurring visual motif. Nolan, the Ghost of Christmas Past, has the ability to magically manifest mistletoe from the ceiling of Harriet’s antiques shop, the Crow’s Nest. Unlike the traditional holiday decoration that is deliberately hung to invite a kiss, here the mistletoe grows spontaneously in response to Nolan’s emotions, especially his growing attachment to Harriet. It first appears in Chapter Eighteen after Nolan witnesses Harriet’s painful memory of being rejected under mistletoe as a teenager. He uses his magic to cover the entire ceiling with the plant, creating a lush canopy that serves as both an excuse and a setting for their first kiss.

Where the Mistletoe Recurs

The mistletoe appears and reappears throughout the second half of the novel:

Chapter Eighteen (Harriet’s POV): After returning from the memory of teenage Harriet being comforted by Aunt Matilda, Nolan’s magic “spins out around us, faster and faster. Coiling up and over. A rising tide.” Mistletoe “start[s] to blossom against the tin ceiling,” spreading until “hundreds of sprigs of green leaves slowly burst to life” and the whole ceiling vibrates with the plant.
Chapter Twenty-Four (Nolan’s POV): The next morning, Nolan admits he hasn’t been searching for clues about his past; instead he’s stayed close to Harriet. Sasha arrives, shrieks upon seeing the mistletoe, and asks “where the hell did all this mistletoe come from?” The mistletoe has multiplied and is still covering the store.
Chapter Twenty-Five (Harriet’s POV): When Isabella, Nolan’s supervisor, visits the shop, Sasha and Harriet discuss the mistletoe’s origin. Harriet deflects Sasha’s questions, but the mistletoe remains a constant, visible symbol of Nolan’s magic and his emotional investment.
Chapter Twenty-One: After a chaotic time‑travel episode, Nolan and Harriet return to the Crow’s Nest and Nolan collapses, with the mistletoe still present above them. The plant serves as the backdrop for the aftermath of Nolan’s magical instability.

Additionally, a small detail in Chapter Three mentions that Isabella’s office once had “a jolly sprig of mistletoe over the door” which she later removed, suggesting that even the bureaucratic realm of Holiday Spirits once associated the plant with tradition.

How Its Meaning Changes Over the Course of the Novel

Initially, mistletoe carries a negative association for Harriet: in the memory from her teenage years, a boy rejected her while she stood under mistletoe, a moment of humiliation that reinforced her feelings of not fitting in. When Nolan creates mistletoe in the present, he transforms the plant from a symbol of rejection into one of acceptance and desire. He explicitly tells her he wanted “an excuse” to kiss her, reclaiming the tradition for their relationship.

As the story progresses, the mistletoe becomes a marker of Nolan’s emotional state. His magic responds to his feelings, so when he is happy, desperate, or possessive, the mistletoe proliferates. In Chapter Twenty-Four, Sasha’s shocked reaction (“What in the frankincense fuck”) emphasizes that the mistletoe has become conspicuous—no longer a subtle decoration but an overwhelming testament to Nolan’s attachment. Harriet, for her part, begins to see the mistletoe as “pretty and achingly romantic,” embracing it as a physical sign of Nolan’s care.

By the end, the mistletoe is no longer mentioned after Nolan returns to Harriet in Chapter Thirty-Nine. The plant has served its purpose as a tangible expression of love that could not be spoken aloud, and once Nolan chooses to stay with her permanently, his magic presumably settles. The mistletoe’s permanence or disappearance is left open, but its symbolic work is complete: it transformed from a tool of rejection into a beacon of chosen intimacy.

Character Connections

Nolan Callahan: The mistletoe originates from Nolan’s magic, which he describes as something that “jumps” and “skitters” in his chest when he is near Harriet. The plant is the most visible manifestation of his otherwise invisible powers. It reflects his inability to hide his emotions; even when he tries to maintain a stern, ghostly demeanor, his magic betrays his true feelings. The mistletoe also connects to his backstory: before his death, Nolan loved a woman (later revealed to be Harriet in a past life or soulmate connection), and the mistletoe’s appearance heralds his reawakening to love after a century of emotional numbness.
Harriet York: For Harriet, the mistletoe symbolizes a shift from self‑doubt to self‑acceptance. She initially deflects the romantic implications, worrying that Nolan’s kiss was born of pity. Over time, she allows herself to believe in his desire, and the mistletoe overhead becomes a comfort rather than a reminder of past rejection. It also links her to her Aunt Matilda, who comforted her after the original mistletoe incident; Nolan, in creating new mistletoe, essentially continues Matilda’s work of patching Harriet’s holes with affection.
Sasha: Harriet’s employee and friend, Sasha acts as the reader’s surrogate, voicing skepticism about the mistletoe’s origin. Her comic disbelief—“You’re telling me you got ten thousand pounds of mistletoe from a robust operation”—underscores how extraordinary the situation is. Sasha’s noticing the mistletoe also indicates that Nolan’s magic is becoming visible to others, a sign that his boundaries between ghost world and mortal world are blurring.
Isabella: Nolan’s supervisor approaches the mistletoe with professional coolness. She does not comment on it directly but observes the hickey on Harriet’s neck, implying she understands what the mistletoe represents. Her earlier removal of the mistletoe from her office door hints that she, too, has a history with the plant—perhaps a refusal to indulge romantic sentiment in her work.

