4.5⭐️
this was so so wonderful - i ended up finishing this in literally one sitting last night and i haven't stopped thinking about it since. this is so quintessential ashley poston at her best; such a gorgeous romance in a really homey and cosy setting with a super fun magical realism plot running throughout!! read this if you want a strong female lead, lots of discussion about home and family, lots of tal about music and how that brings people together, a wonderful male lead who's super down bad, a fun magical-realism thread and an overall wonderfully crafted and cosy book🤍

Absolutely loved this book! Ashley Poston is one of my favourite authors and the magical realism always hits!!! This was such a sweet story!

Thank you Berkley for the advanced copy!

This author is one of my favorites! And this book did not disappoint I loved the music aspect of it so much! This is my new favorite story from this author (which says a lot!)

I don't know who gave Ashley Poston the AUDACITY to write such an incredible book but I would like to thank them.

Sounds Like Love feels like Poston's victory lap. It's complex, deep, sad, but also filled with hope, joy, and so much love. I wanted to read it slow enough to savor every beautifully written sentence, but I couldn't slow myself down because the way this plot kept me going was feral. It's the perfect sprinkle of magic to create a fascinating scenario but not so much that I had to fight my brain to completely suspend reality. I am truly obsessed with it, it might even rival my love for Seven Year Slip which is saying something for me because that is one of my all time favorite books!

Everyone should be running full speed to their nearest retailer to buy every single version of this book on release day!!!

I’m not sure Poston will ever write anything I don’t love. This was such a lovely story filled with emotion but also fun and sweet and the fantastical / magical aspect totally worked!

Thank you for the early copy for my review

ɴᴇᴛɢᴀʟʟᴇʏ ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ || SOUNDS LIKE LOVE [thank you to Berkley Romance and @netgalley for my #gifted copy!]

Title: Sounds Like Love
Author: Ashley Poston
Genre: Romance
Format: Digital
Star Rating: ★★★★★

ꜱᴜᴍᴍᴀʀʏ:
Joni Lark is a hit songwriter—until the words stop coming. Hoping to find inspiration, she returns home to Vienna Shores, only to find her best friend distant, her mother’s memory fading, and her family’s music venue on the brink of closing.

Then, she hears it—a haunting melody tied to a voice that isn’t hers. That voice belongs to a gruff, aggravating musician with his own demons, and he has a plan: finish the song, break their strange connection, and move on.

But as the music pulls them closer, Joni starts to wonder—what if the song that won’t let them go is trying to tell them something?

ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
I was starting to give up hope that I’d find a novel by Poston that I loved as much as SEVEN YEAR SLIP — and I’m thankful to say that I’ve found it in SOUNDS LIKE LOVE.

This book is so fun - I laughed out loud several times - as well as being emotional and heartbreaking (and heartwarming). It’s about trying to see yourself in a new light and living every day as well as you can. It’s about the endurance of love and just how much believing in yourself can achieve.

The romance here really is just top notch. From the secret conversations to being there for each other in times of need to just falling in love - couldn’t get enough.

I will be recommending this book to everyone I know. You need it in your life - just trust me.

ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Celebrity Romance
Seven Year Slip
Magical Realism
Enemies-to-Lovers
Books about Family

ᴅᴇᴛᴀɪʟꜱ:
GR: 4.28
# of Pages: 384
Pub Date: June 17, 2025

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️

I love Ashley Poston so much, y’all. Her writing is *magical* and makes me feel all the things.

This book was no exception. I am obsessed. I can already tell that this one is going to stick with me for a LONG time.

The premise: Joni and Sasha both have (part of) a song stuck in their heads— and each other. They have a telepathic connection and to break the connection they need to finish the song.

The way the story unfolded was beautiful. I love Joni and Sasha so much. The way the being inside each other’s heads built up the intimacy was perfect. The slow burn of it all had me giggling and kicking my feet.

The supporting cast of characters was also fantastic. I loved Joni’s relationship with Gigi and her mom.

CW: Dementia/Loss of Parent. As someone who lost their grandmother to dementia this year, it hurt to read some parts, but in a good way. Ashley Poston handles grief and loss in such a deft way in all of her books, so it should come as no surprise that it was beautifully handled— but just something to be aware of going in.

Read if you like:
- Magical Realism
- Songwriter x Musician
- He Falls First
- Telepathy
- Family Drama

Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for the ARC!

