Secrets of a Charmed Life

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2015

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 1, Chapters 1-8

Part 1, Chapters 9-15

Part 2, Chapters 16-23

Part 2, Chapters 24-33

Part 3

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

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Discussion Questions

Themes

The Impact of War on Personal Destinies

Throughout the novel, war greatly affects the characters’ futures and makes them realize that they have little power over their circumstances. Emmy’s dreams of becoming a dressmaker are disrupted when the Blitz occurs right after she promises to bring her sketches to Graham. After Julia disappears, Emmy forgets about and ultimately abandons her bridal shop dream to search for Julia and help other children affected by the Blitz. She explains that she “began to forget her old dreams” (219) so she could focus on finding and taking care of Julia. Likewise, Emmy’s, Julia’s, and Annie’s hopes to remain connected as a family and for them to build a prosperous life together were thwarted by the war. The chaos of the Blitz and the lack of communication prevented them from finding each other.

While guilt and grief plague both Emmy and Julia following the Blitz, they both gain peace and forgive themselves by discovering that they only have so much control over the world, and that while they made mistakes, circumstances beyond their control also caused their problems. After sharing much of her story, Isabel tells Kendra, “[W]hen you make a choice, even if it’s a bad one, you’ve played your hand. You cannot live your life as though you still held all your cards” (298). She also shows Kendra Charlotte’s letter to her, in which Charlotte tells her, “I am not such as significant creature in God’s universe that it is my decisions alone that can change the destiny of another” (303). This philosophy has allowed Charlotte and Emmy/Isabel to forgive themselves for what happened to their sisters and recognize that their actions were not the sole contributors but also the will of an omniscient and omnipotent God. Julia shares this philosophy after her work with her therapist Dr. Diamant, who told her that “the war is to blame for what came between you and me” (339). Julia blames the war, something far beyond her control for what happened, and this helped her forgive herself for hiding the bride sketches and being separated from Emmy. At the end of their interview, Isabel concludes:

Strangely enough, war has a way of absolving us of the mistakes we make while in its dreadful shadow, but it keeps this absolution a secret. I didn’t realize I was playing my cards against a cruel opponent that had its own cards to play (379).

This has allowed her to stop tormenting herself with questions about what she could have done to find Julia sooner and move forward in life. Ultimately, in war, people make mistakes they might regret and people might feel responsible for bad things that happen to those they love, but they are not completely responsible. War is a large and horrific ordeal that places situations far out of a person’s control, and they must be able to forgive themselves and work towards a better future.

The Conflict Between Personal Ambition and Responsibility

Emmy’s dreams of creating art and her desire for happiness put her at odds with her mother’s and Julia’s insistence that Emmy take care of her sister first and foremost. Emmy wants to become a dressmaker and bridal shop owner and plans to train under Graham Dabney. However, Annie is a single mother caring for two daughters as a kitchen maid, and so Emmy is required to take on many of the responsibilities for Julia’s care. This causes Emmy to resent her mother and argue about her future and Julia’s care. She asserts that “Julia was her sister, not her daughter. This was Mum’s complication to work out, not hers” (42). She desperately wants to be older and take independence and, even after the evacuation order, she works with Mrs. Crofton to set her training into motion.

Because Emmy is only 15, Annie wants her to be with Julia and make sure she goes to a good foster parent. Emmy goes but continues to stay in touch with Mrs. Crofton. She then impulsively decides to return to London without Charlotte and Julia’s knowledge and against the evacuation order. However, Julia finds out, putting Emmy in conflict with her—and Emmy’s dreams—as Julia wants to go with her or have her stay at Thistle House. Even though Emmy loves Julia, she becomes angry with her, arguing, “I have to think of my future and what I am supposed to do with my life” (136), but Julia claims, “You’re supposed to be with me” (136). Realizing Julia will not give up, Emmy relents and takes her to London; she is unable to choose between her ambition to become a dressmaker and her responsibility as Julia’s sister.

Emmy’s conflict only increases, however, as she learns at the appointment that Julia switched out the brides box with a fairy-tale book. She promises to go to Thistle House and retrieve the sketches, but the Blitz starts soon after the appointment. With Julia’s disappearance, Emmy decides that her dream does not matter as much as finding her sister alive and safe. After she discovers Annie is dead, Emmy realizes that she is the only person Julia has left and must become her guardian. She thus becomes Isabel and focuses on searching for Julia. In the midst, she “began to forget her old dreams” (219). Though she starts painting and selling her art, including The Umbrella Girls, her greatest ambition after the Blitz is finding her sister. Her devotion is eventually rewarded when Julia finds her bride sketches and the sisters reunite.

The Resilience of the Human Spirit in the Face of Loss and Adversity

During and following the Blitz, both Emmy and Julia face loss, hardship, trauma, and guilt. Though these ordeals are troubling and taxing for both of them, their love for each other and their perseverance allow them to overcome them. Emmy loses her mother and Mrs. Crofton and tries to search for Julia, but she is unable to find her. Even though her grief troubles her, she uses her knowledge about Mrs. Crofton’s daughter Isabel and her intelligence to become Isabel Crofton and survive in London for several months, working with the WVS and helping other children displaced by the Blitz.

At Thistle House, she gets help in her search from Mac and works through her grief and guilt with the help of Charlotte. She also uses her hope of seeing her sister again and making things right with her to push her through the stress and horrors of the war. Emmy’s discovery of her father then leads to a difficult encounter with his wife. However, Mac comforts her, and she later forms a close-knit relationship with her half-brother Colin. Emmy’s realization that many of the things leading to her separation from Julia and Annie’s death were not her fault also helps her to heal and to make peace with the past. Though Isabel says she has “been a coward most of [her] life,” Kendra assures her, “I think history will prove that Emmeline Downtree was actually very brave, considering all that she had to endure” (386). Though Emmy made some mistakes, she was brave and perseverant through all her hardships, and she overcame them. Her resilience allowed her to create a fulfilling life for herself and her family, as did Julia’s.

Julia’s survival of the initial bombings and her separation from Emmy and her mother leads to severe post-traumatic stress that causes her to stop talking for five years and to avoid London and other things that remind her of the Blitz. She struggles with guilt for switching Emmy’s bride sketches and, like her sister, feels that she does not deserve to be happy. However, over the years, she took Dr. Bristol’s advice and went with her grandmother to London. At 20, she even moved there permanently. Working with Dr. Diamant in regard to her trauma allowed her to confront her past. She tells Emmy in her journal that she “survived the war and the loss of my childhood, my parents, and my sister” (349).

Julia uses the things she has endured to show that Simon does not need to worry about her, and that she can find Emmy’s sketches and atone for her actions. She becomes dedicated to finding the bride sketches and getting the dresses made to make Emmy’s dream come true. Doing these things allows Julia to confront her past, reconnect with her sister, and finally forgive herself. Then, she can move forward and make peace with her separation from Emmy.