67 pages • 2 hours read
Emily RathPucking Around
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2023A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Character Analysis
Rachel Price
Rachel Price is one of Pucking Around’s narrators and protagonists. Rachel’s narrative voice occupies more of the novel’s space than any of the other narrators, which implicitly gives her perspective more weight than that of her partners’. She is the only female narrator in the novel and the only member of the Price polycule to be involved in a sexual and romantic relationship with all the other members. As a central figure in the novel, Rachel undergoes both professional and personal arcs of character development. At the start of the novel, she is focused primarily on her career, which she embraces for a fresh start after initially not receiving the prestigious Barkley Fellowship that she had anticipated getting. The difficulty of this disappointment (which is quickly amended when she is called up from Barkley’s waitlist in the novel’s first chapter) is compounded by her captivation with her “Mystery Boy” (later revealed to be Jake), with whom she engaged in a sexual encounter in Seattle without exchanging names or contact information.
As the plot intensifies, Rachel always follows her emotions as a guide. She is open to loving multiple people, which she considers a natural consequence of the expansive potential of love. She is intensely loyal to and protective of those close to her, which includes her family, her partners, and her best friend, Tess. Rachel is professionally confident with various professional accomplishments to back up this confidence. Throughout the novel, Rachel must combat her fears of losing control, particularly in the face of hostile attention and publicity from the press. This fear stems from her background as the daughter of a famous musician, which led to a childhood and adolescence in which her frequently risky behaviors were often scrutinized and criticized publicly. Over the course of the novel, Rachel learns to consider her love for her partners to worth the risk of public scrutiny, and she comes to see that the public may actually be welcoming and accepting of her relationship.
Caleb Sanford
Caleb Sanford is one of the protagonists and narrators of Pucking Around. Caleb is a former hockey player whose career was ended six years prior to the story’s start, due to an illegal hit from another player, which led to an intense knee injury. Caleb’s sudden loss of his hockey career, which ended after only seven minutes of play in the NHL, led him to struggle with depression and addiction until his best friend, Jake Compton, helped him with his recovery. This assistance leads Caleb to credit Jake with all his personal and professional successes following his injury. Caleb self-identifies as “queer” and experiences attraction to men and women in the novel. He ultimately ends up in a romantic and sexual relationship with Rachel and Jake, the latter of whom he had long held an attraction for, though he did not comment or act on this attraction, in deference to their friendship.
Caleb is moody and often insecure, fearing that everyone (and especially, for much of the novel, Rachel), prefers Jake to him. He has a combative and dominant personality and prefers to control situations, both in sexual and platonic instances. Caleb is firm in his convictions and often proves willing to make the “hard decisions” for the group. Though he keeps others at a distance by feigning emotional indifference, Caleb longs to be part of a family and to feel loved. Over the course of the novel, Caleb learns to let himself be emotionally vulnerable and to experience the potential rewards of that vulnerability.
Jake Compton
Jake Compton, a defensive lineman for the Jacksonville Rays, is Rachel’s “Mystery Boy” from the prequel novella, That One Night. He is one of the protagonists and narrators of Pucking Around. Jake is typically cheerful, gregarious, and often silly. Immediately upon his reunion with Rachel, he becomes determined to pursue a relationship with her, which he intends to be lifelong. He is the most optimistic of the polycule and believes consistently that their family can have a successful, happy future, despite the outside forces of prejudice that loom. Jake seeks praise and positive feedback from his partners and insists on frequent communication with those he loves. He dislikes being alone and makes friends easily.
Over the course of the novel, Jake experiences significant shifts in his sexuality and identity, which causes his longtime friendship with Caleb to develop into a sexual and romantic interest. Though he asserts that Caleb is the only man who holds his sexual interest, Jake ends the novel identifying as bisexual.
Ilmari “Mars” Kinnunen
Ilmari “Mars” Kinnunen is the fourth protagonist and narrator of Pucking Around. He is the last member to join the polycule that will eventually become the Price family, and he ultimately enters a sexual and romantic relationship with Rachel only, though he experiences intense friendship and platonic love for Jake and Caleb. Ilmari’s position as goalie for the Jacksonville Rays has led him to become intensely focused on hockey, fiercely independent, and highly private. His dream is to play for the Finnish National Team in the Olympics (a dream which he achieves in the novel’s final chapters, in which he scores the winning gold medal goal for Finland). Of all the characters, Ilmari struggles the most with accepting the different forms of relationships necessitated by polyamory; he initially aims to have a relationship only with Rachel even as she pursues her relationship with Jake and Caleb, only to learn the value of the friendship of the other two men in the family. Ilmari is stubborn and taciturn, with occasional turns towards poetic speechifying. His teammates are intimidated by him, which Ilmari secretly enjoys.
Over the course of the novel, Ilmari learns to allow others to help him, starting with Rachel, who assists him in treating a groin injury that he has hidden from his coaches and doctors so that it will not risk his chance of joining the Finnish Olympic team. Ilmari also learns to release his anger towards his birth father, Doctor Halla, and begin to take initial steps towards forgiveness.
