The story tells the tale of Conrad Arlington, a young Hollywood hopeful that moves to modern day Los Angeles to fulfill his dream of becoming a great artist.

[2][3] At the turn of the 21st century, a young man by the name of Conrad Arlington drives over the 101 freeway into Los Angeles, California for the first time to pursue his dream of becoming a great artist.

Upon his arrival, Conrad struggles for a while as he adjusts to the city and hones his craft, then, after a few years, he meets a group of artists and writes a play that brings him his first taste of real success.

Being young and in over his head financially, Conrad is forced to abandoned the project and begin anew, but his ambition is not easily forgotten by those around him.

A few weeks later Conrad receives a phone call from Maxwell inviting him to Gracie's residence in Studio City on Friday night to discuss the project.

Conrad drives his coupe up into the hills and arrives per their request, where he is greeted by a sleek, doe-eyed model named Evie Clark, who is one of Gracie's best friends.

On the balcony, he meets a young actor by the name of Benjamin Trask who warns him about getting too close to Gracie, that she is mysterious and can not be trusted.

Next, they head to the Westside of Los Angeles where they stop by the cottage of Alice Button, an alcoholic, fallen film director that lives in the shadow of a giant cherry.

Once inside, Conrad describes the people as ‘the Ghosts of Sunset Boulevard.’ When they leave the nightclub, two privileged brothers by the name of Harry and Alex Vanderbuilt drive up in a limousine with their beautiful and seductive cousin Gwendolyn from New York.

Conrad goes home in an ecstatic mood from the great night, believing that they are moving toward a healthy relationship and that he will hear from her shortly, but he doesn't.

In the lobby, Benjamin drinks heavily and spills more secrets about Gracie, including the fact that they used to be together for a short time back in the day, and that she played him.

On his way to execute his final deed, Conrad runs into Evie Clark — the model he met at Gracie's — sitting outside a café.

Evie spills more dark secrets about Gracie, and Conrad says things that he can't take back, ultimately ending their relationship.

They arrive and go up to the suite of William Montgomery, an attractive, wealthy film produce and businessman that takes liberties with Gracie that Conrad doesn't much care for.

As Gracie swims and plays in the water, William tells Conrad that he sees a lot of himself in him, and offers him a potential career opportunity.

Conrad Arlington — A twenty-three-year-old, upper-middle class young man that moves out on his own to Los Angeles to pursue his dream of becoming a great artist.

In moments of triumph or doubt, he refers to himself as ‘The Last True Artist’, an alter ego he uses to ground his reality and keep him on course in challenging circumstances.

How Conrad balances his creative ambitions with his affection and desire to be closer to Gracie is one of the main forces that drives the story.

Gracie Garrison — An attractive, mysterious socialite and actress who lives in the hills of Studio City and throws lavish parties for the Hollywood elite.

Alice Button — An aging, alcoholic, fallen director that lives in her cottage on the Westside of Los Angeles, along with Chester the Cherry, a giant eight-foot prop from one of her more famous films.

She moved to Los Angeles to pursue "film business", and it is suggested that she may work in the adult entertainment industry.

With much struggle, Conrad finds his resolve and chooses his desire to get closer to Gracie over his raw, carnal attraction to Gwendolyn, marking one of the major turning points of the story.

William Montgomery — an independently wealthy, arrogant film producer who makes his appearance at the end of the story when Conrad, Gracie, and Maxwell visit his residence at a hotel off the Sunset Strip for lunch and a day by the pool.

The weight of William's words shatter Conrad's reality in regards to how he prefers to view Gracie, enraging him and causing him to lash out, thus ending the day for them all.

The innate need for individual importance is engrained throughout Conrad's journey, and the subtle divisions that exist between the social and artistic classes of Los Angeles are also explored.

The complexities and difficulties of attempting to attain true love whilst achieving and sustaining a successful career as an artist is one of the main, overarching themes that blankets the whole novel.

The cover art, which features the upper body and head of a young woman floating in a sea of light looking back on the distant figure of a golden man trailing behind her, was painted by the award-winning, New York based water color artist Laurie Goldstein-Warren.

[4] Conrad, the protagonist and first-person narrator of the story, makes references to authors and artists that inspired him throughout the book.