Theme Connections

Love and Connection: The mistletoe is the most direct symbol of Nolan and Harriet’s romantic bond. It appears exactly when Nolan’s feelings become undeniable, and its multiplication reflects the growing intensity of their attachment. The tradition of kissing under mistletoe reinforces the theme that love can be expressed even when words fail. See the love and connection theme page.
Redemption and Self‑Acceptance: Harriet’s journey toward accepting that she is worthy of love is mirrored by the mistletoe’s transformation. She moves from seeing herself as someone who “doesn’t fit” to someone who can be “boundless” (Nolan’s word). The mistletoe, created in a moment of vulnerability, becomes a daily reminder that her past rejection does not define her future. Explore more on redemption and self‑acceptance.
Memory and Identity: Mistletoe is tied to memory—both the traumatic memory of Harriet’s past and the happy memory of Aunt Matilda’s comfort. Nolan’s magic literally plants new memories over old ones, using the mistletoe as a bridge. The plant also connects to Nolan’s own forgotten past; he glimpses fragments of a lighthouse and a pink dress, and the mistletoe may hint at the home and love he lost. Read more about memory and identity.
Unfinished Business: The mistletoe is a clue to Nolan’s true unfinished business. Though he believes his unfinished business is a broken compass, the novel reveals that his real purpose is to reunite with Harriet, his soulmate. The mistletoe’s emergence after their kiss signals that his emotional attachment is the true unfinished business keeping him tethered to the mortal world. The unfinished business theme page explores this further.
Family Estrangement and Reconciliation: While the mistletoe does not directly involve Harriet’s mother or sister, it provides the setting where Harriet begins to heal from her family’s rejection. The plant appears in the Crow’s Nest, a space that once belonged to Aunt Matilda, whose love counterbalances the estrangement from Harriet’s parents. See family estrangement and reconciliation.

Study Questions with Answers

1. Why does Nolan create mistletoe in Chapter Eighteen, and what does this decision reveal about his character?

Nolan creates the mistletoe in a spontaneous burst of magic after Harriet thanks him for showing her a memory of Aunt Matilda. He wants “an excuse” to kiss her, so he transforms the shop’s ceiling into a forest of mistletoe. This decision reveals that Nolan is no longer able to remain emotionally detached from his assignment. Despite a century of performing his duties without personal involvement, Harriet breaks through his defenses. His magic, usually controlled, now “spins out” in response to his desire, showing that his feelings have become too strong to hide.

2. How does the mistletoe motif interact with the theme of memory in the novel? Mention specific episodes.

The mistletoe directly connects to two memories. First, it recalls Harriet’s teenage rejection under mistletoe—a memory that made her feel unwanted. Nolan’s new mistletoe overwrites that painful memory by creating a positive context. Second, the mistletoe appears in the same shop where Aunt Matilda comforted Harriet, linking the plant to Matilda’s love. When Nolan kisses Harriet under his own mistletoe, he effectively continues Matilda’s legacy of reassurance, turning a site of past hurt into a site of present affection.

3. What does Sasha’s reaction to the mistletoe in Chapter Twenty-Five tell us about the state of Nolan and Harriet’s relationship?

Sasha’s disbelief and her pointed questions—“What did you use to install the mistletoe?”—highlight how extraordinary and visible the mistletoe has become. Her inability to accept a mundane explanation forces Harriet to acknowledge that the mistletoe is magical and that her relationship with Nolan is real but secret. Sasha’s presence also shows that Nolan’s magic is becoming perceptible to ordinary humans, a sign that the boundaries between the ghost world and Harriet’s life are blurring. The scene underscores that the relationship can no longer remain hidden.

4. The novel eventually reveals that Nolan’s unfinished business is Harriet herself, not the compass. How does the mistletoe foreshadow this revelation before Chapter Thirty-Eight?

The mistletoe is a direct product of Nolan’s emotional bond with Harriet. If his unfinished business were merely an object (the compass), his magic would not have reacted so strongly to her. The mistletoe appears when he kisses her, multiplies when he spends time with her, and becomes a constant presence in her shop. This suggests that Harriet—not a lost artifact—is what anchors him. Additionally, the mistletoe’s romantic connotations point toward love as the true unfinished business. Isabella’s removal of the mistletoe from her own office further hints that the plant is associated with matters of the heart, which the department of Holiday Spirits tends to avoid.

For more on the central characters, visit the pages for Harriet York, Nolan Callahan, Sasha, Aunt Matilda, and Isabella. Return to the main book page for an overview.