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Summary
Summary
Gigi Levangie Grazer, the New York Times bestselling author of The Starter Wife, returns with a hilarious and spirited tale of love--both lost and found.
L.A. is no place for widows. This is what forty-four-year-old Hannah Bernal quickly discovers after the tragic death of her handsome and loving husband, John. Misery and red-rimmed eyes are little tolerated in the land of the beautiful. But life stumbles on: Hannah's sweet three-year-old daughter, Ellie, needs to be dropped off at her overpriced preschool, while Hannah herself must get back to work in order to pay the bills on "Casa Sugar," the charming Spanish-styled bungalow they call home.
Fortunately, Hannah has her "Grief Team" for emotional support: earth mother and fanatical animal lover Chloe, who finds a potential blog post in every moment; aspiring actress Aimee, who has her cosmetic surgeon on speed dial; and Jay, Hannah's TV producing partner, who has a penchant for Mr. Wrong. But after a series of mishaps and bizarre occurrences, one of which finds Hannah in a posh Santa Monica jail cell, her friends start to fear for her sanity. To make matters worse, John left their financial affairs in a disastrous state. And when Hannah is dramatically fired from her latest producing gig, she finds herself in danger of losing her house, her daughter, and her mind.
One night, standing in her backyard under a majestic avocado tree, in the throes of grief, Hannah breaks down and asks, "Why?" The answer that comes back-- Why not? --begins an astounding journey of discovery and transformation that leads Hannah to her own truly extraordinary life after death.
Praise for The After Wife
"Fans of Lolly Winston, Mary Kay Andrews, and Jennifer Weiner will especially enjoy Grazer's newest."-- Booklist
"Hilariously funny and profoundly wise, The After Wife is for anyone who's ever been married or widowed, in debt or in love. I could not put it down: a fabulous read!"--Nancy Thayer, author of Island Girls
"A charming tale of a grieving forty-ish widow--and the wacky friends who love her." --Los Angeles Times
"A book that is part Jacqueline Susann, part Real Housewives . . . Gigi Levangie Grazer [is a] Jimmy Choo'ed-out satirist." --National Post
"Fans of The Starter Wife will be equally charmed with The After Wife ."-- Library Journal
"Grazer's entertaining satire is sure to spice up any occasion." --Publishers Weekly
Author Notes
Gigi Levangie Grazer was born in Los Angeles, California in January 1963. She received a bachelor's degree in political science from UCLA. After graduation, she continued to work for television guru Fred Silverman developing and writing television shows. She is the author of Rescue Me (2000), Maneater (2003), The Starter Wife (2006), and Queen Takes King (2009). The Starter Wife was adapted for an USA Network miniseries starring Debra Messing, and later for a television series; Maneater was adapted for a Lifetime miniseries starring Sarah Chalke. She has also written numerous screenplays, including Stepmom, starring Julia Roberts and Susan Sarandon.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (3)
Booklist Review
Grazier, A-list writer for the TV series The Starter Wife, which is based on her best-selling 2005 novel of the same name, delivers another strong story set in upscale Los Angeles with The After Wife. Hannah Bernal is bereft when she learns that her beloved husband has been killed in a hit-and-run accident while on his way to the market. She struggles with overwhelming grief and the impossible task of comforting her three-year-old daughter, Ellie, who was inseparable from her stay-at-home dad. Three colorful friends keep Hannah going during a series of crises involving an arrest, a job termination, and day-care difficulties, but they balk at Hannah's weird and troubling new ability to see and hear the dead. Hannah begins to advise people according to the wishes of their deceased relatives and even talks to her dead husband. Grazer evokes powerful emotions and situations that remain realistic even with the complication of Hannah's paranormal gift, and she ends this affecting tale on a hopeful note. Fans of Lolly Winston, Mary Kay Andrews, and Jennifer Weiner will especially enjoy Grazer's newest.--Alessio, Amy Copyright 2010 Booklist
Kirkus Review
After being widowed, a woman begins to see ghosts everywhere in Grazer's breezy postscript to The Starter Wife (2005). When her husband, John, a personal chef and cookbook author, is the victim of a hit-and-run while biking to the market, 40ish Hannah Bernal's life is upended. A stay-at-home dad to the Bernals' toddler daughter Ellie, John also ran their household (in Santa Monica's fashionable NoMo district) and made meals that went beyond mere nourishment. Hannah's colleague and best friend Jay, a trash-talking gay man, forms a "Grief Team" with two of Hannah's eccentric girlfriends, to help her get back on her feet. But John's death has imbued Hannah with a sixth sense. Under her backyard avocado tree, Hannah sees her first ghost, Trish, the former owner of Hannah's historic house. Hannah's side-chatter with ghostly interlopers at a business meeting gets her and Jay fired from their jobs in reality TV. The first time John appears, the parted spouses argue about topics serious (he let his life insurance policy lapse) and absurd (are Crocs shoes or sandals?). When John reveals that his hit-and-run killer was a Range Rover driven by a texting Momzilla, not a truck driven by the illegal immigrant who was arrested for the crime, Hannah goes to the aid of the immigrant, convincing the police to refocus their investigation. Unable to refinance her home and threatened with foreclosure (a Realtor frenemy is hounding her to sell to a tear-down entrepreneur), Hannah is a bit slow (especially for an ex-reality TV producer) to see the monetary potential in ghost whispering. A New Year's trip to Palm Desert for high colonics, Team in tow, occasions arch commentary on what L.A. sybarites consider entertainment. Her friends have their own troubles, involving coyotes, Pomeranians, feckless married men and failed auditions. Hannah's banter with interlocutors, corporeal or not, is the chief pleasure here, more so than the leggy and disjointed plot. Darkly humorous look at grief, L.A.-style.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Library Journal Review
Hannah Bernal is having a hard time putting her life back together after the untimely death of her husband, John. With a demanding job, a three-year-old daughter, and a pricey Santa Monica mortgage to pay, Hannah discovers that life does truly go on after death when a ghost strikes up a conversation with her. Unwittingly thrust into people's private lives thanks to their relatives from beyond the grave, Hannah finds herself on the brink of losing everything as the dead send her on the path to find John's killer. Verdict Littered with pop culture, light humor, and a healthy dose of the supernatural, Grazer's fourth novel is a perfect beach read for the chick lit type. Fans of The Starter Wife will be equally charmed with The After Wife. [See Prepub Alert, 1/8/12.]-Mara Dabrishus, Ursuline Coll. Lib., Pepper Pike, OH (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.