A review by melissagomis
Right After the Weather by Carol Anshaw

4.0

I enjoyed this fast read and especially the main character, Cate, but I like slightly unlikeable characters. Cate lives in Chicago with her ex-husband who is into conspiracy theories, she's sort of under-employed, and is dating a woman she finds annoying. Cate's a set designer and enjoys judging people on their home decor among other things. This novel is set against the backdrop of the 2016 presidential election (but isn't overly focused on it) and the turning point in the book is when something horrible happens to Cate's best friend Neale. The second half of the novel grapples with the different ways similar people deal with shared tragedy. A few short chapters are from the perspective of Nathan and Irene, two criminals who live in Neale's neighborhood. I kept wanting to know what happened to them in the second half of the book, but it's never revealed and really isn't the point of the novel. This book was funny, sad, shocking, and entertaining.