I was so excited to get to this book and I immediately ran to the opportunity to request this. Thank you guys for the opportunity to get to read this book I truly appreciate it. I really wished I was able to connect to the characters like I did in "Forget Me Not" but unfortunately I did not. I didn't feel like there was any chemistry at all, there was no tension. This story feels more like it was told to me instead of me actually feeling it. The concept of this romance book was great but I don't feel like it was executed well for my liking.

Absolutely loved this book!! Such a good story! I couldn’t stop reading! I love how Julie Soto just keeps you reading and invested in her books! I would definitely recommend reading this book!!!

This was an overall really enjoyable read. The highlights would definitely be the musical appreciation and holy heck the tension. There is a pretty significant buildup of the tension before the romance truly takes off, and it I think that really makes the relationship.

Alex does feel a bit like his personality is "fixed" a bit quickly. They aren't at odds very long before they're romantically involved, and I would like to have seen that drug out a tad more. Seeing Gwen find herself through her story and her music really made the entire book for me. She just becomes something else.

I did seem to have some pacing issues. The beginning was engaging, the middle drug quite a bit, and by the end you pretty much knew what was going to happen. It was never boring, just a bit off.

Would definitely recommend if you liked Forget Me Not.

This was my first Julie Soto book and I love the writing style. I requested this one solely because of the cover but Gwen and Alex's story did not disappoint. I don't read many books in one sitting but this one... this one sucked me in and didn't let me go until I had finished. The tension and banter was on POINT. I can't wait to read more of Julie's books.

my god, Julie. You do swoon worthy main male characters. I thought it would be hard to beat book 1, I was wrong. No notes. My only wish is you give us something on Ao3 leading up to this release as you did with the last one! :)

3.75. Not Another Love song is a romance packed with real issues, musical references, and spice.

Gwen and Xander are both musical prodigies with interwoven lives. They have a connection through the Pops Orchestra and arrogant Xander has some words about Gwen’s abilities. When Gwen is offered first chair in the Pops, the two begin to work more together and find romance. The last 40% of this book had me hooked, I was so invested and couldn’t put it down. But I wish that pacing had been consistent throughout the whole story. I thought maybe since I have zero interest in music or instruments it probably had a negative effect on my experience since that’s what the entire first half of the book is about, but I also don’t care for weddings and never felt that way in Forget Me Not! I’ll go ahead and say I think it’s just a personal preference. I truly did not care about the actual music and instruments but found the story behind orchestra politics quite interesting. I also did not feel any flow from Xander being rude to suddenly spicy scenes. I had to go back and see what I had missed. Once they started to care for one another, I did enjoy them as a couple though!

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Julie Soto, and Forever for providing this free ARC. This is my honest review! This will publish on July 16th.

I have posted my review on Goodreads, my Facebook book club, and will make a TikTok to post before the pub date!

Hot damn! Julie Soto is two for two! I was so happy to get a chance to read Not Another Love Song early, and I’ve been raving about it to everybody. I know absolutely nothing about music or instruments, but I was fully invested in this couples dynamics. The was dual POV of Gwen and Xander really shown through in this book and was hot hot hot. The longing between our main couple is what I found most beautiful about this book. The pining was top tier . Also I loved to see some of the other characters in the Julie Soto universe pop in!

Thank you #Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

OMG - another heartwarming story from Julie Soto. I loved Forget Me Not, and this one is just as sweet and steamy, full of all kinds of warm fuzzies!

Gwen is looking for stability and a place to call home. Xander Thorne is looking to be anywhere BUT home, stuck in the shadow of a famous mother and an overbearing stepfather. He's the moody bad boy and she's the golden girl just looking to make her mentors proud. As it turns out, they're both competing for the same spot in the orchestra they're BOTH a part of.

Rivals to lovers never misses - our two MCs are full of yearning and pining and so much sexual tension they don't know what to do with themselves, which makes for a delicious slow burn. I was so desperate for THAT moment that I couldn't put this book down. And boy was that moment worth it.

