Because of her father, Anna struggles with her morality throughout the book. What were your opinions of Anna as you read?
When the book opened my first thoughts were about how organized she was, and how closely she tried to be a good cop. As she started breaking the rules more and more, though, I liked her less. I think I really started questioning her judgement when she stole evidence.
And I don’t buy the first half of this question - “because of her father.” I don’t think the fact that her father had mental issues really influenced her behavior.
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Anna had several experiences where she seemed connected to evil, exhilarated by the idea of the kill. I felt she might be the new monster or at least have some of it in her.
Anna is struggling between both sides, that is for certain. I don’t think I felt convinced what side she would end up on in the end. Nick may help her stay on the legal pathway.
I think Anna had some significant mental issues. Like her father, she believed the Forest God, Veles, was trying to take over and was telling her to kill. When she did kill in self defense, as a cop, she seemed to enjoy it.
I didn’t see the struggle with her morality. I felt she kept herself “grounded” through her love of animals and nature.
In the beginning the author tried to paint Anna as enjoying the thrill of the kill, but as the book progressed, this part was downplayed. As the story progressed, I felt that Anna struggled less with her morality, but more with memories of her parents, particularly her father. Talk about some traumatic experiences for a child! She did break some rules, as in when she stole the necklace, but the memory of it was one of the few good feelings she had left of her father.
But was she really struggling with her morality? 
I think that’s one interpretation.
It can be argued that Anna was struggling with her own fear of mental illness. And the battle started because of two things: she killed in the line of duty and was exposed to a hallucinatory drug (PCP). Because of all the factors at play, I don’t think it’s so easy to pinpoint the precise impetus for her crisis.
I always saw Anna as an essentially moral person who was making choices she knew were wrong at certain points in the interest of her search for the truth. Did she feel guilt? Yes. Did she fear getting caught? Yes. Did she love her career? Yes. Did she want to continue working in law enforcement? Yes. But she was questioning her own sanity and whether she inherited violent impulses from her father that she perhaps had unleashed when she pulled the trigger and might not be able to control in the future. Again, she also was “missing time” and worried that she was committing heinous acts during periods of time when she was experiencing blackouts.
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Anna was a whirlwind of thoughts and actions as the story evolved. She reminded me of a caterpillar who was held in a cocoon and by the end was starting to emerge.
I felt Anna evolved thru her story also…such trauma for a child to live thru. Her life was what it was definitely “because of her father.” Glad she pulled thru
I felt sorry for Anna. She was so worried that she would be like her father. As a child, she seemed to adore him and enjoyed their adventures in the woods. She was a troubled person.
I get that we are supposed to believe that Anna’s morality issues are because of her father (and/or the DNA variant), but I don’t really buy that. In my mind, her struggles are hers alone. What is fascinating is the sort of moral rationalization Anna goes through at various points in the story. She has a reason/justification for everything she does in the story, but those would not really hold up in court. Exposing Rollins’ thefts after taking something herself might be the most glaring example.