Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy.

A violin/cello enemies to lovers romance? This sounded right up my alley, since I played violin since I was 8, all through school, and even occasionally into my 20s. But within the first few chapters I had so many issues with the musical aspect of this book, that I honestly struggled separating that from the rest of the plot. Also this is apparently a Relyo fanfic, which I know absolutely nothing about so that went RIGHT over my head. It's also very heavy on musical terminology that I think would go over the heads of those with no musical background.

I think the best part of this book is the scene depicted on the cover - holy hotness. But I honestly don't know how she kept playing through that because I'm not sure it's humanly possible. The second best part was that now I want to dig my violin and sheet music out of the closet and play Jesu, as it was always one of my favorites.

Gwen and Xander's relationship was strange to me. Gwen does not act 22, and Xander needs to grow a backbone. Gwen spent the first part of the book running from him, while some "chemistry" builds up, and then boom, she's at his apartment and *things* are happening (re: cover scene). Then she goes back to running away from him, while being angry at all the things.

As far as the musical aspect of this book, I guess Gwen must really be a prodigy because it would take a VERY talented musician to be able to just switch from violin to cello and play a paid gig (a WEDDING!!) and not get immediately fired for sounding like crap. She transposes the music in her head, and magically is able to figure out the fingering and shifting - I mean not only is the music in different clefs, the two instruments have different strings and finger placements!!!!! Let alone, the mechanics of playing them are TOTALLY DIFFERENT!!! I can't imagine that even though she played the cello a couple times years ago, she'd automatically be good enough to pull that off. I even asked a friend who is a MUCH more talented violinist than I am, and he agreed with me. I guess it's not completely impossible, but HIGHLY improbable in my opinion.

I also wonder what kind of orchestra would only audition one person for a first chair position? I would think the rest of the first violin section would be irate at this, especially since she is much less experienced than them. I know it was for the publicity but still - that's not how it's usually done.

Nathan was completely infuriating, and Ava needed to grow a pair. Lorenze was also gross, and I was really glad that Xander finally stood up to him and did what he wanted to do.

I'd also like to know how people with no musical background felt about all of the music words and terms used. There was a lot, and I'm not sure it was all accurate. Maybe that's the point though - maybe I wasn't the target audience?

3 stars because the cover scene was hot, yet I still maintain physically impossible haha, and for the fact that Gwen and Xander both stood up to all the people by the end of the book.

I am obsessed with this book! I cannot fully describe how special it was to read Gwen and Xander’s story. I love a good rivals to lovers trope and this one was done exceptionally well. I know nothing about musical instruments, but I felt that the descriptive writing made their emotions and experiences so palpable.

While this is primarily a love story, I also appreciated the side story of Gwen coming into her own. She came from nothing and made a name for herself through hard work and dedication. I thought she was an incredibly inspiring FMC. Can someone please make this a movie?!

For Readers Who Like:
- Found family
- Enemies to lovers
- Spicy reads

Thank you @netgalley and @readforeverpub for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really liked Julie Soto's last book, but this one just didn't have the same magic for me. Gwen was not incredibly compelling, and Alex was bad in all the wrong ways. I feel like these two need a lot of therapy to make this relationship work. I will likely read whatever Julie Soto puts out next, but this one won't be very high on my recommendation list.

Holy mother, this was good. I knew it would be but dang, it ticked all my boxes. Angst? Got it. Plot twists? Got it. Heat? Got it. I was kicking my feet from beginning to end. The main characters were so good together and not to mention, HOT. This had a proper blend of plot, romance, and spice. You really got the chance to live with them and through them separately as well as together and I appreciated that. I'm no stranger to spice heavy content but I love when a book can do both with the balance displayed in this one.

I am so immensely glad to have logged into NetGalley when I did so I could read this. Thanks, NetGalley & Julie Soto!

I really enjoyed Julie Soto's debut, Forget Me Not, but unfortunately Not Another Love Song wasn't for me. I stopped reading at 45%

There were a few things I couldn’t get past, including a spicy scene where she’s playing an instrument and he's touching her that was just so uncomfortable to read and felt so random. The two had barely spoken and interacted and he's trying to give her lessons/advice while also crossing the line? I just couldn't look past it.

Thank you for the advanced e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars!!!

As someone who played the viola growing up since I was 8 years old, this book made me feel all the feels of loving music the way I did growing up. This story was so meaningful and heartfelt. I really enjoyed both character developments throughout, but I did feel that the end was a little rushed in the way that it wrapped up. I am happy the way it turned out, and I adore both of the main characters. Definitely one of my favorite reads of the year, finished it in 2 days.

I really loved this!! I thought the orchestra aspects were so fun but the romance between main characters really stole the show. It was really sweet!

even better than her first romance, THE TENSION !!!!!!! incredible. i loved the musician dynamic and how it layered into every aspect. i couldn’t put it down. love love love

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

After reading the absolutely amazing book that is Julie Soto’s debut Forget Me Not, I was SO EXCITED for her next book Not Another Love Song.

The vibe of this book feels different from her debut, but I loved it. The description of being a musician and feeling the music combined with these two characters falling in love had me wanting to keep on reading. And the cello scene? I didn’t know it was happening until we were IN IT, but it was beautifully written and I wish I could read it for the first time again.

