Percy and Joe meet at Berkeley in 2000 and share their passion for music. As Percy provides feedback on Joe’s music, it sets off a partnership that will span years and ignite passions in them both.

Alert to music fans! If you love music and reading about the creative process, you’ll enjoy this one. There were so many references to music history as well, which I found interesting. I could entertain myself looking up these songs for a long time after reading this story. Besides the music, the relationship was the heart of the story even though they weren’t with each other most of the story. It’s also a coming of age as they get to know themselves apart from each other, and then get to know each other again and again.

“Maybe I could learn to do it better. Maybe now that I’d been split open, made wiser, my words on a page could get closer to music.”

Deep Cuts comes out 2/25.

In 2000, Percy meets Joe at a bar during college, and they bond while dissecting the music playing on the jukebox. They begin a decade-long relationship that gets friend-zoned early, to Percy's dismay. The book follows her (yes, Percy is a woman's name here) as she navigates the world while her former best friend eventually becomes a music phenomenon.

I'm what I would call a shallow reader. An English teacher's least favorite student. I hated the parts in class where we analyzed what the author MEANT and WHY they said what they said. I wanted to read what's on the page, not the allegory and theme and message behind it. I just wanted to read for the fun of the story. I still do. I don't want to LEARN stuff from my leisure reading. I want to read a good story. Action. Romance. Mystery. Intrigue. Whatever.

So when things like Deep Cuts come along in my reading, they're usually books that I tire out quick on. This book is all about dissecting music for what it does for you, how the words chosen make it a better song, etc. Percy feels (to me) like a pretentious know-it-all who has to analyze the shit of of EVERYTHING and judge the creators for their choices.

I LOVE music. I love getting back story on a song. But Percy gets.... extra. About every nuance of every song. The way she goes about it makes it feel like the worst parts of English class, instead of a fun twist on a song.

The thing is, the time period of the book essentially means that she and I would have been contemporaries. She's in college in 2000, and that's when I started college, so she's maybe a couple years older than me at most. But I feel like we wouldn't have gotten along. Her opinions have opinions, and they're not the lighthearted, fun kind.

This book is NOT written for me. It's not. I'm not the audience. I KNOW people who will love this. I'm not that person. This book is going to really hit some people in all the right places. This is about to become someone's new favorite book. There's DEFINITELY an audience for this book. It's just not me. Just because I didn't love it, though, that DOESN'T mean you don't either. This is really a well-written, thoughtful, insightful book... for someone else. I truly hope you love it.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy via NetGalley in return for sharing my thoughts on this book. Thanks to the author and publisher for this opportunity!

An entire generation needs this novel to time travel to that post-college, before you found your adult self, a stage that is part of the millennial experience. Brickley gives voice to the late-night musings of college friends who drift apart and find their way back together, time after time. There's an accompanying playlist to reinforce the soundtrack reflections of the story, a much-needed contextualization of the importance of music. I may want to start up a battle over the Hall and Oates praise, but that's why this is a must-read, and then immediately read again because you just can't let go of the feelings that come bubbling up. Nostalgia is strong with this one and you'll want to text a friend just to remember when.... it is so good!

LOVE THIS BOOK. If romances are all beginning to feel the same, this might be for you. This was unique and had substance while hitting my nostalgia for the early 2000s. I will remember this story for a while.

Dive into the early 2000's nostalgia as college students Joe, a fledgling musician, and Percy, a music aficionado, meet and begin to write music together. Follow along as they navigate decades long friendship and a quirky, yet realistic love story. Introspective and engrossing look into early adulthood and the 00's music scene. Thanks to NetGalley and Crown publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for an unbiased review.

This was an absolutely delightful debut novel - such an immersive experience of the indie music scene of the 2000-2008 era (as we all now know, the best we'd ever have) via the adventures of Percy Marks, a 20-something Berkeley student and future struggling music writer/influencer scout. There are so many references to bands that defined the era (Panda Bear, Neutral Milk Hotel, The Shins, Interpol, Pulp). If you had Brooklyn Vegan, Tiny Mix Tapes or Pitchfork set to your homepage during that era, you will love this novel set in the Bay Area and NYC! The cover art in the form of a mixtape with the chapter headings is absolutely brilliant. I also had a sneaking suspicion that there should be an accompanying playlist for the novel and I was right, the author created one here. I have been thoroughly enjoying this playlist ever since I turned the final page and said goodbye to Percy & Joe! https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6ZN7YF1Kn24S2kaEGF5JOz?si=b4f96a5ec5f14d2a

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

This wasn’t for me. I am roughly the same age as the main characters and found a lot of what they discussed and listened to to be relatable but they were both off putting and kinda snobby. The pace was slow and it wasn’t a book I was excited to pick up and read. With that said, I do think a lot of people will love this and I’ll still be recommending it.

