Thank you NetGalley and Forever Friends publishing for this ARC copy.

I tend to be a "Ill judge the book by the cover" romance reader. I love bright fun covers, its just how I am. So I was a little hesitant on this - so rude of me..... what a unique and lovely romance novel. It is spiccccyyyyyyy and the scenes numerous reviews mention - its true. This is a rival to lovers trope that takes it up a notch compared to usual romance novels. It is fitting that this will come out in mid July because it will heat you up with all the emotions.

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!! Their chemistry was on another level. He's so OBSESSED with her, I LOVE IT. And the spice was spicing!!

I really enjoyed the plot lines and the characters. The bit of found family was very sweet. Also the way Julie Soto described the music scenes was so palpable.

I wasn't a fan of Forget Me Not, but I'm so glad I picked this one up!! (I'd say this could be read as a standalone). Totally recommend for romance fans, and especially if music makes you feel something!!

Thanks to Netgalley for an eARC!

I am obsessed with this book. I’ve told all of my friends who love romance that they have to read it and recommended it on my Bookstagram account.

While I played band in high school and definitely had my share of band boy crushes, I never could have captured the sex appeal of a hot guy playing violin and cello. Make it a brooding rock cellist, and I was a goner.

Somehow Julia Soto has made the lottery scene from Ghost even more erotic and I will never look at a cello the same again.

I love the way that Julie Soto writes. In only 2 books she has been an auto buy author for me.

Meeting Gwen at the beginning of her career and Alex at the start of a new chapter makes you hope that they will blend into a beautiful song. You spend the whole novel routing for them to overcome person hang ups while trying to navigate professional issues.

This story is beautifully written melody and I can’t wait to read it again!

this was a different kind of read, it wasnt the worst, but it wasn’t the best. i did manage to get through it.

I had the best time reading this I could not put it down!! I am a big fan of the characterization in this book and this is my new favorite by Soto.

Gwen Jackson and Xander Thorne find themselves in a push and pull musical relationship after an accidental run in at a wedding. Gwen, self taught starting at age 11, hasn’t had the same intro to the classical music world as Xander who was a child prodigy, born to play, and now a rising rock musician. When Gwen is given first chair, a position Xander had been raised for, the tensions and troubles really begin between the two.

I was so instantly hooked on this book, the dynamic between the characters gives an adult academic rivals type vibe (in a different way). The book is very character driven. The musical setting is new and fun to me, and so enjoyable to read about. I seriously couldn’t put it down!

This book was also very hot!! I wasn’t expecting it, but I loved it. I also adored the chemistry between Alex and Gwen so much, both musically and emotionally. The musical element added an extra layer to their chemistry and I ate it up. And let me say BOY OBSESSED is one of my favorite tropes and Alex is THAT, he’s so obsessed he just doesn’t know what to do with himself!


I know this book might not be for everyone but it was for me and I will be recommending to those who like a fun tension filled romance!

Thank you Netgalley and Forever for the arc!

Infinity stars, and a leading contender for favorite book of 2024. The writing? Absolutely captivating, filled with graceful whimsy and poetic earnestly.

Further, Not Another Love Song is teeming with the delicious tension I crave in a rivals to lovers storyline and perfectly conveys the vast sea of emotions that surround creating music, advocating for yourself in a professional setting, and of course, falling in love. Mesmerizing, heartwarming, and utterly beautiful, I never wanted this book to end.

Omgg I LOVED this book! Gwen and Alex will forever hold a place in my heart. I giggled, kicked my feet and I cried but I enjoyed every second of it

Ummmmm excuse me?! The tension and longing in this book, the lyricism and descriptions of the music, ughhhh chef’s kiss. The former orchestra kid in me ate this up.

Not Another Love Song was my first Julie Soto book, and I’m excited to read more of her work. This book read very quickly, and it might be my favorite contemporary romance I’ve read this year.

The book follows Gwen Jackson, a young violinist playing in the Manhattan Pops Orchestra. Gwen is uptight, anxious, and a gifted musician. She meets Xander Thorne, a bad boy cellist, who plays in the Pops and in a quasi-rock/classical band. The two have a connection (dislike to lovers) and definitely have chemistry, as they work and make music together. The cello scene?! Thank you 🙌. Anyway, the book has complicated family dynamics, loss, and fun side characters that I also enjoyed.

I’m not super familiar with Reylo fanfic, but Adam Carlson probably made me a fan. That said, even though this started out as fanfic, I really enjoyed Alex/Xander and Gwen’s story. The pining, longing, tension (I know I said it already, but it bears repeating), was so good.

My main issue was I wish we’d seen the MCs get to know each other a little bit more, but I don’t think that really took away from the story or how I felt about it.

Much thanks to Forever and NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review. Not Another Love Song is expected to be published July 11.

