Character Analysis
(Avoiding Spoilers)
Living... in Monterey Bay, California. It’s a wealthy enclave renowned for its incredible public school system, and Madeline is basically the queen bee of Otter Bay Elementary.
Profession... full-time mom and part-time community theater employee. Thanks to her absentee husband, Madeline often functioned as a single mom to their daughter Abigail. Theater is a hobby and a passion for Madeline, but she prides herself on being a stay-at-home parent. As she jokes to a friend, “Between you and me, I try to maintain my full-time mommy status so I can lord it over Renata and other career mommies.”
Interests... coffee dates, musical theater, and a big glass of wine.
Relationship Status... remarried. After splitting from her first husband, Nathan, Madeline remarried successful entrepreneur Ed. In addition to her teenage daughter Abigail, Madeline and Ed have a precocious first-grader named Chloe. In a strange coincidence, Nathan and his new wife Bonnie Carlson also have a first grader in the same class. It’s an arrangement that has Madeline on edge, which is only causing more tension in her sometimes lackluster connection to Ed.
Challenge... getting through a murder investigation. Monterey is thrown into a tizzy when someone dies under mysterious circumstances at an Otter Bay school fundraiser. The police arrive to investigate what happened and who may have been involved—which includes pretty much all of the parents who were there, including Madeline. Figuring out what happened means digging into the events of the past school year. Back then, Madeline was focused on befriending new-in-town mom Jane Chapman and leading a war against her snotty rival Renata Klein.
Personality... opinionated and tenacious. You couldn’t ask for a better, more loyal friend than Madeline—just don’t get on her bad side! She’s perky, snarky, and constantly aching for a righteous cause. As she observes, “Everyone in this town assumes I’m the root cause of everything.” Madeline strives for perfection in every aspect of her life, and she has a hard time letting go of resentments or letting things slide. But she balances out her high-strung personality with a witty sense of humor and an incredibly warm, empathetic heart.
