Grim Tidings Themes
by B.K. Borison
Underneath its plot, Grim Tidings wrestles with loneliness and belonging, duty and forbidden desire, grief and the afterlife, sacrifice and redemption, hidden identity and trust, and suppressed magic that breaks loose when emotions are ignored.
This page breaks down those themes using concrete moments, like Darcy clinging to mortal habits, Gabriel's fear of losing his wings, secrets about Nate, and death magic killing flowers. It also tracks recurring symbols: the yew tree and red berry, the scythe, wings, and scars and tattoos.
Major Themes in Grim Tidings
Loneliness and the search for belonging
Darcy's afterlife is defined by isolation, and she clings to mortal habits and connections to feel human. The book develops this through her confessions, her bonds with Tater Tot and Frank, and moments where Gabriel and even the narrator recognize their own loneliness.
- Darcy admits the afterlife is lonely and that she sometimes feels lonelier in her empty cottage; she tells Gabriel all she has ever wanted is to feel part of something and to belong.
- At the lighthouse, Gabriel shows Darcy fishing boats gathered together and says, 'Wanted you to know that you're not alone, either.'
- The narrator thinks, 'She's been so lonely, I think' and 'I've been lonely, too.'
Duty, fate, and forbidden love versus choice and desire
The Reaper–Guardian divide, department rules, and Gabriel's fear of losing his wings keep Darcy and Gabriel apart even as they are drawn together. The novel repeatedly asks whether they can choose something different from their assigned roles, culminating in their forbidden romance and Gabriel's choice to become mortal.
- Gabriel says 'We are not people' and 'It won't end well'; Darcy nods 'I know it won't,' but they still kiss at the lighthouse.
- Gabriel reveals he lost two souls to Reapers, that his own sword carved the scars, and that losing another soul to a Reaper will cost him his wings.
- Darcy asks, 'If I weren't a Reaper, and you weren't a Guardian... what do you think would happen if we were ordinary?'
- Gabriel signs discharge paperwork, loses his wings, becomes mortal, and realizes what he felt for Darcy 'wasn't that at all' but 'a gift. A choice.'
Death, grief, memory, and the afterlife as continuation
Death is not simply an ending; the book shows the afterlife as a bureaucracy but also as a place of reunion and mercy, while grief shapes both the living and the immortal. Frank's loss and reunion, Darcy's reaping guilt, and Gabriel's fear of forgetting all develop this theme.
- Darcy tells Frank about the sea, the rock bridge, and that his family waits there; Frank's daughter called the bridge 'a window to another world.'
- Frank steps through the ledger-room door, becomes younger, and reunites with his daughter and a strawberry-blond woman before Gideon closes the door.
- Gideon says, 'We grant mercy. We show love,' and asks whether ferrying souls is not an act of compassion.
- Gabriel keeps a Post-it note reading DARCY on his bathroom mirror, terrified his mortal mind might forget like Nate's memories of Halloween dull to logical explanations.
Sacrifice, redemption, and protecting loved ones
Characters repeatedly offer themselves or their power to save someone else, turning death work into a chance at redemption. Darcy jumps in front of an SUV for Nate, offers her soul and afterlife to Gideon, Frank offers to take Nate's place, and Gabriel offers his wings.
- Darcy sprints into the street toward the speeding SUV and is clipped to save Nate; afterward she thinks, 'I saved a soul. I can be more than my cloak and scythe.'
- Darcy offers her soul, afterlife, magic, and memories to save Nate; Frank steps forward with dead daisies and offers to take Nate's place so he can see his wife again.
- Gabriel refuses to leave Darcy, summons his sword, confronts Gideon, and offers his wings.
- Darcy ends things with Gabriel at the bar because she won't have him be collateral damage for her choices, then promises 'All my minutes. Every last one.'
Hidden identity, deception, and trust
Darcy and Gabriel begin with secrets and prejudice: she hides that Nate is her assignment, he privately resolves not to help her, and both accuse each other of manipulation. Trust develops slowly through shared vulnerability, but their opposing natures and department rules keep deception close.
- Darcy sees Nate in the back hallway and realizes he is the soul she was sent to collect; she decides to keep this secret from Gabriel.
- Gabriel privately thinks he will not actually help Darcy and wants to keep her close to stop whatever she is truly planning.
- Darcy admits her list was a ploy to distract Gabriel, but the listed things were real.
- Frank recognizes Darcy as the Reaper who took his wife and daughter and orders her out, accusing, 'You took them away from me.'
Suppressed magic, emotion, and loss of control
Darcy's death magic is tied to her emotional state and becomes dangerous when she suppresses it for too long. Her power kills flowers, reacts to Gabriel's magic, and finally pours into Gabriel to calm her, showing that her magic is inseparable from her humanity and feelings.
- Darcy's magic accidentally kills the bouquet in Frank's shop, turning the flowers dead and dry; Gabriel steadies her shaking hands.
- After seeing Brad outside the flower shop, Darcy panics and loses control of her suppressed magic, which kills every flower in Frank's shop.
- Darcy explains her magic reacted to Gabriel's when he kissed her, and Gabriel's magic hums happily when he dries and braids her hair.
- Gabriel asks Darcy to give him her magic; she kisses him, transfers her magic to him, and the storm inside her calms.
Symbols and Motifs
Yew tree and red berry
Represents Reaper assignments, fate, and the department's control over Darcy; the berry grants visions and later reinstates her, linking death work to her final choice to be with Gabriel.
- Darcy enters the assignment room, speaks to the giant yew tree, plucks a red berry, and has a vision of a man, wet asphalt, cracked glasses, a neon OPEN sign, blood on her hands, and copper on her tongue.
- Gideon offers Darcy the red yew berry as her reward — she is reinstated as a Reaper.
- Darcy eats the berry, receives a vision, and later reveals her final assignment is to be with the man from her vision — Gabriel — for the rest of his life.
Scythe
Represents the Reaper's identity, duty, and power, but also the capacity for mercy and protection; it is used both to heal and to confront.
- Darcy heals the injured German shepherd with her scythe and Reaper magic.
- In the graveyard, Darcy holds a scythe and tries to convince Gabriel she has things under control, revealing she needed to summon Gideon.
- Aelia arrives at the graveyard with candy and a scythe; she calls Darcy's scythe and shadows, then offers Gideon Kit Kats.
Wings
Represent Gabriel's Guardian identity, immortality, and vulnerability; showing them is intimacy, losing them is punishment or sacrifice, and they mark the boundary between divine duty and mortal love.
- Gabriel senses death magic, unfurls his wings, and accuses Darcy of being a Reaper.
- Gabriel reveals his wings, and they do tequila shots together in an intimate ritual.
- Rafael removes Gabriel's wings and tells him he is no longer a Guardian Angel but a mortal.
- In the bedroom, Gabriel sinks inside her; his tattoos glow and his wings explode from his back.
Scars and tattoos
Gabriel's scars record guilt and punishment for lost souls, while his tattoos later reveal a life shaped toward Darcy and a soulmate bond; together they mark love as both wound and destiny.
- Gabriel shows Darcy his scars and reveals he lost two souls to Reapers—a girl in Spain and a soul in a community hospital—and that his own sword carved the scars.
- Rafe reveals that Gabriel's tattoos are from lives shaped on the way to Darcy and his scars are cracks in his heart.
- Rafael reveals Gabriel's marks are all for Darcy and shows him a soulmate identification form, making Gabriel realize Darcy is his soulmate.
- In the bedroom, Gabriel sinks inside her; his tattoos glow and his wings explode from his back.