The Echo of Old Books: A Novel

The day after they were supposed to leave, Belle heads out to Hemi’s apartment, wishing she had been able to decide about him sooner. However, she plans for them to buy fresh tickets at the station that day and sent along a note with Dickey the previous day to Hemi. When she arrives at the apartment, however, it is empty, save her packed suitcase in the hallway. A neighbor tells Belle that Hemi packed up and left to cover the war the previous evening.

Stunned and heartbroken, Belle leaves the suitcase behind and returns home, taking a sleeping powder and going straight to bed. Cee-Cee wakes her up later with the news that the Japanese have bombed Pearl Harbor; she blames Jewish people for orchestrating the attack and dragging America into the way. Horrified, Belle points out that their mother was Jewish, and when Cee-Cee gets angry and defensive, Belle sees that their father has brainwashed Cee-Cee; Hemi was right about them all. Cee-Cee retaliates, asking why Belle isn’t with Hemi now, then; to her silence, Cee-Cee scoffs about Hemi being finished with Belle and warns her against mentioning him or Helene to their father.

America is plunged into war. Belle spends three days deeply hurt, still waiting for news from Hemi. Her father is due to return from a work trip, but she is not scared of him anymore; she has decided to leave, regardless of Hemi, and live off the small trust her mother left her. Belle heads out for a walk in the morning and spots an article in a paper at a newsstand with the title: "GRUESOME ASYLUM DEATH RAISES FRESH EYEBROWS” (275). It details everything Hemi told her about her mother and is accompanied by her parents’ wedding photo, a list of pro-Nazi organizations her father is a part of, and a picture of Belle and Cee-Cee with their full names.

Teddy’s family calls off the engagement. Belle’s father busies himself with trying to save his business interests. Members of the press swarm their house, and all social invitations and engagements dry up. Even as Belle pines for Hemi, she begins making plans to make a life of her own elsewhere.

In the epilogue of his book, Hemi reveals that he found out about the article on Belle’s family two years after it was published; he had nothing to do with it. In the years since they last saw each other, Hemi spent a long time reporting on the war, even writing critically acclaimed books about it. He was married once, but it didn’t last; despite the years, he has been unable to let go of Belle. Penning down their story is Hemi’s attempt at writing something with a “pulse,” and he intends to have it bound and delivered to Belle as a gift. Hemi signs off, confessing that he occasionally wonders about what happened to her suitcase, which he left behind in the apartment.

Ethan finishes reading Regretting Belle and discusses the ending with Ashlyn. Ethan wonders why Belle left Hemi hanging at the station, while Ashlyn believes Hemi ought not to have left the way he did. However, they both acknowledge that neither of them know what Belle’s note said, and the events don’t seem to add up. Ethan thinks Hemi went back on his promise and wrote the article after all, though Ashlyn isn’t convinced.

Ethan questions why Ashlyn is so certain something else went wrong, and she finally tells him about her psychometric abilities; the echoes from the books give off a strong sense of betrayal and loss. To her relief, Ethan takes her confession seriously and is touched that she trusted him with this secret, when she didn’t even tell Daniel.

Ethan kisses Ashlyn. Even though it feels good, she pulls back, claiming that she has too much baggage to bring into a relationship; Ethan assures her they can take things slow. He heads out to attend to a phone call. As Ashlyn ponders whether she is willing to trust getting into a relationship again, Ethan arrives with the news that Zachary just called: Marian is alive and well, currently living in Massachusetts.

A few days later, Ashlyn heads over to Ethan’s for lunch. Zachary had agreed to pass on their message to Marian, but there was no news yet. While they are eating, Marian calls. She asserts she would like to take back her letters to Richard, and when she discovers Ethan and Ashlyn have also read the books, she invites them to her home to answer their questions. Ethan and Ashlyn make plans to head over on Saturday and proceed to read the rest of Belle’s book after dinner.

Belle decides to go to California and make a new life for herself there. Before she leaves, she tries one last time to find her mother’s photo album, to no avail. She also visits Rose Hollow one last time, as well as Craig House, the institute where her mother died.

In the final chapter, Belle recounts how unbearable it was right after Hemi left, but she realized forgiveness wasn’t possible after the article was published. Her father lost everything from his fortune to his social standing, and Belle left for California looking for anonymity, adopting her mother’s maiden name. She made a good friend, a woman who gave her a very special gift; Belle refuses to elaborate, claiming Hemi has no right to those memories.

