Truth

Throughout the novel, the author uses her characters' desperate search for answers to explore the illusory nature of truth. Thirteen years after Lena Beck's disappearance, her father, Matthias remains consumed by the police's failure to solve the mystery. When Jasmin turns up claiming to be his daughter and his granddaughter's mother, Matthias becomes even more distraught. His determination to discover the truth, however, only succeeds in complicating matters. Similarly, Hannah's release from the cabin thrusts her into an unfamiliar world in which no one seems to understand her. She refuses to tell the police the truth of her life in the cabin, because she is convinced their primary occupation is to "take children away from their parents. Or parents from their children" (12). Indeed, her version of truth has, for the entirety of her life, been dictated by her maniacal father. Jasmin's captivity has also distorted her...