The Books of Doors: Izzy Theory
[Spoilers for the entire book]
This was a beautiful book. I inhaled it. I loved the twists and turns, and how everything tied back to previous loopholes and eventually came together.
I was convinced of one theory throughout the book, and I’m curious whether anyone else thought the same thing.
Izzy is a pretty major character for someone who isn’t the protagonist. Her personality and storyline carries a lot of weight throughout the novel. As the story progressed, I started picking up little nuggets here and there, and I became convinced she was going to become >!The Woman!<. Here’s why:
>!She’s beautiful. It’s mentioned multiple times by Cassie, and Lottie pointedly comments on it when they first meet. The Woman is also repeatedly described as beautiful.!<
>!Drummond asks Izzy and Cassie what they want most in the world. Izzy says: “I’d like to be happy. I know it’s childish. If you’d asked me five years ago, I would have said I wanted to be a movie star. But now I think I just want to be happy.” It surprised me that she wasn’t already happy, and it hinted at a deeper sadness within her. I started wondering whether that sadness, combined with everything she later endured, might eventually evolve into bitterness, resentment, or even revenge.!<
>!She was frightened of the books from the start. She warned Cassie and wanted nothing to do with them, but Cassie continued exploring them anyway, which put Izzy directly in danger.!<
>!That danger led to her being tortured with the Book of Pain. She literally suffered because of Cassie’s involvement with the books. I thought this might leave a lasting psychological impact and eventually turn into resentment.!<
>!Cassie leaves her behind twice. First in the apartment, without Izzy understanding what was happening or what they had already uncovered about the books, while dangerous people were actively hunting them. Then again after the auction, when Cassie believed Izzy had been shot and disappeared. Izzy could have thought Cassie just left her, again.!<
>!I thought something devastating would eventually happen to Cassie, perhaps involving the Book of Despair, the Book of Pain again, or simply years of bitterness and emotional damage. I became convinced Izzy would grow older, consumed by what happened to her, and ultimately become The Woman, hunting Cassie and Drummond out of revenge for abandoning her, or for pursuing the books after she had begged Cassie not to!<
Anyway, just me?