This book is a certified banger.

I honestly loved Forget Me Not from this author last year, and I don’t want to take anything away from that because it’s still a great book, but this one basically blows it out of the water.

The tension, the yearning, the perfectionism, the passion, the artistry!

I’ve (accidentally, on purpose) read many books that started as Reylo fanfiction, and I think this might be the best one to capture that passion that I felt between them. The feeling of being the best at something and finally finding someone who is your equal, who can challenge you when nothing and no one else can anymore. Alex comes from a line of famous violinists and Gwen is a scrappy orphan without formal training, and the way they spark off each other is amazing.

This book is sexy! The cover will have a whole new meaning for you when you read it. It has a Swayze scene in it, with a Reylo dynamic, and honestly a bit of The Star is Born as well, except if that story didn’t rip your heart out and stomp on it. This book is the way we all wished it had gone instead.

Fantastic, no notes, absolutely loved it.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved Julie Soto's Forget Me Not, so I was very excited for this release.

Overall, I really loved it and it left with a big ole smile on my face. Julie Soto is becoming an auto buy author for me and I love that Forever is picking up all these fantastic writers.
Grab this one if you enjoy:

🎻Reylo Fan Fiction
🎻Grumpy/Sunshine
🎻Rivals to Lovers
🎻Opposites Attract
🎻Found Family
🎻Symphonies
🎻Recording Studio Shenanigans 😏

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley. I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.

4.5, rounded to 5.

Not Another Love Song centers around Gwen and Alex, two talented musicians in the Manhattan Pops orchestra, as they navigate working in close proximity and deal with the tension surrounding their increasing attraction toward each other.

Gwen has secretly been a fan of Alex's musical group, Thorne and Roses, for years and has quietly admired him from the fourth row of the Pops. After Gwen receives position of first chair, a placement that Alex has secretly coveted for years, Alex notices Gwen for the first time and is determined to get to know her. This grumpy-sunshine, rivals-to-friends-to-lovers novel had the perfect amount of slow burn, sexual tension, banter, and spice. I LOVED the musical setting and both of the main characters were very well-developed and impossible not to love.

Ali Hazelwood claimed that “the cello scene in this book will change your life” and WOW--was she right. This was literally one of the best and hottest scenes I've read in a romance book. This is definitely my favorite romance book I've read all year and while this is the first novel I've read from Julie Soto, but it certainly won't be the last!

Also--can we take a moment for this cover???

Thank you so much to Julie Soto, Forever, and to NetGalley for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review!! Not Another Love Song is OUT 7.16.24!

I’m still fully debating if I like Julie Soto or not I did not like forget me not because of the characters though I’ll admit I loved the writing style but now with this one while
I enjoyed the characters more idk if I’d say I loved this one!

I loved this book and the immersion into orchestra-world. But really, all you need to know is that this books makes the ELECTRONIC CELLO sexy.

I was nervous about going in to this one after reading the author's letter at the beginning of the book. I've never seen Star Wars and was worried that it would take away from the story. I don't think it took away from the book at all, but maybe it would have added something to my reading experience had I seen the movie(s)?

This one is hard for me to rate, because while it didn't blow me away and I didn't love it, it was a great read. The romance was a bit slower getting into and sometimes I don't really mind that. With this book, though, the content getting to the romance didn't grip me and keep me interested. While I don't think you'd need to be musically inclined to enjoy this one, it is heavily focused on their musical careers and that wasn't really my favorite. What really sold the book for me though, was the relationship between Alex and Gwen. The romance was top tier and the book was very hard to put down once their relationship grew.

Overall, I'm grateful for the chance to have read this book. I have Forget Me Not on my tbr shelf, and I'm excited to dive into that one soon.

My rating: 3.5/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever Pub for an e-arc. All opinions are my own.

Not Another Love Song is a fabulous, fast-pace, coming of age story. Author Julie Soto beautifully balances the tension and tenderness of young love, with the high anxiety of the professional music world. Gwen and Alex/Xander have a lot to navigate both personally and professionally, with many 'who to trust' curves; and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. Several steamy scenes tastefully done.

DNF @ 76%

I really wanted to like this, I really wanted to enjoy this and finish this. I didn’t want to DNF but I couldn’t force myself anymore.
Many people will enjoy this book, so I still recommend it to everyone to try. This just wasn’t for me.
Firstly, this is a ReyLo fanfiction. I didn’t know it was, I should’ve looked it up first. Personally, I really don’t like fanfictions just because I don’t want to compare the characters with their original stories. That’s all I see if I read fanfiction.. Not all fanfiction writing is horrible, but there’s a way they’re written for chapters to be posted weekly that I could feel that with this one.
I don’t mind when main characters are special but Gwen was special for no reason at all. She was handed everything without really much work and it was just unbelievable and annoying.
The romance was not fun, it really wasn’t.

