Oh, and also Louise Wener's (formerly of Sleeper) first novel, Goodnight Steve McQueen, was enjoyable.

Can I throw a shout out (kids still say that, right?) to Iain Banks' Espedair Street? It's not a great novel, but it's definitely good. And for a rock and roll novel that's perhaps the best we can hope for.

I think Steve Martin made LA Story as an attempt to be his 'love letter' to the West Coast city

Literally
Sorry to be a dick about it, but a full page of text is not "literally a lead weight".
Sheesh, poets these days…

The Rachel Papers
Just woeful.