Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

When i saw this book was centered around music in the 90s I was so excited and let me tell you-it did not disappoint. I loved everything about this book (except Kim, he can kick rocks). The music, the lyrics, the teenage angst, the rockstar life, getting too famous too fast....ALL of it! I was a teenager in the 90s and so many of the music references hit close to home. I even loved the reminder of how we all thought the world was going to end on y2k lol
Go read this book! Just do it!

The Lightening Bottles, by Marissa Stanley, is an absolute must read for everyone who was music crazy back in the 90s. And for those who weren't around of don't remember, you might wish you were. Shapely captures the era and angst perfectly! The music industry is like another character in the story of Jane and Elijah, who met in an internet chat room and went on to form a band, catapult to fame, and then... You will have to read to find out! An emotional, nostalgic, rollercoaster of a novel. Highly recommend!!!

It was truly an emotional journey reading this book. First and foremost, the book is a moving love letter to a bygone era, 90s rock music and its impressive musical representatives, the desire to assert one's individuality, the price of fame and inexpressible loneliness. Following Jane and Hen's quest, I empathized with the events that unfolded, realizing that every individual has a dark side, and above all, you have to save yourself. But after everything, the fortunate thing is that you still have loved ones waiting and forgiving.

Through the locations on the journey, the author gradually unveils the events leading to Elijah's disappearance. I understand why Jane and he are two halves of each other, two kindred spirits; they were lucky to have met in life. I empathize with Jane and Elijah for the hardships they endured. The enormous price to pay for being a rock star: struggling with drugs, seeking oblivion in alcohol, constantly yearning for new creative inspiration, deciding whether to be oneself or conform to the public's expectations... That path has never been easy. Some people couldn't overcome it, and the harsh reality of rock singers is somewhat reflected in Marissa's book.

I think the book has all the elements to become a beloved, bestselling book and possibly even be adapted into a film. There's a lingering sadness when we recall old memories, the 90s with rock songs accompanying our youth. The lyrics of The Lightning Bottles are poetic; I can feel the pain of a generation eager to express themselves through the power of music. Marissa has become one of my favorite authors, and this book deserves widespread recognition.

I was anxious about the outcome of their story, you know, because they had endured so much pain, and sometimes in this world of rock 'n' roll, reality can be like a bleeding knife wound. But hope was ignited at the end of the road, and finally, they found each other again, a new life.

In conclusion, this book easily became one of my favorite books not only due to Marissa's captivating storytelling ability but also her unique character development, profound psychological portrayal, and poetic song lyrics. I want to embrace Jane after all the hardships she's been through while smiling because she finally rediscovered herself and found her lost love. I sincerely thank Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for providing the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was provided an advance e-book copy by NetGalley and the publisher.

Other reviewers have provided fairly detailed synopses, and I will not repeat their efforts here.

The writing is excellent, and in fact I read the entire book in basically one sitting (with a few snack and bathroom breaks). I will definitely be reading other books by this author in the near future.

I gave the book 4 stars instead of 5 simply out of my own musical tastes. I have never been a fan of the music (or musicians) depicted in this book, and I readily admit that I don't "get" the grunge scene. My preferences are found in the 60s and 70s.

Having said that, though, I appreciated the author's depiction of the raw realities and pitfalls of the music business, both personal and professional. Having read far too many sad tales of artists signing really bad contracts and being cheated out of millions of dollars of royalties, I was glad that this book's fictional band acquired good representation from the beginning of their professional career.

The Lightning Bottles

In the 90’s where Grunge and the Seattle sound was everywhere, there was The Lightning Bottles, a duo made up of two highly talented amateur musicians Elijah Hart and Jane Pyre.
This story is about where it all began and the most important part, where is Elijah Hart ?Presumed dead by everyone for the past five years, but when a super fan of The Lightning Bottles discovers clues that may mean Elijah is not dead the journey begins.
The story is a bittersweet one but in true rockstar fashion it’s filled with the good , bad and ugly of all of what happened with Jane & Elijah.
4 musical stars

I absolutely loved this book and found myself drawn in and unable to put it down from page one! I can see this being a great pic for anyone who loved Daisy Jones and Six, and I especially enjoyed the love letter to the 90's era of grunge and rock.

While at it's heart, this is a romance, I think it still had some great commentary on the music industry, addiction and grief. Stapley has a way of making you immediately at ease and develop a relationship with these characters, I found myself really resonating with Jane and rooting for her, Not to mention seeing how she reacted to fame in real time.

Big thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for letting me have access to an eARC in exchange for an honest review! Be sure to check it out when it comes out September 24th, 2024!

If you remember being 14, beeing seen for the first time on the radio, and flinging your relentless will against anyone, against everyone, this is for you.

Wow, what a story! Everything from the realistic love between Jane and Elijah and the honest look at Fame and the Music Industry made this story phenomenal for me.
From the very beginning when Jane and Elijah meet on a chat room, they were connected for life. They just click and it made me want everything they wanted, but like most people who want to be famous they had no idea what was going to happen to them or that the music world would be so harsh and unforgiving and just mean. But in the end, their love was stronger than lies, drugs and the music industry, but in order to get to the other side they would need to go through a soul searching journey that made them look at where they ended up and coming clean with all the stuff that was destroying their relationship.
Another aspect of the story I found important, the realistic view of the Music Industry which is refreshing because so many young and talented people make the mistake that fame and money solves everything but instead it messes with their head and if they have any self doubt fame will enhance it. In the story, Jane believes if she sells her song and becomes famous her life would be better but instead she found barriers for being a woman and jealousies because friends of Elijah couldn't handle the love he had for Jane, and they took every opportunity to tear her down and just lie about her. And when she try to tell the truth the industry just enhance the lies about her and made her into a monster she never was, and told the world that Elijah really didn't love her. I also liked that the story dealt with the drug addictions and alcohol abuse that is entrenched in the industry and it show how easy it is to obtain in.
One last important topic about Fame especially in the story is that sometimes the artists that lived the lifestyle just couldn't handle it and would kill themselves, which shows how any self doubt or lack of confidence can be dire and sad. It made me think of all the artist that didn't make it who were stars in the music industry.
One good point of the story that I liked is that the story gave Jane and Elijah an honest manager that stood by them and was honest with them, because even that, some artist don't get and in the end it actually saved their lives, because she cared.
I LOVED THIS STORY!

