Jealousy
From the minute Annie walks into 1895, she is a threat to Harriett. Poor Harriett is a quiet soul and not accustomed to speaking her mind. Although she loves Hiram Stratton and has for years, she's never had the courage to tell him how she feels. When Annie comes along, she threatens Harriett's chances with Strat because she's so unconventional, and clearly the two have some chemistry. Becoming increasingly consumed by her jealousy, Harriett wastes away. Finally she agrees to marry Clarence, the biggest mistake of her life. Unable to see matters clearly, she throws away her dreams to Annie.
Romance
Much of the book is centered around the various couples and romances and love triangles. Annie is dating Sean, but then she falls in love with Strat in his timeline. Harriett is also in love with Strat, but she marries Clarence. Clarence is in league with Harriett's Aunt Ada to marry her and steal all her money (and even to kill her). Matthew overhears Clarence's plot, and Clarence kills him. Annie later learns about it. While that's happening, Strat goes off and marries Florinda. She catches Clarence trying to murder Harriett. In the end, nobody ends up with the person they thought they would, and Annie is transported off to some unknown place. The characters' romances complicate their goals in life and lead to a great deal of mistakes throughout the book.
Fate
As a passionate romantic, Annie believes in unifying forces such as fate. Her final walk through the halls of the Stratton Mansion is full of nearly religious fervor for the place. Suddenly she is propelled through time back to 1895 when the Strattons lived there. How does this happen? Almost undoubtedly it is the mysterious work of fate. And when her work in 1895 is finished and all loose ends have been tied, she is pulled back through time again by the same strange power. This time readers are not told where she is sent. Maybe she returns to her own time and leaves Sean, who doesn't seem to support her the way she needs. Or maybe she is sent to another point in time in the same geographical location in order to participate in another little drama. Whatever the end result, Annie is now a time-traveller, destined by fate to understand the place where she lives.
