Dual POV, rivals to lovers, tension you could cut with a knife - that evolves in to meltingly hot spice - good stuff!

I loved the contrast between Alex (aka Xander Thorne) a child prodigy with full musical background from violin to the cello later and Gwen with less than half the opportunities, still aiming to rise in the ranks just the same.
They’re both more complicated - musically and personally - than others give them credit for. Even the two of them start out with preconceived ideas of who the other is, and that doesn’t even begin to change until they get to know each other better through playing together.
Most of the drama comes from them navigating where they are in their careers and where they want to be - and who can be trusted to help them reach their different goals - music is a HUGE part of this story.

Ama and Elliot - from book one - also have had cameo type appearances and it’s nice to see businesses thriving for them.
I really loved their book, and this one was a close second (only because the pacing felt a little slow in parts)

Thanks to netgalley and Forever for the arc!

𝙶𝚎𝚗𝚛𝚎: contemporary romance 📚

𝙼𝚢 𝚃𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚜:
OKAY STOP THIS BOOK WAS TRULY AMAZING

𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
Orchestra romance
Found family
All the tension
Enemies to lovers
He falls first
Grumpy x sunshine
NYC setting
Slow burn with spice

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝙸 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚍:
I really didn’t think I was an orchestra fan but I ate this one up!!!
Xander’s POVs
That cover though… (iykyk)

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝙸 𝚍𝚒𝚍𝚗’𝚝 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛:
I’m not the biggest fan of naive FMCs

I really enjoyed this one, maybe even more than Forget Me Not. It was a super quick read, and a little predicable, but sometimes those are just the types of books you need.

My favorite quote that will stick with me:

“Look, I don’t know what you want from me, but—” “Anything.” Black eyes looked down on her, and he took a shaking breath. “Everything.”

This was a really entertaining enemies to lovers contemporary romance! I can't say I've ever read a book about being in the orchestra so that was super unique. Some of the terminology was definitely over my head. But, you can still understand and enjoy it. The main characters were both likable. I enjoyed the dual POV even if it was only for a few chapters spread about. I would recommend this one.

I absolutely LOVED this! I missed the boat on Soto’s past release but saw how loved it was so I was very excited for this one. After seeing so many rave reviews, I was afraid this wouldn’t live up to the hype but it sure did!!! I was giggling, smiling like a goof at my kindle, and laughing out loud at this. I had the time of my life reading it and I can’t wait to rave about this to everyone I know!!!

Forget Me Not is one of my favourite romances I have read so far this year. It made me laugh out loud. The characters jumped off the page. The FMC was smart and driven. The tattooed florist MMC was dreamy. It was dual POV second chance romance done so so right. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend it!

Not Another Love Song is Soto's sophomore novel and I had high expectations.This is prefaced as being based on a fanfic of Kylo Ren and Rey from Star Wars and you can see how Xander is based on Adam Driver and his famously tortured character. This story, however, is about two rival musicians in an orchestra, and there is an undercurrent of fire that runs through the entire book. The tension and the buildup is A+++

Despite this, I didn't find the characters very charming, and Gwen's age and naivete paired with a Driver like cold MMC made this feel a bit like an older Ali Hazelwood novel to me (I said what I said). Further, the book leans very heavily on its orchestra/musicians who love making music together platform, which I imagine could get a bit tedious for non-music aficionados. Yes, the idea is that the chemistry between violinist Gwen and cellist Xander comes to such a boiling point that it snaps like a string. This made this a little bit niche, but yet, as someone who grew up in a family of musicians- and can play and read music- this also wasn't technical at all and I had to take fault with that since it was such a large part of the story. 3.5 stars downgraded to a 3 for my rating.

There is definitely a lot of spice, though, so I know readers will surely be thrilled by that. Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Book Group Canada for my earc and physical copy.

I wish this was on the same level as her debut novel, but this just didn't feel the same. We are given 3rd POV vs 1st like the first and that's a struggle to begin with for me, but that's not why I gave the rating I did. The music dynamics and language felt heavy to me and I just kept skimming it. I want more from the romance aspect! The characters didn't knock it out of the park for me even with the cello scene iykyk. Hoping for more from her next release!

