This is my second Taylor Jenkins Reid book and she is quickly entering into my top favorite author list. I love her style of writing and how she creatively taps into this journalistic groove of letting the narrators tell us the story and not lead the narrator. Daisy Jones and the Six could have been any band of the 1960s or 1970s Reid captured the time period magically. Her details were so vivid I could picture the time so clear and with little imagination.

I really enjoyed all the characters they all were so flawed and real it was nice to have them all be three-dimensional characters except for maybe Camilla. Their journey and back stories really shaped the story into a good character study of how the unreliable narrator/s can tell a story collectively and how POV really can change the tone and style of the story. Overall I really enjoyed this book the only problem was about almost half way the story did kinda fizzle a bit and didn't move forward. However it still had amazing element of storytelling that I just loved.

Like seemingly everyone else on the planet I was really excited about this new book from Taylor Jenkins Reid, the same author as The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. However, it kind of fell flat for me! I enjoyed the interview format of the book and how the band members appeared to be bantering with each other when it was just individual interviews meshed together. And I was super confused for a hot minute because I couldn’t remember if this was about a real band or not! But for me it was just hard to get through.

Wow! I totally finished this book in basically one sitting! This was such a powerful read and one that absolutely reeled me in. The characters were totally believable, so much so that you immediately wanted to go online and download their songs.

TJR did a beautiful job of weaving such an amazingly believable, realistic tale of this band and the various characters that make up this story! Definitely glad I read this one!

Thanks NetGalley, Ballantine Books, and Taylor Jenkins Reid for allowing me the opportunity to review!

When I realized that Taylor Jenkins Reid had a new book coming out about a rock band set in the 1970's, I was immediately hooked and knew I wanted to read it before I knew anything else. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo was one of my favorite books that I read in 2018, and I fell absolutely in love with Reid's writing style. This book was written in such a new and interesting way, in the format of an interview, with each character and member of this fictional iconic band having their own version of what occurred. It was interesting to read it that way because of the way that normal books are set up, where it is hard to really know each person's story. I loved and hated each character, and it helped to make the characters seem so real. You are there through the concerts, the relationships, the meltdowns, the addictions, and more. I wanted more, and I think that really shows the strength of a book: when you want to dedicate more time to reading about each character, and want more stories published about them. I had to keep reminding myself that these characters are not real, and had to stopped myself multiple times from looking up the band members on Wikipedia.

🎧 v 📖.

I really enjoyed DAISY JONES AND THE SIX, though admittedly had to switch to the audiobook version as I wasn’t feeling it in print. I think this is a story written to be an audiobook, the cast of narrators brought the interview-structure of the narrative to life. I also found it easier to connect with each of the characters because of this too.

I also admire how varied Taylor Jenkins Reid’s approach to her works is, with this being completely different not only to her earlier works but to anything I’ve ever read before. For me the strongest emotional connections in this book were in references to lyrics and their place within the narrative, really powerful stuff!

Ultimately though, I didn’t feel as wow-ed by the story itself in comparison to other readers. However, I loved the complexities of the relationships and pace at which the narrative unfurled. Definitely recommend checking this one out as an audiobook!

Thanks to @penguinrandomhouse and @netgalley for an ARC (and @librofm for an audio credit to use!).

DNF at 30%...and I feel guilty about it. Perhaps this was a case of the right book at the wrong time and if I pick it up again at some point in the future it might click. But for now, it just didn’t work for me.
The Good:
The author writes beautifully, and there were a few Aha moments in it for me. Like when Billy’s wife explains why she chose to stand by him and make him be the man and father he was supposed to be despite his awful behavior.
The Not So Good
The interview format began as a novelty for me, but I quickly grew tired of it. I found it hard to really connect with any to the characters and that is very important for me.
If the concept of the book appeals to you, definitely give it a try. I definitely think that it could be great for the right reader.

Wow! What a fun book. The 70's music scene played ou interview style 30 years later through interviews with the band members., their families and friends. Could not put this book down, raw, emotional, sad but in the end a really good love story. The author just seems to get better with each book and this one is a gem.