There was a lot of technical musical terminology, which mostly went over my head, but it really conveyed the movement and the passion that the characters were feeling in the moment - and when it was used as a metaphor for their feelings for each other, it was truly beautiful. I would've liked to see more from a few of the side characters, but overall, I really loved this book and the way that it all came together in the end.

Sweet and sexy - perfect for lovers of contemporary romance, rivals to lovers, slow burn tension, and all the feels you get from Hallmark movies.

When I read Soto's debut, I felt that you could see the fingerprints of fanfiction on it and was looking forward to Soto's follow up book to see her growth as a writer. The top review on goodreads says that Not Another Love Song is actually Soto's first manuscript that kept getting rejected (a review I read after reading the book - and have confirmed nothing about that statement) - and respectfully it felt like a stride backwards in quality. The pacing to this book was insane - as I read it on my ereader, I didn't have the visual cue of pages remaining and it was a shock that the book was over ( I read it in one sitting) simply because it didn't have the normal flow of a novel - it read very episodic in structure.
The spice is there, but overall story is absent.
Thank you to the publisher, via NetGalley, for providing an arc for review.

Another great read from Julie Soto. Based around two ambitious musicians and their passion for their craft, I loved the musical angle of this romance and centering in a Pops orchestra world.

It was a nice escape to read and the character development provided the right amount of depth to empathize and feel with them along the way!

Thank you to Netgalley and to Forever/Grand Central for the ARC.

The tension in this book was fantastic. And yes, there is a scene that closely matches what is on the cover and it’s 🔥. I don’t think I’ve read a book before with the set up and progression before, it was super interesting. How the characters used music to help covey how they felt about each other was so interesting. Even though you’re reading it and don’t have the kusic to actually listen to, you can feel it in the writing how they are both trying to convey their emotions to each other cause they don’t know how to put it into words yet. I did feel like the third act breakup and resolution was a bit too quick. I would have liked to see a little more conversation and what comes next from it.

Julie’s books have been 2 for 2 great reads for me and I’m super excited for what she comes out with next!

“It’s about a cello that falls in love with a violin.”

🎻 workplace
😊 strangers to lovers
💕 kinda insta love

single POV
4/5 stars ⭐️
2/5 spice level 🌶️

∞⭐️ !!!

"𝙄𝙩'𝙨 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙖 𝙘𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙤 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖 𝙫𝙞𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙣."

When I tell you that Julie Soto is an absolute magician and an undeniable genius, I mean it with the same reverence reserved for a virtuoso performing a timeless concerto. I've read a LOT of spicy romances, but this book is everything they all wish they were and what they all aspire to be—a symphony of passion and precision that echoes through the halls of literary excellence.

The angst? The tension? The (not so) slow yet savagely sexy build up? The emotions? The feral intensity of it all? I could go on and on and on about who brilliant and perfect this book is. It’s as if the narrative is a grand orchestral piece, each note meticulously crafted to crescendo into a feral intensity that grips you like no other.

Not only that, but Julie's ingenuity strikes again. This book is clever and brilliant, down to its format, Julie redefining the entire genre in one stroke of her bow. While it is technically dual POV, most of the book is in the FMC's POV, with a few, extremely strategic, chapters in his POV. While 3rd person did throw me off a bit at the beginning, as you read the book, you easily understand why it had to be written that way (and wouldn't want it any other way!).

Tropes:
🎻 Rivals to Lovers
🎻 He falls first (& hard)
🎻 Workplace (at a NY string orchestra so it's not your regular workplace)
🎻 Musical Prodigies

Now this book is nerdy but in the best kind of way! It does get a bit technical at times, and it did take me a bit to get into it because of that. BUT MAN IS IT WORTH IT. Imagine one of those iconic classical music pieces where the gentle opening strains ease you in, only for the emotional crescendo to sweep you off your feet in a wild and sexy climax before gently returning you to reality, having just experienced an earth-shattering symphony of feelings.

This book is transformative. THE CELLO SCENE? What an absolute masterpiece. It has changed the way I look at life, not just string instruments. I never thought I'd be turned on by the sight of cello, yet here we are.

