A book rarely makes me want to text my ex-boyfriend immediately after finishing it. My ex was a singer/songwriter and influenced my music listening/purchasing habits HEAVILY throughout my twenties. I thought of him fondly while reading. The loving, passionate, and borderline unhinged way that Percy and Joe discuss music is so reminiscent of a kind of music criticism I miss and DEEPLY love. Because I dated someone just like Percy and Joe, I also see how that passion leads to love and sex. It's intoxicating and confusing. Music is everything. I also see how talking about music helps us understand ourselves, our culture...all of it.

Fans of Hanif Abdurraqib will love this book. Another thoughtful observer of music and the human condition. I love all of the little details: the MySpace blogging (major heart eyes!), the 9/11 politics, the invention of "influencers," my god! Everything was so well done. I want Holly to write a novel about the indie music that comes after 2008. I want her to write anything really and I will read it. New fave, what a fucking debut!!

Thank you to Crown Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

4.5⭐️I really enjoyed this…it was very well written and researched. The love of music was such an important part of the story but at times I felt like the music history could’ve been dialed back to allow more depth to some of the characters.

Wow! In the best way possible, this gave strong "Daisy Jones & The Six" vibes. I loved the angst and grit and emotion readers got about Joe and Percy's relationship. Even though I wasn't familiar with most of the songs, the book still caputured the emotion behind each musical genre. My only critique is that I wish the book was slightly longer and fights more drawn out.

This was everything I wanted and at the same time, completely different from what I thought it was going to be. I absolutely adore this book. Yes, there is a vast amount of musical knowledge and details that at times feel like it's going to overshadow the plot, but it never does. It was perfect. I just know I will be thinking about this book for the longest time. My first 5 star book of the year. Obsessed.

This book is a lovely example of right book, wrong person.
With gorgeous bits of writing, and a very youthful feel to it, Deep Cuts is like When Harry Met Sally—set in the world of music, of course.
And I think if you’re in your twenties, and music is your whole life, this book could mean a lot to you. I hope it finds those people!
It didn’t quite hook me, but I can recognize that it’s a special book.

Wow, this was such a treat. Brickley's writing is excellent, especially when dissecting music. This novel had me revisiting so many albums from my teenage years, basking in the nostalgia of my youth.

Percy and Joe's years-long relationship feels so authentic. They're both hard headed and just as in love with music as they are with each other, constantly insisting they can't have both. It has all the tension of a will-they-won't-they romance while also being a faithful snapshot of the 2000s, a fascinating deep dive on music and how it is enmeshed in our lives, and the growth story of a 20-something woman who never felt like she was a part of something. I could really see parts of myself and my life in this and it was a real joy to read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

DEEP CUTS is both a love letter to the indie music of the early aughts and a compelling coming journey of self-discovery. This completely immersive debut begins in a Berkley college bar as aspiring songwriter Percy Marks and aspiring musician Joe Morrow listen to music from a jukebox. As Joe asks Percy for feedback on one of his songs, they are thrust into a complicated relationship that spans decades and continents. With angst and nostalgia Holly Brickley captures the tender time of finding a voice in the midst of early adulthood, betrayal, and the magnetic draw of young love.

Read this if you:
-had a favorite burned CD
-enjoy stories set in NYC
-have ever fallen for your best friend

RATING: 5/5
PUB DATE: February 25, 2025

This book is about two people meeting in unusual circumstances and becoming very important in each other's futures. Good story though

thankfully i'm a massive fan of music or else i may not have been as invested in this story as the average reader. this book is like an album that's purely for music nerds. i enjoyed reading but can see where some people might have to put it down at times.

Percy can talk all day about music, and it turns out she can write it, too. But when she falls into a "partnership," it's unclear who benefits and if feelings will get in the way.

For readers who are obsessed with music, this title will give a lot of joy.

Thanks to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the early copy of this book.
Imagine if Daisy Jones and the Six had a baby with When Harry Met Sally, and I think that's what this book is about. If you love music, you will love this. If you love complicated relationships, you will like this.
The extra details within all the music talk got a bit much for me at times, and I found myself skimming or slightly bored, but I don't think I am the target market necessarily. It is a really well-written, enjoyable book.
Comes out February 25!

The writing was great and the storyline sweet but you have to like music to get through this. And I don’t mean, like music as in listen on the radio or sing in the shower. This requires almost a pathological like of music. Most of the band references and intense breakdown of songs went over my head and I found the characters unlikable and extremely pretentious. I got half way through and found myself desperately trying to find the story so I could finish.
Just wasn’t for me but I can’t acknowledge this would be amazing for music lovers.
Thanks Netgalley for the ARC.

