This book was incredible! The way she writes intimate scenes is too tier! The romance, humor, plot, and everything about it is so well thought out and so wonderfully written.

julie soto can truly do no wrong! i love the way she writes romance books and her characters always feel so real and relatable and this book is no different! pulled at all my heartstrings! at this point, i will read anything julie soto writes!

I loved the characters, their development, and how their story was tied together. The romance was top notch, the tension was believable, and a fresh take on the genre.

Gwen plays the violin and she plays it very well and is part of an orchestra. Her and her roommate are booked to play at wedding only to realize when they get there that she was hired to play the cello not the violin. Needing the money and not wanting to ruin the wedding she tells them that she knows how to play the cello as long as she can get one. Little did she know that there was going to be one available to her and it was none other than Xander Thorne's. She knows how to transpose her violin music however she is afraid of what Xander will think of her ability to play. Doe she recognize her from playing in the same orchestra together?

Gwen was taught at a young age how to play the violin when she walked into Mabel's store after her mom had passed away. Not having any real formal training she ends up playing for the Manhattan pops with hopes of one day obtaining 1st chair.

Xander who is also part of the Manhattan pops and part of a group called Thorne & Roses. He is rude, always late and very arrogant.

After their chance meeting at a wedding they start to develop a relationship and learn to play together, Xander has written his own music and he knows that Gwen is very good at site reading. These to together make some beautiful music. When Gwen is offered first chair in the orchestra the spot that Xander has always wanted she is warned to be careful by both Xander and Mabel.

Not understanding why Mabel and Xander both have issues with Nathan and Ava and the Manhattan Pops her loyalty is tested when she is offered to tour with Thorne & Roses and U2. This is when she starts to see everything that she has been warned about and has a difficult choice to make. Will she choose Xander or the Manhattan Pops????

100 million stars. No notes. I will devour any romance Julie Soto ever writes! I devoured this last summer and cried in Julie's DMs about how amazing it was.

From the title, you already know I'm going into this a little bit biased but what can I say? I absolutely ate this book up. I want to start with the good and there was so much good maybe even too much good. The plot was so intricate that it almost took away from the romance aspect. The characters and the way Julie Soto developed them and their connections with each other were the reason I finished this book in 12 hours. It was just so interesting and in some ways unexpected that I found myself wanting to know more and more.
But because of this GOOD plot I found myself not as interested in the romance. Now let me be clear I was still interested because the tension and longing and connection was off the charts but if they connected over anything other than music then I genuinely missed it. There just wasn't a solid foundation for their relationship and the author didn't seem to interested in building one. And when they go to the inevitable "I love yous" I was like ok that's nice but let's get back to the family drama and don't even get me started on how the third act break up resolved.
It's been awhile since l've left a contemporary romance book wanting to know more about the plot than the actual romance but I'll just chalk it up to it being a great book with superb writing!

I know there was a lot of hype leading up to this book release, so I was excited especially since this was a new-to-me author. But honestly, I didn't love it. What I liked: insight into the music world and the drama involving the characters' backstories and connections. The relationship felt a little forced and I had a really hard time getting emotionally invested with the characters and their love story.

was simple not alot of character development. More of a YA but then not with other adult content. Maybe as she keeps writing books will get better with time

Thoroughly enjoyed but was hoping for a bit more. I found Gwen’s naivety to be distractedly frustrating at times. The love story was sweet if predictable. As always Julie Soto’s side characters are masterful. I loved Jacob, Dylan, Mei, and Mabel. The Forget Me Not character cameos were a delight as well!!!

I absolutely loved the tension between Xander and Gwen throughout the book. Julie Soto crafted a great story between the two of them and I loved the conflict that slowly arose from Xander’s past. I can’t wait to read more from Julie Soto!

Okay, Soto really stepped up her game here!! Something about Not Another Love Song just really worked for me. Two string musicians, who come to hone their craft in different ways, clash together and begin a journey towards partnership that I found both entertaining and so tender.
I had some minor qualms with our two MCs, but also loved their little love story and excused away some issues in my mind given that Gwen is only 22. This book stands out in my mind for sure - the musician aspect felt fresh and enthralling. You should pick this one up if you’re looking for tender found family vibes, musicians but not cringe, and an Obsessed MMC.

✰ ✰ ✰ ✰.25

Lovers of Ali Hazelwood should give this romance a try! I can see how this might not be someone’s cup of tea, but I ate it up. I so look forward to new works Julie Soto publishes!!

This book is absolutely phenomenal. I adored these characters so much 💖 Julie Soto is an instabuy author for me.

I haven’t devoured a book in one day in a while… and i’m not surprised Julie was the author to get me back into it!!

This book is so amazing and I can’t even explain how it made me feel. let’s just say part of me now wishes I never quit violin before high school. I love Gwen and Alex so very much.

i have an obsession with orchestras so this was a fun one!! their instruments & music brought great tension to their relationship and made for such an intensely emotional dynamic. alex was so obsessed with gwen, he truly would do anything to have a second of her attention and i loved that. i struggled a little bit with how the emotions of both main characters were handled, leaving them to treat people poorly in a few scenarios. besides that, i enjoyed this book!!

Consider me a Julie Soto fan.

What a sweet, romantic story. The premise was fresh and exciting for a romance, and the main characters were super cute together. This just felt so right. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy to review, all opinions are my own.

Such a good one! I love reading Julie Soto's work, and this one was no exception. And I adored the musicians element.

This book i put off reading and i'm kicking myself for it. This is the type of yearning i like to see in a book. I love that both the MMC and FMC care about their career and their craft first. I also appreciate that their motivations never changed even when their relationship developed. This book helped me discover i love a dynamic where the love interests are in a similar field and it turns competitive. The way that Xander is so completely enamored with Gwen... could've read 300 more pages.

I LOVED this book and it was an easy entry on my top romance reads of 2024 list!! Gwen and Xander are both musical prodigies up for the first chair position at their orchestra. Xander, the more famous of the two, was born into musical fame while Gwen learned from a local music shop owner. Their competition for the first chair position turns into undeniable chemistry and as romance brews between them, their public lives threaten to come between them.

Gwen and Xander are both such great romance book characters. Julie Soto was able to capture such intense chemistry and tension between the two of them and I was so invested in their relationship. I could not put this book down once I started reading it. While there was tension, there was also an emotional aspect to Gwen and Xander's romance that felt so beautiful. Both Gwen and Xander come into their own and their support for each other was truly great. Of course, this book is SPICY, but through these scenes Soto showed just how much they loved each other. I don't know much about the professional music world, but I am fully invested in the drama now. Overall, I loved this book and I would highly recommend it to romance fans!! I love Julie Soto's writing and I can't wait to read more from her!

What an amazing romantic, contemporary fiction novel! I absolutely loved the main characters being competitive musicians and how this creates a beautiful setting in the book. ENEMIES to LOVERS done absolutely flawless. I absolutely adored the way they were able to navigate the loss and grief and grow as characters. ALSO this has some SERIOUS spice in it- I was so amazed.

My favorite book of 2024. And new favorite, auto-buy author.

Julie Soto's debut Forget Me Not was a favorite of the year. So I had some high, high hopes for this next book. And this surpassed all of them.

I played violin for 13 years so there were so many fun little moments that resonated with me. But even if you aren't or never were a musician, the romance in here is exceptional.

The mutual pining and tension between the characters is palpable from page one. The horniness of this cover bleeds onto every page. You are just as desperate for these characters to get together as they are.

Julie Soto's books are dramatic, angsty, and packed with the best sexual chemistry. And I can't get enough.