Self-Portrait with Nothing Summary and Study Guide

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

Quick Facts

Short Summary

Pepper Rafferty, a forensic anthropologist, learns that the reclusive painter Ula Frost—who disappeared years ago—is her biological mother and has named her the primary beneficiary of her will. As Pepper investigates Ula’s disappearance, she uncovers a secret: Ula’s self-portraits can summon alternate versions of their subjects from parallel universes. Pepper travels across Europe, encountering Ula’s alternate selves, a shadowy organization called the Everett Group, and a series of coded messages. She eventually finds the real Ula, who is being impersonated by one of her own duplicates. In a climactic confrontation, Ula is fatally stabbed, and Pepper inherits not only her paintings but also the responsibility for the alternate Ulas who remain in this world. The novel ends with Pepper beginning to heal, reconciling with her aunt, and helping the alternate selves find their way home.

Full Summary

The novel opens with an epigraph from Tomas Tranströmer: “All sketches wish to be real.” This sets the stage for a story about art’s power to blur the line between the imagined and the actual.

The narrative begins with the disappearance of Ula Frost, a reclusive painter who vanished at age fifty-four. Her assistant, Gordon Priddy, reports her missing after three weeks without contact. Detective Jamie Marchand investigates, learning that Ula’s portraits are rumored to bring alternate versions of their subjects from parallel universes into this world. One client, Victor Morgan, publicly regretted his portrait and was later found dead with it slashed. After that, Ula only accepted commissions by mail.

Meanwhile, Pepper Rafferty, a forensic anthropologist in Connecticut, is examining skeletal remains when a journalist named Scott Morrow approaches her about Ula Frost. Pepper claims she wrote a paper on Frost but refuses to discuss it. Soon after, a lawyer informs Pepper that she is the primary beneficiary of Ula Frost’s will—and that Ula is her biological mother. Pepper’s husband, Ike, reveals he once met Ula before their marriage. Pepper decides to investigate, and with Scott’s help, she learns that her biological father was Michael Orlando, a student who died in a motorcycle accident. She also decodes a message from Michael: “it doesn't mean i don't love you.”

Pepper visits her aunt Tilda, who explains that Ula gave Pepper up for adoption at birth. Tilda shows Pepper Ula’s paintings and room. Pepper then decides to go to London, where Ula left her a property. There she finds a Polaroid of a statue emerging from a sidewalk. Scott contacts her about a client in Germany, and they travel to Cologne to interview Levi Crow, who describes being painted by Ula and then encountering a starving double of himself that he killed. The body and portrait vanished. Levi mentions a ship insignia burned into the frame. Pepper and Scott follow the clue to Wrocław, Poland, where they meet a canvas-maker who made a frame for Ula. Pepper steals an invoice bearing the name “U. Mróz” (Polish for “frost”).

In Wrocław, they find Ula’s former studio—a ransacked church. Pepper secretly takes two blue envelopes containing love letters from a man named Rafał. She later visits Rafał, who is evasive about Ula’s whereabouts. A woman argues with him, and he forces Pepper out but gives her a note from Ula saying she’s fine. Pepper distrusts the note, noticing the handwriting is rushed.

Scott introduces Pepper to Iphigenia Freitas, a member of the Everett Group, who reveals that the group believes destroying a portrait could have catastrophic effects. Iphigenia mentions a Ula self-portrait titled “Self-Portrait with Nothing” in a Wrocław postal museum, depicting a young Ula holding an infant. Pepper views the painting, then is mugged and loses her phone and passport.

The next day, police inform Pepper that Ula’s body has been found burned outside the church. Pepper examines the remains and notices healed fractures in the right arm, but Ike confirms from a childhood photo that Ula’s cast was on her left arm—a mismatch. That night, three versions of Ula appear in Pepper’s hotel room. They explain they faked Ula’s death using a body that arrived already dead. Pepper escapes from the Everett Group with their help and is taken to a slaughterhouse where she meets nine alternate Ulas. They are all trying to evade the Everett Group, which seeks the painting.

The Ulas explain that the painting “Self-Portrait with Nothing” is a portal that brought them into this world. Ula Zero, one of the alternates, claims to be the real Ula, but Pepper becomes suspicious. The group plans to steal the painting from the postal museum. Pepper attempts the heist but is arrested. She is released when she learns the painting is on loan from herself—she owns it. Ula Zero intercepts her and demands she destroy the painting, but Pepper refuses, realizing Ula Zero is not the real Ula. Blue, another alternate, helps Pepper escape and reveals that Ula Zero has been impersonating the real Ula, who is missing.

Pepper and Blue decode a message that leads them to an apartment building. Inside, they find a garage where the real Ula is bound and gagged. Ula warns Pepper to hide the painting to protect Tilda. Ula Zero arrives, attacks the painting, and stabs Ula. Ula Zero then tears into the painting, causing a loud crack, and vanishes. Ula dies in the hospital, her last word being the Polish word for dragon.

After Ula’s death, Pepper and Ike return to the church, where the alternate Ulas have gathered. Pepper discovers a hidden crypt containing four dead Ulas and a room full of paintings, including thirteen self-portraits. She gives each Ula her own portrait, explaining that destroying it may send them home. She prepares to destroy Blue’s portrait, though Blue’s body is in a morgue.