“‘If you don’t want to be with me, together with me, I can understand,’ he said, and she felt her knees wobble. ‘But, Gwen, please make music with me. I need you in my life. I need to be in your orbit in some way, and if you don’t want me to touch you and kiss you and fuck you, then let me make love to you onstage every night because it’s the most alive I’ve felt in ten years–’”

This scene had me melting! Xander’s grumpy exterior paired with being absolutely in love with Gwen was done so well and I noticed that Julie Soto did the same thing with Elliot in Forget Me Not. And speaking of him, this book is set in the same universe as her debut novel and it was so nice to have scenes with Ama and Elliot right from the start and get a glimpse at them after the events of their book.

I did see the “villain” of this book coming pretty easily, but it didn’t take away from the story for me. I wish the ending had been extended just a little so I could see more of a happily ever after for Gwen and Xander, but I do think this book ended on a happy note.

Overall, I flew through this book much like I did with Forget Me Not and I am looking forward to other romance books Julie Soto releases in the future. This one was a five star read for me!

This played all the right notes for the rivals to lovers duet. The music they created together was *chefs kiss*!
I could not get enough of the tension, the banter, the steamy chemistry, or the passionate and sexy cello and violin duets. And the spice? I screamed!

Xander was arrogant, grumpy, egotistical, and oh so dreamy. Gwen was the opposite and a beautiful breath of fresh air. He was the harmony to her melody and I swear I could hear the music as I devoured this book. They dedicated their lives to their craft and I loved watching them evolve as individuals and in their relationships. There was typical miscommunication and pride that got in the way, but the payoff was worth it.

It was a fun change to read a romance centered around music! I grew up playing the violin and it brought back so many memories of symphonies and learning new instruments. And I loved the blend of the classical and modern pieces.

There is definitely going to be a reread in my future!

Thank you to Julie, Forever Publishing, and NetGalley for the eARC! You are the absolute best!

This was my first Julie Soto romance! Her writing definitely hooked me in, and I can’t wait to read more of her books!

Instantly, I was gripped by the tension-filled rivals-to-lovers romance and the insane chemistry these two had! (Plus, the steam was A+!) I loved that the two characters connected so passionately through music.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Gosh, I just love Julie Soto. Forget Me Not, her debut romance, was a 5 star read for me, so I knew that I would love this one and it honestly blew me out of the water. The tension was actually drool-worthy. I mean, c'mon, look at that cover!!!!!

I will read anything this woman writes.

I ABSOLUTELY DEVOURED THIS BOOK. JULIE SOTO CAN DO NO WRONG. i absolutely adored the characters, the musical premise, and the spice!! Everything was written perfectly. julie makes a perfect conductor and i’m just a spectator in the crowd listening to her symphony.

Ali Hazelwood was 100% right! This book was sugar, spice, and everything I look for in a rivals to lovers romance. I'm an amateur when it comes to anything musical so I was particularly impressed by author Julie Soto's ability to make me care about the musical elements. I will always think about this book whenever I hear an orchestra again. Overwhelming enjoyed!

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) | Forever and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.

As someone who really wishes they had pursued orchestral music professionally, I LOVE that element of the book. I've read a couple other books with similar musical themes, and I feel like that adds so much depth and passion to a relationship. I REALLY enjoyed this story and am already looking forward to a reread.

3.5
What a difference from the first book, Forget Me Not. I really liked Gwen and Xander in this. And that's the main thing for me in romance books: I have to like the characters otherwise I won't like the book. Gwen is a really endearing character and Xander makes a good love interest for her. They share the same passion and they both respect and admire each other. It was a sweet relationship to follow in the beginning.

It does feel a little bit insta-lust because Gwen has a crush in Xander since before the beginning of the book. And Xander is already at least really smitten with her. However this infatuation in seen through the eyes of admiration for how they play. So it didn't really bother me. I liked seeing them playing together, talking about their passion. But I did feel that once they got together, we lost a little bit of their relationship. The book focused a lot on sex and the emotional connection that they were building weakened in order to prioritize sex scenes.

The plot in itself is ok; nothing too amazing. It's pretty predictable. The main point of the book is the relationships: between the main characters, between Gwen and music, and with the side characters.

It's a good story and it made me excited to read her next books.

Thank you Netgalley, author, and publisher for the ARC.

"Give this a chance. The two of us. I'm not good with words. I'm not good at speaking things. I'm good with notes on a page. I'm good at music-and that's what I tried to tell you on that stage just now."

WOW this book blew me away. This was my first book by Julie Soto, and I can't wait to read more. Xander and Gwen were just so perfect!! The music in this book was a character of its own. I loved how they were able to talk to each other and relay all their feelings through their instruments.

This book had so much to love- banter, humor, tension, passion- amazing. The characters were all so fun (with the exception of a few horrible ones- you know who you are) Another thing that I loved was the audio!! This book was mostly told from Gwen's POV, but every now and then we got Xander, and it was great. Both narrators did an amazing job!! I absolutely loved this one and can't wait to read more from her.

Read if you like:
*enemies to lovers
*he falls first
*grumpy vs. sunshine
*found family
*forced proximity
*musical passion (cello)

This was my first Julie Soto book and it did NOT disappoint!!! I felt like I was watching a movie instead of reading a book.

Never and I mean NEVER would I have thought that a story about two classically trained musicians would have me swooning this hard.

This is steamy, this is silly, this is a love story. Also, this is reylo, but like don’t be rude about it. This was SO FRICKEN GOOD.

Julie Soto is 2/2 so far, and having read the famous Dramione fic, The Auction, I can’t wait to read her dark, fantasy romance coming next year!

I bet she can go 3/3 with me.

Be still my heart! Quick, cozy read that gives all the feels. I tell you when Soto described them playing I waned to close my eyes because I swore I felt their music playing around me. Enjoyed this