Chapter 24 Summary, Themes, and Analysis

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

On the morning of December 13, 2018, in Sydney, Jess wakes after a restless night filled with fragmented dreams of her younger self—a toddler on the beach, a ten-year-old left with Nora, a graduate arriving in London. The weight of the previous day's events—Nora's death—keeps her immobilized in bed until her phone rings at 9:10 a.m.

The caller is Nancy Davis, who has sent her uncle Daniel Miller's notes. Jess delivers the news of Nora's passing, and Nancy offers genuine condolences. Their conversation turns to Polly, and Jess explains that mother and daughter had grown estranged over time, though she struggles to articulate the details even to herself. Nancy recalls fondly how Daniel Miller depicted Nora covering her unborn baby's ears during family squabbles—a detail that speaks to Nora's protective nature.

Nancy then reveals she has found additional scenes in Dan's notebooks, written not from Nora's point of view but from Daniel Miller's own perspective, in third person. Intrigued, Jess asks to see them, and Nancy promises to scan and send them. She also requests Jess's street address, intending to send flowers for Nora.

An hour later, Jess sits on the rocks overlooking the Darling House cove—the same beach where Nora once rescued her from soldier crabs—and reads the emailed notes. She wonders why Daniel Miller would have written himself into a research scene, and whether these passages were drafts for his book rather than mere notes, suggesting he had an active role in the unfolding story.

The notes transport the reader to January 1960. Dan first saw Nora on December 28, 1959, at a community meeting held by police investigating the Turner deaths. Sergeant Peter Duke from Adelaide addressed the room, outlining the investigation and confirming that dog prints had been found at the scene. Dan noticed a young woman in black in the front row, holding a newborn—Nora, the sister-in-law of the deceased Isabel Turner. His uncle identified her, noting she had been down from Sydney for a month.

A few days later, Nora contacted Dan and invited him to Halcyon. There, on the verandah, she asked if he was a good writer and whether anything terrible had ever happened to him. Dan found himself telling her about his kid brother Marty—something he had never shared with anyone. Nora listened without platitudes, then insisted that Isabel was innocent, that she loved her children and could never have harmed them.

Dan was torn. He cared for Nora, but his duty was to his work and to objectivity. Nora, sensing his hesitation, gave him Isabel's journal, hoping it would prove her sister-in-law's good character. Dan noticed torn stubs in the binding—pages had been ripped out. He spent the day reading, and while he reassured Nora that the journal showed Isabel's warmth and humor, he couldn't stop wondering what the missing entries contained. He knew from speaking with Sergeant Duke that police were increasingly convinced of a murder-suicide theory, and he suspected the torn pages might hold a confession or plans.

An unpleasant event in the village—a threat to Nora's own baby, Polly—shifted Nora's perspective. The shock of nearly losing her child made her reconsider her loyalty to Isabel. The next morning, she was visibly distraught, having slept little. She made Dan promise not to put what she was about to say in his book. Then she told him she had remembered something: one afternoon in early December, she had heard the baby crying and gone to the nursery, where she saw Isabel by the crib, holding a pillow—a cushion—and lowering it toward the infant's face.

Key Events

• Jess receives a call from Nancy Davis and informs her of Nora's death.

• Nancy reveals she has found additional Daniel Miller notebook scenes written from his own viewpoint.

• Jess reads the notes while sitting on the rocks overlooking Darling House cove.

• Flashback: Dan first sees Nora at the community meeting about the Turner investigation, where she holds her newborn.

• Nora contacts Dan and invites him to Halcyon, where she insists Isabel is innocent.

• Nora gives Dan Isabel's journal, which contains torn-out pages.

• Dan suspects the missing entries might hold a confession, especially given police's murder-suicide theory.

• After an incident threatening Polly, Nora tells Dan she remembers seeing Isabel lowering a pillow toward the infant's face.

Character Development

Jess is in the early stages of grief, processing Nora's death while also absorbing new information about her grandmother's past. Her physical lethargy mirrors her emotional paralysis, and her conversation with Nancy reveals both her closeness to Nora and her confusion about the estrangement between Nora and Polly.

Nora emerges as a complex figure: fiercely protective of her baby, loyal to Isabel's memory, yet ultimately willing to share a damning memory when her own child is threatened. Her shift from defending Isabel to honoring the children she loved shows a moral reckoning.

Daniel Miller is portrayed as a writer navigating the tension between empathy and objectivity. He cares for Nora, but he also suspects the journal's missing pages hold crucial evidence. His decision to keep his suspicions from Nora reveals his professional discipline, even as he is moved by her grief.

Nancy Davis serves as a conduit, delivering the notes that deepen the mystery. Her concern for Jess and her insistence on sending flowers suggest a personal investment in Nora's story.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Grief and mourning pervade the chapter, from Jess's heavy limbs to Nora's Victorian-style black clothing and Dan's buried grief for his brother Marty.

Maternal protection is central: Nora's instinct to shield her baby, her defense of Isabel's children, and her eventual decision to speak the truth for their sake.

Memory and the past are unreliable forces. Nora's recovered memory of Isabel with the pillow arrives gradually, not in a flash, and she admits she had convinced herself she imagined it.

Hidden truths are symbolized by the torn journal pages—what was removed may be more important than what remains.

Rumors vs. truth plays out in the town's suspicion of outsiders and the murder-suicide theory that Dan knows about but doesn't share with Nora.

Writer's objectivity is tested as Dan balances his affection for Nora with his duty to the facts.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter delivers a pivotal revelation: Nora's memory of Isabel lowering a pillow toward the infant's face. It complicates the reader's understanding of the Turner case, suggesting that Isabel may have been capable of harm despite Nora's earlier insistence on her innocence. The chapter also deepens the connection between past and present, as Jess reads Dan's notes in the very place where Nora once rescued her. The torn journal pages introduce a tantalizing mystery that will likely drive the investigation forward.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Daniel Miller choose not to take notes during interviews, and what does this reveal about his approach?

Dan has learned that witnesses either light up at the sight of a blank page or clam up. By relying on memory and transcribing later, he can absorb the atmosphere and notice small gestures that speak louder than words. This reveals his commitment to capturing the truth beyond surface details, and it also makes him a more empathetic interviewer—one who can connect with Nora on a human level.

2. What significance do the torn pages in Isabel's journal hold, and why does Dan fixate on them?

The torn stubs suggest that someone removed entries—possibly ones containing guilty sentiments, a confession, or a description of plans. Dan's fixation stems from his knowledge that police suspect a murder-suicide; the missing pages could be the key to confirming or refuting that theory. His inability to share this suspicion with Nora shows the ethical tightrope he walks.

3. How does Nora's memory of Isabel with the pillow complicate the reader's understanding of the case?

Nora's memory directly contradicts her earlier insistence on Isabel's innocence. It suggests that Isabel may have harmed her own child, which would support the murder-suicide theory. However, the memory is recovered under stress, after a threat to Polly, and Nora admits she had convinced herself she imagined it. This raises questions about the reliability of memory and whether Nora's shift in loyalty is motivated by truth or by her own maternal fears.

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