𝑰𝒕'𝒔 𝒔𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚, 𝒊𝒕'𝒔 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒂 𝒄𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒊𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂 𝒗𝒊𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒏.

I wish I could write as beautiful and eloquent as Julie because this book deserves the best words. Unfortunately, I can't, and you're stuck with my ramblings.

𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘔𝘦 𝘕𝘰𝘵 was one of my top reads last year. I have zero doubts that 𝘕𝘰𝘵 𝘈𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘚𝘰𝘯𝘨 will be a top read this year. Even if you don't love music or have any interest in string instruments, the story will capture you. The tension. The chemistry. The spice. Literal perfection. I'm immediately going down a YouTube whole looking for string covers because it's all I could think about reading this. I just want more!

🎵 Rivals to Lovers
🎵 Musical Prodigies
🎵 Grumpy x Sunshine
🎵 Found Family
🎵 He Falls First
🎵 Dual POV

Things I loved about this book:
1. Dual POV (even though you can’t tell from the table of contents).
2. That some of the characters from Forget Me Not made appearances in this book. They are standalones, but I recommend reading in order so that you see the character crossover.
3. How well the author described the whole story. I am not typically a fan of classical music so I had no clue what most of the terminology meant regarding the sheet music, but I was still able to feel like I was hearing the music when they played the more mainstream songs.
4. How the ending came together. I won’t spoil it, but I am glad she was able to tie everything together with a pretty bow.

Things I didn’t like about the book:
1. 3rd person POV (although this was one of the best I have read this year).
2. The MMC’s “Xander” persona gave god-complex vibes. I understand he was trying to give off the “I don’t give a crap what anyone thinks about me and I do what I want” energy, but it came off like “everyone else is beneath me and I’m holier than thou”. It made it hard for me like his character until he and the FMC started to get to know each other better and we got to see more of the real him.

I spent most of the time reading this book anxious and waiting for the other shoe to drop. That’s a sign that I was emotionally invested in this book and I love going through the gambit of emotions along with the characters. Overall, very well done! Can’t wait to read then next one next year!

Not Another Love Song follows violinist Gwen and her rival, cellist Xander, and their musical rivalry turned love story. Gwen is a self taught prodigy violinist playing in the Manhattan Pops orchestra. She is a longtime fan of Xander’s music, but when they start to work together in the orchestra, she quickly learns that her musical crush is actually an arrogant and controlling musician. Focused on his music and growing popularity, Xander is unaware of Gwen‘s existence until they have a run-in outside of work that ignites their passion filled rivalry.

Gwen and Xander have excellent chemistry and their banter will have you giggling and kicking your feet. I love that the two of them are classical musicians, it was a nice twist on the trending rockstar romance trope. Julie does an excellent job at wrapping the reader up in the music and demonstrating the passion that musicians find in playing. It made me nostalgic and reminded me of why I love playing music. The characters show how music can be both beautiful and sensual (THAT seen, depicted on the cover, takes the passion found in music to a whole other level hehe). This was a fun, sweet read that will leave music lovers wishing for their own Gwen./Xander.

I really wanted to like this story because it was showing up on my social media everywhere. But the characters are so very toxic, and maybe that is the point, but I could not enjoy it as much as I wanted to.

We begin with Gwen, who is the embodiment of the "she doesn't know how great/beautiful she is" trope who somehow as an 18 year old self taught violinist scored a chair in a New York City Orchestra. Sure it's not the Philharmonic, but it's still New York City.

Then we have Xander/Alex who literally is the poster boy of male privilege and generational wealth who can seemingly keep a touring rock career and a spot on the same orchestra as Gwen.

Spoiler: They end up together and the smut is amazing. 10/10 no notes.

But the characters made me want to throw my phone across the room half the time. But it is a well written book, and I think the Star Wars girlies are going to love it.

3.75/5

Honestly, Alex/Xander pissed me off to the max. The things he said to Gwen at the beginning were unnecessarily rude. I get it was supposed to be cause he had a crush and that bothered him, but he's an adult. He frankly should learn to interact with adults better. Also, the switch from hate to love was SO sudden. Considering how much of a dick he was and the lack of any apology, Gwen should not have gotten with him so easily. This book would've benefited from being a slow burn.

IF we ignore the first part of the book, I was having a great time. I loved their relationship once they got together. It felt raw. When Alex loves, he loves with everything inside of him.

I wish it had more POV moments from Alex. That could've improved the first half of the book because we would've had SOME insight for why he was such an asshole.

The ended also pissed me off because there was no satisfaction. Like please put more time into your conflict resolution at the end. And please give a more satisfying punishment to the assholes.

Overall, I loved from 30% to 90% of the book, just gripes with the beginning and end. Will absolutely still pick up the next Julie Soto book.

