MixedThe Big IssueThere are parts of Alexandra Kleeman’s Something New Under The Sun that reveal a young author of mesmerising talent. She takes a familiar trope—novelist goes to Hollywood, has bad time, leaves jaded, cynical and considering a job in IT—and breathes witty, catty life into it ... Kleeman’s prose snaps and crackles ... The author has a dry, Chandler-esque wit ... Something New’s final section is self-indulgent—the novel might be subtitled \'A thousand different ways to describe wildfire\'—and, fatally, the reader’s attention wanders. A shame, because this is otherwise a fantastic read.
Chris Power
PositiveThe Big Issue... intriguing ... Power excels at capturing the small details and at nudging subtle shifts in relationships between his characters ... There is drama, but also humour ... This is a book freighted with moral choices, with the biggest saved till last. I loved it, even if at times I found myself wishing Power would cut loose a little and bust through the restrictions imposed by his own good taste.