After the war, Belle locates her mother’s sister, Agnes, with whom she begins corresponding and eventually visits in France. While there, she learns about her mother’s culture and faith, and works with the Œuvre de Secours aux Enfants to find homes for war-displaced children. Belle never marries, but her life has been full and rewarding. Though there have been some men, she knows she will never fully be rid of Hemi’s memory. She confesses that she thought of the suitcase as belonging to “another woman—to Belle, the woman [Hemi] left behind. But that woman no longer exists” (304).

On Saturday, Ethan and Ashlyn drive up to Marian’s place. A still beautiful Marian welcomes them into her house, located by the sea in Marblehead. As she takes them through the house, Marian points out pictures of Zachary and Ilese. Ashlyn hands over the books, and the three of them settle down to have tea and chat.

Marian apologizes for not reaching out after Ethan’s parents’ deaths; she and Richard had fallen out long before then, and she didn’t learn of their passing until much later. She describes how she and Richard reconnected after her return from France, and how he brought Catherine to meet her; Marian knew Corinne (Cee-Cee) disapproved but advised Richard to follow his heart and marry Catherine.

The three of them discuss the books, and Marian describes how Richard was pressed into delivering them to her just as she had once had him deliver her note. She claims Hemi’s version is full of lies and distortions, and she penned her own version in response to send to him; however, Hemi never responded to it.

A few years later, Hemi called Richard out of the blue to meet up and told him his version of events. Richard orchestrated a meeting between Marian and Hemi, hoping they could still reconcile. She found out and was furious, as she had once made Richard promise to never mention Hemi again. Hemi returned to England without meeting Marian, leaving both books with Richard and asking him to give them back to her. Marian refused take them and fought bitterly with Richard about Hemi and the books; it was the last communication they ever had.

Marian claims it wasn’t possible for her to meet Hemi again after all the lies and deception, and Ashlyn believes she is referring to the newspaper article. Ashlyn realizes Marian thinks Steven Schwab is an alias and reveals that he was an actual person who worked for and lived with Goldie. Marian, in turn, reveals that Hemi is actually Hugh Garret, a now hugely successful novelist whose books she has never read.

When Marian asks about Ashlyn’s interest in the books, Ashlyn confesses that she feels there is a piece of the story missing, which unsettles Marian. However, she brushes past the moment and asks about Ashlyn and Ethan’s relationship, before inviting them to stay a while so they can catch up and reminisce about Richard.

Over dinner, Marian talks about her family: Zachary, the famous violinist, and Ilese, a professor of women’s studies in New York who is married with three daughters. She will see them next week in Boston, where Marian is due to receive a lifetime achievement award for some of her work. While Corinne is still alive, Marian has not spoken to her in 35 years.

Marian reveals that she adopted her children before she left for France; she never mentioned this in the book and stiffens when Ashlyn points this out. Nevertheless, she details how, in California, she became close friends with her neighbor Johanna, an Austrian woman who escaped to America with her son using forged papers during the war. Her husband, a violinist, was caught and arrested, and he died in their home country. Johanna was pregnant, and she died in childbirth; Marian adopted Johanna’s children upon her friend’s request.

As Ashlyn asks questions about Marian’s life, the older woman becomes defensive. Marian stiffens when Ashlyn asks whether Zachary remembers his father, who was also a violinist, but claims he doesn’t. She eventually sees them off, asking them to visit again; Ethan is her family, and she wants to get to know him better, promising to do better than she did with Richard.

On the way home, Ashlyn and Ethan discuss the many discoveries they made that evening, including Hemi’s identity. They talk about Marian’s falling out with Richard, and Ashlyn wonders whether he knew something more about Marian’s separation from Hugh. Ashlyn comments on Marian’s defensiveness, convinced there is more to the story.

Ashlyn falls asleep and wakes up when they are almost at Ethan’s. The roads are exceptionally foggy, and Ethan asks her to stay the night so she doesn’t have to drive home. Sensing her reluctance, he reassures her that she doesn’t have to do anything she is not ready for. However, he also confesses that he has feelings for her.

Ashlyn decides to stay and finally opens up about why she is so scared to explore a relationship with him. She tells him about her parents’ deaths and how she began therapy soon after with Dr. Sullivan. She also reveals more details about her relationship with Daniel: After she walked out, he kept begging her to take him back, even as he railed at her and blamed her for everything.

The day he died, they had arranged to meet for a drink; Ashlyn wanted to decide how to divide up their personal effects, which angered Daniel, who thought they were reconciling. She walked out as he began to make a scene, and he followed her outside just as a van was driving up the street. Daniel noticed it and stepped in front of it deliberately; his last words to Ashlyn were, “Say hello to Dr. Sullivan” (339).

Ethan listens and comforts Ashlyn as she cries and talks about the pain of her childhood and marriage. He promises her that she can trust him. They kiss, with Ashlyn asserting that she wants to begin something with him.