Heart Bones

Tall, blond, quiet, and good-looking, Samson is an enigmatic 20-year-old man who breaks into Beyah’s life almost against her will. Apparently the son of a wealthy beach-property owner, Samson presents himself as the property master for five of his father’s large beach houses on the Texas Gulf Coast. His parents’ main house is next door to Beyah’s father’s home, close enough that Samson can jump from his balcony to Beyah’s. Beyah finds him quite attractive and mysterious. From the beginning, Samson is Beyah’s equal in being unwilling to share his personal story. At the end of the summer—the end of his “gap year,” Samson will be headed to the Air Force Academy.

Throughout the course of the narrative, Beyah gradually learns more about Samson. As she does, her opinion of him changes, and she decides he is a worthwhile, trustworthy person. He diligently helps other area residents with home repair, in particular aiding the widow Marjorie, who holds him in high esteem. As Beyah’s opinion of Samson improves, their romance becomes more physical.

When Houston police arrest Samson, Beyah discovers that his story is untrue. In fact, Samson has lived on his own from the time of his father’s death, during Hurricane Ike in 2008, when Samson was only 13. Skilled at breaking into houses, he pretended to maintain the houses he entered, in fact making repairs in them and keeping a record of what he did. Consigned to jail for at least four years, Samson nobly refuses any contact with Beyah, who wants to give up her scholarship to help win his release.

Sara is Beyah’s stepsister, the daughter of Brian’s wife, Alana, who is a dentist in Houston. Sara is one year older than Beyah. She is a chipper college sophomore and only child who is delighted at the prospect of having a new sister. Somewhat heavier in her build than Beyah, Sara worries that she will gain weight and become unattractive. She eagerly, guilelessly introduces Beyah to her privileged world, where each morning begins with sleeping in late and every evening ends with sitting around a bonfire on the beach or playing in the ocean.

Sara’s boyfriend of several months is Marcos, a career-minded youth who intends to start his own clothing line, “His Panic.” By the end of the narrative, which occurs four years after the summer when Beyah moves in with Sara, Marcos and Sara are married with a child on the way and living in a home down the beach from Beyah’s father’s house.

Beyah learns that Sara gave up her bedroom, which has the best view of the ocean in the house, for Beyah. The girls become closer, overcoming their disparate backgrounds and distinct expectations, to the point that they actually are “new sisters.” At the end of the novel, Beyah refers to Sara as her best friend.