Deep Cuts feels like perfect Xennial bait. Berkeley, the year 2000, Percy and Joe are college students who both love music. Percy isn't a musician herself but Joe is a songwriter and deeply enamored of Percy. This sets off a series of events that will carry Percy and Joe through their adult life.

A book about love for a thing (in this case, music), a book about the time it's set in, a book about the complexity of ambition and passion. Perfect for readers of Jennifer Egan.

Solid 4.5.

If you’re looking for a pure rom-com, this is not the book to read/recommend. Deep Cuts almost has a gritty Gen X vibe and reminds me of the movie “Reality Bites.” It is an excellent, well-written, thoughtful novel.

I do not have words for how much I love Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley. It perfectly captures what it means to love an art form—whether it’s music, movies, or books—so deeply that it becomes central to who you are. The decade-spanning relationship at the heart of this story felt so real, so raw, and so profoundly moving.

And the playlist? Absolute perfection. It led me to some beautiful new musical discoveries that made the reading experience even richer.

This is currently my favorite book of 2025, and it’s going to take a lot for something else to dethrone it.

Deep Cuts was a gem of a novel. I am someone who gets lost in music and is passionate about it, but has no talent. This made me relate extra hard to some of the feelings our FMC was having. The author did a fantastic job of capturing the essence of the era. It is one that I’ve been itching to have encapsulated in more stories. I’m typically not a love story gal but I loved how this one was done. Our main characters go on their own self discovery journeys that just so happen to intersect rather than being completely entangled for the entire duration. This story felt unbelievably REAL and I absolutely adored it for that.

Highly recommend this book! Excellent music references, a lot of nostalgia, and a lot of heart. Definitely one I will be recommending to all my friends!

4.5 stars.
I fell right into this book. I was so attached to the characters and was glued to the pages, wanting to know where their lives would take them. Would they find success? Heartbreak? Friendship? Themselves? Each other?

Holly's writing was beautiful, lyrical, and relatable. She painted very clear images of the scenes in my mind using songs as a foundation. I actually found myself listening to the songs as I read the specific chapters. It was really captivating. It was a story that made me look back and think forward.

I enjoyed this novel, though I felt a bit old for it - I think it would have hit differently it had I read it 5-10 years earlier. I've heard it compared to Daisy Jones and the Six, but in some ways it reminded me of a lower-stakes Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow - three best friends with evolving romantic attachments and a shared passion for media (music rather than video games). It also reminded me a bit of The Light We Lost, another romance with 9/11 as an interpersonal inflection point.

I appreciated the window into these characters' lives and passion for music - I'm someone who loves books (obviously!) but has never really gotten other forms of art, so that was fun, and I expect this will resonate even more with folks who love it as deeply as Percy, Joe, and to a lesser extent Zoe do. I hope that when it's published, there's a playlist that goes along with it

IT'S ME, HI, I'M THE PROBLEM, IT'S ME!!!!!! Deep Cuts written by Holly Brickley was my first DNF of 2025 at 30%. First and foremost, reading is subjective, please be respectful because not everyone is going to LOVE the SAME book. If you don't like my review or rating, please kindly keep scrolling, if you agree with my opinions, that's great, I'm so sorry you didn't love this book either, but I don't think that's going to be the case, I might be the outlier here. I was so excited to read Deep Cuts because I had seen so many raving reviews and I saw this book was being compared to Daisy Jones & The Six, but unfortunately that wasn't the case for me. I'm disappointed I couldn't finish this book because I love getting my hands on musical novels. I couldn't really get into the story at all, the pacing was so slow for me, maybe I wasn't in the right mindset, I don't know. I often found myself dozing off and getting bored. I couldn't connect with the characters on a deeper level, I could only relate to their love for music. I'm not bashing this author, not the book, and not the readers who loved this book, Deep Cuts just didn't work for me at all. Please don't let my review discourage you from reading this book because I know many people loved this book and many others will love it, but these are just my own opinions. To anyone that picks up this book next, I hope you have the best time and love it way more than I did.

THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND CROWN PUBLISHING FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!!!!

"A perfect song has stronger bones. Lyrics, chord, and Melody. It can be played differently, produced differently and it will almost always be great!"

