Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses death by suicide and drug addiction.

Hazel is a dynamic protagonist who comes into her own through the solving of the mystery of her mother’s disappearance. Hazel has trouble outrunning her troubled past in the small town of Mirror Lake, where she feels like an outsider. She tries to limit her time in Mirror Lake and return to her life in the city, but she is pulled back into the town by the information revealed during the drought. Unlike the rest of her family, she is unwilling to leave well enough alone. Hazel’s feelings of abandonment drive her to find the truth when everyone else would rather live with convenient falsehoods. Her persistence pays off. She manages to solve several connected crimes and to repair her damaged family relationships in the process. The novel sees Hazel transform from an outsider into a pillar of her community and family. Through Hazel’s actions, Megan Miranda proves that the truth cannot stay concealed forever.

Nico is a fairly static character who represents another way in which Hazel was abandoned in Mirror Lake. Nico abandons her once in youth by breaking up with her, and again in adulthood by concealing the truth about what he has discovered in the lake.