60 pages • 2 hours read
Malinda LoA Scatter Of Light
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2022A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 33-44Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 33 Summary
Tasha arrives in San Rafael on Wednesday morning. On the way to Woodacre, she requests that Aria stop by the In-N-Out for lunch. At the restaurant, Aria mentions the music festival coming up this weekend but refers to Steph only as “Joan’s gardener” (222). Tasha comments that Aria seems “out of it,” but Aria brushes it off. When they get ready for bed that night, Aria is hyper-aware of Tasha’s body next to hers and avoids further conversation by going to sleep.
The next morning, Aria takes Tasha to the beach. Over lunch, Tasha shares that she and Haley were in a secret relationship but broke up. In hindsight, Aria recognizes all the clues, and feels “stupid” for not seeing it sooner. Tasha explains that she had been hoping by graduation Haley would feel comfortable coming out and being public about their relationship but instead Haley insisted she was “confused” and could love Tasha only “as a friend” (226). Tasha worries that Aria thinks the situation is “weird,” but Aria reassures her that it’s not.
Chapter 34 Summary
On Friday morning, Aria wakes up early and works on her painting in the studio but continues to feel self-conscious about it. When Steph arrives, Aria takes her to the studio to show her the painting. They make out, despite Steph’s protests of needing to work. As they continue to kiss, Aria thinks, “this [is] the realest thing [I’ve] ever felt” (231).
Chapter 35 Summary
The day of the music festival, Aria and Tasha meet up with Mel and Lisa in Golden Gate Park. When Tasha realizes that it’s a queer music festival and that all of Aria’s new friends are gay, she asks, “Somehow you’ve been spending your summer with all these lesbians and you didn’t mention it to me?” (232), which Aria brushes off.
On stage, Roxy and Steph are “magnetic” together. Lisa is visibly jealous, but Aria recognizes that the bandmates’ chemistry is part of the performance. After the set, the friend group greets the band and Aria introduces Steph to Tasha. Aria finds it difficult to watch Steph interact with Lisa.
Tasha and Aria go to dinner together, and Tasha confronts Aria about having “a thing” for Steph because she noticed the way Aria stared at Steph on stage. Aria admits that they’ve been hooking up and that she has feelings for Steph; Tasha doesn’t judge Aria but doesn’t have any advice on how to change her feelings.
That night in bed, they talk about their sexualities, and Tasha reminds Aria that the situation with Steph isn’t ideal. On Sunday morning before Tasha leaves, Aria shows Tasha the painting she has been working on. Tasha interprets the work as an indicator that Aria is “figuring something out” (240). She reassures Aria that she doesn’t think she’s a bad person but adds that she needs to be responsible for her actions. In addition, she recommends that Aria ask Joan for painting advice.
Chapter 36 Summary
In the studio, Joan surmises that Aria’s creation process has been about exploring and playing. She tells Aria, “The only way to figure out what you’re doing is to do it” (243). Joan shares that it took a long time for her to figure out her own abstract painting process and she once spent a year working on just one painting. She adds that “an abstract painting is like excavating your emotions,” and that “there are layers to get through before you can uncover what it’s about” (244). Joan senses that the painting must be about something “dramatic” because of the vibrant colors Aria chose. Aria acknowledges that the painting hasn’t conveyed everything she wants it to say, which means that it’s still unfinished.
Chapter 37 Summary
Aria has a flashback to being 10 years old on the roof of her grandparents’ house, where her grandfather explained why it looks like the stars move during the night. She recalls the overwhelming realization “that the world was not as it seemed” (247). That night, he taught her how to properly look through a telescope, which requires patience for everything to align at exactly the right time.
Chapter 38 Summary
On Tuesday, Joan and Aria make tomato sauce together, while Aria daydreams about her plans with Steph. Aria suddenly hears a crash and sees that Joan has dropped the pot of tomatoes. Half of Joan’s face looks “frozen,” and with a moan, she slumps to the floor while Aria tries to catch her. Aria calls 911, and when the first responders arrive, they confirm that Joan had a stroke. Joan drifts in and out of consciousness, unable to communicate clearly with the paramedics, and Aria rides to the hospital with them.
At the hospital, while doctors tend to Joan, Aria calls her aunt Tammy to tell her the news and get a more comprehensive medical history for Joan. Aria waits for an indeterminable amount of time in the waiting room, feeling dazed. Matthew calls her to check in, having heard the news from Tammy, and says that he and Tammy are traveling to Woodacre as soon as possible.
After more time passes, Joan is stable enough for Aria to visit her. The doctor confirms that they’re treating her for an ischemic stroke and that she’ll need to stay for observation. When Joan wakes up, she mistakes Aria for Alexis and asks about Russ. Aria suddenly remembers that she locked Analemma in her room and left the front door unlocked. Over the phone, Tammy assures Aria that she should go home to take care of those things while Joan rests. Realizing that she needs a ride back to Woodacre, Aria calls Steph.
Chapter 39 Summary
Steph drives Aria home from the hospital, and they take Analemma for a brief walk before cleaning up the kitchen. Aria showers and realizes that this might be the only time she’ll have the house to herself with Steph. After her shower, she approaches Steph in the living room. They console each other with a hug, and then Aria leads Steph to her bedroom, where they have sex for the first time.
