1. Should Rosie, Neil, and Glory be punished for abetting Ricky's illegal entry into the United States? Why or why not?

2. How do the relationships between Rosie, her mother, and Glory seem predictable? What interactions between any of the generations surprise you?

3. How does Rosie's disinterest in foreign locales seem contrary to the fact that she had never been out of Texas or seen the ocean before the cruise?

4. How well do you think Nixon presented the clues to solving the mystery? In what ways did any of her red herrings seem too obvious?

5. What aspects of the cruise ship experience seem essential to the plot development and characterization? What details were unnecessary?

6. In what ways does Nixon's novel perpetuate stereotypes of Cubans? How do her characterizations counter stereotypes?

7. How would this novel have differed if murders had not occurred and the mystery focused on...