The Drowning Woman Summary, Characters and Themes
The Drowning Woman by Canadian novelist Robyn Harding is a gripping domestic suspense novel that delves into the complexities of female friendship, power dynamics within abusive relationships, and the stark economic disparities in Seattle. The narrative unfolds through alternating first-person perspectives of Lee Gulliver, a former restaurant owner now living out of her car, and Hazel Laval, trapped in a toxic marriage to a powerful lawyer.
As their lives intersect, they form a tenuous bond that spirals into a tale of deceit, betrayal, and unexpected survival. This dual point-of-view novel intricately explores themes of trust, class, and the lengths one will go to for freedom.
Summary
In the wake of losing her New York restaurant during the COVID-19 pandemic, Lee Gulliver finds herself living out of her car in Seattle, fleeing from a gangster who has threatened her life over unpaid debts.
Isolated and broke, she takes a job at a rundown diner known for employing individuals with troubled pasts. Estranged from her family after attempting to extort her sister’s unfaithful fiancé, Lee is at her lowest point when her car is broken into, leaving her even more vulnerable.
Seeking safety, Lee relocates to a wealthier part of town and parks near a beach. One morning, she witnesses a distraught woman walking into the ocean, seemingly intent on drowning herself.
Lee intervenes, rescuing the woman, who is furious at being saved.
The woman is Hazel Laval, trapped in a nightmarish marriage to Benjamin Laval, a controlling and abusive criminal defense lawyer.
Though initially resistant, Hazel forms a fragile friendship with Lee, sharing the dark details of her life and enlisting Lee’s help to escape.
Hazel confides in Lee about her plan to flee to Panama using a fake passport and convinces Lee to swap places with her temporarily to buy time. Unbeknownst to Lee, Hazel and her lover, Jesse Thomas, have plotted a darker scheme.
They intend to murder Benjamin and frame Lee for the crime, allowing Hazel and Jesse to inherit Benjamin’s wealth and remain in luxury.
When Lee arrives at Hazel’s mansion disguised as her, she discovers Jesse’s lifeless body, setting off a chain of events that unravels the twisted plot. The narrative then shifts to Hazel’s perspective, revealing the abusive dynamics of her marriage and her growing desperation to escape.
Initially, Hazel complies with Jesse’s plan to frame Lee, but her conscience wavers. She ultimately abandons the murder weapon, instead leaving Lee a fake passport, money, and an escape route.
Lee, driven by a mix of fear and curiosity, digs deeper into Jesse’s background and uncovers his true identity as Carter Sumner, a criminal with a violent past.
She learns that Carter and his brother, Sean, were involved in a brutal home invasion, and that Benjamin Laval was the lawyer who manipulated Carter’s defense, leaving Sean to take the fall.
As Lee and Benjamin confront each other, Benjamin offers Lee money and a plane ticket in exchange for her silence.
However, Lee discovers a crucial piece of evidence—audio recordings implicating Benjamin in a conspiracy to murder Hazel. Instead of fleeing, she anonymously delivers the recordings to the police, leading to Benjamin’s arrest.
Despite Benjamin’s influence, the case against him is eventually dropped. Hazel, now free, escapes to Panama.
The novel concludes with Hazel visiting Lee at her beachside restaurant in Panama, where Lee, having survived the ordeal, offers Hazel a fresh start and a chance to rebuild her life.
Characters
Lee Gulliver
Lee Gulliver is a complex character who embodies resilience and resourcefulness, albeit tempered with cynicism born from hardship. A former chef and restaurant owner, her life has unraveled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the bankruptcy of her New York City restaurant.
This financial collapse forced her into an itinerant lifestyle, living in her car in Seattle, and working in a low-end diner. Her estrangement from her family, particularly her sister, reveals a character flaw: her propensity for self-preservation at the cost of ethical behavior.
This flaw is shown by her attempt to extort her sister’s fiancé rather than simply revealing his infidelity. This decision underscores a survival instinct that has been honed by her difficult circumstances.
Lee’s narrative voice, which drives much of the novel’s plot, is marked by a mix of vulnerability and pragmatism. Her decision to save Hazel, despite her own precarious situation, shows an underlying moral compass and empathy, contrasting with her earlier unethical behavior.