From the moment I started this book, I knew I was in for a one-sitting, five-star read. Joni and Sebastian had me hooked from their very first scene—their chemistry? Their connection? Absolutely electric.

No one does magical realism like Ashley Poston, and this book was pure, heart-stealing magic. Some books are good, but once in a blue moon, you find one that completely absorbs you—where you don’t just read the story, you want to live in it. That’s what this book did. I felt like I was right there in Vienna Shores, swaying to the music at The Revelry, completely swept up in Joni and Sebastian’s world.

A songwriter and a musician forced to write a song together to break their telepathic connection? Talk about a brilliant premise. And the music nostalgia? Perfection. The song lyrics at the start of each chapter had me singing along to childhood favorites, making this book feel like a love letter to music itself—the way it heals, connects, and carries us through life’s hardest moments. Joni and Sebastian were both at a crossroads, struggling personally and professionally, and the way they helped each other through it all was beautiful.

And that nickname?! Sebastian calling Joni bird—like a songbird—absolutely melted me. Add in a cameo from IWAN (one of my all-time favorite book boyfriends!), and this book was everything I wanted and more. Whimsical, magical, and deeply romantic—I cannot wait for y’all to get your hands on this one!

Ashley Poston continues to pull on the heart strings with this one. 🥺

The effortless way she always incorporates magical realism makes these books what they are. The idea that two strangers come together and are able to hear each other's thoughts was something I was skeptical about in the beginning. But as it went on, I became hooked. The setting, the ties of music, and the characters made this a book you'd expect from Ashley Poston if you've loved her other work.

What I love the most is while yes this is truly a romance with swoony characters, but it's also about finding what brings you joy, family, and the real struggles of families with Alzheimer's and loss. Overall, I loved this 🤌🏼

♾️ ashley poston, you’ve stolen my breath yet again <3

one thing i adore about her books is that you’re not just getting a romance out of the deal when you pick up one of her books…i truly feel like they read like a love letter to the reader.

if i had to write a guide for how to read the ashley poston-verse, it would be to approach her books less like romance and more like women’s literature. i genuinely think readers would get so much more out of her storytelling if this was the mindset going in. i know a novel love story got a lot of mixed reviews because the romance didn’t seem as prevalent, but i went into it really open minded and it became my favorite book from her. sounds like love is now my second :’)

these characters were a really unique addition to the world of ashley poston’s universe. while certain elements such as fame and their Hollywood centric careers made them slightly different in the relatable context, their emotional complexity was so raw & real, the way they navigated the human experience so tangible, i was surprised with how deeply i resonated with how these characters were feeling throughout their journey.

in true ashpos style, we have her trademark of magical realism woven throughout. i do think this element took more of a backseat in comparison to her others books as the “magic” isn’t extremely developed or explained and more so just…there but i was so enchanted by the power of the story, that i didn’t even mind at all.

grief is also a theme commonly explored in this author’s books and sounds like love is no different. the writing approaches this with so much grace and intention, it softens the blows of some of the heavier emotional punches, although you will probably need tissues though as the cry count for me (a historically stoic reader) was two :’)

*spoiler warnings in the content warnings below*

content warnings:
— parental dementia is a common theme referenced throughout the book with the eventual passing of the parent (fmc’s mom).
— mmc deals with parental neglect from his father
— mmc has previous alcohol addiction (off page but mentioned throughout)

thank you so much to the author and to berkley pub for the gifted arc in exchange for my honest thoughts 💌

ashley poston does such an amazing job with adding magical realism elements into romance books and this was no different. the writing style as always is very beautiful, poetic and magical. the musical route was really cool and different as well. this story also talks heavily on grief. joni and sebastian have this telepathic communication and they can hear each others thoughts in their mind and I thought that was so cool and really helped them get to know each other on a deeper level. it was slow in the beginning but really started picking up at the halfway point. I thought this was cute and would definitely recommend! also - the iwan & clementine cameos were everything I was not expecting that and it had me so excited!!!

thank you berkley and netgalley for the e-arc

I am a huge fan of AP already, and every book of her's is more magical than the last. Always a beautiful mix of the unexplained and reality, with an understanding that magic can't fix everything, but it can certainly lead you to love.

if ashley writes it, i will read it. amazing, 10/10, i loved it so much. i will love anything she writes - but WOW!!!

