Single Sundays: Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Single Sundays: While this blog may be focused on reviewing book series as a whole, we can’t forget about the good ole’ standalone novel! On Sundays, I will review a novel that is considered to be a standalone novel. Here is this week’s offering:

Synopsis for Daisy Jones & The Six (from Goodreads):

Daisy is a girl coming of age in L.A. in the late sixties, sneaking into clubs on the Sunset Strip, sleeping with rock stars, and dreaming of singing at the Whisky a Go Go. The sex and drugs are thrilling, but it’s the rock ’n’ roll she loves most. By the time she’s twenty, her voice is getting noticed, and she has the kind of heedless beauty that makes people do crazy things.

Also getting noticed is The Six, a band led by the brooding Billy Dunne. On the eve of their first tour, his girlfriend Camila finds out she’s pregnant, and with the pressure of impending fatherhood and fame, Billy goes a little wild on the road.

Daisy and Billy cross paths when a producer realizes that the key to supercharged success is to put the two together. What happens next will become the stuff of legend.

The making of that legend is chronicled in this riveting and unforgettable novel, written as an oral history of one of the biggest bands of the seventies. Taylor Jenkins Reid is a talented writer who takes her work to a new level with Daisy Jones & The Six, brilliantly capturing a place and time in an utterly distinctive voice.

SERIESous’ Top Picks: 2023 Fav
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Genre: Adult, Historical Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, Music
Heat Rating: cool
Point of View: First Person, Multiple
Publication Date: March 5, 2019
Source & Format: Public Library–Audiobook

Why I Picked it Up / My Expectations:

I feel like this book was everywhere when it came out but I never really gave it a second thought. I think I missed the part where the story is told as “an oral history” because I’m usually down for books that have a different narration style. Plus, I’m a huge classic rock fan. But I think all the hype scared me away.

Anyways, I actually watched the TV show before I decided to grab the book (more on the TV show later). But wanted to see how the two compared and so I picked up the book after watching the show.

The Concept / The World:

I really loved the documentary style of this book. You don’t get lost in all the excessive detail and descriptions of what things smell like or look like. I feel like the setting (1960s-1970s) speaks for itself so it isn’t hard to picture what the characters are doing and what they look like. Maybe watching the show beforehand helped with that as well.

The Plot:

I can’t help but draw comparisons to Daisy Jones and the Six‘s story to Fleetwood Mac. When I think huge rockband with messy, complicated band history, Fleetwood Mac is the band that comes to mind.

It doesn’t hurt that Stevie Nicks said it herself either:

Just finished watching @daisyjonesand6 for the 2nd time. In the beginning, it wasn't really my story, but Riley seamlessly, soon became my story.

It brought back memories that made me feel like a ghost watching my own story.

It was very emotional for me. I just wish Christine… pic.twitter.com/CmbexMFx6l
— Stevie Nicks (@StevieNicks) August 15, 2023

One of my favourite romance genre tropes is the Rock Band one and this just highlighted the ups and downs of a band so well. Acheiving fame, the downsides of fame and the way it alters relationships; I think this story did a great job of showing all the dimensions of the rock and roll lifestyle.

The Characters:

I really didn’t think I’d like Daisy but I grew to like her and her character’s story. She’s certainly interesting and her approach to life is refreshing. I really got attached to the rest of the Six band as well.

The Romance:

I think the various romances are a great compliment to the characters’ stories. It doesn’t distract but it certainly enhances everything. I just loved how the relationships would weave in and out of the story.

My Audiobook Experience:

If you aren’t sure if you would like audiobooks, I think this is a great one to try first. It’s so easy to listen to with a full cast of characters for each part. And it would get you used to the idea of following along to a narrator. Highly recommend. I don’t think I would have enjoyed the written novel as much.

My Thoughts on the Show:

I watched the show first and then read the book soon after. I don’t think you can go wrong either way when it comes to watching or reading first. In comparison, I think the book is actually a little more tame than the TV show. Meaning, some of the creative differences the show took to make “good TV” enhances the characters in a way I don’t think the book achieves in the same way. The show just takes things to the next level. And I honestly think watching the show first made me more attached to the characters when I read the book. It’s a great adaption.

My Rating: 4/5

A refreshing novel for fans of romance, rock and infamy. It’s an approachable read and the TV adaption is maybe even better than the actual book? I don’t think you can go wrong either way!

Read if You Like: books about bands, classic rock music
Avoid if You: dislike documentary style novels