Not Another Love Song follows a violinist and a cellist with two very different paths to success in their music careers who fight their attraction for each other.

The musical element of this book was fascinating and I couldn’t stop reading for the first half of the book. I really liked Gwen as a character!

Unfortunately, the romance didn’t work for me in this book. It felt like it went from him being really rude to her while they were rivals to suddenly being obsessed with her. There was no tension or build up.

I loved Forget Me Not, so it’s disappointing that I didn’t love this book as much, but I just prefer more of a slow burn. I think a lot of people would still like this book, it just wasn’t for me!

My goodness.... can i be obsessed with ink and paper? Yes, yes I can. I didn't think I could like a book more than forget me not and this proved me wrong! This was sexy and so fun. Julie is a master at her craft and I cant wait to read more of her amazing smutty writing

I enjoyed Alex and Gwen. I loved the concept of them being musicians and that they play the cello and the violin. Do I think that it was cliche and unrealistic? Of course. I wasn't asking for it to be any other way, honestly. I did really dislike the fight at the 80% mark. I think both characters were very childish during it, which was infuriating to read.

I really love Julie Soto's writing. Everytime it switched to Alex's POV, I was giggling in excitement. His parts weren't in abundance, but when he gave his thoughts, they felt necessary. We got glimpses of his personality, his own feelings for Gwen. This is the first of Julie Soto's books that I've read and I'm going to give more of them a read because the writing is wonderful! And that cello scene! Ah! Don't even get me started. The pair of them are perfect and I LOVE the choice of using a mixture of music when expressing how they feel about one another.

I also just love a good "'He hated me at first sight' but really he's falling to his knees in love with her' trope" As I said, giggling and kicking feet. It's a cute and fun book overall!

Not Another Love Story by Julie Soto was so good. If you like he falls first, found family, grumpy x sunshine, enemies to lovers, angst, slow burn, and spice then you will love this book.

Gwen Jackson grew up an orphan and learned to play the violin, playing in subway stations. She masters her violin and is given first chair in the New York Pops Orchestra. Xander Thorne comes from music royalty, but changes his name because he wants to find his own way and not use his families fame.

Soto wrote a love story that had drama, lies, and music…I loved it. Their romance is a slow burn, but are drawn together by music. Gwen Jackson and Xander Thorne may not have gotten along, but they respected each other’s talents. Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for letting me read this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts and opinions.

Gwen Jackson plays fourth chair violin in the Manhattan Pops. She watched broody Xander Thorne, cellist and part of the rock band Thorne and Roses from a distance. When their paths cross by chance at a wedding, he finally takes notice of her. But perhaps not the way she always wanted. And Xander might not be who she thought he was. But they can't stay away from each other.

This was such a fun romance. I love that it was set in New York City, my hometown. Don't be fooled by the cartoon cover. It was spicy!! This one exceeded my expectations. I highly recommend this to fans of RomComs.

In this book, we follow Xander and Gwen both members of the Manhattan Pops orchestra. Xander does not know of Gwen until he meets her one day at a wedding. Gwen then gets the orchestra's first chair, which sets off Xander and makes them "enemies". As hard as they try to avoid each other, it seems fate keeps bringing them together. The first half of this book was entertaining and the tension was off the charts. But sadly, by the end, I was bored and felt the relationship was rushed. I wish there was more time spent on the romance and less on the sex as it was hard for me to truly root for their happy ending. I liked that Gwen stood her ground when it came to her music career and her independence. I just felt Xander needed time to come into his own before they got back together. If you are interested in romances with a lot of sexual tension and a hint of enemies to lovers, then this will work for you.

I could not have asked for more from this book! Julie Soto did it again — a rollercoaster of emotions, tension, angst! All of the great elements I look for in a romance novel were present. Xander and Gwen have my heart fully. I’ve been recommending this read to anyone that will listen. I absolutely cannot wait to see what is next in store for Soto!