As she becomes entangled in Hazel’s life, her initial reluctance gives way to a protective instinct, driven by her own experiences of betrayal and hardship. Lee’s relationship with Hazel, which starts with suspicion and evolves into a tentative friendship, highlights her capacity for loyalty and self-sacrifice, even as she navigates a world that seems to offer her little but adversity.
Her journey is one of rediscovering her own sense of agency and moral integrity, ultimately leading her to a place of stability and self-worth, albeit in a far different context than where she started.
Hazel Laval
Hazel Laval is portrayed as a woman trapped in a gilded cage, married to the sadistic and controlling Benjamin Laval. Her character is a study in contrasts; on the surface, she is the quintessential trophy wife, living in luxury, but underneath, she is deeply scarred by the abuse she endures.
Hazel’s relationship with Benjamin began with consensual BDSM, but it quickly devolved into non-consensual abuse, stripping her of autonomy and subjecting her to constant surveillance and control. Her motivations are complex—she stays with Benjamin partly because he has promised to pay for her mother’s care, reflecting her deep-seated sense of duty and guilt.
Hazel’s character is also marked by her desperation and willingness to manipulate others to achieve her goals. Her initial plan to fake her suicide and escape with Jesse reveals her resourcefulness and cunning.
However, her true nature is more ambiguous, as she vacillates between being a victim and a co-conspirator. Her interactions with Lee oscillate between genuine friendship and calculated manipulation, making her both sympathetic and untrustworthy.
Hazel’s eventual decision to save Lee from the murder frame-up by discarding the knife and providing her with an escape plan suggests that, despite her manipulative tendencies, she harbors a deep sense of loyalty and guilt. Her final escape to Panama, where she seeks out Lee, indicates a desire for redemption and a need to start anew, away from the toxic environment that has defined her life.
Benjamin Laval
Benjamin Laval is the embodiment of malevolent power and control. As a wealthy and influential criminal defense lawyer, he wields his authority to dominate and abuse those around him, particularly his wife, Hazel.
His character is defined by his sadistic tendencies, which initially manifest in a consensual BDSM relationship but quickly escalate into outright abuse. Benjamin’s control over Hazel is total—he monitors her every move, isolates her from potential sources of help, and uses her mother’s care as leverage to keep her compliant.
His cruelty is further highlighted by his manipulation of Jesse and his cold-blooded plan to frame Lee for murder. Benjamin’s relationship with Hazel is emblematic of toxic power dynamics, where he uses psychological and physical abuse to maintain dominance.
His interactions with Lee also reveal his ruthless pragmatism. Rather than outright killing her or allowing the plan to unfold as Hazel and Jesse intended, he attempts to buy her silence, demonstrating his belief that money can solve any problem.
Despite his intelligence and power, Benjamin ultimately underestimates the resilience and resourcefulness of the women he seeks to control. His downfall, orchestrated through Lee’s discovery and exposure of the recordings, serves as a testament to the limits of his power and the eventual triumph of justice, albeit a messy and imperfect one.
Jesse Thomas (Carter Sumner)
Jesse Thomas, whose real name is Carter Sumner, is a character shrouded in deception and violence. Initially presented as Hazel’s lover and confidant, Jesse is quickly revealed to be far more dangerous and untrustworthy.
His relationship with Hazel is rooted in mutual dissatisfaction and a shared desire to escape their circumstances. However, his true motivations are darker.
As the novel progresses, Jesse’s backstory as a violent criminal who manipulated the justice system to his advantage comes to light, painting him as a manipulative and self-serving individual. His plan to frame Lee for Benjamin’s murder, under the guise of helping Hazel, is a testament to his ruthless nature.
Jesse’s character arc is marked by his betrayal of both Hazel and Lee, using his charm and supposed loyalty to manipulate them for his own ends. His relationship with Hazel, while initially appearing to be one of mutual desperation, is ultimately revealed as another layer of his deceit, where he seeks to exploit her vulnerability for his benefit.
His death, though initially mysterious, is later understood as a consequence of his own actions, caught in the web of violence and manipulation he himself spun. Jesse’s character serves as a catalyst for much of the novel’s conflict, embodying the destructive potential of unchecked ambition and moral bankruptcy.
Sean Sumner
Sean Sumner, Jesse’s brother, plays a minor but significant role in the novel. His character is introduced through Lee’s investigation into Jesse’s past, revealing a man deeply scarred by his brother’s betrayal.