The news is out ---- playing the cello is HOT and classical musicians are SEXY! After reading and loving FORGET ME NOT last year, I was so excited to read Julie's new book, NOT ANOTHER LOVE SONG. This story was woven together so beautifully and it was full of intricacies and nuance. I loved seeing how all of the characters' lives intersected and getting bits and pieces of their history along the way. Julie is extraordinary at building the tension, and not just for the love scenes. I don't want to say too much more, lest I give anything away. You will fall in love with Gwen and Alex/Xander! And, if you loved Forget Me Not, keep your eyes peeled for cameos from Ama and Elliot.

What you can expect:
- dual 3rd person POV
- Violinist + Cellist
- Found Family
- Forced Proximity
- Spicy
- Growing together
- Musical prodigies
- Classical Music as foreplay

Cannot wait to see what Julie has in store for us next!! She is officially an auto-read author now.

Synopsis: Reylo fanfic but make it violins and cellos instead of lightsabers? SAY LESS.

Thoughts: 4.5 stars based on vibes alone. This was so cute you guys! The story follows Gwen, a young violinist who has the opportunity to play first chair for the New York Pops orchestra, and Alex (Xander), a rockstar cellist with his own ties to the Pops. Their rivalry quickly heats up and so does their chemistry. Did y’all know the cello is a super sexy instrument? I didn’t BUT I DO NOW. My favorite part of the books is how central the music is and how Julie makes it come alive on the page. I could come up with a few minor issues with pacing and a couple small plot points, but I honestly just had such a good time reading Gwen and Alex’s story that it doesn’t matter. If you love romance and music, go grab this book ASAP!

Read this if you like:
🎻 music
🎻 rivals to lovers
🎻 forced proximity
🎻 family drama
🎻 found family

Holy moly what a sizzling romance!

This is my first Julie Soto book and it will not be my last!
I was instantly hooked and captivated by the plot. Childhood crush now turned into forced proximity for an event.

Their whole personality dynamic was also just the creme de la creme.
Insane chemistry that gets put into action and I could not get enough of it!
Cannot recommend this book enough!

This is a beautiful romance. It's filled with believable and relatable characters. Finding your place in this world is difficult, especially young talented musicians. Julie Soro reminds us that love wins.

I’m always drawn to books that are about music in some way, and this is what first captured my attention in Not Another Love Song. Set within the world of pop-oriented orchestras, Gwen and Xander play violin and cello, respectively, in the Manhattan Pops. They don’t get along well, largely due to Xander’s oversized ego, and it’s only exasperated by their competing desires to earn first violin and by their complicated relationships with the musicians and mentors around them. Yet, despite their bad first impressions of each other, Gwen and Xander can’t deny their intense connection, both in making music together and in their mutual attraction. With all their baggage, can they move beyond rival musicians to become something more?

First and foremost, I really enjoyed getting an inside look at professional musicians who play within an orchestra. Instead of rock songs and guitars, Gwen and Xander play violin and cello along with dozens of other musicians. Beyond playing classic compositions by the likes of Bach and Mozart, they also perform orchestral versions of modern popular songs. My personal favorite mention here was “Wake Me Up When September Ends” by Green Day (my favorite band!). With both characters, we get to see how they play their instruments from a technical and emotional standpoint. Xander is also a composer himself, with Gwen his unintended muse and, eventually, partner. I loved getting into all the musical aspects of their characters and their relationship.

Another major dynamic is the mentors around them. Gwen was taught violin by a woman named Mabel; though she’s a mother-like figure for Gwen, she’s also pretty tough. Gwen is also inspired by the current first violinist in the Manhattan Pops… who happens to be Xander’s mom (secretly). Further complicating it all, Mabel knows her and Xander quite well. All of this is compounded by uncertain career trajectories, wavering between Juilliard and the Manhattan Pops and a more pop star career (think Lindsey Stirling). What path will Gwen ultimately choose? What about Xander?

This is an enemies-to-lovers romance that swiftly turns into an unexpected music partnership. I didn’t know going into Not Another Love Song that this book originated as a Reylo fanfic. While I haven’t seen any of the Star Wars movies and am not involved in that fandom, I have read another Reylo-inspired novel, The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood, and picked up on a similar narrative arc here. It wasn’t until near the end of my reading that I also discovered this book features characters from Julie Soto’s previous novel, Forget Me Not; it works as a standalone, but those who’ve read that novel may enjoy seeing where those characters are at here.

Not Another Love Song is an immersive read for anyone who enjoys music, drama, and an enemies-to-lovers romance. I enjoyed these characters and the way the story unfolded, and I look forward to reading more from Julie Soto—probably starting with Forget Me Not!

Julie, I love you. Thank you for serving us this masterpiece! I loved everything about this book. It’s a rivals-to-lovers story that goes from “why must it be you?” to the cello scene. Yes, there is a scene where he plays her like he does his strings, and it is absolutely majestic.

Xander was born into a musical family and now wants to create original songs, while Gwen has a natural ear for music but lacks years of experience with music teachers like Xander. All he wants to do is convince her that she can do more than play first chair, but for Gwen, that's all she thinks she can achieve for now, fearing it will be a missed opportunity otherwise.

It’s Gwen thinking that Xander believed her to have no talent that did it for me, because, boy, was she wrong! The writing in this book was as lyrical as the music played by its characters. If you know, you know. This book was filled to the brim with tension and angst that I didn’t know I needed until I had it, with quick turns in the plot that kept the climax thick throughout. I’m simply too in love with this book and these characters!