Julie Soto has seriously outdone herself with this one. I adored this story so much and loved how they played music together. The battles of playing each other music and the fact that both can pick up an instrument and play. This needs to be a must-read for everyone.

Tropes:
-Dual POV
-Violin X Cello
-Family Drama
-Rivals to Lovers

I was such a big fan of Forget Me Not, so I was very excited for this one. As with the previous title, it's tender and steamy, with lots of sexual tension. The chemistry between the two MC's was swoony and gave me lots of feels. I love a brooding, grumpy MMC, and Alex delivered here. I loved Gwen's passion and determination for her music. I loved the connection between their music and the progression of their attraction and feelings or each other. This one does take a little bit to get going, but once it does it's so good! The book touches on several popular tropes, including rivals to lovers, he falls first, and workplace romance. I would recommend this title to fans of Ali Hazelwood.

Not Another Love Song is my first Julie Soto and since everyone raved about her previous book I had high hopes for this one.

Xander Thorne and Gwen Jackson play in the Manhattan Pops orchestra, they are rivals but when Gwen gets a promotion their chemistry explodes. I enjoyed the mutual pining, the orchestra element -which is something I don’t know anything about- was interesting and their steam was on point.

I appreciated the author’s candor on this being Reylo fanfic or I would have been a bit annoyed at how similar it was. I was annoyed by how naive Gwen was with relation to the orchestra owners, I wanted to shake her. I wanted Xander to realize he was the same as Alex sooner and the miscommunication ending felt rushed.

Overall, I would recommend it for anyone looking for a low stress easy read with a bit of angst and medium steam.

1 ☆ and the most overrated book of the summer goes to… not another love song! i’m convinced i read a different book than everyone else because what was this? this book is unfortunately everything i dislike in a romance book mixed together, which is a shame because it had such a beautiful cover. understandably, this book originated from a fanfiction, but when i’m reading an actual published book, i don’t want it to read like one. the thing about fanfiction is that you’re choosing to read a story because you already know and love the characters. there doesn’t *have* to be any strong characterization or relationship development because people are reading it for the fandom. with an actual novel, this simply doesn’t work because these are new characters and a new story. i’ve seen other reviewers say it, but this should have remained as an ao3 story; it did not translate well into a novel at all. the pacing of the relationship went way too fast and i didn’t see a reason for these characters to fall in love. in the beginning, xander hates gwen for (quite pathetic) reasons and insults her talent as a musician constantly. he even tells her that the only reason she was promoted because she would “make a pretty face for the brochure.” (ew). then we we enter his pov, he’s suddenly head over heels about her? after only having rude interactions with her? and she likes him too? absolutely not. this was laughably bad and so corny. i know this was a star wars fanfiction, but wow, some of the descriptions and dialogues felt straight out of a 2013 harry styles fanfiction. also, couldn’t believe in the year 2024, the love interest said he turned one of his exes into a lesbian. i don’t give one stars often, but this book is deserving of it. the only redeeming qualities were the nyc setting, the fact that there was a puerto rican side character (#representation), and that it was a fairly quick read. if you’re looking for a good romance, this is not the book to read.

i love the premise for this book it felt unique!! the characters were easy to like and i love how music brought them together!!

Not Another Love Song is a fun, low-stakes romance.

The characters felt a bit one-dimension to me – Gwen, Alex/Xander, Nathan, Ava, etc. I did enjoy Mabel and her relationships with others; those relationships felt complex and interesting.

Three out of five stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and Forever, for the ARC.

Thank you to Julie Soto, Forever, and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

First, can we give a round of applause to the cover artist for capturing THAT SCENE because DAMN!

Never in my life have I wanted to learn how to play an instrument as bad as I did after reading Not Another Love Song!

Favorite Scenes: The scene where they discussed naming their instruments literally made me laugh out loud. And of course, chapter 10's cello scene - MY GOD THE CELLO SCENE!

Favorite Quote: "Just because you're good at something doesn't mean you have to do it for the rest of your life."

