Deep Cuts is an electrifying exploration of music, ambition, and self-discovery, set against the backdrop of early 2000s indie culture. The novel masterfully captures the raw energy of creative partnership through Percy and Joe’s evolving relationship—one fueled by passion, friction, and the unrelenting desire to be heard. With sharp, immersive prose and deeply authentic characters, the story moves effortlessly between late-night campus bars and pulsating city clubs, making every moment feel alive with the weight of artistic struggle and personal reinvention.

What makes Deep Cuts truly shine is its ability to balance wit and heart, offering an intimate look at the joys and agonies of chasing artistic dreams. Percy’s journey is both compelling and relatable as she grapples with her own voice in the shadow of collaboration. The novel doesn’t just explore music—it hums with it, evoking the pulse of creativity and the bittersweet price of success. Smart, engaging, and emotionally resonant, this is a must-read for anyone who has ever fallen in love with a song—or the person who wrote it.

I loved this book SO much.

I couldn’t put this book down—it was so nostalgic and instantly transported me back to that time.

The story takes place in the early 2000s and heavily focuses on the indie music scene. Percy, obsessed with music, meets Joe, and together they begin collaborating and writing songs. Over the next eight years, their lives intertwine as they drift in and out of each other’s worlds.

Music has always been an integral part of my life, especially during high school and college. I was going to shows multiple times a week, surrounded by a music community, constantly dissecting lyrics and discovering new sounds. I related to Percy in so many ways. The story beautifully captures the angst and vulnerability of being young.

There’s so much to love about this book. It’s a wonderful coming-of-age story and a love story with real depth. We get glimpses of MySpace, the Obama election (bring me back to that time, please!!!), and the cultural moments that shaped an era.

I loved the song titles as chapter headings, the deep dive into different songs, and the rich conversations around music. This book is for all the music nerds out there. I can’t recommend it enough!!!

Thank you NetGalley, & Crown Publishing for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review!

I LOVED this book! The relationship between Joe and Percy is magnetic, and their chemistry leapt off the page from their very first encounter through all of the ups and downs of their 20s.

I was really impressed by the pacing; Brickley manages to capture each character with complete vulnerability and rawness. Deep Cuts is so immersive. I would recommend for fans of Coco Mellors and Daisy Jones and the Six.

This book and I did not get off to a great start, but I found myself really enjoying it in the end.

The central romance didn’t interest me much (Joe is kind of the worst and I found myself wishing Percy just like Raj more), but the music content did.

Though Percy exhibits one of the more annoying traits of music snobs in that she thinks she’s some sort of pioneer but is actually into the same stuff as everyone else, I loved her sense of song and the way she talks about the power of music.

I too am a “music person” but not a musician beyond a basic ability to play piano passably, and I really appreciated the way the book reckons with how difficult it is to talk about your personal connection to music while still making what you’re saying relatable or even comprehensible to others. The evolution of how much Percy struggled with this and was frustrated by it into a real understanding of how to express herself through her musical opinions really resonated with me.

I found her character to be bothersomely inconsistent at times (especially toward the beginning of the book), and that did impact how I felt about the novel overall. She has a sort of social cluelessness that appears and disappears when it’s narratively convenient, and is sometimes slick and witty and at other times so awkward as to be almost combative, but without the charm of naïveté or the blamelessness of neurodivergence.

It was hard to buy her odd social interactions as anything other than plot driven. A shame, because this could easily have been written in a way that conveys an introvert’s struggle in group settings, or the struggle to seem smooth and at ease with a person one has romantic feelings for.

That aside, I liked her in the end, and in addition to the terrific reckoning about how to express personal sentiment through someone else’s music, I enjoyed the nostalgia trip back to the music and pop culture of the early 2000s.

In all, a lovely paean to the personal value of music, and an infinitely better story than any of the other music-meets-women’s fic books that have shown up in the last decade.

