Malibu Rising

“Because, just as it is in Malibu’s nature to burn, so was it in one particular person’s nature to set fire and walk away.” 

The last sentence of the prologue is a microcosm of the novel. We know that, by the end of the novel, Nina’s house will be on fire, though we don’t know who will set it. When we learn that Mick Riva, however inadvertently, flicks his cigarette and ignites the Malibu landscape, we realize that Mick’s nature is indeed to destroy and not look back. 

“And now they were just biding their time, trying to create the perfect moment in which to tell Jay the half-truth. A half-truth between half brothers, though Jay and Hud never thought of themselves as half brothers at all.” 

Though Hud is only related to his siblings on his father’s side, Hud and Jay are dependent on the other as full brothers would be. Despite the temporary conflict over Hud’s relationship with Ashley, the brothers reconcile, especially after Jay defends Hud to Mick because of their shared experience of having been abandoned by him. Ultimately, their connection as brothers grows stronger as they commit to helping Kit’s surfing career.

“As she floated there, the wind chilling her wet skin, the sun crisping her bare shoulders, with her legs dangling in the water, Nina was already getting a small slice of the peace she’d come out here for.” 

The ocean is a balm for Nina. Nina surfs to forget the world, constantly returning to the water to find peace amidst the chaos of her life, so it makes sense that she will eventually leave Malibu to find such peace full-time, rather than continuing to juggle it with other commitments.