Jess is the central protagonist of the novel. Her first-person narrative takes up most of the chapters and provides a stable narrator. Though Jess has her own demons, she is the character with the most self-awareness, autonomy, and integrity. She is the ultimate heroine of the novel because she risks her life to save her brother. Jess has had a fractured life. She walked in on her dead mother at age eight and was separated from her brother when he was adopted, and she was left in the foster care system. As an adult, Jess has nobody but Ben to claim as family. But this lack of family has made Jess confident and capable. She is street-smart, in touch with her instincts, and brave because she is forced to be.

Jess is open to other people; she is willing to be wrong about Nick’s responsibility in what happened to her brother, and she is determined to help the women at the club, who are strangers to her. Jess doesn’t owe anybody anything, yet she risks everything to help others. She is alone but not lonely. She embraces the challenges life throws at her, highlighting her characterizations as brave, intelligent, and fiercely independent.