Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses abuse and sexual violence.

We Are All the Same in the Dark examines the lingering impacts of unresolved trauma by exploring how such trauma shapes the lives of characters long after the traumatic events have occurred. This theme is central to the story, with each character grappling with both physical and emotional reminders of past pain, highlighting the difficulty of healing when trauma remains unresolved.

One of the clearest ways trauma manifests in the novel is through physical reminders of the characters’ painful pasts. For Wyatt, the trauma he endured as a child is embodied in his “spook bone,” the arm that his abusive father broke when Wyatt was young. The physical injury, and Wyatt’s belief that it warns him of impending danger, serves as a constant, tangible reminder of his father’s violence and the lasting effects of his childhood abuse. Similarly, Odette’s missing leg is a permanent reminder of her traumatic accident, which occurred the same night Trumanell disappeared. This amputation thus not only recalls Odette’s personal loss but also ties her to the disappearance, motivating her to devote herself to solving the case. Angel also carries the scars of her past—her missing eye is both a reminder of the trauma of witnessing her mother’s death and the ongoing danger she faces from her father.