Picked by Cosmopolitan as a best book of 2025.
Picked by The Bookseller as their Book of the Month for March 2025
âââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââ'Tender as a ballad and pleasurable as a pop song' COCO MELLORS
'Clever and heart-wrenching and addictive' MIRANDA COWLEY HELLER
'An incredibly special book' BETH O'LEARY
'So relatable and enjoyable' GILLIAN MCALLISTER
The first time Joe plays Percy one of his songs in his college room in 2000, she instantly realises three things:
One, she is watching a star in the making.
Two, she can shape his music into something extraordinary.
Three, she will always be on the sidelines.
She swallows her jealousy and throws herself into collaboration, transforming Joeâs songs into indie hits with her blistering critiques.
But thereâs an undercurrent to the music theyâre making â something undeniably electric, hurtling towards love. And then, almost inevitably, towards heartbreak.
As Joe steps into the spotlight, can Percy bear to watch on in silence?
And can he exist there without her?
Deep Cuts is an irresistible novel about passion and obsession, love and longing and, above all, our need to be heard.
READERS ARE SAYING...'The best debut novel I've ever read' âââââ
'I need this book to come out so I can talk to at least one person about it!! Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow meets Normal People, with all the nostalgia of Almost Famous and High Fidelity ... I really think itâs gonna be hard to read a better book this year!!!! âââââ
'You need to add this to your TBR. Just trust me on this, ok?' âââââ
'I canât believe this book is a debut novel because of how good it is. I felt a mixture of Sally Rooney with Gabrielle Zevin and it was delicious' âââââ
'I love it with all my heart, I'm super sad it's over and I will be insufferable when it's out' âââââ
'I wish I could have written this book. Iâm jealous of people who havenât yet read this book' âââââ
'This is an absolutely breathtaking debut. I cannot hammer that home enough' âââââ
'I canât believe this is a debut! Itâs perfect for fans of One Day and Daisy Jones & The Six ... This one hit me hard'âââââ
Holly Brickley was born and raised in Hope, British Columbia, a small town known primarily for being the filming location of the first Rambo movie. At 18 she moved to study English at UC Berkeley with an MFA in Fiction at Columbia University.
Instead of putting this education to any sort of literary use, she then spent a decade-plus running around San Francisco and New York, working in trend research and branding, and basically making a career of going out. She now lives with her husband and two daughters in a creaky old house in Portland, Oregon, where she prefers to stay inâand write. Deep Cuts is her debut novel.