Dresses

The various dresses that Beatriz wears throughout the novel are particularly significant to both the plot and also her development as a character. As she navigates through love and espionage, Beatriz has stated to confront her own wants and needs through her costume changes. She is used to gazes: “Whispers brush my gown, my name—Beatriz Perez—on their lips, the weight of their curious gazes on my back words creeping toward me, clawing their way up my skirts, snatching the faux jewels from my neck and casting them to the ground” (4), and she’s trained herself to ignore them, but her work with the CIA has helped her to take control of her own body.

Although the gazes made her uncomfortable before, Beatriz now uses her body to summon the gazes of powerful men. When she seduces Fidel Castro, Beatriz wears a dress that leaves...