The Keeper of Happy Endings

Magic is referred to as la magie or magick in the novel; it provides a lens to explore the amount of control that people have (or do not have) over their emotions and destinies. Magic is woven throughout the entirety of the novel and helps to bring characters together and carry them along to their destinies. In the beginning, magic is introduced as a way to create a happy ending for Roussel brides when the dressmakers intentionally perform magic, but soon it plays a role in Rory’s life as well, drawing her to the row house and giving her a feeling that “it wasn’t finished with her yet” (22). It is an instinct that Rory pursues, which demonstrates how these characters are not passive participants in their own lives; the magic only goes so far, like a nudge, and leaves them to do the rest. Soline explains how, “even in fairy tales, the heroine must make her own magic” (77); in a novel in which war, gender and class barriers, and death inhibit characters’ choices, Davis uses magic to explore the extent to which people have control over how they feel and react.

Magic drives the action of the plot, but also gives a mysterious and ethereal