3.25 ⭐️
I was super excited to read this book as I really enjoyed the first book in this series, however I was a little disappointed. I really liked the concept/plot of this book as a whole as it was unique and original. The idea of symphony musician rivals falling in love is fun and creative, but I felt the actual development of the story and the characters was lacking. The way the romance plot developed was almost out of no where. It was as if nothing happened and then everything happened which caused a disconnect for me. I thought there was a lot of potential for character development that was not explored. I just never really felt like I got to truly understand or connect to either of the characters. With that being said overall it was a fun little story and if you’re looking for something simple and cute you will probably enjoy this book. However, if you’re going into this hoping for a more complex storyline that really delves into the characters you may find yourself disappointed.

The inner band kid in me is squealing over this book!!!! The tension, the pining, the banter, UNMATCHED. Gwen and Alex were so sweet and such a fun concept of them performing, playing duets together. I loved the character development of Alex and his progression of shifting more from Xander to who Alex truly is. The romance was written with steamy moments sprinkled in, but still compellingly balanced with plot to make it well balanced, the perfect new adult romance for a romance lovers TBR!

Another fantastic romance from Julie Soto! Not Another Love Song follows self taught violinist, Gwen Jackson and surly rock star cellist, Xander Thorn. I love love loved the two main characters, but I will say that I found the side characters to be a little lacking. If you’re looking for a steamy romance this summer (with a plethora of music vocabulary) this is the book for you!

Julie does an excellent job of weaving a tale of two musicians, neither of which are truly living the lives they wanted for themselves. On the outside, Alex and Gwen seem to have it all- him, as a rock star cellist, and her as the first chair violinist at the Manhattan Pops Orchestra. But when they run into each other at a wedding Gwen is playing in, they realize that their relationship can be so much more together.

Their journeys of discovery are well-written, and the cast of characters is outstanding. Each secondary character has their own backstory and none of them feel superfluous to the overall plot. My only quibble is the vast amount of music terminology used- obviously, this is a book about music, but as someone with limited knowledge of music and music theory, I struggled to understand the metaphors Julie was writing.

Otherwise, it’s a fun contemporary romance with just the right amount of angst and heartbreak, with a comforting HEA at the end!

a professional violist and cellist & rivals to lovers? yes, please.
this was my first Julie Soto book, and i thoroughly enjoyed it (and i've heard such great things about Forget Me Not, so i will most likely read that in the future). this novel follows Gwen and Xander, professional violist and cellist, respectively, and their developing relationship and tensions as they continuously begin to encounter each other throughout their day-to-day lives, both working at the Manhattan Pops. tensions rise between them after Gwen is offered the role of First Chair at the Manhattan Pops, a role which Xander was working towards.
i overall enjoyed their romance throughout the novel, though i do think, at times, it was rushed and unrealistic, which pulled me away from the story and characters. nonetheless, i did devour through this story in less than 2 days, so it is a romance book i would definitely recommend.
thank you NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this e-arc!!
[4.0 stars]

rating: 3,5 stars.

I would like to thank NETGALLEY and the publisher for providing me this arc!

I'm super glad that I had the opportunity to read this book before it's release date, since it was a story I enjoyed a bunch of things from and enjoying a book it's a hard thing for me these days.

I'll start by saying that I didn't had any problem with both main characters. They were not the deepest and best-written characters in the world but neither of them were shallow. They also didn't make me annoyed, and this is reason enough for me to not criticize them. As a couple, unfortunately their relationship was a little too fast for my liking, and while it was a good (and hot) scene for me it was at same time a little strange to read him touch her so openly while she played the cello because they were not that intimate yet and before that moment didn't even had a full conversations with each other (the scene where they encounter each other in the taqueria doesn't count). So it was very "instalust" for me and this really isn't my cup of tea, but since their tension and chemistry were good and they were cute this issue (that usually would be something big to me) didn't bother me as much. Still makes me a little upset? Yes, but i got over.

Other two big positive things for me about this book were the author's writing and the ambiance of the story. Gwen and Alex are both musicians and I appreciate that Julie was consistent enough with it and wrote the main characters actually working with music and having contact with it in every tiny moment of the book, instead of just claiming them as musicians and writing some quotes and mentions about it. Regarding the writing, I found it good and easy and made me keep reading the book for hours too and I missed the feeling of being so imersed in a story.

Something that also wasn't good for me was the third act break up. It was very abrupt and happened too close to the ending and as a consequence for that, the way that the problem was solved and the couple apologized themselves were also fast and this was reasoning enough to make me a bit frustrated.

Conclusion: the book was really good and fun for me, but unfortunately some things didn't allow me to give a 5 stars rating and i wish that goodreads could allow me to give half stars because i somehow feel like 3 stars are too low to explain the way i connected with the book. Still, the problems didn't erase how glad i am to have "Not another love song" as one of my 2024 readings and I look forward to read another Julie's books.