Novel starts frustrating reader expecting some humour (5)
I believe the answer is:
fresh
'novel' is the definition.
(I know that novel can be written as fresh)
'starts frustrating reader expecting some humour' is the wordplay.
'starts' indicates taking the first letters.
The first letters of 'frustrating reader expecting some humour' is 'FRESH'.
(Other definitions for fresh that I've seen before include "Saucy" , "(Of water) not salty" , "Recently made, produced, or harvested" , "Cheeky - novel" , "Informally impudent, not stale" .)