I was one of the millions of Americans who was caught up in the James Frey phenomenon and scandal years ago. I loved the writing style he utilized, and thoroughly enjoyed A Million Little Pieces, and also enjoyed his new book Katerina. Frey has a very visceral style which sets him apart. You always feel like you can’t pull yourself away from the characters and their lives.....
If you liked A Million Little Pieces, you’ll like Katerina.

Loved this book, even when I was not reading it I kept thinking about it and couldn’t wait to pick it up again and I finished it in a day. Would definitely recommend to others and can’t wait to read other titles from this author.

Highly recommend!!

<i> Love fuck eat drink sleep. And this is what I do here, in the most beautiful, most civilized city on earth.</i>

You have to accept that with James Frey, you get what you get.

You get this gnarly interpretation of reality from his perspective which is often self -deprecating, dry humor and gritty, grainy, choppy scenes that paint half a picture but are fun to read.

James Frey’s writing style always grabs me in and keeps me reading even when I think the content is terrible. And maybe part of the draw is remembering all the horrible details of his rise and fall with A Million Little Pieces. It’s clear Katerina is another half memoir half fiction story. I struggle with what to rate this book. I couldn’t put it down, but on the other hand I found myself rolling my eyes at every trope about the poor writer in Paris finding his manic pixie dream girl. I really do enjoy Frey’s choppy style of writing, How he doesn’t follow the rules of writing and just tells the story the way he wants. This is why I give the book three stars. The actual story though felt like one I’ve heard a million times before – boy meets girl and girl breaks boys heart – it’s not a new idea. It was just told in an unusual style.
Thank you to netgalley for the ARC.

A young, American writer moves to Paris to begin his writing experience. Though a haze of drugs, alcohol and sex, there she is, Katerina. When I began reading the short, choppy prose, I wasn’t sure that I could finish this book. Given my love for European cities and different cultures, I thought I would find some common ground with the story. I was mistaken as I sank into a web of alcohol, drugs and debauchery like nothing else I’ve ever read. (I usually stay away from this genre.) As I kept reading, I was fascinated by the story and eager to finish. Whether it is semi-autobiographical or not doesn’t matter to me. It was an emotional and gut-wrenching story line that crossed Europe and kept me enthralled till the last word. James Frey wrote the controversial book, A Million Little Pieces. I also know that it sold millions of copies and now I know why. Regardless of whatever has been said, James Frey has a gift of storytelling and has written a book that made me feel the fear and anguish of lost love in a tragic and fascinating way.

Katerina by James Frey will be available September 11, 2018 by Gallery/Scout Press, an imprint of Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books. An egalley of this book was made available by the publisher in exchange for a honest review.

Paris 1992:

An existence based on want. Of pure gluttony and desire. Cultivating a life of art, sex, drugs, and writing. A hard-driving frenetic love of Katerina.

Los Angeles 2017:

Stability. Boredom. Guilt. Commercial success. Deep self-hatred. Selling out. A love defined by partnership of wife and mother of your children.

Katerina is the story of Jay, as told through the raw emotions of a young person barely out of his teens and the entrenched notions of a middle-aged man. Frey's novel is a compulsive and affecting autobiographical look at the jump that we all take from self-possession to the epiphany of selflessness. A love story dedicated to the changes we must endure.

Frey's writing can be polarizing. It is aggressive, and graphic, clear, yet diverging. Something as simple as describing a French bakery will morph into a canvassing of all the country's sensibilities. The language is beautiful and addicting. It’s fast and my eyes run and run. It feels like I’m continually reading downhill. Chasing the next, ignoring, punctuation, biting word and word.

Katerina is at once a decent into alcoholism, a blistering tour of Paris, and a chance at reconnecting. It stirred up resentments and old dirty guilt, yet also past loves and memories of a time when we all care less about the consequences and more about the immediate pleasure that life gives. I was constantly questioning my own turning points: When did I shift my focus from the now to the next day to the future? Is it the shock of mortality from a death? Is it having children? It's a short book, but it is one that left me with so many personal thoughts, and a continued appreciation for James Frey's writing. 

Thank you to NetGalley, Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books, and James Frey for an advanced copy for review.