This was GORGEOUS! And sexy. There's humour and depth, angst and heart. I loved how much of a grumpy, arrogant a*hole Alex was and how utterly obsessed he was with Gwen, the FMC who I adored. They had a passionate romance, chock-full of tension and tenderness and I tore through their story in one sitting. I have absolutely zero musical ability, but even I could appreciate the beauty in how the music was woven into this, and how it became a tool for Gwen and Alex to connect and express themselves to each other. THE CELLO SCENE?!

Forget Me Not was one of my favourite reads of 2023 (and the crumbs of Ama and Elliot in this were delightful). Not Another Love Song is another firm favourite for 2024 and Julie Soto is without doubt, one of my favourite romance authors EVER.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc!!

I enjoyed this! I would give it 3.5 stars. I liked the premise of the book, and the first half had me giggling and kicking my feet - unfortunately, I didn't enjoy the second part that much. The pacing felt a bit strange at times and it didn't flow as well as I was expecting.

I liked the characters at the start, but I would have liked to see some more character development midway and towards the end of the book, especially in Gwen; overall, she comes across a bit naive, knowingly allowing people to use her for publicity due to her age and gender, rather than her skill, and I wanted her to develop a backbone and finally grow up and decide what she truly wanted to do for herself, but it felt like we didn't get that defining moment from her. I mostly liked Alex/Xander (who doesn't like a broody MMC?) but again, I wanted more character development, and for him to stop falling back into his old habits, which did not happen until the last 10% of the book, and off page. I did feel like it was a bit insta-love as he became immediately obsessed with her. I think Gwen and Alex had great chemistry, and I mostly enjoyed the spice, although it did feel a bit strange and cringey at times due to all the musical jargon... It did made me wish I knew more about music to understand all the terms used, and I'm probably going to be listening to violin covers of popular songs for a few days!

Overall, I enjoyed this book and was sucked into the story, but I wish there was some more character development and even some more drama and resolution.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Collins UK, and Julie Soto for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for an honest review!

I never thought I would become so immersed in a book about an orchestra and the world of classical music but Julie Soto pulled me right in. It was great to see some of the characters from Forget-Me -Knot making small appearances, I always enjoy when authors bring their books together in small ways. I was totally captured by the love story between the 2 main characters & the added spice certainly helped. Looking forward to Julie's next book already.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for sending me an ebook copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ok, I am in my romance era and I am not unhappy about it. Prepare for an essay on all the ways this book is amazing!

For starters - A MATCH MAKING WEDDING PLANNER! This started with our FMC going to a wedding thinking she was meant to be playing the violin and discovers she has to play the cello. She borrows a cello from the best man, who is a grumpy, hot, and ever so slightly famous musical royalty, and muddles her way through. The wedding planner starts with the matchmaking from page one and IT WORKS!

I loved all the characters. The FMC is so sunshiny and devoted to her work, despite basically being self-taught. She stands up for herself, doesn't let people pull her in a thousand different directions, and stands beside her musical decisions. The MMC is grumpy but he's so self-aware. Upon realising how he's been treating the FMC he immediately starts to try and make it up to her.

"He was never late again."

The MMC does so many little things for the FMC throughout the book and I am living for it. From getting her food, changing his behavior, becoming better for her, providing her with instrument space, protecting her......I. LOVE. IT.

There was so much tension between the two main characters and I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. They had a bit of an on again, off again relationship but it somehow worked within the story. I love how the MMC starts off jealous of the FMC's musical talent and ends up becoming so in awe of her raw talent that he is just generally obsessed with her in every way.

"The rest of his life would be spent chasing her, trying to catch up."

The writing style of this was really great, it flowed really well and I never knew what was coming next. This was honestly such a fun read and I loved every second of it! Can't wait to meet Julie next week!

4 stars.

I love it when fanfiction gets published, and this was definitely a fun read! A good romance about a niche that interests me greatly.

I had such a great time reading the book omg! Gwen and Alex were so good together🥹 their connection was insane and I love how obsessed he was with her from the moment he noticed her.

Gwen and Alex were perfect for each other. They balanced each other out and their chemistry was so clear! The way they both loved music and pushed each other to be better and be true to themselves was lovely to see and the ending proved how good they were together.