Sean’s backstory as the scapegoat in a violent home invasion orchestrated by Jesse highlights the theme of familial betrayal and the long-lasting impact of such treachery. Unlike Jesse, who is manipulative and self-serving, Sean is portrayed as a tragic figure, punished for crimes largely orchestrated by his brother and manipulated by the justice system.
Sean’s interactions with Lee provide crucial information that helps her unravel the true nature of Jesse’s character. His bitterness toward Jesse and Benjamin Laval, who defended Jesse by shifting the blame onto Sean, underscores the novel’s exploration of power dynamics and the injustice inherent in the legal system.
Sean’s character, though not central to the plot, adds depth to the novel’s themes of betrayal, justice, and the long shadows cast by past sins.
Minor Characters
The novel also features several minor characters who contribute to the development of the main characters and the overall narrative. For example, Lee’s former colleagues at the diner, who are themselves marginalized figures, provide a backdrop that highlights Lee’s fall from grace and her struggle to survive.
Similarly, Hazel’s mother, though never directly present in the story, represents Hazel’s sense of obligation and the reasons behind some of her more questionable decisions. These minor characters help to flesh out the world in which Lee and Hazel operate, adding layers of complexity to the novel’s social and emotional landscape.
Themes
Power Dynamics in Toxic Relationships
One of the central themes in The Drowning Woman is the exploration of power dynamics within toxic relationships, particularly as seen in Hazel’s abusive marriage to Benjamin Laval. The novel delves deeply into how Benjamin uses his wealth, influence, and psychological manipulation to control Hazel, stripping her of autonomy and reducing her to a mere object of his will.
The narrative portrays Benjamin as a man who thrives on dominating others, using both emotional and physical abuse to maintain his authority over Hazel. This theme is further complicated by Hazel’s initial complicity in the relationship, which began with consensual BDSM practices but quickly morphed into non-consensual abuse.
Hazel’s struggle to reclaim her agency, first through an attempted escape and later by plotting Benjamin’s downfall, highlights the difficulty of breaking free from such toxic power dynamics. The novel also underscores the broader societal implications of these dynamics, showing how economic dependency and fear of social ruin can trap individuals in abusive situations.
The Complexities of Female Friendship
The evolving relationship between Lee and Hazel forms the emotional core of The Drowning Woman, emphasizing the complexities of female friendship. Initially, their bond seems to be based on mutual need—Lee needs a place to park her car safely, and Hazel needs help to escape her marriage.
However, as they spend more time together, their relationship deepens, revealing layers of trust, betrayal, and eventual reconciliation. The novel explores how female friendships can be both a source of strength and vulnerability.
Lee’s decision to trust Hazel, despite the risks involved, and Hazel’s later efforts to protect Lee, even as she contemplates her own survival, illustrate the intense, often contradictory emotions that can define close female bonds. The novel challenges the stereotype of female friendships as purely nurturing, instead portraying them as complex relationships that can involve manipulation, sacrifice, and deep emotional connections.
Ultimately, the friendship between Lee and Hazel serves as a counterpoint to the toxic relationships in the novel, suggesting that while trust can be broken, it can also be rebuilt.
Class Distinctions and Social Preconceptions
The Drowning Woman also examines the theme of class distinctions and social preconceptions, particularly through the contrasting lives of Lee and Hazel. Lee, a former successful restaurant owner now living out of her car, represents the precariousness of middle-class life and how quickly it can unravel.
Hazel, on the other hand, lives in luxury but is trapped in an abusive marriage, showing that wealth does not equate to happiness or freedom. The novel uses Seattle as a backdrop, highlighting the stark economic divergences within the city—ranging from affluent neighborhoods to the fringes where the homeless and marginalized exist.
Through their friendship, Lee and Hazel confront their own preconceptions about wealth and class. Hazel envies Lee’s perceived freedom, while Lee initially views Hazel as privileged and naive.
As the story progresses, both characters learn that their preconceptions are far from reality. The novel suggests that class distinctions are ultimately insignificant in the face of shared human experiences, such as the need for safety, companionship, and autonomy.
This theme is further underscored by the ending, where both women find themselves in Panama, far removed from their past lives, emphasizing that true connection and understanding transcend social and economic barriers.