California Screaming: A Novel

by Doug Guinan

Sexy, sardonic, and unerringly on target, this story of love and intrigue among Hollywood's gay community sparkles with all the wit and delicious fun of a Jackie Collins bestseller combined with the sensibility of Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City.Kevin is a fashion photographer with a stalled career, gorgeous looks, and no future -- irrefutable proof that life is not fair. Then fate intervenes when he meets and seduces Hollywood's most eligible gay bachelor, Brad Sherwood, a multimedia mogul who's rich beyond belief.

All Brad needs to make his life complete is someone to adore -- and to adore him in return. When he finds Kevin, he is sure his life is finally perfect. For Kevin, the affair is great fun -- until he finds himself inconveniently falling in love. But since life is unfair, the doting pair soon learns that there is a great distance between the hot tub and a happy ending.

Interwoven with the adventures of Kevin and Brad are those of Kevin's roommate Leon, who, like every other gay man in Hollywood, is in lust with Kevin; of Brad's friend Rob, a former skating star who now produces ice extravaganzas; and of Kim, a physical fitness trainer from Australia who uses Rob as his entry into Hollywood society, only to find in Leon the perfect way to make a satisfying exit.

Fresh, fun, and poignant, California Screaming marks the auspicious debut of novelist Doug Guinan, and is a must for gay men on all coasts, and for anyone looking for a flashy, irresistible read.

Genres: Fiction, Gay, LGBT, Gay Fiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published June 17, 1998

Reviews

[Djrmel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny, trashy, light but not dumb - a simply good "junk food" read. Yes, the book gives away its underlying theme by having one character actually say it, "Maybe young gay men are looking for father figures and in doing so, they won't always make the best relationship choices". Ignore the attempt to provide deeper meaning and just go along for the ride in Hollywood where a broke but beautiful (even by their artificially high standards) guy hooks up with a very big deal player; a sweet and lonely guy falls deep into the muscle queen swamp, and some people actually manage to grow up and act like adults.

[Greg Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this the Summer before I moved from the EAst Coast to West Hollywood with stars and glamour in my eyes! LOL! Seems somewhat dated as I flip through it now, as it tried to be very Bret Easton Ellis-like in terms of its trendy product and chi chi restaurant locale name dropping (most of which are gone or fallen out of favor). It is fairly on point when it comes to showcasing the preening, self absorbed, calculating and bitchy inhabitants of gay LA society for whom landing a big fish a la the book's protagonist Kevin is seen as the ultimate goal. Its a beach book, nothing more, nothing less. For what its worth, it's entertaining fluff that you wont remember for long after.

[William Freeman · Rating 3 out of 5]

An above average gay read

[Dennis Holland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very 90s gay.

[JamesK · Rating 5 out of 5]

An outrageously whipsmart, astringently funny novel that deserves to be far better known. (The inclusion, under a thin disguise, of a well-known gay billionaire adds to the fun.) That the author died so young is an enormous loss to life enhancement!

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

It wasn't what I expected at first, but became awesome.

I started this book expecting one thing and shortly after the beginning I expected something else. To be honest, it was going downhill, another vapid, shallow gay romance.

As it started picking up speed in the race to the bottom, it became something I didn’t expect. I liked it, I really enjoyed it. The characters changed with the circumstances, and even though one of the principal characters is younger and one older, it’s safe to say they both grew up.

This is a book about gays and romance. I read a review the other day by someone who was upset a gay romance book had gay romance. Well, YMMV.


I’m still working on my rating system, and I rate books on how much I liked them. I don’t worry about how family friendly they are or if I would read it to my mother.
This book is 4

[Marsha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Raucous, raunchy and filled with bitter insight about the Hollywood scene, “California Screaming” revolves around the lives of several gay men struggling to make it in the frantic world of L.A. The bird’s eye view of this tiny, restricted world is revealing, both about the sacrifices these men make and the glittering world that lies tantalizingly within their sights.

Almost like the demimonde world of 19th-century France, this novel is filled with desperate men willing to do almost anything to attain a life of luxury, fame, fortune and ease. Their sell-by dates mean they get kicked out in their 30s and they stand to gain or lose all in a single night. Almost a coming-of-age story, “California Dreaming” is both a tribute to and indictment of one of America’s most notorious cities.

[Wally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Way more of you have read this book, admit it. It's summer trash, but it's really good summer trash. I mean really good. It asks the eternal question, what do pretty girls do when they get old and tired... (thank you km). It's clever, fruity, light, well-paced, and has all kinds of hotness in it. It even has a lovely little indeterminate moral-ish ending. Come on, admit it. You know you want to read it.

[Charmless · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's, um, like, Jackie Collins for gay people! (Well, wait a minute, isn't Jackie Collins' stuff for gay people too?!) Take this to the beach or read it by the pool. It's scandalously trashy and you're gonna love it!

[Joe · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reinforces why I absolutely, positively hate almost all gay fiction. Insulting, stereotypical and predictable.

[Greg · Rating 1 out of 5]

sadly, another over-hyped gay novel that fails to entertain, enlighten or even touch the reader