"The chorus of Fast Car by Tracy Chapman is the most moving musical moment of the eighties." -I can definitely agree with this quote, obviously I wasn't around in the eighties, but in 2025 this song is still a massive hit, but I loveeee the country version by Luke Combs, it's such a bop, especially with the windows down and your hair blowing in the wind, with the volume up on the radio, screaming at the top of your lungs.

I think the two main characters in Deep Cuts were great people, but like I stated before, I just couldn't connect nor resonate with them other than their love for music. I think music has a beautiful way of connecting people with each other, it can often bring you a new friendship. Where do I ever start with the two main characters, Percy and and Joe? Percy Marks is an English major at Berkeley. Percy has absolutely no musical talents, but she loves music. I think many people will connect with Percy, but I just didn't like her to be honest, I often found her to be very rude and snooty with those around her. Now, let's start with Joe. Joe Morrow is a "fuck my feelings" type of person, his mom was diagnosed with melanoma the summer before he started high school and she died Labor Day weekend. Joe also attends Berkeley, but as a political science major. Percy and Joe met at a bar when "Sara Smile" by Hall and Oates was playing on the jukebox, and Percy decided to over-analyze the song which she has a quirky talent for. Joe was kind of okay-ish, again, I couldn't connect with him either. I'm going to stop my review right here because again, I didn't finish this book as it wasn't working for me, so I hope y'all have better luck with this book than I did.

Deep Cuts is about a high school trio — Percy, Joe and Zoe as they grow up, go to college and enter young adulthood. Joe and Zoe are a couple in high school, but the book centers around the relationship between Percy and Joe throughout the years. Joe is a musician and Percy is an aspiring writer and together they collaborate on music and more.
I have no idea why this reminded me of THE IDEA OF YOU, but it did for some reason even though the story lines are entirely written. (This one has much better writing and it is really impressive for a debut.)

Ok, this probably would have been a 5-star debut for me if I read it in my 20s. But as a 40-something reader, I had little tolerance for the musical pretension and general pretension that these characters exhibited. Yes, I remember that phase of life and sense of being and I am so happy it passes! But I think that is part of the author’s point here? She really depicts that phase of life perfectly. The opening scene is really well done and made me say, “Alexa, play Sarah’s Smile by Hall and Oates.” I predict this one with be a hit.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the ARC! 4.5/5 rounded up.

I absolutely loved this book. I found Percy to be sometimes insufferable, but I appreciated that she seemed to have genuine introspection and development throughout the book which made her less irritating (lol).

It was so wonderful how Brickley wove in so much music history and songs—I now have several songs to listen to, too.

I’ve seen this compared to Daisy Jones and the Six but this blows that out of the water for me, it was much more complex and emotionally deep in the best ways. It felt unique and like a breath of fresh air—I haven’t read anything quite like it. I love that we got to follow Percy through so many years of her life.

I’m not sure that Percy and Joe would truly make it but I like to think they might (and I like that the ending gave me that chance).

I can’t wait for more from Holly Brickley!

This is a sophisticated love story based on music. We follow Percy through her life as she connects, disconnects, and reconnects again with her musician friend Joe. Most of the time Percy is a hot mess as she navigates her way through life and growing up. This is a well written romp from San Francisco to Brooklyn as Percy pursues her graduate education. Then she heads back to San Francisco to continue her life of writing about music and a little song writing. The music references were plentiful, and this was an enjoyable read. Great debut novel. I look forward to reading more from this author. Thank you NetGalley for providing the ARC.

Deep cuts is part love story: right person, wrong time. We follow Percy and Joe through college, their twenties, grad programs, the rise of indie stardom, and their respective relationships. Their relationship with each other is messy, they’re best friends, collaborators, and despite their ups and downs, they always find their way back to each other.

Deep Cuts is also deeply nostalgic. It reminded me of the thrill of being in my teens and twenties, finding a new bands to obsess over, small venue shows that were the absolute best.

At times I found the characters to be incredibly frustrating, but I had a lot of fun with this one overall!

This is a solid 3.5 stars. While I was hoping I’d love this one as much as The People We Keep and Songs in Ursa Major I thought this one got too bogged down in technical music terms and indie music songs and musicians. Percy was definitely a flawed character which I usually love but I didn’t love that her life revolved around Joe. I felt like she was a bit too needy in relationships even with Zoe. I really wish she would have found the strength to branch out and do more music for herself whether it was song writing or producing. Ultimately, the push and pull of Percy and Joe’s relationship of will they won’t they had me hooked.