None of This Is True: A Novel

Josie goes back to the café that Alix took her to, and the narrative reveals that on the day she left Alix so suddenly, she thought she saw Roxy. She is sad that she didn’t, but she is also relieved. Now, she goes to Alix’s house, but no one is there. She looks through the windows, then takes a magazine from Alix’s recycling bin.

Later, Nathan shows Alix the footage from the recording app of their security system, and they see Josie take the magazine. Alix wants to talk to him about it, but also doesn’t want his scrutiny of her project. That night, they go to a party, and Alix resents the fact that once again, Nathan is drinking. She goes home alone and later texts Josie about seeing her on their security camera. Josie says she just stopped by, and Alix lets it go, even though she knows there is more to the story. Meanwhile, Josie looks through Alix’s magazine and makes a list of things to buy with her eventual inheritance. Walter is not in bed with her. A receipt falls out of the magazine, dated on Alix and Josie’s mutual birthday. Josie kisses the receipt before putting it back in the magazine.

In their next interview, Alix asks Josie about her preoccupation with denim. Josie talks about her lucky denim jacket, which reminds her of the beginning of her relationship with Walter. The women also look at photos from that time, and Alix comments on how attractive Walter was. She asks what Josie would say to her younger self, and Josie says that she would tell her younger self to run.

After the interview, Alix finds herself confiding in Josie about Nathan’s alcohol addiction. She hasn’t told anyone about her troubles—not even her sisters, whom she fears will judge her. When Josie asks if Nathan cheats, Alix reflexively denies the possibility but then wonders if it might be true. Josie changes the subject and asks Alix to go shopping with her, so they go to a local boutique, and Josie buys several dresses at Alix’s suggestion. When Josie gets home, she puts her purchases away and tucks the bracelet that she stole from Alix’s house into her drawer. She sends Alix an inspirational meme about women and men.

Alix is looking for her bracelet when she gets a meme from Josie that she doesn’t understand. The next day, Josie wears one of her new dresses and looks like a different person. Although they don’t have an appointment, Alix invites her into the studio. Josie asks if everything is all right with Nathan, and Alix tries to dodge the subject, but Josie is persistent. Josie also confesses that sometimes she feels like things would be better if Walter were dead. In return, Alix confesses that sometimes she feels the same about Nathan, but Josie is disappointed when Alix says that the thought of Nathan dying makes her sad.

In the Netflix documentary, Josie tells the story of her 18th birthday, when she and Walter told Pat about their intention to marry. Pat acted resigned at the news, and Walter took Josie to his apartment, where she has been ever since. Then, the narrative shifts again; in this section, which clearly takes place at a much later date than the present moment of the main storyline, Alix is interviewing a young couple who are holding Josie’s dog, Fred. They tell a story about being approached by a woman while on their honeymoon. She had given them her dog, kissing it before leaving.

The narrative shifts back to the narrative present. After her interview with Alix, Josie goes to the café. She is angry about Nathan’s behavior and Alix’s acceptance of it. She kisses the teaspoon she stole from Alix’s studio. When she gets home, Walter discovers the fact that she has been meeting Alix, and he is confused by her secrecy. She slaps him and screams that she hates him, and Walter turns back to his laptop.

Alix sees Pat on the street and asks what she thinks of the podcast, confessing what the true topic is. Pat shares her opinion that Walter and Josie are a “toxic combination” (138). When Alix pushes further, however, asking for more information about Erin and Roxy, Pat walks away.

Alix decides to invite Josie and Walter to dinner, and Nathan reluctantly agrees, knowing that he owes her a favor right now. She texts Josie, who tells Walter to get a haircut and buy new clothes for the event. Later, Alix texts Josie and asks her to bring a photo of her daughters to their interview the next day, and Josie realizes that it is time to expose the truth of her life.

Josie shows Alix pictures of Erin and Roxy and talks about their difficulties in school. The most recent picture shocks Alix—in older photos, the girls are round-cheeked and smiling, but in the last photo, just before Roxy left home, she is hard and defiant, and Erin looks thin and malnourished.

Walter gets a haircut and new clothes, and Josie makes his favorite meal, shepherd’s pie, as a reward. She tells him that she is going to tell Alix the truth about the girls, but Walter points out that if Josie does so, then Alix will call the police. The argument escalates until Josie calls Walter a pedophile, but then she retreats, clearing the dinner dishes.

Nathan is going out for drinks with a friend, Gio, but he promises to be home in time for the dinner party. When he reneges on this promise, Alix entertains Josie and Walter on her own. Walter is visibly nervous in his new clothes and bad haircut. Alix calls Nathan several times and finally elicits his drunken promise that he will come home. Josie is angry and confronts Alix about Nathan’s behavior. Alix feels threatened by this behavior, especially when she remembers Josie’s theft of the magazine. Josie suggests that Alix give Walter a tour of her studio. In a brief moment when Alix is alone with Walter in the studio, she asks Walter how he met Josie. He tells her that Josie isn’t what she appears, that she is thoughtful and cunning and must not be underestimated. He urges Alix not to believe everything that Josie says.

Nathan never comes home, and dinner is stilted and awkward. Josie attacks Nathan, and Alix feels compelled to defend him. When they leave, Josie whispers the word “men” in her ear disparagingly. Afterward, Alix watches television with her son, Leon, who tells her that when she and Walter were in the studio, Josie was eavesdropping on their conversation. Meanwhile, when Josie returns home, she is angry at how poorly the dinner went. She walks Fred, then listens at Erin’s door. Walter is on his laptop, and she yells at him, renewing their argument over telling Alix the truth about their daughters. When Walter calls her “stupid,” Josie thinks of all the things he said in Alix’s studio and knows that her moment of change has come.