The Seven Sisters

Both timelines in The Seven Sisters depict the connection between personal autonomy and self-discovery. However, Bel’s character arc in particular emphasizes the freedom and self-knowledge that one may gain through independence and control of one’s own body.

In the early chapters of the novel, Bel’s choices are often dictated by the pressure of familial expectations and social proprieties. Once she is in Europe—because of the different standards in France and because there are fewer people to watch her behavior—Bel is granted more independence. She flourishes with this new level of personal autonomy, discovering much about herself as she and Margarida study art and discuss big ideas with writers and musicians. Bel’s newfound autonomy also facilitates her meeting Laurent and the beginning of their love affair. Still, while Bel is in Paris, she does not have bodily autonomy. She cannot be intimate with Laurent even though she wants to because she is engaged to Gustavo and because society dictates that she must be a “virgin” on her wedding night.

Later, Bel takes more control of her body when she initiates her physical affair with Laurent. During the months that they are clandestinely together, Bel feels more alive and more like herself than ever before. The sky looks brighter, and she is more in tune with her senses and with her body. Her pleasure is due not only to her being in love but also to the connection that the novel is drawing between autonomy and self-discovery. Bel feels most alive when she is making her own decisions, even if she is only able to do so in secret. Her enjoyment and strong sense of self are captured by Laurent in the sculpture he makes of her later, which depicts her “naked and sensuous, head thrown back in pleasure, her hands thrown out […] no longer the innocent virgin as in the first sculpture, but subtly, sensuously, [represented] by a man who had truly loved her” (439). The contrast between the two sculptures underscores Bel’s growth as a character and the way independence and autonomy allowed her to discover herself.

Bel ultimately decides to stay with Gustavo, sending Laurent back to France without her. This decision is different than the decisions that Bel made at the beginning of the novel because it happens after her period of self-discovery. The decision breaks her heart, but Bel makes it freely after weighing all her options. Because she has taken risks to achieve her own desires, she now knows that she could run away to Paris. Resisting the desire because she is pregnant and wants to provide a good life for her child, she makes an open-eyed decision, thus exercising her autonomy.

Lucinda Riley is deeply interested in exploring the past’s influence on the present. This interest is evidenced in the scope of the Seven Sisters series, which explores the heritage of the sisters and of Pa Salt himself. Each of the sisters’ novels features a dual timeline just as Maia’s novel does. The author’s frequent use of this narrative structure underscores her interest in the way the stories of the past shape and impact the present. In the case of Maia, Bel’s love affair with Laurent in 1928 changes the path of history in small ways that ripple out to 2007—indeed, Maia would not even exist if Bel and Laurent had not had their affair, as Laurent was Beatriz’s father.

The author uses the moonstone necklace as a device and symbol that emphasizes the way the past touches the present. The necklace functions almost like breadcrumbs, helping the characters connect with each other and draw a line from Bel’s past to Maia’s present. In a moment that is visually evocative of the past influencing the present, Maia gazes at a photograph of her great-grandmother Bel: “‘Look.’ I indicated what Floriano should concentrate on in the photograph, my fingers instinctively clasping the moonstone around my neck. He studied both the picture and me carefully. ‘Yes, Maia. It seems they are one and the same’” (230). The moonstone does not simply act as a visual reminder of the past, however; it influences characters’ decisions in the present. After seeing the photograph, Maia becomes fully convinced that she is descended from the Aires Cabrals and resolves to continue searching for answers. That search is facilitated by Yara, who only gives Maia the letters after also recognizing the necklace. The author uses the device of the necklace to exemplify the way that actions taken in the past can steer actions taken in the present.

The novel also explores the way that scars from past experiences can impact present decisions. Maia’s regret and fear after her experiences with Zed are one example of this; her heartbreak and guilt caused her to avoid relationships for 14 years, hiding away at Atlantis with Pa Salt. Beatriz’s behavior toward Maia is another example. Beatriz is still hurt and ashamed about her relationship with Cristina and opts to avoid Maia—thus keeping huge secrets from someone who is directly implicated in them—rather than facing those scars. She eventually decides to confront her hurt from the past and speak to Maia, yet she does so reluctantly. It is not only the far past but also the characters’ personal pasts that influence their present actions.