Exiles

“Those things that you didn’t even notice at the time. Little decisions that ultimately added up to something so much bigger.”

Falk considers Rohan’s thoughts about his wife. Falk believes Rohan is a grieving husband guilty over his wife’s disappearance and presumed death. However, Falk’s assumptions turn out to be incorrect, as Rohan murdered Kim. This passage, like the previous quote, develops the theme of Perception and Reality.

“Memories were fragile and fluid and prone to error and embellishment. No matter how many times he thought back to that night, how many details he tried to conjure up and how crystal clear they might seem, it didn’t change reality.”

Falk considers the night Kim disappeared. His memories, as well as everyone else’s, turn out to be false because she never made it to the festival. This quote brings together the theme of Perception and Reality with the theme of Memory’s Impact on the Present. Rohan murdered her on the outskirts of Marralee and pretended she was at the festival, playing on people’s expectations and misperceptions.

“Zara doesn’t think Kim went down to the reservoir at all.”

This sentence is part of a conversation between Falk and Raco. Unlike most people in Marralee, Zara doesn’t think her mother died by suicide. She and Joel are the only ones who guess the truth—that Kim was never at the spot where Rohan planted her shoe.

“Falk’s feelings about Kiewarra ran deep, but in fact had softened considerably in the last few years.”

This quote is part of a flashback to when Gemma and Falk met in Melbourne. Falk says he will never move back to his hometown. At the end of the novel, he makes plans to visit there. Falk’s relationship with Kiewarra develops the theme of Home and Exile.

“People were always interested in the husband.”

This quote is about the festival crowd looking at Rohan during his appeal for information about Kim. It also speaks to a convention of mystery novels: the husband is almost always the prime suspect when a married woman is the victim of crime. Rohan deserves the suspicion of the crowd because he did kill Kim.

“I hadn’t seen that photo before.”

Raco is surprised by some of the photos that Zara includes in the slideshow at the festival. He learns she made a photo album as a way to remember her mother. The Racos and Falk looking through the album develops the theme of Memory’s Impact on the Present.

“Falk had never been religious, but after a while he had to admit there was something innately soothing about sitting here in his friend’s sunny kitchen, drinking good coffee and holding his sleeping godson-to-be while listening to this affable man talk about how a child was a blessing and it took a village.”

This passage conveys Falk’s feelings while meeting with the priest before Henry’s christening. It develops Falk’s character, showing that he wants to be part of a community. The passage also foreshadows Falk’s move to Marralee to be close to his godson and friends.

“The sensation was immediate. He knew how to do this.”

This quote is about Falk remembering how to drive a tractor. He grew up on a farm and retains the muscle memory of the tasks he learned there. This passage develops the theme of Memory’s Impact on the Present.

“They had both apparently spotted each other last year without the other noticing.”

This quote shows Falk thinking about how he and Gemma saw each other at the previous year’s festival in Marralee but did not speak. He believes it is possible people saw Kim on the night of her disappearance even though no one spoke to her. This quote develops the theme of Perception and Reality in that no one actually saw Kim.

“I think mental health can be complicated. I’m not sure it helps to judge what Kim did that night against the woman we knew.”

Rita says this to Raco when he struggles to understand why Kim might have died by suicide. Rita’s statement highlights Kim’s transformation once she left Marralee for Adelaide. It also develops the themes of Perception and Reality and Memory’s Impact on the Present. Throughout the novel, characters perceive what their memories tell them they should rather than what is really in front of them.

“‘I can’t get past this feeling that we’re missing something.’ Falk felt it, too.”

This is an exchange between Raco and Falk. They are discussing Kim on the Ferris wheel. They are missing the fact that she was never at the festival, which develops the theme of Perception and Reality.

“Falk tried to remember how he used to do this, then gave up. He ran a few steps and just kicked, letting instinct take over.”

Falk kicks a football with Shane. Falk’s muscle memory of football can be compared with his muscle memory of driving a tractor. He has moved far away from his rural childhood. However, his memories and instincts remain. Both passages develop the theme of Memory’s Impact on the Present.

“There’s a lot of good everyday stuff that comes with living here.”

Gemma says this to Falk when they discuss him moving to Marralee. Gemma left and came back. She enjoys the simple life in her hometown, and eventually Falk comes to enjoy it, too. This develops the theme of Home and Exile.

“Stay or go? The question felt bigger out here.” 

Falk and Gemma discuss him moving to Marralee. The first time the question of whether to “stay” comes up is when Raco is unable to meet Gemma and Falk for drinks. They decide to stay and have drinks without him. This passage repeats the language, connecting the beginning of their relationship with a decision to pursue it.

“It’s like she was gone before she was gone.”

Raco says this about Kim. She was not in touch with her friends from Marralee after she moved to Adelaide with Rohan. Falk repeats the phrase “gone before she was gone” several times (286 and 315). Eventually, he realizes Kim lost touch with them because of her husband’s abuse, which culminates in her murder. This sequence of passages develops the theme of Home and Exile.

“It left behind a mild but distinctly uncomfortable sensation, as though Falk had forgotten something he really needed to remember.”

This passage describes Falk’s response to Eva Raco waving at strangers on a train ride at the festival. He soon realizes Rohan could have done the same thing at the Ferris wheel. The woman who waved back to him was not necessarily Kim. It might have been a stranger. This passage develops the theme of Perception and Reality.

“‘I just want to forget it.’ Kim was suddenly strangely grateful for the blackness in her head.”

These are Kim’s words to Naomi the day after her assault. Kim’s desire for her assault to remain a secret is partially due to the fact that she doesn’t want to remember it herself. This develops the theme of Memory’s Impact on the Present. She marries the man who assaulted her because she doesn’t want to remember the assault.

“This wasn’t the first time Charlie had done this, she’d realized, as she suddenly remembered all the times he’d quietly made it easy for her.”

This passage is part of a flashback from Kim’s perspective. Charlie notices that Kim can’t stand being near the reservoir but doesn’t ask why. Only after her death does Charlie learn that Rohan assaulted Kim while she was intoxicated.

“The baby looked just like Kim.”

Even though Zoe resembles Kim, Rohan falsely thinks Charlie is the father. This misperception leads to Rohan murdering Kim. This passage develops the theme of Perception and Reality. Just as the investigators misunderstand the clues leading to the murderer, the murderer misunderstood the facts that prompted his crime.

“It was time to drive home.”

The night of her murder, Kim convinces Rohan to take her with him to Marralee. He kills her at the lookout just outside of town. Kim never gets to return home while alive, developing the theme of Home and Exile.

“Raco was staring at the man like he’d never seen him before, his face dark.”

Raco’s perception of Rohan changes after Falk figures out that Rohan murdered Kim. This passage develops the theme of Perception and Reality. Despite everything Rohan did to mislead the investigators, Falk finally sees the truth and renders justice, following the conventions of mystery fiction.

“He had parked in a clearing at a spectacular hidden lookout, and discovered he was not alone. Rohan Gillespie had been there, too, with his one-year-old daughter, Zoe. Falk felt a small part of the memory start to crystallize with a startling, vivid clarity.”

Falk remembers encountering Rohan at the lookout a year after Kim’s disappearance. He eventually realizes that his memory of Rohan’s gaze will lead them to Kim’s body. Falk’s thinking about the crime scene develops the theme of Memory’s Impact on the Present.

“How far would he go for these people he loved? Falk wondered. He hoped he never had to find out.”

Falk confronts Dwyer about covering up his daughter’s hit-and-run accident that killed Dean. When Dwyer admits to tampering with the evidence, Falk wonders if he would do the same. This passage develops his character—he might go to any lengths for his closest friends and family.