This is how you write a romance. Julie Soto does not miss. The tension? The cello scene? This whole book? PLEASE🥵 This book tragically fell victim to my terrible reading slump earlier this year but once I came back to this one after clearing the slump, man did this hit great.
This is basically a master class in romance writing and is further proving Julie Soto as a romance author to keep up with. The characters were well developed and enjoyable, the tension was *chefs kiss*, the conflict was practical but dynamic with a satisfying conclusion, and overall this is just a fantastic read.

This book has my whole heart! It was so incredibly written, great plot, great characters, great spice to plot ratio, and Alex’s character was everything! I loved the way he was immediately head over heels for Gwen, and was willing to do anything and everything for her. The iced vanilla lattes every morning was such a thoughtful gesture.

I definitely think Soto is turning into a need to read author for me! This is her second book and while it's linked to the first, it's not focused on Ama and Elliot. I did enjoy seeing them again in this book though.

I liked the story here a lot. There was some interesting storytelling in terms of how musicians work etc. I have never played an instrument but I liked how Soto described the music. The relationship between Xander and Gwen... the yearning was spot on for me.

There were parts I didn't love, the obvious set up of Declan, the 3rd act break up, the resolution of it all felt a little too tidy, etc. But it was enjoyable. I wanted to keep reading instead of sleeping. I'd recommend it to romance readers!

Thank you for the ARC Netgalley and Forever (Grand Publishing)!

5 stars 5 stars 5 stars

Honestly my only ONLY complaint is that I wish there was more groveling towards the end (who doesn’t love groveling?!), but it didn’t bother me enough to drop my rating. But my GODDDD I loved this book so so much 🥹🥹🥹 it was perfection and I wish I could read it for the first time all over again. The tension and chemistry between Alex and Gwen was EVERYTHINGGG, Alex had my heart racing for real 🤣. Music is such a powerful and beautiful thing and I’m just in awe of how deeply both characters felt emotion through their music. I don’t play any instruments now but music is so important to me on a molecular level (like just inject it into my veins pls thank you) & I felt like I could connect to the MC’s in that regard.

The spice was GIVING let me tell you 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 it was so tender and intimate and it just felt so raw. Also, there is a cello scene. That’s all you need to know 😉

In addition, I’m beyond obsessed with the cover!!!!

This was my first Julie Soto book & now I just want to read all her work (fanfics included) 🤣 a fellow fanfic girly & swiftie?! Sign me up.

Thank you THANK YOU to Forever Publishing & Netgalley for this ARC!!! It has a special place in my heart 🫶🏼

Gwen is a self-taught violinist that is currently playing for a New York Orchestra. She is fourth-chair in her young twenties and has always been interested in getting solos for the Orchestral performances. Xander is a famous cellist. Xander Thorne is the front-runner of a band, Thorne and The Roses, where he plays the electric cello, he's also currently the lead of the cello's of the same New York Orchestra Gwen performs for. After a bit of a rough interaction at a wedding Gwen performs at, Gwen believes that Xander thinks she's a horrible musician. They proceed to butt heads a bit before the tension overflows and they finally get together. Not everyone in the music world have their best interests at heart though and Xander and Gwen each have some major blockers to their futures.

Gwen was such a great character to spend most of my time with. She was hilarious and had such a smart head on her shoulders. Gwen came off a little naive in a handful of situations but it seemed super reasonable. She's young and wants to reach her goal of performing solos for crowds. Xander is a bit more of an enigma and definitely has more reasons to need some good therapy. I loved his short POVs (the Cello Suites!!!) and his general assistance to Gwen in realizing her skills and what she could do in her future.

I really loved this story and I'm intrigued for Soto's future contemporary works!

I absolutely devoured Julie's previous book Forget Me Not. I knew that this story would be another amazing read. I also knew Not Another Love Song from Julie before it was published book. What she did to transition the story into a published work was incredible. She elevated it and add more layers to the story, but also kept the wonderful moments that I remember from the original work. Julie was also able to seamless weave in characters from Forget Me Not too. I love the music element of Not Another Love Song, it is refreshing to have a romantic story set in classical music setting instead of another rock band, it gives such a different feel to the story. Both main characters (Gwen & Alexander) are young and have lived through a lot of emotional upheavels in their lives, which shapes their perspectives of who they are supposed to be. But that all changes when they become a part of each other's orbit. One main character fights for the other one to see their worth and to not to be complacent where they are in life. The antagonist of this story is despicable to both main characters and truly gets under your skin as a reader. The story has many rich and dynamic characters who are memorable and unique--- many of them bring both humor and heart. I also love the addition of the Cello Suite Chapters to get the introspective thoughts of Alexander, which was just as important as reading Gwen's thoughts. Iykyk the cello scene, it is a special part of this book and as a reader you live through all those musical notes and you are just changed by that scene (and a few of the other scenes). Julie has created a wonderful book about music and love, and I can't wait for other's to experience her work! Definitely check out both of her published works.