"-𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒎𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒊𝒕'𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑰'𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔-"

This book is horny and likely the sexiest thing I have ever read and ever will. And not just because of the smut.

I can't recommend this enough - do yourself a favor & pick is up yesterday! I am in awe of Julie Soto and cannot wait to read her next books.

Holy cow, this is a sexy book! Both characters are musicians who create together and that makes for some unique steamy scenes.

Gwen and Xander are both talented musicians but their careers have been very different. It starts as an enemies to lovers vibe with some humor.

Overall this is a hot, fun read. I learned a lot about musicians and what goes on behind the scenes. I don't play an instrument but I am a music lover and I enjoyed seeing the different roles music plays in people's lives.

I haven't read this author's previous novel but I definitely will.

Highly recommend this one!

this book felt so wildly intimate and steamy that i was embarrassed to be reading it in public but you know what, i ate it right up!!!

Switching instruments and falling in love!

Gwen Jackson has made a career playing her violin in the Manhattan Pops after starting when she was eleven. But her plans to slowly move up the roster changed when she played a cello in front of Xander Thorne who was the first chair cello for the Manhattan Pops and he had no idea who she was.

Alex Fitzgerald had been raised around music forever but he changed everything when he decided that there wasn’t anything more to learn and he reinvented himself as Xander Thorne. But Gwen getting the first chair violin was not in Xander’s plans.

If you like books about music and romance you need to read where Gwen And Xander switch instruments and fall in love with somebody that they never expected.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the author and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Forget Me Not by Julie Soto was one of my favorite romance books in 2023, making Not Another Love Song one of my most anticipated reads for 2024. I was beyond estastic when I received an ARC copy of this book, and it completely lived up to my expectations.

First of all, who knew instruments could be so hot?? The cello scene??? are you joking. I’m obsessed. Xander is the perfect grumpy character. This grumpy/sunshine was too good.

I read this while I was in NYC for the weekend, which was beyond perfect timing. I felt completely immersed in the “NYC multiverse” as Julie Soto put it. I read about Gwen on the subway dying of heat while I too was on the subway dying of heat — so magical! I was having too much fun immersing myself in the book’s setting. I read this in less than 24 hours. So fast paced. Never wanted to set it down. It was fantastic!

My one complaint is how fast the third act problem was resolved. I feel like everything happened a bit too quickly and easily. I'm happy for everyone, don't get me wrong, but how did everything just come together so fast.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever Publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Not Another Love Song is based in NYC and follows Gwen, a violinist who aspires to move up the ranks within the “Pops”, and Xander, a cellist who is the frontman of a popular instrumental rock group (and is incredibly hot). Absolutely loved their story and how we got this tension-filled slow-ish burn. I enjoyed how Julie brought in characters from her last published novel, Forget Me Not. It was fun to see those characters interacting with Gwen and Xander. The main conflict is around the management of Gwen and Xander in the industry and how they have to make sacrifices in order to peruse what they each really want, both professionally and personally. They had absolutely great chemistry. I would recommend this to anyone that enjoys romance novels, and especially to those that also have a music background.

I loved this book. It is my first read from Julie Soto. I loved this musical elements and the story was fantastic. I will recommend to everyone!

Steamy, fast paced and set in a world that we done ever get to see a romance in - Not Another Love Song is a fast paced ride that hooked me from the start. Enemies to lovers set in an orchestra. What would it be like if they looked across the instruments at each other and hated or loved each other? Gwen and Alex do not get along....until they do.

Personally, enemies to lovers can get out of hand in a hurry for me. This book was handled so well that I wanted them to hate each other because it was so clear what was going to come next. The anticipation was through the roof and I enjoyed it so much.

The tension, my god. I could not put this book down. This steamy story did a great job of exploring professional insecurity, ambition, and belonging. I loved the character arcs and felt like there was a strong sense of place. Soto's writing made everything so vivid; I loved each of the characters and some moments had me cackling. I enjoyed reading Alex's POV every few chapters, I think it was a good writing choice. Soto's use of music heightened the emotional depth of the story and made it feel so intimate. I'll be thinking about this story for a while.