Stella Rodney is the protagonist of the novel. She looks young for her age, with a pale complexion, a streak of white in her tawny hair, and grey eyes. She is a divorced woman with an adult son, Roderick, who is in the army. Her ex-husband Victor died soon after their divorce. At the time, Stella let people believe that she was the one who left Victor. However, it is later revealed that he left her for his nurse, after having been injured in WWI. Stella eventually tells Harrison about her reasons for this, asking, “Who, at the age I was, would not rather sound like a monster than look a fool?” (251). This choice indicates that being perceived negatively is less important to Stella than losing her power by appearing foolish. Stella is very independent and committed to making her own choices.

Stella has been with her lover, Robert, for two years when the action of the novel occurs. They have a loving relationship but do not live together. When he asks her to marry him, she declines, in part because she suspects his espionage and in part because it would create unnecessary complications. Again, this emphasizes her independence as a character.