What Happens in Paradise

Examine how Baker and Cash each attempt to reconstruct their identities in St. John. How do their respective approaches to work, family, and romance represent different responses to their father’s legacy of betrayal and secrecy?

The novel uses St. John as a setting that is simultaneously a tropical paradise and a criminal underworld. How does this duality allow Hilderbrand to explore The Tension Between Objective Fact and Emotional Reality?

How does the motif of food and drink evolve throughout the novel to develop setting, character, and Hilderbrand’s thematic exploration of Everyday Rituals as Catalysts for Human Connection?

Compare and contrast Irene and Ayers as the two central women left to uncover the truth. Although positioned on opposite sides of Russ’s double life, how do their parallel investigations and developing perspectives reveal a shared experience of disillusionment?

What literary devices or techniques does Hilderbrand use to explore The Challenges of Choosing to Love Again After Heartbreak? Cite specific examples from the text to support your argument.

Analyze Hilderbrand’s structural choices, such as the alternating third-person limited POV and the cliffhanger ending. How do these choices impact the way the text is read and understood?

Compare and contrast Hilderbrand’s various depictions of infidelity throughout the novel. What does the novel suggest about the relationship between love and trust?

Discuss Huck’s role as the story’s moral compass. In a narrative filled with characters who make morally ambiguous choices, how does Huck’s integrity provide a grounding force and influence Irene’s transformation?