ConaLee is a 13-year-old girl for most of the novel, and she grew up in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia. She is Eliza and Ephraim’s daughter, though Ephraim was not present for ConaLee’s birth or childhood. In 1872, when Papa returns to Eliza’s home, ConaLee thinks that he may be her father, and it is not until Eliza reveals O’Shea’s identity as Ephraim that ConaLee knows who her real father is.

ConaLee’s journey is filled with uncertainty, as she uses Dearbhla’s advice to withdraw into herself to avoid trauma. ConaLee seeing “lights” is a reaction to trauma, as Papa sexually abused ConaLee during the two years he spent with ConaLee and Eliza in the mountains. After Eliza withdrew into herself, ConaLee took over most of the chores and tasks around the cabins, including caring for the chap and the twins. ConaLee’s hardworking mentality and fierce loyalty to her family define her character, and she ultimately becomes a mother to both Weed and the chap.

Though ConaLee is dependent on Eliza, Dearbhla, and Papa for most of the novel, she reveals her independence and determination in her ability to start a new life at the asylum, back on the ridge, and again in Weston.