This captivating tale of rival cellist and violinist turned lovers had me on the edge of my seat! While the musical jargon initially threw me off, once the story hit its stride around 15%, I was hooked. The dynamic between Gwen and Xander was electrifying, and Julie Soto skillfully crafted palpable sexual tension and longing between them. And that cello scene? Absolutely breathtaking! Soto's ability to ignite such passion between the characters left me utterly spellbound.

Julie Soto will be an auto-buy author for me from now on! I can't put my finger on why but I always fall in love with her characters almost immediately. I think it's because I love the way they describe being and falling in love.
I do wish we got more of the MMC's POV; a couple chapters sprinkled throughout the book are not enough! I remember feeling the same when I read Forget Me Not, I wanted more Elliot.
Loved Gwen & Alex's love story and hope they make a small appearance in the next book. Also dying to know who the next book will be about!!!

Not another love song was a sweet story of a cello who fell in love with a violin. As someone who’s is musically challenged I had a hard time connecting with the musical portions of this book, which made it hard for me to connect with the characters, Now this isn’t the authors fault and she was still able to write two distinct and complex characters who are able to see those differences and fall in love despite them. It was so hard for me to see Alex and Gwen being constantly manipulated and used by Nathan and Lorenz. I’m sure this is a common thing true musicians deal with and added a realistic drama to the story,

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Is Julie Soto a sleeper romance hit author for me? I’ve been in an on-off relationship with the contemporary romance genre (bar Emily Henry) because I have a strong preference for substantial B stories to buy in; but happy to report, Julie Soto hits! I love how Soto builds immersive, almost neurotically detailed professional backgrounds for her FMCs (violinist here, wedding planner in Forget Me Not) with compulsively propelling pacing.

The tension is great; rival musicians vying for greatness in their respective instruments? I’m sat. We follow Gwen, a violinist with an untraditional music background, and prickly cellist, Xander, from a prestigious musical heritage, as they vie for head of the Pops Orchestra in New York. Were there corny references to musical motifs to describe their romance? Absolutely, but I salute the commitment to the bit.

Perhaps the only things I was critical of was the third act conflict could’ve been more fully baked and sometimes the internal logic behind their attraction didn’t 100% pull me in? Like I’d ask myself, does he just like her because she can play music well? Could I tell you what exactly about her personality draws him in? I’m not sure, but this is on the nitpicky end.

Altogether so much fun and will likely pick up her future works! Highly suggest reading Forget Me Not first to get the full experience of the cameos.

I've had Forget Me Not on my shelf for so long but haven't had the chance to get to it. After reading Not Another Love Song, I'm moving it to the top!
I love romances with classical musicians but they're hard to find. Gwen and Xander/Alex were so swoony, the growth we got to see from both of them was just right, and their story had the perfect amount of angst/conflict and connection.
Absolutely loved this reylo. I'll admit I'm a sucker for them but damn...it was good lol

Julie Soto is a new to me author, and I'm so glad I had the opportunity to read Not Another Love Song! Right away, I loved being immersed in the world of professional musicians, an area where I have absolutely no experience. Gwen and Xander are both exceptional string musicians with complicated backstories....and a healthy dose of disdain for each other. I flew through every chapter and loved seeing the characters develop. Once I finished this book, I immediately jumped into another Julie Soto title - I'm hooked!

LOVED THIS!! This was my first time reading about classical musicians and it was a beautiful love story. The music just added so much intensity and passion to the story! I couldn’t put this down and was often times blushing at how hot these two were!

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto.

I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend reading it.

Gwen has a natural ear for music and was taught by a music store owner. Xander was born into a classical music family. They both play for the Pops Orchestra but Xander has never noticed Gwen until he hears her play at his friends wedding. They are both fighting for the first chair. Their chemistry and music are magical.

Music has torn people apart in this book and then brings them back together.

This author has become an guaranteed read for me. Some authors are not able to change up their books with original plot lines and keep the same writing value. Thankfully this is not a problem for this author and I am excited for her future works.

If you love a good tension-filled romance with overachieving main characters, this book is for you!

I found this wildly addicting and I had a hard time putting it down. Romance lovers rejoice because the sexual tension and chemistry is red hot! I found myself rooting for both of our main characters throughout.

Spoiler alert: there is a third act breakup, but thankfully it’s not due to any miscommunication troupe.

I recommend this to anyone looking for spicy romance with an interesting external conflict as well.

