Gabriel doesn't start the fires, Finnigan does. He's happily sleeping at home when the matches are lit and the forest is burned… or is he? One of the most thrilling aspects of Surrender is that we're never sure which version of reality is truth, and which is fiction.
Sure, we might chalk this up to the fact that a lot of the narrative is told to us in a series of flashbacks, and memory is always subjective—but in this book, it's more than that. Gabriel purposely leaves certain details out so we read through the story in a specific way, believing he's the goodie two-shoes, while Finnigan is the bad guy. Once we learn the truth about how the two of them are connected, though, we can't help but question everything.
Questions About Versions of Reality
- How many distinct realities are there in the novel? Is Gabriel's reality different than Finnigan's or those around him? How so?
- Does Finnigan know he's a part of Gabriel? Why or why not? Why does Gabriel tell us what happened through Finnigan?
- They say hindsight is 20/20. Is this true for Gabriel? Does he view the past as reality, or wish he could change reality?
- Whose version of reality is easiest to believe in? Why?
Chew on This
Gabriel creates Finnigan to make his reality seem less despicable—his alter ego is a way for him to separate himself from what he has done.
The alternate versions of reality allow us to feel the same thrill and mystery as the rest of the characters in the book.