1. Compare and/or contrast Hotel Paradise with either Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird (1960), Olive Burns' Cold Sassy Tree (1984), or J. D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye (1951)—books which may arguably be seen as influencing Grimes in this novel.

2. Trace and describe, over the course of the novel, Emma Graham's gradual, growing awareness of her kinship with Mary-Evelyn Devereau. Specifically, what life situations and character traits does Emma discover that she shares with the dead girl? What effect do such discoveries have on Emma and the decisions she makes?

3. Critics often commend Grimes for her dry, acerbic wit; one critic even calls her "the funniest of all mystery writers."

Discuss Grimes's use of humor in Hotel Paradise. Does that humor tend to grow out of situations or out of the characters themselves?

4. All of Grimes's novels seem to be...