I want to thank Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an advance copy of this fabulous story about love, music and destiny.

In "The Lightning Bottles" by Marissa Stapley, the grunge era comes alive through the story of Jane Pyre, one-half of the famous duo. When her bandmate and husband, Elijah, disappears, Jane becomes the target of public scrutiny and hatred. However, a chance encounter with a teenage fan named Hen leads Jane on a journey to uncover the truth about Elijah's disappearance.

Set against the backdrop of the 90s music scene, the novel delves into themes of love, fame, and addiction. While Jane's character may not be relatable to all readers, the nostalgia of the era and the exploration of complex relationships make for an engaging read. The cross-continent road trip with Hen adds a layer of mystery and excitement to the narrative.

Overall, "The Lightning Bottles" is a compelling blend of music nostalgia, mystery, and themes of love and loss.

A German teenager and fan of the musical duo The Lightning Bottles, Hen is convinced Elijah, long thought dead, is actually alive and attempting to communicate with his wife, Jane.

Much of the story takes place in the 90s, which allows readers of a certain age the chance to relive their GenX memories: grunge, Nirvana, Courtney & Kurt (although strangely no hip hop references).

The sad truth of drug and alcohol addiction among musical artists fills the pages of this novel which, despite betrayal and loss, manages to be a quite sweet story of eternal love.

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc to review.

I really enjoyed this book, it is love story to music, creativity and the power of love to carry us through anything. this is a book for anyone who loves music, esp music that moves your soul and for anyone that has a passion that drives their life. The author, who wrote the lyrics to the songs/poems that are woven into the story. this is a book that is outside my normal genre, but I was moved by it and rooting for the three main characters. And the ending was satisfying as well 4.5

A big tasty bite of 90s grunge nostalgia. Jane and Eli met in a music chat room in the earliest days of the internet and attached to each other in a way that they never would have found one another in real life. After they form a band and rise to fame, Eli disappears and Jane is cast in media as the villain. Five years later she decides to hide out in the German countryside where she encounters a teenager named Hen who claims to know that Eli is alive and leaving Jane clues to find him. As Jane chooses to trust Hen and hunt for Eli with her, she begins to recognize herself in the young woman, and has to choose how much of her past she will let Hen see.
I enjoyed the nostalgia of the early internet, the 90's music scene, the songs and bands that we loved, and the themes of the time are present throughout. I appreciated the telling of a woman's side of this story, but even as a riot grrrl, alt rock, grunge fan I didn't particularly find Jane relatable. The only person she seems to care about is Eli, and she cares about his dreams and what he says and thinks, but not that he loses every other relationship in his life except for hers. Gender swapping is not required to see how dysfunctional their relationship is, and it is hard to see Jane as the victim of public opinion that runs along the same lines. I wanted a little more independence, fire, and a modicum of female solidarity for her. In spite of my ambivalence towards Jane, I could not stop reading to see how things would turn out for Jane and Eli and Hen.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy. All opinions expressed here are my own. Looking forward to recommend it to the patrons of my PNW library.

4.5

This was a total 180 of what I was expecting. I was not prepared to read an angsty book that delves into topics of anxiety, grief, and addiction. This is what I feel like "Daisy Jones and The Six" tried to be. It dives into the sexism, heavy addiction, inequality, and the "selling your soul for fame" that was seen in the rock scene during the 90s. I struggled to get into it in the beginning, but after the first few chapters, I was heavily invested. The only reason this wasn't a 5-star read is because the ending felt rushed.

There's a lot here - a love letter to 90's music, addiction and grief, women battling sexism/misogyny/double standards in the music industry, etc. I liked this better than [book:Daisy Jones & The Six|40597810] but there's also some cliché aspects too.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars thank you netgalley and the publisher for this beautiful arc i was drawn to this from the cover (GREAT DAY FOR JUDGING BOOKS BY THEIR COVERS) and i was not let down
this has love , pining , and everything in between
it has rockstars!!! daisy jones and the six on steroids
(a bit better if i were to be truthful)

I just feel like Marissa Stapley reached into my 90's, music obsessed brain and curated this book specifically for me. The characters were brilliant, the nostalgia was top notch. The story itself about the life of a rockstar was a little cliche but I fully expected that going in. One of my favorite reads of 2024!!

Well this book was interesting! I’m a sucker for books about music and rock n roll. This book takes you on a journey that makes you want to keep reading. So much mystery and heartbreak. Really enjoyed it!

The premise was great. The story itself was not. It was cliche and read like beginner learning to read YA. See Jane become a rock star. There was nothing likable about the two MCs. The 1999 post disappearance story was somewhat interesting. But overall, this was not good. There are so many other much better written and interesting stories about famous bands and musicians.

This is for the real 90s music lover. B0nus if you enjoy a story about sexism, hitting rock bottom, romance and the perils of fame. I almost felt like it was written with being adapted to tv or a movie in mind and I thought it would translate really well to those mediums.

If you liked Taylor Jenkins Reid's "Daisy Jones & the Six," you will love Marissa Stapley's newest novel. I was quickly immersed in this captivating book, and you will be too, especially if you love 90s music.