1. Andie’s most urgent question through most of the book is: Did I do the right the right thing? How would you answer for her? What’s the difference between being justified to shoot and right to shoot?
2. Andie often says that life isn’t fair. Do you agree with her? Does Tom? Was it fair for Andie to be viewed as a criminal suspect? Or for the Vanderwaals to file a civil suit against her?
3. Shooting Christopher causes Andie great emotional stress. Do you think it’s unusual for a police officer to feel that way? Or should she have considered the use of deadly force as just part of her job? Why is it important for her to acknowledge that she is vulnerable?
4. Who is to blame for Christopher’s death? Is it his own fault? Should Andie be held responsible? His parents? His girlfriend? Fate?
5. Is building a wall around herself a good defense for Andie? Would something else have been better, or was that all she could do? How does the wall change in the story? And how does her relationship to it change?
6. In the story’s first paragraph, Andie feels that the fir trees around her house are both a plus and a minus. Could the horrible night when she kills Christopher be seen as that, too? What else in the story might be a plus or a minus?
7. How does Andie’s attitude toward being a police officer change in the story? What’s her attitude like before she kills Christopher? And after? What about at the end of the book?
8. What does Dr. Capoletti’s poster mean—that a storm is as good a friend as sunshine? How does that idea apply to Andie and the story? How does her attitude toward the saying change?
9. What does Justice teach Andie? How does he influence her thinking and her life?
10. How do you feel about the media’s attitude toward Andie? Do you think it’s unusual? Realistic? Necessary? Unfair? Is Sid King just doing his job, or is he relishing going after her? How do you react when you read in the news about a police officer’s use of deadly force?
