The McDonalds
Anna McDonald (aka Anna McLean, aka Sophie Bukaran)—the narrator
Hamish McDonald—Anna’s “husband” (it turns out they weren’t legally married) and father of her two daughters
Jessica McDonald—Anna and Hamish’s 8-year-old daughter
Lizzie McDonald—Anna and Hamish’s 7-year-old daughter
The Cohens
Estelle Cohen—Anna’s “best friend” who runs off with Hamish
Fin Cohen—Estelle’s anorexic husband, famous lead for a now-defunct-but-once-popular band; starts a new podcast sequel to the Death and the Dana podcast to report Anna’s investigation
The Parkers (and Parker-Adjacent)
Gretchen Teigler—a rich and powerful heiress; owner of a football club and Sophie’s (and Anna’s) nemesis; married to Leon Parker
Dauphine Loire—Gretchen’s personal assistant
Leon Parker—a man Anna met when she worked at the castle (Skibo) and whom she considers a friend
Violetta Parker—Leon’s 21-year-old daughter by a previous marriage (to Julia Parker)
Mark Parker—Leon’s 17-year-old son from a previous relationship (with Daniela)
Julia Parker—a former Italian supermodel; Leon’s first wife and mother of Violetta; she lives in Venice
Daniela—a social worker; one of Leon’s long-time girlfriends and mother of Mark
Lillie Harkan—Leon’s Dutch girlfriend when he’s at Skibo Castle; he leaves her there
Other Characters Introduced in the Death and the Dana Podcast
Trina Keany—an admin at the BBC and the podcaster for the Death and the Dana podcast
Amila Fabricase—(born Rosa Luxembourg Berghoff) chef on the Dana who leaves early and is later accused, convicted, and imprisoned for murdering the three Parkers
Sabine—Amila’s partner in both life and a bakery business
Other Characters From Anna’s Past (Sophie) and Present (Anna)
Patricia Hummingsworth—police detective who investigated the attack on Sophie Bukaran; later jailed for taking bribes from Dauphine Loire
Adam Ross—a friend of Sophie’s who helped her get a new ID (Anna McLean) and the job at Skibo Castle; an addict
Albert McKay—Anna’s boss at Skibo Castle
Pretcha—Hamish’s nosey neighbor who takes and posts pictures of Anna and Fin on the front porch of Hamish’s house
Demy——(aka Yergey) a hired assassin from Georgia (the country); story-teller on train from Venice to Paris with Anna and Fin
Zvaid——a hired assassin from Albania; followed Anna and Fin on train from Venice to Paris; murdered by Demy
“Scarface”——the man who attacked Sophie (in her mother’s home) and later Anna (in Teigler’s home)