Percy defines herself through music and is able to construct both insightful and revealing essays exploring the art form. As her life unfolds during university and beyond we see her connect deeply with aspiring musician Joe Morrow. The two are immediately drawn together and as they discuss songs they take the reader on a deep dive into the creative process. The boundaries between authoring, shaping, influencing and editing lyrics become blurred as the two workshop Joe's early albums. Deep Cuts is both a bildungsroman of the character's lives and also a smart examination of the differing roles that are needed in the realization of a new work of musical art. A terrific book for anyone interested in looking closely at the creative process and also for lovers of late 20th century music.

Like a favorite album, you'll want to reread and savor this one. Just as a great album tells a story with highs and lows, this book will make you laugh and cry. It's beautiful. A must-read.

Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley is an absolute gem that transported me straight back to the early 2000s indie music scene. Percy and Joe's connection over their shared love for music was so raw and authentic; I felt every high and low of their journey. The way Brickley captures the era's vibe is pure magic—I could almost hear the soundtrack playing as I read.

This novel is a must-read for anyone who’s ever felt the transformative power of a song or been swept up in the passion of young love. It's nostalgic, heartfelt, and left me with that bittersweet ache of a perfect melody lingering in my mind. I couldn't put it down and didn't want it to end. Highly recommend!

"Now, no matter how much she smiles or claps, her eyes harden when he sings. She wants to be the only one. She wants him as her deep cut, a B-side unearthed from a rarities bin, proof of her own specialness because she's the one who discovered it, because she doesn't know how to sing her own damn song."

Percy Marks meets Joey at a Berkely bar while verbosely waxing on about a Hall and Oats song. They have the early aughts existential debate of a perfect track versus a perfect recording. Percy, a loner never really finding her crew after moving to California from Indiana, is rapt with discussion and intrigue. Joey asks her to listen to his songs. Percy doesn't sing or play, but her opinions push and sway Joey's music--molding them into intriguing perfect pieces of indie pop. Percy becomes a trio with Joey and long time girlfriend Zoe, and the unlikeliest found family and partnership is born.

The writing set in amongst 2000-2010 brings a lot to the table. Post 9/11 panic, My Space culture, extreme niche content involving MFA programs, and above all pain of fumbling and falling in love and life in your 20s. Brickley's writing is stunning. Truly. I have not annotated text this heavily in a long time, and I will read whatever she writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the review copy of this title. Deep Cuts debuts Feb 25, 2025.

The night that Percy and Joe meet, they instantly bond over their love of music. Not long after that night, Percy starts giving Joe feedback on his own songs. From there, they form an intense, competitive, productive, and passionate collaboration that ebbs and flows over the years and across cities as their egos and feelings for each other get in the way of, and help, their music.

This book is Daisy Jones and the Six meets Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow with a splash of Sally Rooney. I couldn't put it down. The friendship/romance was gripping, the plot was page-turning, and characters were layered. I texted my friend, at least, a dozen times as Percy & Joe's mutual friend reminded me so much of my friend!

If you're passionate about music, Deep Cuts is for you. A playlist of the music in this book would last hours, but I did so love playing as many songs as I could as they were mentioned! It was packed with music references (most going over my head) that added a level of authenticity, especially to these music-obsessed characters.

I full-heartedly recommend this book from cover to last page- the title is perfect (especially the more that you read) and it has such a strong ending. I can't believe that this book is a debut!

Deep Cuts is a story of human connection, music, and nostalgia. Set throughout the early 2000s, it follows Percy Marks through her college years into early adulthood. One night at a bar in Berkeley, Percy meets Joe who listens to her opinions about music rather than getting annoyed by them and then invites her to listen to one of his songs. The story follows their friendship and feelings for each other through the years as Joe starts his band, Caroline, and Percy tries to get into the music writing scene. This is a story about growing up, finding yourself, and navigating complicated relationships.

I really, really enjoyed this book. I think Brickley did a great job capturing the culture, fashion, and of course the music that was popular in the early 2000s. I don't know a huge amount about indie music that was popular during the time, but I still enjoyed the book, so if someone does know a lot about that type of music I think they'll really appreciate it. The main thing for me was the characters and their relationships. The characters weren't always likable and they were often pretentious, but it felt really realistic and I enjoy those types of characters. To me, this book felt like a mashup of Daisy Jones and the Six and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, so I think this will appeal to fans of those books.

Part coming-of-age, part Indie-rock obsessed, part love story, Deep Cuts hits all the right notes. Do you ever hear a song and think back to the time in your life it was played? Percy sets her life to music and she has a talent for hearing a winning song and envisioning the lyrics that represent a story. As she matures from college student to young adult, her skills are sometimes underutilized but always there. It’s just a question of timing. I particularly enjoyed the beginning part of her journey in the university years when everything is in front of her and transformation abounds.

Thank you to Crown Publishing and Holly Brickley for providing this ARC for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I was very excited to read this book - the description is great but the story fell flat after awhile. I felt like I was reading and reading and not much was happening. I was hoping it was going to be as good as a lot of the recent music fiction books I’ve read - sorry it just didn’t live up to my expectations.