Rating: 
Summary: One of Hiaasen's best early books
Review: If you believe that there's a little good in everyone, then Stormy Weather and Carl Hiaasen are not for you.
Stormy Weather is classic Hiaasen. His writing is so sarcastic and unrestrained by reality that it reminds me a little of Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) or Neil Stevenson (Snow Crash). Interestingly, these are science fiction authors and Hiaasen doesn't write science fiction, but, like these science fiction writers, Hiaasen's writing is modern and clever and his imagination knows no limits. His books are parodies of human nature, especially greed and stupidity, sort of like Voltaire's Candide. After painting such surreal pictures of a cast of very selfish characters, often criminals, Hiaasen then draws upon some Dante as he assigns the characters to their inevitable and well-earned unique circles of hell (that's usually in Florida involving water, alligators, or at least a storm). It says something about a writer when his best known hero is a one-eyed crazy man who lives in the everglades but used to be the governor of the great state of Florida.
If you like the sarcastic social comedy of George Carlin, the ironic wit of Steven Wright, and the slapstick of Peter Sellers, then you will love Carol Hiaasen's Stormy Weather. If you find Carlin offensive, Wright unfunny, and Sellers overrated, then you're going to hate Carol Hiaasen.
If you're new to Hiaasen's books, Stormy Weather is a good place to start. My favorite Hiaasen books are: Strip Tease, 1993; Stormy Weather, 1995; Lucky You, 1997; Sick Puppy, 2000; and Skinny Dip, 2004.
Rating:
Summary: Laugh-out-loud funny
Review: In this comic mystery novel, Carl Hiaasen has created a cast of zany characters whose paths cross in the aftermath of a devastating Florida hurricane. Hiaasen masterfully blends a sharp wit with hints of social criticism in a writing style that is truly distinctive. As a Florida resident, I am most impressed with Hiaasen's ability to capture the essence of Florida's unique "culture" in his writing. Not to mention the crazy characters he creates and the wild situations in which he places them makes for some highly entertaining reading!
Rating:
Summary: Florida's Dumbest Criminals are on the loose!
Review: Not to mention wild animals, a couple of wily prostitutes, a young man who juggles skulls for relaxation, a bride who falls in love with another man on her honeymoon, and an ex-governor who resides in the woods and lives off roadkill. Sounds crazy? Well this is one crazy book!A hurricane has blown through south Florida and in its wake has unleashed every manner of con artist hoping to make a buck off the residents. Also on the prowl are several people who have a serious bone to pick with Tony Torres, the former Salesman of the Year for PreFab Luxury Homes. It seems the seventy-seven double wides Tony sold to earn the award did not stand up to the force of the hurricane and these people are slightly upset about it. Especially mobster Ira Jackson whose mother was killed by a flying barbecue grill and Levon Stichler, an elderly resident whose deceased wife's ashes are now gone with the wind. This is the first novel I have read by Carl Hiaasen and I loved it. He has a very offbeat sense of humor which really works well with his characters, and a zanier bunch I have never encountered! If you've never read anything by Hiaasen before then pick up one his books soon. You are missing a treat ( and lots of laughs!)
Rating:
Summary: Great read!!
Review: One of the most enjoyable books I have read in quite some time.Hiaasen has taken an amazing cast of characters and woven them into a plot line that keeps you guessing and laughing at the same time. I was hooked after about 5 pages and couldn't put the book down. This was the first book by Hiaasen that i've read, but certainly not the last.
Rating: 
Summary: Pure enjoyable pulp!
Review: Pure enjoyable pulp. Vibrant characters, grifters & erudite madmen - loved it! Quite a find.
Rating:
Summary: Quality Will Blow You Away!
Review: Stormy Weather is one of Hiaasen's masterpieces. Hiaasen writes simultaneous stories in the one novel where the characters all cross paths at different times. Unethical and criminal characters get their comeuppance like in all his other novels but the setting in the aftermath of a hurricane just makes Stormy Weather a bit more realistic than his other novels. I was extremely tempted to not go to work once I had started this book because it is so hard to put down. My advice is to start reading this when you have a weekend free or something as once you start reading the first page you're addicted to the fast paced surreal storyline.
