I didn't finish this book, but I did make it just over halfway. I almost gave up when the main character (the raised in California main character) didn't know what guacamole was. I finally did give up when I decided that the main character was just going to continue to grate on my nerves. If I overlooked the jarring moments of total ignorance about Mexico, religion, and people in general, the story moved along at a nice clip and had the bones of a decent thriller. It might work for some teen readers wanting a page turner story. But if you're someone who likes your characters to have some situational awareness, I don't recommend it.