Content Warning: This section references the death of a child and sexual assault.

“Lotte? The thought is automatic, that it might be her.”

The close third-person narration inhabits Grace Adams’s consciousness and presents her thoughts directly. Grace hopes that her daughter is calling her despite their estrangement, believing that reconnecting on Lotte’s birthday will allow them to reconcile. Her thoughts reflect her maternal desires—her primary motivation—and establish the primary narrative stakes.

“This day has filled her up, she realizes. It has made her happy.”

Grace wins the polyglot competition when she is 28, a success that authenticates her identity. Grace defines herself according to her intellectual and academic capacities. Succeeding in the competition verifies her energetic, driven, and aspirational personality traits.

“It is an act of love, this cake, and Lotte will see that.”

Delivering the Love Island cake to Lotte is Grace’s primary motivation throughout the novel. Because her relationship with Lotte is fractured, Grace sees the cake as a symbol of hope and possibility. She convinces herself that the cake will atone for her perceived maternal failings.