Julie Soto did it again! Not Another Love Song is a fantastic musical rivals to lovers story that is so well written you will feel like you can hear the music being played in the book.

Not Another Love Song is a delicious contemporary romance featuring that mixes music and rivalry and sexual tension and angst all into one amazing story. Gwen and Alex are so compatible and the way they make each other better while also challenging each other just sucks the reader in and doesn't let them go.
Soto is such a talented writer and I've been following her since her fan fiction days and it is such a pleasure to see some of her work being commercially published. <3

✨ Review ✨ Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto

Thanks to Forever and #netgalley for the gifted advanced copy/ies of this book!

A super short review for this one, but this one was so much fun. I loved the Kylo Ren + Rey fanfic vibes, and couldn't get over the broodiness of it all. I loved that this mixed orchestra and rock in various ways, blending musical styles. Found family themes were strong, stretching across both main characters. I loved how they came together in this story and what they could do together. Definitely a steamy summer read!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (4.5)
Genre: contemporary m/f romance
Setting: NYC
Reminds me of: Kylo + Rey - Star Wars
Pub Date: July 16, 2024

Read this if you like:
⭕️ Imagining a Kylo / Rey love story
⭕️ orchestras / music
⭕️ life in the city
⭕️ drama

Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto is about a violinist who ends up meeting and working with her teenage band idol. This was definitely a romance with some spice (which isn’t normally my taste), but I thoroughly enjoyed this. I liked the cast of characters and the details in their interactions that made the story believable. Definitely will read Julie Soto’s next book!

This book took me a minute to get into, I think it was because it is told in 3rd person and I don't read very many books written in 3rd. Once I was used to the writing style I was in the story.

This book was filled with delicious tension and it was so sexy...who knew orchestra could be so hot!

This book follows Gwen and Xander. They are both members of the Manhattan Pops Orchestra, where Gwen kind of blends into the background, Xander is in the front, incredibly talented and he seemingly doesn't care. Xander is also a member of a band, Thorne and Roses, that Gwen is a huge fan of. They have worked together for over a year, where Gwen knew who Xander was but he didn't know her. When he sees her performing at a wedding he is a member of the bridal party, his eyes are opened and he can't get her out of his head after that.

These two characters are so similar, despite having very different childhoods. They are both looking for a place to belong, safety and security and they eventually find that with each other. What they don't realize when they start spending time together is just how connected they are.

I really enjoyed the journey of their relationship, and man I loved how fast and hard Xander fell for Gwen. This was so well written I could almost hear the music they were making together as I was reading. There is a practice session and an on-stage duet that will live rent free in my head 😮‍💨.

I also really love the found family in this book. Both Gwen and Xander have built their own small families of friends, and both welcomed the other into their groups. I really loved that for both of these characters.

This book was a different kind of romance than what I usually read and I loved it.

I thought this was an interesting read and liked how the author used music to tell a love story. Overall, I enjoyed the storyline, enemies to lovers, slow burn, etc., etc. I would probably bump this up to a 3.5 star read but unfortunately, we can't give 1/2 stars. I just really struggled with the characters, they were very unlikable and by the time I finished the book I didn't care if it ended with a HEA.

This is my first book by Julie Soto! And I’m so glad I read it! It was angsty and sexy and full of forced proximity and moments of passion, literally everything you could want in a romance. I love a book where the man falls fast and hard, and this was absolutely that. The orchestra setting was so unique, and as a former musician I’m shocked there aren’t more romance books that have made this dynamic central to the plot. Did we not learn from American Pie what happens when a bunch of music nerds spend a lot of time together?

I do feel like the central issue keeping them apart, a miscommunication driven by Gwen’s own insecurities and Xander’s inability to express his emotions, was kind of itchy to read but honestly… relatable. There were also some moments that were a little too corny for me, and the character development of both Gwen and Alex/Xander wasn’t enough that I’m confident their relationship would survive an epilogue. Although, if Julie wrote a “relationship in trouble” trope sequel to this I would 1000% pick that up. This was overall just a really great summer romance book!