What I liked about it:


Rock & roll as a narrative always works. It provides a wild ride, the perfect escape, the fulfillment of teenage dreams. You get to experience the craziness without having to go rehab later. Of course there a ton of biographies and autobiographies featuring real rockers, but there's something about Rock&Roll fiction. By example, I read Springsteen's autobiography, but having him look back on the songs he'd written as a young buck with an old's man gaze, robbed the songs of their pure emotion. You can't look back on rock & roll; you have to live it. Longing, desperation, drugs, pure creativity, and lots of talent may result in a perfect song. And all of those things you have to experience in the moment, talking about them when they are in the past is almost impossible. What Daisy Jones & the Six does is using a narrative structure whith rock stars looking back on their history, but they are talking about it like it is happening there and then. And that makes it propulsive.
For me, this book couldn't have come at a better time for me; I finally watched A Star is Born and left so disappointed with the storyline. I didn't like seeing Gaga play a woman made and destroyed and rebuild by the men in her life and Cooper playing somebody self-destructive who gave his second chance up in an instant, for nothing. This book washed the bitter taste that the movie left away.
It's the seventies, the height of sex, drugs and rock and roll. There are two main characters; Daisy Jones is a woman who knows what she wants and is lost at the same time. Billy is a guy holding on to his sanity, always verging on the rand van alcoholism, fighting with everything he's got against temptation. These two are two faces of the same coin and seem destined to be together, but that would mean destroy everything around them and themselves in the process.
It could be melodramatic, but instead, it's real, funny, thrilling and insightful. As I said, the story is told in a spoken style, giving voice to everybody involved in the band. It's like reading a Fleetwood Mac documentary.
Taylor Jenkins Read Said she was inspired by the split up of the Civil Wars, but the storyline follows the meteoric rise and combustion of Fleetwood Mac so tightly that I could help see even Nicks as Daisy and Lindsey as Billy.
There's the same play with the different POVs going on as in the first season of the Affair, and some of the different interpretations of the same events by various band members is priceless, very funny.
It's hard to put down, awful to finish, stay-in-your-heart kind of book and I'm already scared and excited by the upcoming Amazon TV show.
The ending could have been different; I wished had been different. It's not much of a rock and roll ending, it could have been less sentimental, but I'm sure it'll seal the deal for most readers. Anyway, this is the most riveting book I've read this year so far.

What it's about:

Daisy Jones is a promising singer living in the Chateau Marmont. The Six is a rock and Roll band who just moved to Los Angeles. When the two come together, rock and roll history is made. All the while its members have to deal with addiction, torment, love entanglements, big decisions and the dangerous notion of chasing your dreams.

I finished Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid last night and I was so sad for it to end! Oh boy, what a book. I have a book hangover that will last for days, I’m sure. I already know that it will have a spot on my top ten books of the year list. No doubt about it. Once again, TJR knocked my socks off with her incredible writing talent. This woman can tell a story like no other. I was immediately pulled into the lives of this 1970’s rock band. The characters were all fantastic and I was invested in each and every single one of them. Daisy and Camila were by far my favorites. I loved how they all had a part in telling their story. It took me a little bit to get used to the format of the novel, but then very quickly appreciated it. If you haven’t read this one yet, I really hope you get the opportunity to do so very soon. So yeah, I obviously rated this novel 5/5 stars.

Amazing! Love the strong female characters and documentary writing style. Overall, it was an excellent read that I could not put down.

Sooooo I loved Taylor Jenkins Reid other book, but this one just didn't do it for me. Maybe I'm more in love with time period in the other book then with this one. Also, something about the interview format didn't work for me.

Taylor Jenkins Reid's last book, The 7 Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, was my favorite book of 2017 so I knew I needed to read this book as soon as its publication was announced. I sat down to read it at 9pm on a Saturday night and did not get up until I finished at about 2:30am on Sunday morning, This book, in a word, was intense. I could not get it out of my head; I certainly couldn't believe this wasn't a true story.
It's difficult to accurately describe the premise. Daisy Jones is a late 1960's Hollywood "It Girl". No parental supervision, plenty of money, and no real direction in life. She parties at all of the hot clubs and with the most notorious people. One day, she decides to try singing and her career skyrocketed. Eventually she is paired up with an up and coming band, The Six, and the proverbial sparks fly. Reid explores the highs and the lows of a band during the glory days of rock and roll. The novel is told from the perspective of each band member in interview style so it feels like you are reading a rock bio. While it takes a minute to get used to the format, it really captured the atmosphere needed to tell this particular story.
Daisy Jones & The Six are all of the things I love about a good historical fiction. It captures the essence of the time period, the characters are complex and well developed, and I am immediately transported into the world these characters live in. Daisy herself was beautiful, driven, and ultimately heart-breaking. If you are a fan of rock biographies, movies like Bohemian Rhapsody, or even just a classic rock fan, you are going to love this book.

This book will hook you in from the opening page. If you're a fan of 1970s rock n' roll, Behind the Music, Fleetwood Mac and Almost Famous, you will absolutely love "Daisy Jones and the Six." I could not put this book down, and the characters really hook you. As I was reading it, I could see the scenes playing out in my head, and so I'm really happy to hear that Reese Witherspoon optioned the rights for this book and will turn it into a TV show.

