The Other Woman

Adam serves as the novel’s antagonist. He consistently demonstrates a need to control those around him without feeling concerned about their well-being. At his birthday party, Emily recognizes how “Adam exuded confidence in any situation; he’d always be the first to introduce himself, take command in a restaurant, or pull his pants down during a rugby singsong” (162-63). Although Emily admires Adam’s assertiveness earlier in their relationship, she later struggles when Adam refuses to prioritize Emily’s wants and needs over his own. Adam exhibits The Mechanics of Manipulation while controlling Emily. He belittles Emily and causes her to question her perception. Adam lies to Emily and constantly blames her for his wrongdoing. Throughout the novel, Adam controls Emily through verbally and emotionally abusive behavior; when he eventually progresses to physical abuse, Emily realizes Adam desires power and control, not love and companionship, in a relationship with her.

Adam continuously fails to hold himself accountable for his actions. His apologies prove meaningless when he fails to change his behavior and blames others for his bad decisions and malicious acts. Adam tries to blame his affair on Emily’s pregnancy and challenging birth experience. Emily points out his selfishness: “‘Yet despite all that, it’s not about me, is it?’ I went on, ignoring him. ‘You’ve somehow made it about you. How you’re hard done by. How you’re missing out’” (268). Even though Adam recognizes how furious he would feel should Emily be unfaithful, he cares very little for Emily’s feelings of betrayal. Instead, he tries to provoke sympathy from Emily while making himself the victim.

Pammie changes from villain to hero in the novel’s resolution. Her final admission of wanting to destroy her son’s relationship for Emily’s sake, not Adam’s, redefines Pammie’s manipulative actions and malicious statements, including her perspective in the prologue. “There is still so much work to do, so much more pain to inflict” (1). Sandie Jones uses Emily’s limited first-person perspective to build misdirection around Pammie’s motivations. Pammie’s perspective in the epilogue reveals genuine concern for and admiration of Emily.

Pammie’s character also relies on the cliché of the overbearing mother-in-law to disguise her heroic intentions. Her ridicule focuses on Emily’s appearance, housekeeping abilities, and parenting style. Even though Emily is recovering from a difficult childbirth, she “run[s] around the flat, making sure everything was just so before she arrived. I didn’t want her to have any excuse to goad me, to tell me what I wasn’t doing right and everything I was doing wrong” (246). Stereotypically, the toxic mother-in-law earns a negative reputation by invading the home space with excessive criticism. Pammie embodies this trope to dissuade Emily from maintaining a relationship with Adam.

Pammie develops The Protective Nature of Maternal Relationships, one of the novel’s central themes. Aside from protecting Emily and Poppy from Adam, Pammie’s protective instincts also extend to Adam despite his abuse. Pammie accepts responsibility for Adam’s darker side: “I will carry the responsibility for my part in this for the rest of my days, for the way you’ve turned out, and for the callous things you’ve done. But I did everything I could to help that poor girl, just like I’ve done for Emily” (288). In accepting some blame for Adam’s violent behavior, Pammie partially exonerates him of his crimes. Pammie’s willingness to sacrifice herself and take credit for Adam’s crimes demonstrates her readiness to protect Adam from himself.

A foil for Adam, James is considerate and empathetic whereas Adam is self-centered and careless. Emily notices the differences between the brothers: “James was reserved, more refined, and always seemed to consider what he was saying and doing before he did it. He’d still be listening to me, long past the point when Adam would have switched off” (162-63). Emily identifies James’s admirable qualities in part by knowing she doesn’t recognize these same traits in Adam. More than once, Emily wishes for Adam to be more like his brother. He consoles Emily while making a genuine effort to understand her concerns. Seb helps Emily accept that a relationship with James would be cruel and unfair to the entire Banks family, especially Adam. However, Emily stays with Adam not for the content of his character but to prove to outsiders like Pammie that she is good enough for Adam.

James’s defensive actions demonstrate how protective instincts are not limited to mothers. Once Emily holds Poppy, James “rushed forward to support me and I fell into his arms. [...] James moved to shield me, and pressed me back against the wall, out of harm’s way, as he grappled with Adam in the tight space” (289). For the most part, James is not aggressive like Adam. He works as a peacekeeper in multiple scenes and tends to pacify Adam. However, when Emily is genuinely in danger, James shields her with his body even though it pits him against his brother. Pammie recognizes James’s protective instinct as he plays with Poppy: “James crawls after her, making a roaring noise, and she doubles her speed” (293). Kate, Emily, and Pammie recognize how James will be a good dad as he is emotionally attentive and protective.