The novel’s setting plays a crucial role in shaping the lives of the characters. The natural landmarks of Cooley Ridge—the forest, the river, the caverns, the meadow—all have very specific associations and are tethered to certain memories. When they were children, Nic and her friends would play in the meadows. As teenagers, they’d explore the dangerous caverns. As they grow older, these places take on new meanings.

The forest is a space shared between generations: “There were secrets in those woods—the past rising up and overlapping, an unstoppable trail of dominoes already set in motion” (103). When Nic walks between the trees at night to the Carter property, she notes that since she’s left Cooley Ridge, the place has been filled with “too many unknowns” (54). These “unknowns” arise out of the darkness of night. But since Corinne’s disappearance—and now Annaleise’s disappearance—they inspire fear in Nic, not spooky whimsy, as they did in childhood. This fear, no matter how tangible, is still seductive, and was inspired by the dares the friends used to give and take as tokens of loyalty. 

What makes these spaces such an integral part of Cooley Ridge is their accessibility. They lack supervision and maintenance; they are places where anything can happen to anyone and no one will know.