You should read this book if you love: Rivals to lovers. Grumpy MMCs that fall first and hard. Passionate, tension-filled, music-infused romances!

✔️ Rivals to Lovers
✔️ Grumpy/Sunshine
✔️ Found Family
✔️ Dating a Celebrity

Talk about an immersive read! I have zero interest in orchestral music but if I could, would I literally step in this book and literally spend an entire paycheck on both a Manhattan Pops ticket and a Thorne and Roses concert? Would I also try to find Mabel's music store and hope to get treated badly, like when you go to that themed restaurant? Yes, absolutely.

I adored the slow burn and aching longing that came from both characters, though of course Alex's pining was so enjoyable (ughhhh, I love when he just likes her so much he doesn't know how to function!).

Some of my fave parts:
- seeing characters from Forget Me Not
- all the scenes with Alex and Gwen playing music together
- Alex's instagram post
- piling into Gwen and Jacob's apartment for a dinner party

5⭐️, highly recommend!

Steam 🔥🔥🔥
Banter 🗣️🗣️🗣️
Swoon 💕💕💕💕💕

Forget Me Not was one of my favorite books of last year and this one is easily top ten contender for this year as well!!! ⁠
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You'll love this book if you love:⁠
🤩 celebrity romance⁠
🎻 orchestras and classical music⁠
🌃 coworkers to lovers⁠
😤 enemies/rivals to lovers⁠
🎶 romance in the name of music ⁠
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - inject this book straight into my veins!!!!⁠
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Thank you so much to @readforeverpub for the advanced copy!!!

Do I think Julie Soto is really in touch with the relative prices of New York neighborhoods? No, not particularly. Do I believe Gwen could play cello while he was doing that? No, not particularly. Did have I have fun? Yeah, I did.

This is my first read from Julie Soto, and won't be my last. I really enjoyed the musician aspect, as I am one too. I enjoyed their relationship, and the general vibe of the book. It was a low stress read, but still had lots of tension between the characters. I am excited to recommend this book at work!

This book took what Mozart in the Jungle started and supremely conquered it.

In Not Another Love Song, Soto has dynamically and expertly thread tension, intrigue, evolution, chemistry, and balanced pacing throughout the entire novel. It's been a long time (if ever!) since a book managed to make me feel so present and INVOLVED in the story as it unfolded. I felt the music, I felt the hope—the fear—the pain—the humanity. Equally, it was incredibly refreshing to read a love story that didn't involve the main characters playing unnecessary games or having the EQ of a 5-year-old. Instead Soto played into held past pains and young naivety which were far more relatable and authentic than much of the story arc cliches being written in this genre.

Incredible. Julie Soto is my new favorite author.

Ah man I freaking love Julie Soto & this book is just *chef's kiss* fantastic. First of all: yes, thank you for making orchestra hot😂 I played the cello for like 8 years and this book makes me wish I stuck with it. Doubtful I'd be playing in a popular strings band or orchestra but the nostalgia is real. I read this so fast because I just couldn't put it down. The tension between Gwen and Alex? 10 stars. The spicy scenes? 10 stars. The entire book basically? 10 stars. I loved it! If you are a big music fan and love romance books then this is a must read -- but you also can know nothing about music and it'll be on your favorites of the year list. Julie's writing is so good and really had me feeling all the emotions throughout this book. The character development and history is fully realized and Gwen (despite being a musical prodigy and completely unrelatable to me in that way lol) has a background that makes her so relatable and an easy character to root for. Alex (Xander) comes off as much less relatable but his backstory gives the reader much to root for as well and empathize with. As much as I was invested in the love story, I was also dying to know the beef between Mabel and Ava. There's so much here to draw you in and keep your attention which makes it such a quick read. You'll also see some familiar faces if you read Forget Me Not!

I highly recommend this book to literally everyone but especially people who like rivals to lovers and grumpy x sunshine(:

Thank you so much to Forever for the digital ARC via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.