In Stormy Weather a hurricane hits southern Florida wiping out trailer parks, houses and anything in its path. Looters and con artists are of course drawn like magnets trying to prosper from the victims, as are honeymooners Max and Bonny Lamb. Max drags his reluctant new bride to the devastation so he can get it all on film to impress his yuppie friends back in New York but disappears while following an escaped monkey. Ex governor now living in the wilderness Skeet knows where he is as he has taken him prisoner to teach him some lessons. Meanwhile a dishonest caravan salesman is planning on how to survive the vengeance of his customers who have lost their homes and their loved ones while con artist roofing contractors take deposits and never return to their victims until they rip off the wrong people.
Other masterpiece level Hiaasen novels are Sick Puppy, Lucky you and Skinny Dip.
Rating: 
Summary: Hurricane Weather
Review: Stormy Weather is right on par with the rest of Hiaasen’s works of Southwest Florida. As very-realistic fiction it can sometimes be difficult to determine whether the events taking place could actually have occurred or not. But, then sadly, the reader is returned is returned to the ever-present fact that these stories are completely fictional and could never occurred as the characters do something absolutely irrational. This is true of many Hiaasen novels and Stormy Weather is none the different, however it is not as prevalent in this novel as in say, Native Tongue, or Tourist Season, making this book slightly more readable than its predecessors. The redeeming factors of this book are of course the subject material. Set in the after-math of a nameless hurricane (though an astute reader will not the date of publication as following Andrew, as well as the author thanking Hugo, Donna and Andrew, among others), the book centers around a few con-artists trying to make a quick buck scamming insurance agencies and what-used-to-be-home owners in their frantic disheveled states of mind. Also thrown into the mix are a newlywed couple, the husband of which drives down to Miami to videotape the carnage for profit and is kidnapped by Skink (a returning character from previous books), a former governor who now chooses to live among the mangroves and . When his better half becomes disgusted with his behavior she is not so frightened by the situation as she falls in love with a local man who juggles human skulls for entertainment. Also returning from previous Hiaasen works is the character of FHP trooper, Jim Tile. Mix all these elements together with the massive corruption running rampant in South Florida’s government structures, a couple of prostitutes, the melee of African lions, Rhesus monkeys and other wild animals being set loose in post-Hurricane Miami, Santería deities along with a crucifixion and you have a formula for a fast-paced novel that will keep you flipping the pages. Why 4 stars?: I would have rated this book only a 3, but its redeeming factors include the return of Skink and the constant jumping between several different plot lines knowing that at one point they will meet up. However, the sex scenes and the comic violence begin to get a little wearing on me. This book is just as funny as any other Hiaasen book and fans will appreciate it, but it is definitely not for everybody.
Rating:
Summary: Rivoting Plot
Review: Stormy Weather was my introduction to Carl Hiaasen's work. I wasn't disappointed. I found myself rooting for Skink, eagerly turning pages to find out what happened next, pushing myself to skim but holding back, savoring every single word. Carl Hiassen brings Florida wildlife, both four-footed and two-footed, to vibrant life.
Rating:
Summary: Fast paced and hilarious.
Review: The narrative of Stormy Weather unfolds like a soap opera on LSD. In it, Carl Hiaasen skillfully interweaves several plot threads each riotously funny in its own right.
With a hurricane ravaged Miami as backdrop, the author uses a large cast of colorfully bizarre characters to expertly lampoon life in South Florida.
Found among the many subplots are the following:
While on his honeymoon, New York ad man Max Lamb is abducted. Not by space aliens but by a scary hermit called Skink, who happens to be a former Florida governor.
As she searches for her missing husband, Bonnie, Max's bride, meets and becomes attracted to Augustine Herrera. Augustine is one of the book's more normal characters. That is if you overlook the fact he enjoys juggling human skulls for relaxation.
Two hapless con artists named Edie and Snapper take up residence in a stranger's hurricane damaged house with plans to collect the sizable insurance payoff.
A corrupt building inspector named Avila is a devoted follower of Chango, a santeria god who seems to require increasingly exotic species of animals for sacrifice.
And there's much, much more.
Stormy Weather is great satire. Filled with the most outrageous dark humor imaginable, it just drips with cynicism. Another outstanding comic novel from the warped but nimble mind of Carl Hiaasen.
Rating:
Summary: Vintage Hiaasen
Review: Wacky characters with bizarre plots and twists of fate...and all with a moral. All the craziness that Hiaasen loyalists have come to love and expect.
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