Marissa Stapley's The Lightning Bottles is part love story, part mystery. Jane Pyre, a retired rock 'n' roll singer, and her teenage neighbor set out to uncover what happened when Jane's husband and band partner, Elijah Hart, mysteriously disappeared in 1994. In 1999, Jane is widowed, widely ridiculed by the media, and desperate to have a private life. She moves to the German countryside to do just that, and is surprised that her neighbor, a friendless girl named Hen, is a fan of her former band, the Lightning Bottles, and a firm believer that Elijah is not dead.
The two misunderstood characters join together for a road trip where they follow clues to answer the questions raised when Elijah went missing. Stapley (Lucky) intersperses their journey with flashbacks of Jane and Elijah's relationship as it grows from their initial meeting in an online chat room to a bond they deem unbreakable. Through the formation of the Lightning Bottles, Stapley celebrates the Seattle, Wash., rock scene and how two people find each other and their place in the world. The Lightning Bottles' rise embodies the metaphorical and literal highs of fame, as well as its the rock-bottom lows.
The odd pairing of rock star Jane and country girl Hen creates insightful dialogue as their search becomes increasingly thrilling and revealing. Jane's last shred of hope exists alongside her guilt over how she and Elijah left things, while an all-encompassing passion for music fuels Hen's optimism that her hero is still alive. Stapley's depiction of the 1990s rock scene highlights the transformative power of music and the importance of human connection. --Clara Newton, freelance reviewer