I Capture the Castle/YMMV

Abusive Parent: With threatening his wife with a knife, constantly neglecting his children and even striking Cassandra later on in the book, the father comes off as this.
Alternate Character Interpretation: Rose could either be a ruthless Gold Digger or a pitiable character with no options who wants to help her family survive.
The Woobie: Stephen
- Cassandra may also qualify
True Art Is Incomprehensible: Jacob Wrestling. And how! Several plot points revolve around this.