I loveddddd this book! Gwen and Xander are truly such a wonderful couple. I love the dynamic between them and how they complement each other musically. Their love language is music and Julie did such a wonderful job incorporating it into their love story. The chemistry in this book was off the charts. The spicy scenes were written beautifully. Enemies to lovers is easily my favorite trope but the way that Julie Soto wrote these characters into this trope is so unique and different. It didn’t feel stereotypical to me which I appreciated. I also enjoyed how we got to see Gwen grapple with her future and how she was being pulled in multiple directions. Getting to witness her character development and watch her follow her gut and heart was one of my favorite parts of this book. Highly recommend this read! Easily one of my favorite romance books in the last two years.

Gwen & Xander are such a perfect pairing - they will steal your heart and take you along on their beautiful love story. Diving into the world of music and especially classically trained musicians was such a surprising delight and I loved the passion they both bring to their music. This book is beautifully written and will be one you'll want to read more than once!

Oh, and a few favorite characters from the Soto-verse pop in just for that little extra fun!

This is already my favorite romance read of 2024. It was excellently executed and totally charming. Julie Soto will continue to be an instant-purchase author for me.

Excuse me Ms. Soto?! This book was absolutely amazing and was just as good as Forget Me Not! Gwen and Alex's story is a lot about self discovery and deciding what they want out of their music careers as well as their personal lives. This book is steamy with lots of tension between Alex and Gwen and the spice is definitely there. 100% recommended this to any fans of Tessa Bailey, Lana Ferguson, or Meghan Quinn. 5 out of 5 stars and I can say with confidence that if Julie Soto writes it, I'm going to read it.

I didn’t know if I would love this book since the other reviews talked so highly about it, but I was very wrong. I devoured this book in 48 hours and absolutely loved it. A rivals to lovers book that was chefs kiss. I highly recommend checking this one out when it comes out. Now excuse me while I read Julie Soto’s other books.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I am undone, I am forever changed, I will never look at a cello without blushing again. Julie Soto makes every musical interlude feel as intimate and sexy as the pottery scene in Ghost.

4.75/5

I absolutely adore Julie Soto's writing style. I loved getting to see Ama and Elliot again plus a whole cast of new, fun characters.

Alex and Gwen are a beautiful couple that just fit. I had no trouble seeing them fall hard and fast. And I loved all the "compliments" from Alex that Gwen kept taking as criticism. 🤣

I've never really understood music at its core. I love to listen to all kinds and I can't carry a tune in a bucket, but seeing music and the process of creating it through the eyes of people who breathe for it was utterly amazing. More than once I listened to classical music while I was reading because I felt like I NEEDED to be hearing the music they were playing.

I will definitely be reading this one again

I'm a big fan of Julie Soto, and was really excited and grateful to get an advanced reader's copy of Not Another Love Song. Her first book blew me away, and those characters show up in NALS, which is always fun to see. Gwen and Xander, the main characters of this book, meet by chance at a wedding, but they have been working together for a quite a while. Gwen is a secret fan of Xander's work, but Xander doesn't know who Gwen is, and it is love and sparks at first sight for him. Their relationship builds slowly, mainly due to their own reserved, cautious personalities, but they find great happiness together, playing music and as a couple. Things fall apart, in their relationship and professionally, but all is resolved by the end.
I liked reading about the evolution of their relationship throughout this book, and I really loved seeing Gwen's character evolve into someone with confidence and determination to be her own advocate. I wasn't a fan of how Xander treated Gwen for most of the book. He was condescending and critical to her, and made a few apologies, but he didn't treat her with the respect that she (and anyone) deserves. I enjoyed reading about the professional challenges musicians face as they are navigating their careers, and also how Gwen's character was successful and her self-esteem and empowerment grew during the story. Her personal growth and professional success and decisions were my favorite part of this story. Overall, a really good read, I always love Julie Soto's work!

I finished this book in less than 2 days. I was mesmerized from the start. I recently listened to Julie Soto’s Forget Me Not, another wonderful unforgettable book. I was thrilled to see she had a new release coming out. I was so surprised and thrilled i actually was able to receive an ARC from Netgally. Her writing in this book is magical, the way you can feel the pull and chemistry between the MC’s and the romance is beautiful. I wish I was able to give this book the praise it deserves. I can’t wait to listen again when it is released on audio. Thank you for the ARC❤️

This was my first Julie Soto book & I immediately changed that the minute I was finished with this book! Oh my gosh the angst and tension in her characters was so good!

This story was made so much more interesting with the musical setting and story and I loved the sort of rivalry/admiration between the two characters as well. This was such a fast swoon worthy read and I can’t wait to read more from her.