Ashley Poston has yet again wrote one of the most poetically romantic stories of the year. Infusing her magic realism into the most intricate way, having you fall deeply in love with this world she creates. The characters in this book were written in such a beautiful and raw way that you felt inserted into this story, mixing in your DNA between the pages.

Joni is seemingly lost in her burnt, returning home and being such a relatable character. Infusing herself back in her hometown and music to discover what she loves about what she does, missing with a bad boy has been rockstar after one chance meeting. I love getting to see little bits of Sebastian through her eyes and how he morphs from Sebastian to her Sasha.

As always the romance is heart stoppingly sweet, mixed with the beautiful moments of grief and the realities of life. This book had me tearing up at so many parts I couldn’t wait to get to then and already feeling the emptiness that would overtake me when this one finished.

Another amazingly cute story by one of my favorite romance authors! I have absolutely loved all of her books. The story is always magical and has so much grief woven throughout but in the most lovely way! I think The Dead Romantics will always be my favorite but I truly loved this one too! I will read everything she writes!!!

Unfortunately, Ashley Poston’s Seven Year Slip is the only book by the author that I have enjoyed. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for gifting me this arc.

3.5⭐️

I love romances including songwriters and/or musicians. The ending was equally adorable and heart wrenching but the rest was a bit slow (at least to me).

I do love how this author incorporates slight paranormal into her sweet romances. You never really know what you’re going to expect and I love that.

he falls first
forced proximity
paranormal
musician/somgwriter

*I received an ARC of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review with my honest opinion.*

If you’ve ever curated a heartbreak playlist, screamed into the void of your car stereo, or fallen in love to the wrong song—Sounds Like Love will hit you right in the feels (and maybe break you a little in the best way).

This is the kind of love story that feels like a slow-burn indie track you find on a random playlist and then play on repeat until your soul hurts. Poston gives us two people orbiting around their own broken pieces, finding each other through music, miscommunication, and the messy, beautiful chaos of figuring out who you are after everything falls apart.

It's romance for the people who overthink, who romanticize every passing glance, who believe that love isn’t just a feeling—it’s a vibe. Think: enemies-to-lovers but with mixtapes, emotional baggage, and the kind of banter that feels like verbal foreplay.

And yes, there are moments that will absolutely wreck you. But there are also moments that feel like falling in love for the first time, when every song on the radio feels like it's speaking just to you.

This is When Harry Met Sally meets a rainy night drive, with the windows down and your favorite sad song on blast. It's vulnerable, raw, and oh-so-real. And if you’re anything like me, you’ll close the book, immediately queue up your heartbreak playlist, and text your friends in all caps about how much this book ruined you.

So, yeah. Add to cart. Add to your TBR. Add to your therapy budget. You're welcome.

This was cute! I did enjoy the setting and the telephatic connection between Sebastian and Joni. But I didn't really feel anything strong towards them or the story. Joni went back home to OBX and her mother has dementia... but there are only small snippets of her struggle. I feel like she only dipped her toe into diving into the struggle but never really any further... And I couldn't sympathize with Joni. She was sad she didn't visit more but like... visit more??? You have nobody to blame but yourself my girl...

I feel like they barely spent time together, even though they were together for the majority of the book? It felt like it was trying to do too much? and joni is going on dates with her ex bf and flirting with him up until 70% of the book? and as soon as her and sasha aren't in each others heads—as she's worried he won't be truthful with her anymore—she starts lying???

I just didn't connect to either of the characters. there was no reason to care about them. my biggest joy of the book was iwan and clementine cameo, literally. But was otherwise pretty forgettable :( which is sad because I love ashley postons books so much!

I really, really loved this one!
I love Ashley Poston's writing and this was one of my most anticipated reads for 2025, so thank you so much Berkley for the ARC!
Sounds Like Love gave me the same feeling that reading The Seven Year Slip did. I didn't feel as engaged with A Novel Love Story as I did with The Seven Year Slip. I was really hoping Sounds Like Love would be the book for me and it sure was! I absolutely love east coast vibes in books and nobody does magical realism better than Ashley Poston! This book had me invested from the first page!
I thought the way Ashley Poston touched on dementia in this book was really well done. I wish, as readers, we got to spend a bit more time with Joni's mom because the two of them had such a beautiful relationship!
This will 100% be my go to book whenever I'm craving an east coast read!