In exchange for a pre-released version from NetGalley...Daisy and the Six is the type of book that reminds of you driving in the car with your parents listening to a great band from the ‘70s and drumming along to the solos, and singing at the top of your lungs. Daisy and the Six is early Queen, Led Zeppelin, and Fleetwood Mac all rolled into one. Daisy Jones is the woman who has all of the talent in the world, who lights a room on fire, and knows exactly who she is. Billy Dunne leads a successful band called The Six. When the two meet, they “get on like a house on fire”. Follow this irresistible trial of sex, drinking, rock ‘n roll, and the zenith of a band that could have been.

Deeply evocative with tension tearing at the seams, Taylor Jenkins Reid imparts an intimate glimpse into 1970s rock ‘n’ roll—the chaos and the glory, the sex and the drugs, the creative highs and disastrous lows. It’s nostalgic and intimate. The kind of raw that draws you in, the kind of characters so sharply developed they feel real with all their hard edges and hidden vulnerabilities.

What happened to (fictional) rock band Daisy Jones & The Six? What caused them to leave it all behind at the pinnacle of stardom?

Through documentary-style interviews, an author unveils what pulled seven individuals together and what ultimately tore them apart.

Brothers Billy and Graham Dunne, together with four others, achieve moderate success with their band, The Six. But it isn’t until free-spirited, red-haired Daisy Jones joins them, that they catapult to fame. It turns out her gritty, soulful voice and stirring song writing are the exact counterpoint lead singer Billy needs. Together, they make magic. And along with the magic, flares tension, temptation, and an unbidden desire.

“We were two halves. We were the same. In that way that you’re only the same with a few other people. In that way that you don’t even feel like you have to say your own thoughts because you know the other person is already thinking them. How could I be around Daisy Jones and not be mesmerized by her?”

Daisy spends her nights in a blur of drugs, while recovering addict Billy fearfully clutches to his sobriety. Daisy lives the life that forever haunts him, beckons him, while Billy fights to keep the thing she can never—and has never had—a family.

While the band’s journey largely pivots on Daisy and Billy’s explosive dynamic, bandmates and loved ones’ struggle with their own demons; their own stories brimming with depth and emotion.

On stage, it’s musical alchemy. Off stage, it’s ‘grit your teeth and bear it’ as tempers flare, lines are crossed, and the unbridled, ever-deepening toxicity of their rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle threatens to overtake them.

“I came to hate that I’d put my heart and my pain into my music because it meant that I couldn’t ever leave it behind. And I had to keep singing it to him, night after night after night, and I could no longer hide how I felt or what being next to him was doing to me.

It made for a great show. But it was my life.”

I absolutely loved every minute this novel. I was utterly engrossed beginning to end. It was fresh and fascinating, taut and propulsive. Jenkins Reid was loosely inspired by the likes of Fleetwood Mac (with Stevie’s drug addiction mirroring Daisy’s) and The Civil Wars (whose own abrupt end over internal dissonance shocked fans)… and her take on it, well, it just works. I can hardly wait to see this story come to life on screen.

Immersive, intimate, evocative, nostalgic and utterly bewitching—DAISY JONES & THE SIX hits all the right notes, and with it, Taylor Jenkins Reid once again proves she can tackle any kind of story with impressive, singular prowess.

Forty years ago, Daisy Jones and The Six saw a meteoric rise culminating with one of the best-selling albums ever, then the band broke up in the middle of their tour. The reason was never known until the publication of this book, a series of interviews with band members and anyone else intimately involved with the group. It’s the classic rock and roll story: young, beautiful, neglected, rich groupie Daisy Jones hangs out at clubs on the Sunset Strip, sleeps with musicians, takes way too many drugs, and dreams of a career as a singer/songwriter. A garage band from a small town with sexy, brooding front man Billy Dunne gets noticed by a big-name producer and is brought to LA to make music. Despite (or perhaps because) his girlfriend gets pregnant, Billy goes wild on their first tour, sleeping with fans and abusing both drugs and alcohol. When Daisy is brought in for one song, the chemistry between the two is undeniable, both on the stage and when writing songs together. But what happens when two uber-talented, self-destructive and volatile people have to share the spotlight?

Reid has written a mesmerizing and unforgettable novel that is impossible to put down. Not only does it illuminate the exhilarating and tragic history of rock and roll, but, by calling on the memories of the characters, it also clearly demonstrates how contradictory perceptions of events can destroy relationships and drug and alcohol abuse can destroy lives. It makes your heart pound, it makes you cry, it makes you remember the magic of the ‘70s music scene. This is a tour de force!
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3.5 stars. Once I was far enough in this book to understand what it was I was surprised. I assumed that this was about the lead singer of a girl band, and it wasn't the worst assumption. I know the author's previous books, I saw the cover, I knew it was a Reese's pick. But it turns out this is a capital-d Dad Book. Or at least, it is until the very end. At the very end it becomes much more obvious that this is a Feelings Book, which is something the Dad Book crowd usually tries to avoid. Yes, I know I'm speaking in stereotypes but it was such a surprise to me to read a Dad Book! They are usually not my thing! And, more than that, I *liked* the Dad Book-ness of it. In fact, I got mad at the end when it takes a turn away from what it's doing for a rather cheap reveal that actually invalidates the entire book rather than giving it the additional emotional weight it thinks it's going for. (It's annoying enough that I may go back after a few days and downgrade it even more to 3 stars.)