Thank you for the arc!
I locked in and read this in one setting. An electric, compulsively readable examination of the indie sleaze scene of the early 2000s, and one woman looking for her role in it all. I was incredibly moved by much of the musical analysis, even if it was for songs I have no connection to. The novel handled the weight and importance of music beautifully. I loved it.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I really loved the music/songwriting parts of the story. I am a sucker for a good bridge and it was fun to see all of that in the story. What I was not a big fan of was the couple in the story. I didn't feel their romantic chemistry and I don't think I was able to see the male character growth when he was off touring in his band so I was not convinced he was a good match for her.

@crownpublishing | #partner In my day to day life I don’t listen to music all that frequently anymore, often opting for audiobooks instead. That wasn’t always the case and I well remember the urgency and sense of being understood that the right song at the right time can deliver. I think that’s why books with big musical components work so well for me, most recently 𝗗𝗘𝗘𝗣 𝗖𝗨𝗧𝗦 by debut author Holly Brickley. ⁣
⁣
Spanning roughly 10 years beginning in the fall of 2000, 𝘋𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘊𝘶𝘵𝘴 follows Percy Marks on a musical journey from Berkley, to NYC, to San Francisco, and beyond. Percy isn’t a musician herself, but her ear for music and her love of lyrics run deep, and she isn’t afraid to share her opinions with anyone, whether asked or not. Before leaving college, Percy becomes friends with a young singer/songwriter and his girlfriend with whom attraction and friendship run deep, but it’s complicated, as life so often is. The trio never swerve very far out of each others’ orbits, yet a piece of connection is often missing for Percy.⁣
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This was a story I loved from the start. Besides the music, the era is rich with touchstones we all recall and Brickley beautifully mined those. The bonds she created felt truly authentic and as such were comforting, hopeful, and achingly raw. I suspect the heavy layer of music may not resonate with everyone as much as it did me, but putting the music aside, I still would have found 𝘋𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘊𝘶𝘵𝘴 to be a truly beautiful story and Percy Marks to be a character I won’t soon forget. I can’t wait to see what Holly Brickley does next! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This book brought up a lot of nostalgia for me. Percy and Joe dissecting songs, the college town vibes, going off in the world and starting careers that pay the bills but it’s not your calling…

Most of the songs in this book are completely foreign to me. But I could relate to that feeling of finally getting your hands on new music and going to shows with your friends. (I was a Latin Alternative fan living in New England in the 90’s…Yeah, that took guts).

Enough about me…Back to Percy and Joe: Best friends in college, deep attraction to each other but the timing was never right. They go off into the world, but somehow keep circling back to each other because of music (a lot of times not in the healthiest way).

Loved Zoe, their mutual best friend and the one who knew them perhaps more deeply than they knew themselves.

Perfect ending.

Loved!

"Honestly, how many different ways is it even possible for the same two people to break each other's hearts?"

It feels weird to call this book cozy, but it was for me. It felt comfortable, like a peek back in time - conversations my friends and I would have over PBRs on a Friday night in 2001. Searching through mountains of CD's for just the right song. Analyzing conversations in your head - searching for what went wrong (or what went right). I loved all the music references, although I can see how it could be too much for some readers. I loved the descriptions of concerts, and how hard it is to create a song. I loved the faults and imperfections of Percy and Joe. How they made each other crazy but could never let each other go. How many more times can I say love? LOL.

I see the similarities drawn re: Daisy Jones and the Six, and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. There was a lot of the same vibes (and I loved both those books as well). It felt very High Fidelity to me too. In closing, if you were in your late teens-early 20's during the early 00's do yourself a big favor and read this book.

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

Thank you @prhaudio for the early listening copy and @crownpublishing for the early reading copy


This book is being compared to a mix of Daisy Jones and the Six and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. I definitely see that but also the movie High Fidelity meets the book Love is a Mix Tape.

I am a music lover and always have been. Lyrics have always felt like my communication and I can think of every song that was playing in the background of every meaningful moment in my life. The love that Percy and Joe have for music was so relatable to me.

Their story is more of a slow burn, which is my favorite kind. I loved the writing and felt so nostalgic while reading this story as you get to drift back to the late 90s and early 2000 with this one. I’d say if I wasn’t highlighting something Percy or Joe was saying I was searching songs I completely forgot that I loved on my spotify.

