A Goodreads user asked:

This contains a small spoiler!!! Ok, so, I loved the book, but the end got me thinking, how on earth didn't Auburn know that her painting from Adam was made by Owen? It's not a common style and it's very easily identifiable. I mean, It's obvious it was made by Owen. How did she not recognize it the second she saw his studio? Just very curious if there is an answer.

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9 years ago
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This answer contains spoilers… (view spoiler)[I don't think there is an answer for this question, at least not one explicitly stated in the book. I have some thoughts about the answer to this though.

The first thing that might make it hard for Auburn to identify Owen as the artist of Adam's painting is that there is no reason for that thought to pop in Auburn's head. What are the odds that Owen knew/met Adam, who grew up in Oregon and was only in Texas for a few weeks, confined in a hospital? The chances of that happening are so tiny that it likely never crosses Auburn's mind, despite the similarities in the art style. And if Owen did know/meet Adam, then she probably thought Owen would have mentioned something, especially after she told him her whole story.

I think it may also have to do with the fact that Auburn cherishes her time with Adam so preciously. The painting is so important that Auburn might be ignoring any signs that point to Owen because she's so blinded by her nostalgia for Adam and doesn't want to taint any of her precious memories by thinking that the last gift she got from him was actually made by someone else. She'd rather live in ignorance to protect her memory of Adam. (Owen doesn't tell Auburn the truth about the painting, and I think it's because of the same reasons, to protect Auburn and her memory. So I think that Owen's reasons make the idea of Auburn's intended ignorance more plausible)

One last thing crossed my mind about your question. I'm sure Owen's style evolved and skill improved over time. It might be hard to tell in the printed images in the book because lots of things can be revealed by the brush strokes and other aspects in a real life painting, so maybe the art technique/skill is different. I personally feel like the more I compare that painting with the other artwork, the more differences I can note in the coloring and certain details, though I can definitely still tell it's Owen's. I mean, it could also just be that this detail/your question wasn't taken into account when the artist drew the artwork.

Hopefully some of my ideas helped sate your curiosity and sorry for the long-winded answer and rambling. :) (hide spoiler)]

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Kim Gleason

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Diane I think it was her last article of Adam and in her mind it would always be from him. No question about it!

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