Tricia Kelly is the protagonist and primary narrator of Absolution. An elderly Tricia’s narration frames the novel in correspondence with Rainey. In 1963, Tricia is an intelligent but naïve 23-year-old, newly arrived in Saigon with her husband Peter.

Family is of paramount importance to Tricia, who wants to be the best possible wife to Peter and the eventual mother of their children. Shy Tricia gravitates toward people with stronger personalities, first her best friend Stella Carney, then Peter, and finally Charlene. Through her friendship with Charlene, Tricia strengthens her individual identity, exploring her relationship to morality, gender, and what it means to do good.

Tricia spends much of the novel wrestling with the concept of tikkun olam or repairing the world. Influenced by her Catholic faith and university education, she believes in “the Greater Good,” a broad humanitarian sentiment that generally guides her to support causes like the Civil Rights Movement. Though Tricia genuinely believes in the values behind these movements, she is reluctant to directly involve herself in any form of activism that could carry physical or social risks. She is keenly aware of her status as her widowed father’s only child, understanding and accepting that their relationship will “always […] curtail [her] freedom, [her] independence, [her] flight” (225).