Bright Shiny Morning - James Frey
John Murray $32.99
By Bianca O'Neill
Given that his first two books of ‘autobiographical memoirs' - A Million Little Pieces and My Friend Leonard - were exposed as largely made up, you'd think James Fray's first official work of fiction would be an absolute belter.
And it doesn't disappoint.
Bright Shiny Morning is a screamingly ambitious portrait of modern Los Angeles featuring a cast of thousands.
Principal characters include a closeted gay movie star, two teenage dropouts, a Chablis-swigging wino and a Mexican maid.
But Frey never really solders these narratives together and jumbles things further with a landslide of civic trivia.
The result is messy, predictable yet totally addictive.