Chapter summaries In the Likely Event Rebecca Yarros

Chapter 24 Summary & Analysis – In the Likely Event by Rebecca Yarros

⚠️ 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

Izzy Astor is living in a small Brooklyn apartment, savoring her freedom from her parents’ expectations. Her sister Serena visits and they talk about Nate, who has been increasingly distant. Izzy has barely heard from him in seven months and is planning to meet him at O’Hare to fly to Palau for their long-planned trip. Serena voices concerns about Nate’s secrecy and whether Izzy really knows him. Izzy admits she loves Nate but doesn’t know if he feels the same, and resolves to get an answer in Palau. At O’Hare, Nate’s flight is delayed; he misses their connection and all subsequent flights. Izzy travels alone to the resort, waits through two days, and calls his voicemail repeatedly. When he never arrives, she calls Serena, sobs, checks out, and flies home. She realizes she must let him go: “Nate and I had waited so long to take our shot that we’d missed it.”

Key Events

  • Serena visits Izzy’s new Brooklyn apartment and comments on the furniture Nate assembled eight months earlier.
  • Izzy explains she and Nate planned four years of trips via a travel agent, but she hasn’t heard from him in a month.
  • Serena questions whether Nate might have a secret family; Izzy insists he has always been honest.
  • Izzy reveals she dated Hugh two months ago but it was a mistake.
  • Serena shares her disappointment at being passed over for a photojournalism assignment in Afghanistan.
  • Izzy admits she doesn’t know if Nate loves her, but vows to get an answer in Palau.
  • At O’Hare, Nate’s flight lands but he never appears at the gate; Izzy texts and calls without reply.
  • Izzy flies alone to Palau, checks into the resort, and waits through two days.
  • She calls Serena from Palau, sobbing, and admits Nate isn’t coming.
  • Izzy returns home in tears, where Serena holds her.
  • Izzy decides she has to let Nate go.

Character Development

  • Izzy Astor: This chapter exposes Izzy’s deepest vulnerability. She has always been the one waiting for people who don’t prioritize her—parents absent from swim meets, an ex who chose Yale over her, and now Nate. Her arc moves from hopeful anticipation to crushing disappointment, and finally to a painful resolve to stop living in limbo. For the first time, she acknowledges that she has been the person “with the most to lose.”
  • Serena Astor: Serena acts as Izzy’s grounding voice of reason. She challenges Izzy’s assumptions about Nate and offers practical advice. Her own career disappointment (being denied the Afghanistan assignment) mirrors Izzy’s emotional disappointment, strengthening their bond.
  • Nate Phelan (off-page): Though absent, Nate’s character is defined by his absence. His pattern of vague communication and broken travel plans (even if for legitimate Special Forces reasons) forces Izzy to question his commitment. His failure to show up—after always keeping his word—shatters Izzy’s trust.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

  • Waiting and absence: The entire chapter revolves around waiting—for a call, a text, a man at an airport gate, a knock on a bungalow door. Izzy’s experience of being left waiting echoes childhood wounds and shows her pattern of giving more than she receives.
  • Communication and silence: Nate’s silence is a motif. Izzy’s unanswered texts and voicemails highlight the asymmetry in their relationship. She knows nothing about his daily life, while he knows her deeply.
  • The bungalow as symbol: The luxurious Palau bungalow, meant for two, becomes a symbol of missed opportunity and loneliness. Izzy sleeps alone in the king-size bed, and the locked door of the deck underscores that Nate never entered.
  • “Taking a shot”: Izzy’s determination to “not come back from Palau until I know the answer” frames the trip as a test of their relationship. When the test fails, she accepts that their shot has passed.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is the emotional turning point for Izzy’s storyline. Up to now, she has accepted Nate’s sporadic presence and given him the benefit of the doubt. Here, the reality of their situation crashes down: he is not showing up, and she has no way to reach him or know if he is safe. The chapter forces both Izzy and the reader to confront the possibility that Nate may never prioritize her. It sets up a major change in Izzy’s character—her decision to let him go—which will carry consequences into the rest of the novel.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Izzy decide she must get an answer from Nate in Palau?
Izzy has been living in a state of uncertainty for years, never knowing where Nate is or if he loves her. She tells Serena she is “done being the person with the most to lose” and wants clarity, even if the answer is painful.

2. How does Serena’s career disappointment parallel Izzy’s relationship struggle?
Serena was denied a coveted assignment in Afghanistan, a place that holds emotional weight for Izzy because Nate serves there. Both sisters are being sidelined by forces beyond their control—Serena by her boss, Izzy by Nate’s secrecy and absence.

3. What does the unlocked deck door at the Palau bungalow reveal about Izzy’s state of mind?
When Izzy wakes from a long sleep, she finds the deck door still locked, confirming that Nate never entered the room. The locked door symbolizes her final acceptance that he is not coming, destroying the last shred of hope she had been clinging to.

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