The document discusses two novels that deal with themes of alienation, guilt, and seeking justice after trauma. In Black Water, a woman named Kelly is abandoned and dies after the car she is in crashes into the ocean, parallel to the real-life Chappaquiddick incident. In We Were the Mulvaneys, a family falls apart after the daughter Marianne is raped, with each member dealing with it differently through guilt, revenge, or forgiveness. Both novels explore how the characters cope with trauma and alienation from others.