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

The central action of the novel revolves around Grace Adams’s attempts to procure a birthday cake for her daughter’s 16th birthday party. Grace and Lotte have been estranged for several months, and Grace believes that if she collects and delivers the Love Island cake to her daughter, she can repair their broken relationship. Grace sees the cake as a symbol of hope and possibility: a way to tangibly prove her love for her daughter and to apologize and atone for betraying her.

All of Grace’s actions and decisions throughout the narrative present reflect her desire to deliver Lotte’s cake. She gets upset in the novel’s opening scene because she realizes the traffic jam will delay getting the cake and attending Lotte’s party. Her intolerance with others throughout her travels indicates her attachment to the cake, which she increasingly sees as her only means of controlling her circumstances. The more that threatens the cake, the more Grace feels the frustration of her broader powerlessness.

Although the cake is squashed by the time Grace reaches Lotte’s party, it does repair the two characters’ relationship. The cake reminds Lotte of her mother’s love and provides Grace and Lotte with an organic avenue for conversation.