I enjoyed Jayme Mattler’s narration. She has a raspy voice that was perfect for Percy.


Music can transform you and this book beautifully encapsulates that.

Loved the flash to the past complete with vitamin water and Snapple cans! The comp to Tomorrow, Tomorrow and Tomorrow felt accurate to me, if music replaced video games. Two people with a shared passion for music have their lives cross for the decade following college. Recommend!

This book started off a bit slow for me, but once I chose to abandon all other books I was also currently reading, I got sucked in for sure. Then I didn’t want to put it down. I really got invested in Percy & Joe’s lives. Some really great side characters in this one too, especially Zoe! Loved her. I would say this definitely gave me Daisy Jones vibes, which I adored. Well-written, awesome character development—a slow-burn, “Will they/won’t they” story with mistakes made as young adults, growth/change during years spent apart, etc. Highly recommend this read! Thanks for the ARC!

Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley follows Percy Marks through her college and early adult years as she finds and looses friends, jobs and love. Through all of this, music is how she relates to the world and understands herself. She learns that music can also be a way to use her voice to be heard. This book was not for me- I felt like I was along for a ride that I had no idea where I was starting or ending. A music buff would most definitely enjoy this more as there was a great deal of discussion and commentary on music that went right over my head. While this has been compared to Daisy Jones and the Six (which I loved), this fell flat for me. If you are a music person, it definitely might speak to you so give it a shot!

A mixtape of great songs, excellent writing and one horribly toxic relationship.

3.5 stars rounded up.

Percy and Joe meet at Berkeley in late 2000 and immediately bond over their shared passion for music; hers, more intellectual, treating Joe - and the reader - to her many opinions about various artists and songs; his, rooted in his own budding talent as a singer / songwriter. Over the next decades, "Deep Cuts" accompanies Percy on her way from Berkeley to New York and back to the Bay Area, her path irrevocably linked to Joe and his rising stardom.

A lot of reviews have compared this book to previous standouts "Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow" and "Daisy Jones & The Six", but while "Deep Cuts" is indeed another book about best friends becoming collaborators, including the tug and pull that entails, and while one of them does make it big as a musician, I don't personally see a lot of other similarities. "Deep Cuts"'s strength lies in its music, though here, the music is mainly non-fictional (in fact, there are now great playlists including all the songs referenced in this book, which I highly recommend you play). At the same time, Percy's opinions on different musical pieces are sometimes unnecessarily long and can take away from the actual story. As for the "Will they or won't they" angle of Joe and Percy's friendship, and even their collaboration on different musical pieces, I found their relationship to be incredibly toxic and juvenile, and really did not root for them at all.

The "About the author" and the "Acknowledgments" sections of the book make it abundantly clear that a lot of Percy's story seems to be based on the author's own experiences - Holly Brickley| also studied English at UC Berkeley and received an MFA in fiction from Columbia University -, lending the book a semi-autobiographical feel. In this case, this was a good thing that notably contributed to the authentic quality of the story. That, along with the excellent song choices featured in the novel, and the author's obvious talent for writing, make this a wonderful debut despite its rather annoying protagonists.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"Deep Cuts" releases today, February 25, 2025.

As an indie music fan and millennial, this book struck home! The relationship between Percy and Joe felt so real to me and their borderline-pretentious music fandom will strike a chord with anyone who was tuned into that world at the time. Awesome debut!

As a college student in the early '00s, Deep Cuts took me back to the time when texting took patience and burning CDs was a love language. The times my friends and I tried to sneak backstage at concerts while camouflaging a rum and coke in pocket, or tailgating in the burning sun. Now as an ahem... "elder millennial" I can relive those moments when I hear the songs.

Much like Percy who contemplates music, both contemporary and the deep cuts of the past, but is not cut out to be a musician, Joe is a musician but hasn't contemplated how to finesse his artform. When Percy and Joe meet and Joe gets feedback on his song, it ignites a fire in them both.

I wasn't sure where this book was going when I started it. And my ADHD completely derailed my reading several times since I would look up a song that was mentioned and start to listen, then another, and another. This book NEEDS a soundtrack!!! BUT it's unlike my typical reads and I adored it. It perfectly encapsulates that feeling of longing and exhilaration for the perfect moment in a song. Highly recommend!

