Significance of sex

Each of the characters in the novel have their own sexual experiences that have shaped them. Sex can represent many things, such as lust, greed, power, love, etc. Maddie, a sixteen-year-old girl, navigates her way through hormonal changes and engages in sexual activities with teenage boys for the first time. Her first sexual experience is with Spencer, a boy that she does not care for. Soon after, she falls in love with Brooks and sex becomes intertwined with love. Dom, Maddie's younger brother, was forced to perform a sexual act on his best friend, at once ending their relationship and also hinting to Dom that he is homosexual. Leslie nearly controls Jules through his sexual urges, and Veronica explains that although the Colonel cheated on her throughout their relationship, she never ventured to have sex with another man as she was afraid of him.