4.5/5
I loved this so much. Grumpy/sunshine type with the perfect amount of spice and smut for this romance. The very beginning started out a little slow for me but once it got going I literally could not put this down. It kept me engaged throughout the entire book. Allowing a peek into the orchestra world (that I honestly have no background in), but giving you just enough that you don't even need knowledge of the music world. This is one I could reread again! Thank you NetGalley, Forever, and Julie Soto for allowing me to read this amazing ARC. EVERYONE grab this and read it when it becomes available July 16! 1 will definitely be grabbing more of Julie Soto's books in the future.

Having not read Julie Soto's other work, I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but let me tell you... this was excellent! Some of the hottest spice I've read in a long while, with the added fun of music being at the center of this relationship. The build up to the first encounter was excellent and you could practically feel them drawing together like magnets the whole book. While both characters have their issues, I think they discussed them openly and honestly by the end of the book which doesn't always happen. I was glad to see those who deserved it get their comeuppance without injuring the relaltionships that had been building. The side characters were charming and just brightened the story further. Absolutley recommend picking this one up, especially if you have a love of music and spice. ;)

Thank you to Forever for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

A sexy and stunning symphony of a sequel, Not Another Love Song may just be my favorite read of 2024 so far.

Though it is not technically a true sequel to the memorable Forget Me Not, the two do take place in the same universe, and I adored the brief glimpses we got of our beloved Ama and Elliot.

Soto’s second book is equally as swoon-worthy as the first, the perfect harmony of sweet and spicy. With spots of delicious tension and the unique orchestral setting, this truly swept me from the first chords and carried me all the way through to the coda.

As someone intimately familiar with both New York City (I sit typing this in The Bronx as we speak) and the violin (10 years and an appearance at Lincoln Center later, my Scotland is to Gwen’s Squeaky), both of these elements felt beautifully realistic and drew me into the page so completely at times I forgot I was even reading (which is always the best).

The side characters were wonderfully executed, creating an intriguing and authentic dynamic amongst the cast, and the additional plot surrounding Gwen’s career was additionally compelling.

I gasped, I giggled, I couldn’t get enough. This book was a romantic musicians dream. There’s so much more I could say, but honestly, I think you should simply experience it for yourself.

For those who enjoy —
- broody rockstars
- he fell first (and harder)
- longing looks across classical compositions
- spice that will make you sweat

than you’re sure to love this as much as I did!

As a long time reader of Julie’s works (iykyk), I am never surprised by her brilliance and am so beyond thrilled to have another sensational story of hers to seek comfort in.

While this may be Not Another Love Song, it certainly is a love story—one I’ll be returning to time and time again.

Oh, and one last thing…
THE. CELLO. SCENE.

I LOVED this book. I was obsessed right from the beginning through the end. I need this author to write more books because they are SO good.

i enjoyed the first 20% of this...but the writing style and plot kinda fell flat for me as it progressed :')

Julie Soto has a talent for making me absolutely inhale whatever she writes. I loved the orchestral setting.

I loved this story! There was so much love and passion. And it was really fun trying to hear what the music would sound like in my head. The romance was so well written and had me absolutely swooning. Such an amazing story!

Reading this so close to Julie Soto's debut Forget Me Not, it was hard not to compare them, though they're different in many ways. While I enjoyed that book, I thought some of the problems with it were much improved here: the characters communicated more, we spent more time with them as their relationship developed, making it feel more genuine, and the characters themselves felt more fleshed out and consistent in their motivations and actions. Interestingly, some of the things I really liked about Forget Me Not were not as well done here: for example, I thought the sex scenes here were a bit more awkwardly written, with some strange imagery and over-use of certain words.

This book is absorbing and compulsively readable. Once I started it, I didn't want to put it down. I thought the pacing was a bit off: there were big time jumps where nothing really happened and I thought it was a bit too much of a slow burn in that way -- sometimes there was too much time in between the characters' interactions where I felt the tension was kind of wearing off rather than heightening. Conversely, when the characters do get together, their relationship progressed really quickly -- I would have liked to see more even pacing throughout. I also would have liked to see a bit more from Xander's POV. I love a man obsessed and I think if his sections were just a bit longer, it would have made that aspect of the story even more delicious!

Overall, I enjoyed this book and would recommend it! It gives that fun fizzy feeling of a good romance and at the end of the day, that's what the people want.

Thanks to Julie Soto and her publisher for making this book available early to all readers on NetGalley!

Hot dayum. Not Another Love Song as skyrocketed into the my top 3 favorite romance reads (joining the company of Priest by Sierra Simone and One Dirty Night by Pepper Winters).

For anyone who loves a good romance novel it's amazing. But if you're also a music nerd it's even more incredible. A violin player and a cello player from a pops orchestra? Competition for concertmaster? It’s every band nerd’s dream book. Most of us realize that music can make or break a mood, a scene in a movie, etc. Not Another Love Song takes that to a whole new level by building those feelings through words instead of the audio (and now I really want an audio book of this with a soundtrack!). A great premise for a novel with an even better execution.