I really wanted to like Deep Cuts...especially with all of the Daisy Jones comparisons it was getting. Unfortunately, I just couldn't get past the half-way mark. The beginning of the book started off great. I was vibing with Percy's voice, the college setting, Zoe, and Joe. Once the story progressed into the NY storyline, I started to lose interest. The once charming music talk started to feel tedious and unexciting. As someone who isn't a huge music person, I had a hard time connecting with the musical aspects of this story. I felt like a lot of the music talk was going over my head. I felt like I was missing something...which isn't a fun feeling to have when reading a book. Music buffs and readers in their mid to late thirties will connect the best with this story. Naturally, I didn't feel super connected to the characters. Although I liked Percy's POV, I didn't feel particularly strong about her character. I found her relationship with Joe toxic. Joe was the stereotypical male rockstar. I found myself questioning if I wanted to root for their relationship. Overall, I just couldn't get past the heavy music talk and the superficial characters. Thank you to NetGalley and Crown for the ARC.

When Percy Marks meets Joe Morrow, it feels like a match made in music heaven. Percy loves to pontificate on music and Joe loves to listen to her takes and share his own. The two become fast friends and collaborators. While Joe has the musical talent Percy lacks, Percy has the knowledge and innate understanding of music to turn Joe's creations from middling into astronomical. But after a while, their ambitions and feelings begin to clash. Questions emerge. Can they accomplish their dreams? Are they holding each other back? Can they be more than friends and collaborators or will that ruin everything?

Deep Cuts was such a rich story. I fell into its fictional world. Percy and Joe's journey from friends to lovers to foes to friends and so-on is fun, dramatic, heart-breaking, and life-affirming. But this book is much more than a love story. It's a story about finding yourself, being true to who you are, connecting with others, going after your dreams even when it's hard, and coming home.

I found Percy to be inherently relatable. I both loved her pretentious nature and rolled my eyes at it. I understood her intense need to be heard and accepted. I felt her struggles with finding her voice and her audience. Although my love of and appreciation for music is nowhere near as deep as Percy's, I have often found myself buoyed and comforted by music. As though urged to do so by an informed friend, I found myself listening to the music mentioned in the book, enjoying the old favorites and relishing in new discoveries.

Deep Cuts is great for fans of Gabrielle Zevin's Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow; and The Favorites by Layne Fargo, both of which I loved.

Thank you to Crown Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an e-ARC of Deep Cuts!

This novel follows Percy and Joe, whose creative partnership as critic and songwriter spans years, blurring the lines between collaboration, ambition, love, and identity.

Deep Cuts is a slow burn that truly sneaks up on you. The beginning dragged a little for me, and some of the musical references went over my head—and that’s coming from a music lover! But the ending completely won me over, and what really made this book stand out was how real the characters felt—flaws and all. One minute, I was rooting for Percy and Joe, and the next, I wanted them to never speak again. Their dynamic is so messy, so frustrating, yet so compelling.

I also have to mention Zoe. She’s such a great friend to Percy, and added so much to the story.

Holly Brinkley wrote a novel that will linger long after you finish reading. I know I’ll be thinking about Percy and Joe for a long time! If you love emotionally complex relationships, characters that feel achingly human, and a whole lot of musical references, this one’s worth picking up!

First thank you to crown publishing and NetGalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis: Percy has always had music as part of her life but when she meets Joe in college it really takes a leading role. Joe and Zoey are in a relationship but has become platonic. Percy and Joe build a friendship that turns into more over time as she learns more about herself and what she wants.

What I liked: this is a deep slow burn book. The writing is very beautiful and it reminded me more of high fidelity than daisy jones. Percy I think like many people didn’t know or was afraid of what she wanted to do and took a comfortable or more traditional job. She had to keep coming back to Joe and music to understand that is what she wanted. Joe is an interesting character because you are following Percy’s pov so you have a lot of ups and downs with him. Zoe was the best friend and her sounding board throughout her career. I really liked their relationship.
It’s a great book but very much a slow burn.