I wish we’d got a little bit more of Alex’s POV. He was so in love with Gwen he literally couldn’t stop thinking about her and writing music for her. He was down so so bad and while I loved the little glimpses we got into his head, I wish we’d seen more.

Overall, an amazing read. If you love music, couples with amazing chemistry who always push each other to be better and a MMC that’s legit obsessed with the FMC, this book’s for you!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored this book, it was good. The tension, the angst, the spice, it was all so good. The romance was so freaking good. Ugh I actually adore Alex and Gwen, they were perfect.

Also the music aspect of this book was actually so sexy and the fact that they were like rivals, and he just falls so fast and so hard. I loved them.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this awesome book

not being a music reader i did struggle with the references to the written music and though it went over my head the actual storyline captivated me

its the story of a violin player getting to first chair and her experiences before during and after

but its also the the lives of her friends and family and her attraction to alex as when they have a chance to play together they write really good music together

cant wait for the next book by this author

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review! This one… didn’t really do it for me. I didn’t dislike it, but I didn’t overly enjoy it either. It was a pleasant read, but not one I’m in a rush to recommend.

Previously a fanfiction on AO3, this book tells the rivals-to-lovers story of violinist Gwen Jackson and cellist Xander Thorne. The two play in the same pop orchestra, but Xander only notices Gwen when she is forced to play the cello at a wedding he is a guest at… and then she obtains the role of first chair in the orchestra, which he was aiming for. Their feelings are complicated and grow quickly, between hostility, respect for each other’s music skills and an undeniable chemistry. They don’t get much chance of privacy, though, as their romance gets quickly exploited for publicity and various people try to meddle for their own goals.

The MCs’ chemistry was great, and the scenes where they played together were truly compelling. I don’t know that much about music, but it was almost as if I could feel their art coming alive around me. That said, I wasn’t a huge fan of either MC individually – Xander felt too manipulative, Gwen too naïve at times. I enjoyed a couple of side characters, especially Mabel and Jacob, although none of them were particularly fleshed out.

The pacing was consistently quite quick and I liked that none of it dragged. Some parts were written quite poetically, with vivid language that made me feel immersed in the story. The spicy scenes were well developed, but sometimes felt unnecessary – it would have been nice to have some more cute scenes of the two of them talking or spending time together without necessarily turning into sex. However, some of the lines were beautiful and touching: Xander’s raw “Anything. Everything.” was one of my favourite moments.

A musical question that stayed with me throughout the book - is it THAT easy to switch between violin and cello when you haven’t played cello more than a handful of times some ten years earlier?

This book, alongside Julie Soto’s writing, truly sings! It captures the perfect love song that is the romance between two musicians, the love for their craft, and an ode to New York.

I fell in love with the author’s writing when I first got my hands on Forget Me Not and I was super excited and highly intrigued when news about this book, her second novel, came out. So imagine my excitement when I got approved to read an ARC of this. And I’m glad to report that I enjoyed and loved every moment of this story.

I have my basic knowledge of music theory and have played violin as a requirement for our high school music class, so in a way, I had that as my toolbox coming into this story. Despite that, there was still music lingo that went over my little understanding of music. However, it didn’t pull me away from the essence of the book and the heart of the love story because the imagery is so rich and clear that I can see the scenes in my head, I can hear the melodies they’re playing, and I can feel the love emitting through these characters. So with that, whether you are a musical enthusiast or not, I’m sure you’ll still enjoy this book regardless. Truly a love song in literary form!

Alex and Gwen, goodness I’m so down bad for them just as how down bad they are for each other. Them being prodigies who fell in love with each other makes sense because through music, they understood each other and it was a way for them to express their love. I love how they’ve found each other as equals, view each other with high praises and accountability, and the respect and support they both hold. I was so giddy and in love with them that my only criticism of this book is that it ended and I have to move on with my life.

I highly recommend this book and I’m sure (and also hope) that you’ll enjoy it as much as I do.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
18+

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK for this eARC.