Chapter 40 Summary
Aria has a flashback to being 16, when she spent the summer in Manhattan with her mother. There she met Zachary, who also lived in the building. They started spending time together and eventually started having sex. She felt neutral about the first time and wondered if “there was something wrong with [her]” (269) for not feeling more emotional about it. Zachary thought this made Aria more “like a guy,” for whom “sex is just sex” (269). Aria remembers craving the physical intimacy but not an emotional or romantic relationship.
Chapter 41 Summary
After Steph leaves, Aria wonders if Steph used her period as an excuse to not let Aria give her an orgasm, because “in the situation [they] had created, lies were everywhere” (272). Aria reflects on the authenticity she feels when she’s with Steph and sits outside until sunrise before finally going to bed.
Chapter 42 Summary
Aunt Tammy arrives in the morning after driving all night from Pasadena and leaves quickly to visit Joan at the hospital. After walking Analemma, Aria meets Tammy in the neurology ICU and sees that Joan’s memory and recognition has improved but that she still struggles with speech. The time in the hospital goes by in a daze for Aria until she picks her dad up in San Rafael. Matthew looks noticeably scared and doesn’t fake a cheery disposition when they go to the hospital. Steph and Aria cancel their plans for the evening, and Aria despairs at the thought of leaving in two weeks.
Chapter 43 Summary
Aria unexpectedly receives a call from Haley, who pleads for Aria not to tell anyone else about her relationship with Tasha. She states that she’s “not gay” and claims that Tasha misinterpreted everything. Haley wants to salvage her friendship with Aria, who is now torn between the two friends. Haley insists that she can’t be more than friends with Tasha even though she misses her dearly. Losing her patience with Haley, Aria accuses her of being in denial of her sexuality. She ends the call abruptly when her dad texts her.
Chapter 44 Summary
When Steph arrives at Joan’s for her usual yard work on Friday, she and Aria are unexpectedly alone. She calls out of work at the garden center to take advantage of this opportunity. Aria suggests that she “owes” Steph an orgasm from last time, but Steph takes over, telling her, “ladies first” (281). After sex, Aria asks Steph what she meant, and Steph replies, “I’m definitely not a lady” (281). Aria responds awkwardly as she fumbles to make sense of this, but when she asks Steph if she’s genderqueer, Steph smiles. Aria admits that she has “never had to think about this stuff before” (282) but assures Steph that she wants her for who she is. Aria then gives Steph an orgasm. Later, looking back on the moment, Aria thinks, “I was in love with all of her. I wasn’t myself anymore; I was hers” (283).
Chapters 33-44 Analysis
Tasha’s arrival to Woodacre is a pivotal experience in her friendship with Aria and highlights the theme of Discovering and Embracing Queer Identity. Her coming out to Aria about the secret relationship with Haley resolves all the questions Aria had about the trio’s unusual friendship dynamics. She and Tasha serve as each other’s confidante, offering critical support while they navigate their first queer relationships in parallel ways. Aria notices that Tasha is becoming more confident, which mirrors Aria’s own growth. The unconditional acceptance they share with one another strengthens their friendship and validates their identities.
Haley, meanwhile, functions as a foil to both Aria and Tasha, as someone who refuses to accept her queerness. Her desperation on the phone with Aria shows how reluctant she is to acknowledge it and demonstrates that even in 2013, when queerness is widely culturally accepted, people still fear such a drastic change in their identities within the scope of their family and society. Aria telling Haley that she can’t change Tasha’s feelings for her foreshadows the phone call Aria later has with Mel about Steph.
Aria’s relationship with Steph continues to grow in secrecy apart from Tasha’s now knowing. Like Steph, Aria struggles with her conscience, knowing that what they’re doing is “wrong” but nonetheless yielding to her all-consuming desire. Aria and Steph become bolder, hooking up in places where they’re more likely to get caught, and Steph starts deferring work responsibilities. They’re pushing boundaries, adding tension to an already-tenuous situation and creating a suspenseful atmosphere.
Joan’s stroke is an abrupt plot twist that completely disrupts the narrative and precipitates a cascade of jarring events. This traumatic event tests Aria’s responsibility and adulthood because she’s the only one around to help Joan. Her decisive action saves Joan’s life, but the gravity of the situation makes her feel helpless and childlike, and she yearns for her father to be there. The only person she can think to reach out to is Steph, whose selflessness (and increasing devotion to Aria) is evident when she picks her up at the hospital in the middle of the night and helps her clean the house. Steph’s action also shows that she considers Joan a good friend and far more than just an employer.
Just as complex emotions can exist simultaneously in reality, amid the fear and anxiety about Joan’s condition, Steph and Aria’s physical desire continues to build to the story’s climax, when they have sex for the first time. She flashes back to earlier sexual experiences with boys, which differed significantly in their emotionality. Rather than just being a pleasurable physical experience, Aria notices that sex with Steph allows her to feel totally present in her body—and this is the “real thing” she has been waiting for (266). However, Aria experiences her first feelings of doubting Steph and acknowledges that their relationship is imbued with lies and secrets—a major indicator that the situation is unsustainable. Aria wishes their relationship were “so obvious from the outside that nobody would question what [they] were doing” (249)—a wish that later comes true when their safe “bubble” finally bursts.