Everything Julie Soto writes is pure magic! Forget Me Not was my favorite romcom of 2023, and Not Another Love Song is my favorite of 2024. The storyline was wonderfully sensual, creating a delightful read the whole way through. As someone who expresses their feelings through music and feels every note, the musical elements of NALS created an unexpected layer of raw passion. It was so easy to feel what Gwen and Alex felt while playing and for each other. Soto is incredibly talented at immersing her readers to make them feel like they are her novel's main characters! Star Wars reference? Top notch! Disney music! Light controversy with Christmas music? Handled beautifully! I cannot wait to get my hands on a paperback copy of NALS to make all the annotations! Can we talk about Nikita's cover art? THAT SCENE!!!! I will forever love Julie Soto's work. She is my favorite author!

Just wow loved this book didn’t think I would because I usually am a huge judge of the cover and as much as others seemed to like it I wasn’t a huge fan but the book was great loved it for sure

I love love loved this!! Not only was the love story so sweet but the PLOT was excellent. I knew I was going to like this because her novel from last year, Forge Me Not, was a great one in my opinion as well.
Rarely I feel like I get a love story that gets me in my feels, while still having such an engaging pot and this did both excellently. Also the music aspect was so unique and I learned so much about orchestras, reading music, how the whole operation works, etc. I felt like the supporting characters were so perfectly placed as well, from Jacob to Mabel they all played a perfectly important part. And the fact that she and Alex both were trained under Mabel and had even run into each other at one point.. so cute.
Excellent rom com, with drama, spice, and heartfelt moments. Everything you could ask for in a book like this!

As one of my most anticipated reads of 2024, this did not disappoint! Gwen and Alex are such a fun couple to read about - their chemistry and tension is unmatched. I was so happy to have cameos from Ama and Elliot sprinkled in as well, as Julie Soto's Forget Me Not was an instant 5 star read, just like this one! I grew up a music kid, not symphony or orchestra, but it was fun to understand the music references and how the two feel when playing their instruments. I could keep raving about this book, so what I'll say to future readers is - READ THIS NOW!

Another banger from Soto!! This is an amazing contemporary romance novel that transports readers into a world of love, self-discovery, and unexpected connections. I would definitely be on the lookout for next Soto’s book.

I have found one of the best reads of 2024. This is hands down a five star read! Who knew music could be so sexy!?! Thank you Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I never new music could be so alluring! The tension and chemistry that Xander and Gwen had, had me jumping out of my seat. Although I do not know much about music and composition, the fact that Julie Soto delivered such riveting description for the beautiful art created by these two characters is telling of her ability to immerse the reader completely in her world. I could practically hear the hauntingly, emotive music as I read through the scenes.

The pacing of this book was perfection. I was itching to get back to reading so I can get a bit more of Xander and Gwen. This book has enemies to lovers, opposites attract, and found family, which are all things that I love. The sex scenes were…..HOT. I never knew music could be this sexy.

This was my first Juile Soto book but it will not be my last. I now need to read her other books. Julie Soto’s writing is addicting. Thank you once again Net Galley for this ARC!

Why can’t I give more than 5 stars?!? This book in so unbelievably incredible!! I was hooked from the very beginning and could not put it down (until I had to go to Bookclub, but I picked it right back up when I got home). I started it at 10pm on a Saturday and finished at 12:30am Monday (but again, probably would have finished in 24 hours had it not been for Bookclub). I don’t know the first thing about classical music but I could FEEL the emotion of the music in every scene. Julie’s descriptions of the compositions is so vivid it’s like you’re hearing it as you read about it. Gwen and Alex’s story is just so beautiful. Alex is so gone for this women it’s insane. And the spice was SPICE-ING!! I adore the complexity of every single character and of course loved the call back to Forget Me Not! I was lucky enough to pick up a copy from NetGalley but I will be ordering a physical copy and probably listening to it as well. Yet another home run from Julie!!! Just solidifying herself as an auto-read author for me.

Thank you NetGalley for this Arc! Not Another Love Song is a love letter to violins and cellos. As someone who played violin as a child and misses it as an adult, this immediately peaked my interest. The words on the page flowed like music and I was hooked from the beginning. At one point when Gwen and Xander were playing together I had literal chills as if I could hear the music they were composing. I especially loved the cameos from Forget Me Not! Julie Soto really weaves a beautifully, romantic story, and I will forever read whatever she puts in front of us.

Who knew making music together could be so hot? Because that cello scene 🔥. I loved the tension between Xander and Gwen from the first moment they met. I loved Xander’s moments of jealousy and all the little things he did to try and get Gwen to go out with him. Whenever they played music together, it was magical, like they were made for each other. I wasn’t a fan of the conflict, but i’m glad it resolved quickly. That last song Gwen played brought tears to my eyes 🥺. I loved how the writing made me feel the music I couldn’t hear.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it! Thank you so much netgalley, forever publishing, and Julie Soto for this e-arc!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶.5

Julie Soto is quickly becoming a new favorite author. I really liked Forget Me Not, but I loooved Not Another Love Song. I love the main characters so much. Their relationship is adorable. I also loved the side characters and it was nice to get a little glimpse of how the couple from Forget Me Not are doing. I flew through this book, and it is an easy 5 star for me.

4.25 ⭐️

Rivals to lovers
The writing is always so vivid. I was glad to see familiar characters from her first book. The family drama, the passion for music, and of course the love story made this a smooth read.
She’s an auto-buy author for me (though I did get to read an ARC of this!); my copy will be here after release day.
I loved Forget Me Not slightly more than this, but did love this story as well.