I cannot think of much other fiction that is looking at a band in such detail. There is a kind of Almost Famous vibe to it, but just for the setting. There's very little by way of groupies or teenage hangers-on here. It's kind of like a fictional Fleetwood Mac, love and unrequited love and addiction and breakups and songs with too much subtext. Daisy Jones is on the one end, born into her good looks and good voice and money. Billy Dunn and The Six are on the other, a scrapping band who rise from obscurity to fame. We get their backstories and the story of their time together in this novel, which is in the format of an oral history.

For this book to work you cannot question the device too much. You cannot question that every single person remembers the same milestones along the way and that their memories agree far more often than they should and that they're all creepily good at remembering the exact details people would forget 30+ years later. Just let that go.

Another recommendation for this book to work: do it on audio. I am not usually a fan of the "full cast" approach but it really works here. Jennifer Beals does the world-weary present-day Daisy and she's fantastic. (Benjamin Bratt and Judy Greer are also great.) There are a few places where they're not quite on the ball with reminding you who is speaking (it kind of feels like they got plenty of tape of everyone reading their character's name before their section... except for Billy, who just dives right into it) but they're mostly good and it doesn't take too long for you to be able to tell the regular voices apart.

I can see why women appreciate this book so much. It's a version of rock'n'roll that isn't really gross about women's bodies. (Mostly. Pete pops up every so often to remind you of how things usually are.) Mostly it gets that framing just right, letting its female characters be really full and developed but also really different, having them fight through a man's world without having the plot be totally dominated by men. Billy and Graham, in particular, get to be those hard musician types without being the absolute worst. Billy's struggle with sobriety and addiction in particular is a real grounding force in the book.

Besides my big complaint about the ending (it is truly groan-worthy) the only real note I have is that it makes the mistake of having one character be way too perfect of a person. Just absolutely perfect. Always. And the reveal kind of tells you why, but it doesn't give them any more dimension. Perfect characters are boring. The beautiful flaws of the band, the ways they clash, the ways we get to see the interpersonal relationships weave together, that's the good stuff. I wish the book trusted that a little more.

I loved The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, so I was eager to read the author's newest work. I'm of the unpopular opinion that it was just ok. That is, I enjoyed parts of it, but didn't feel compelled by it.

Sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll … such is the substance of Taylor Reid Jenkin’s newest novel, Daisy Jones and The Six, which follows the members of a rock band through their rise and fall in the 1970’s. Loosely based on the infamous exploits of Fleetwood Mac, and especially reminiscent of the tension felt between band members and former lovers Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, Daisy Jones and The Six is crackling hot with desire and danger.

Beautiful, yet self-destructive singer/songwriter Daisy Jones is a star in her own right. So is Billy Dunne, lead singer of The Six. When a producer has the brilliant idea to combine these two musical powerhouses to form the band Daisy Jones and The Six, their chart-climbing talent becomes unstoppable. But behind every great rock band is an even greater story, and this one is fraught with woes of addiction, lust, and sin. To know just what happened behind the scenes, you’re going to have to read Daisy Jones and The Six.

Like a #1 hit single, Daisy Jones and The Six is sure to rise to the top of the charts, especially since it was picked for Reese Witherspoon’s Book Club and is being produced by her as a mini-series for Amazon. Disclosed in the style of a VH1 Behind the Music interview, this novel is told in present day with the band members recalling how they got their start in the music industry and rose to super-stardom. However, this book is about more than just the music. It explores substance abuse, infidelity, and working relationships in such an intimate and charged way, that you can’t help but question if this novel tells a true story, it feels so real. Jenkins captures with ease the fragile intricacies of human relationships in her writing, and tells a captivating story that you won’t be able to put down.

Daisy Jones & The 6 is a very fun read that brings alive the sights and sounds and the highs and lows of the California Rock music scene in the 70s- when sex, drugs and rock n’ roll seemed like a goal -- not a warning. Written in an interview style, the novel is surprisingly clear-eyed and sensitive to the excesses of the time and the emotions behind making great art. Overall it’s an entertaining and fast book that brings to mind the yin/yang, coked-fueled turbulence that marked “Rumours”-era Fleetwood Mac.