Okay do not come at me for this review but in no way it was a romcom. The amount of miscommunication she got from everyone was way too much, even if it was from one person, that would have been too much already. This book gave me too much unnecessary anxiety, I had to take a break for a few days. And in my opinion, the ending was a little bit rushed. Like you're telling me, by the end, Ava realised the bad stuff and Nathan got a new job opportunity all of a sudden. No, thank you

Initially, I was drawn to this book by its stunning cover, and when I discovered it was about musicians, my excitement grew even more. Receiving the ARC was thrilling, and despite my usual tendency to be disappointed by books I hype up, I ended up loving this one. Everything, from the story to the characters, was perfect. Although the twist was somewhat predictable, it didn't detract from my enjoyment at all. Gwen and Xander have quickly become one of my favorite book couples. Even if you didn't enjoy Julie's first book as much (I didn't 😔), I'm convinced you'll love this one.

I couldn’t quite get into this book. The music element didn’t capture my attention. However the tension between the two main characters was good. I found the story was slightly to dragged out for my liking.

I love this authors writing and I have read it all! Another fantastic hit!! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book.

This review is for Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto which releases in the UK on the 4th July! Thanks so much to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK for giving me an eArc copy for this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is the first book I have read from Soto, and already I can’t wait to see what else she has written. This book was beautiful, sensual and when reading it felt like a movie playing in my head. It was so addictive and easy to read, I was done within the day.

I loved the two main characters, Alex (also Xander, it’s a long story) and Gwen, and I loved their dynamic. Alex was smitten and obsessed as soon as they met which I loveeeed. It’s obviously super steamy (the sex scenes were *chefs kiss*) but also super romantic as well. I loved how both the characters had to figure a lot out about what they wanted from life and from each other, however the normal 3rd act breakup was a little frustrating.

This year is a great year for romance, and I would 100% recommend this to any romance readers out there. You honestly won’t regret it.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for providing me the arc of Not Another Love Song.

This book had a great start I really liked Gwen and Xander chemistry in the beginning, unfortunately I felt like the storytelling and it's plot fell down in the middle of it.
I started losing my interest in the story whenever the classical music terms appeared (i know that they are important, however i don't know anything about the technique and maybe if it was delivered in a different way by the author I wouldn't feel like this).
There were parts that I liked and the smut scenes were good, but i don't know...maybe I wasn't in the right mood to read this, I couldn't really connect to the characters.

Not Another Love Song is one of my favourite romances of this year. This book follows two classical musicians, Gwen and Xander as they explore their shared passion of music and some early rivalry as they play for the same spot in the orchestra. I'm not a particular fan of music/orchestras but Julie Soto does such a good job of making these scenes come alive and immersing the reader in their world. The characters have brilliant chemistry and tension throughout this book and i honestly was so consumed by this book and read it so quickly. Highly recommend for any one looking for a fun, passionate, spicy romance!

A truly fantastic romance between two musicians, filled with passion, chemistry and emotion.

Both Gwen and Xander were incredible, fully polished characters, and I loved the little snippets from Xander's POV so, so much.

The cello scene will live in my head for a long time, the spice was just amazingly hot in general. And I really enjoyed the plot, it was just on the right side of dramatic, with a little humour and some very emotional moments too.

I also loved how characters from Soto's previous book made an appearance, I enjoyed Forget Me Not very much too, and I really look forward to her future works.

A love letter to music

"Not another Love Song" is the latest work by Julie Soto. In this musical love story, we accompany Gwen and Xander.

This book lives from its atmosphere! I'm not much of a music girly-girl, even though I used to play the flute in an orchestra, but the vivid description of Gwen and Xander's music made me want to go and see/listen to a concert of theirs. Too bad they and their music are only fiction!

Although I really liked Gwen, I found her very naive and a bit unworldly. She lives in her little bubble and knows that life can be hard, but her life is still very much shaped by a certain environment and she gains little experience of the world.

Xander is the typical arrogant type. Nevertheless, he quickly won my sympathy. The more I got to know about Xander, the more I understood him and the more I liked him.

I found the love story between the two of them sweet, but still a little implausible. For me, there was little development and a lot was just there, which made the story even more unrealistic in my eyes.

I give "Not another Love Song" 3 out of 5 stars.

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

I had no expectations going into this because I didn't love Forget Me Not, but oh boy I loved this so much!

This was delightful and Alex and Gwen were just so good together! These characters, their tension, THE CELLO SCENE!!! It will be playing on re-peat in my head for the foreseeable future. It felt like an homage to music and I just loved it so much!!

I just want to re-read it already and I have already pre-ordered a copy for myself and I can't wait to have it in my hands! Highly highly recommend!!