Three weeks later, Pepper repatriates remains to Oklahoma, then visits Tilda, who reconciles with her and gives her a house key. Back home, Pepper finds Specs, one of the alternate Ulas, living with her and Ike. Pepper gives Boot (another alternate) her portrait and plans a collaborative research project to protect Ula’s legacy. The novel ends with geese taking flight, symbolizing hope and new beginnings.

Main Characters

• Pepper Rafferty – A forensic anthropologist who discovers she is Ula Frost’s biological daughter and becomes the executor of her will. Her investigation drives the plot.

• Ula Frost – The reclusive painter who disappeared. Her self-portraits bring alternate versions of herself into existence. She is ultimately killed by one of her own duplicates.

• Ike – Pepper’s husband, who supports her from home and reveals he once met Ula.

• Scott Morrow – A journalist from Ekphrasis who investigates Ula’s disappearance alongside Pepper, but later is revealed to have fabricated parts of his story.

• Tilda Hogan – Ula’s sister and Pepper’s aunt, who helped arrange Pepper’s adoption. She reconciles with Pepper at the end.

• Blue – One of Ula’s alternate selves who helps Pepper in Poland and later receives her own portrait to return home.

Themes

• Multiverse and Alternate Selves – The novel explores the idea that multiple versions of a person can exist across parallel universes, and that art can bring these versions into contact with each other.

• Identity and Selfhood – The quest to understand one’s origins is complicated by the existence of alternate selves and the question of which self is “real.”

• Art as Transformative and Dangerous Force – Artistic creation has real-world consequences, including the ability to summon alternate selves and the moral implications of destroying such art.

• Mother-Daughter Relationships and Abandonment – The emotional legacy of maternal abandonment and the complex bond between mothers and daughters across different versions of themselves.

• Secrecy and Hidden Truths – The narrative is driven by the gradual uncovering of secrets, encoded messages, and concealed histories.

Symbols

• Self-Portrait with Nothing – A recurring self-portrait by Ula Frost depicting her holding an infant, which acts as a portal to alternate selves and becomes the central artifact of the inheritance and disappearance mystery.

• Spider Motif – A recurring image of spiders, from a silver spider-shaped earring found at a crime scene to spiders appearing in the garage, symbolizing entanglement, secrets, and the web of connections between characters.

• Polish Coin – A coin that appears as a symbol of Pepper’s origin and connection to her biological mother, mentioned in her childhood and later as a keepsake.

• Blue Envelopes – Blue envelopes containing love letters from Rafał to Ula, which Pepper discovers in the ransacked church, revealing hidden aspects of Ula’s past.

Ending Overview

The novel concludes with Pepper accepting her role as Ula’s heir and protector of her legacy. She helps the alternate Ulas decide their fates, reconciles with her aunt Tilda, and begins to build a new life with Ike and the remaining alternate, Specs. The final image of geese taking flight suggests hope and the possibility of moving forward.

Chapter-by-Chapter Summary

Common Questions and Answers

1. Who is Pepper’s biological mother?

Pepper’s biological mother is Ula Frost, the reclusive painter who disappeared. Ula gave Pepper up for adoption at birth, and Pepper only learns this after Ula’s will names her as beneficiary.

2. What is the significance of the painting Self-Portrait with Nothing?

The painting depicts a young Ula holding an infant (Pepper) and acts as a portal that brings alternate versions of Ula into the world. It is the central artifact of the inheritance and the key to understanding Ula’s power.

3. What happens to Ula Frost?

Ula is killed by Ula Zero, one of her own alternate selves, who stabs her in the garage. Ula dies in the hospital, her last word being the Polish word for dragon.

4. What is the Everett Group?

The Everett Group is a shadowy organization that seeks to control Ula’s paintings, believing that destroying a portrait could have catastrophic consequences. They pursue Pepper and the alternate Ulas throughout the novel.

5. How does the multiverse work in the novel?

Ula’s self-portraits can bring alternate versions of their subjects from parallel universes into this world. The subject must be present for the transfer to work, and the painting of the face unlocks the connection. Destroying a portrait may send the alternate back or cause other effects.

6. What is the significance of the Polish coin?

The Polish coin appears as a symbol of Pepper’s origin and connection to her biological mother. It is mentioned in her childhood and later appears in a painting of Pepper, linking her to Ula’s legacy.

7. Who is Blue?

Blue is one of Ula’s alternate selves who helps Pepper in Poland. She reveals that Ula Zero is impersonating the real Ula and later receives her own portrait to return home.

8. What is the ending of the novel?

After Ula’s death, Pepper inherits her paintings and helps the alternate Ulas decide their fates. She reconciles with her aunt Tilda, and the novel ends with Pepper, Ike, and Specs (an alternate Ula) beginning a new life together, symbolized by geese taking flight.

Further Study

• Chapter 1 Summary

• Chapter 2 Summary

• Chapter 3 Summary

• Chapter 4 Summary

• Chapter 5 Summary

• Chapter 6 Summary

• Chapter 7 Summary

• Chapter 8 Summary

• Chapter 9 Summary

• Chapter 10 Summary

• Chapter 11 Summary

• Chapter 12 Summary