Summary- Gwen sits across the orchestra from Xander Thorne, cello rock god extraordinaire and her longtime crush! He doesn’t even know she exists. But when a wedding gig puts her front and center for him, and she gets promoted to first chair, feelings and music get tangled in one giant, sexy web.

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever for the eARC!

(5 ⭐️)
(3.8 🌶️)

This is my first Julie Soto book and I absolutely loved it! I love that music was so interwoven into the story, and I loved the dynamic between Gwen and Alex. Music is so important to me and this book spoke to that part of me. I think she did such a fantastic job depicting what it’s like to live and breathe music. I wish Julie had gotten someone to make sheet music and record the songs they created because I would die to listen to the music these two make. Alex’s instant obsession with Gwen and how watching her perform inspired a composition. I think it’s an exact depiction of what it’s like to be struck by a muse and how once inspiration strikes you just HAVE to get it down. I loved the story and the way the characters all connected. I honestly LOVED this book, and I’m excited to read more by this author!

*4 stars*

This was an incredibly fun and steamy contemporary romance, perfect for fans of Forget Me Not and Ali Hazelwood.

I enjoyed the musical setting and dynamics although I would have liked a little more banter. I will say that this is the most obviously reylo of all the reylo books I’ve read despite its contemporary setting but not necessarily in a bad way. If you’re not in the fandom you probably wouldn’t notice.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this work. All opinions in this review are my own.

𝓷𝓸𝓽 𝓪𝓷𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓵𝓸𝓿𝓮 𝓼𝓸𝓷𝓰

5/5🌟
2.5/5🌶️

OMG I never knew I needed a romance book about a cellist & violinist falling in love but here we are & it was incredible!!! I {ate} this book UP. Legit devoured all 367 pages in 24 hours. You could just feeeel the tension and angst between Alex & Gwen and the spice was off. the. charts. 😮‍💨

“𝐼 𝓌𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝒷𝑒 𝒸𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓇. 𝐼 𝓌𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊. 𝐼𝓃 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝓌𝒶𝓎.”

🎶 rivals to lovers
🫠 he falls first
🎻 cello scene!!!!!
🤍 found family
🔥 tension x angst

There was so much to love about this book.
The way music was discussed, the way the orchestra functioned (both of which are excitingly accurate for those familiar but also addressed/explained in a way non music people would get it too), the family dynamics and mysteries, the steaminess!, the way somehow in the thick of their biggest crisis moment they're both speaking truth, hearing truth, then experiencing truth that is both their own and what another perceived - both completely accurate in the double edged sword nature of what they're doing.
I loved this book so much, I hated when I had to put it down, especially for the last time.

#netgalley
#arc
#notanotherlovesong

The cover alone told me everything I needed to know, two hot people with tension playing instruments.
I went into this book with my only knowledge of cellos being the Glee performance of Smooth Criminal (which I think prepared me enough).
The tension between Gwen and Alex was everything! I loved how captivated they were with each other and how it grew with each interaction. There's also nothing like an obsessed MMC that gets me giggling and kicking my feet (with this being said, I did expect more groveling, but that's okay).
I also adored the relationship between Gwen and Mabel, a found family storyline always gets me. That last Christmas scene was really heart warming.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC!

This was such a unique romance book, I have not read any book featuring an orchestra musician/musical prodigy, and I found that aspect of this book so interesting and very well written. I felt the way the music affected both of these characters in every scene of this book, it felt very well researched and atmospheric. I always love this author's writing, from reading her fanfiction and now having read both of her published works. She just has a way of writing the best tension/chemistry and I always get so invested in the romance. This book pulled me in immediately and it left me wanting to go to a symphony or orchestra performance to see where the inspiration came from. Highly recommend!

Thanks to Netgalley and Forever for granting me access in exchange for an honest review.