Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

"You should cry as much as you want. It's not a bad thing. It never is. Grief is just a love song in reverse."

3.5 stars

A really great story with an FMC I had trouble getting behind.

Magical realism is such a cool genre and Ashley comes up with really cool storylines and compelling romances. This one almost completely had me. Loved the beach vibes and the relationship had a slightly antagonistic start, which is always fun to read. And the development from there was really enjoyable, not to mention the magical part of this story had an aspect I wasn't expecting but LOVED.

Sasha was a great MMC. He was a little broody but honestly such a teddy bear. I wish we could have gotten a little more from him on his life and what he has been through, but I think we got most of it. And I'm never gonna turn down a musician with a man bun 🤤

But I was having a hard time with Joni. She was obviously going through a couple things, both personally and professionally, but she was being a pretty big B at times and I don't know why. She was being way over the line I thought with her parents and how she was responding to a very tough, sensitive topic. And that happens a couple times in other instances throughout the book, and I'm just wondering how she could be so aggressively selfish at these randoms times and also really oblivious.

Again, there were some really hard topics being tackled here and everyone deals with this kind of stuff differently, but it was taking me out of the story quite often.

Would still recommend because I'm a huge fan of magical realism and the romance in this was still pretty good 🩷

Sounds Like Love by Ashley Poston is a super sweet and nostalgic story. Joni is a hit songwriter who’s lost her spark. The return to her beachy hometown brings up family struggles, old memories, and a music venue on the verge of closing. I loved how the story weaved together grief, creativity, and romance. The ending left me feeling hopeful in the best way! The perfect read for a summer night.

All I keep thinking is "This book is so beautiful!!". Ashley Poston is back! "Sounds Like Love" is another wonderful romance with a bit of magical realism thrown in to make this a unique story with so much heart.

Joni Lark returns to her hometown and family's music venue for the summer, but she's hearing a man talk to her in her head, and he's real! They decide to meet and work together to figure out how to get their thoughts out of each other's heads. The chemistry is adorable!

There is a side story that deals with her mother's dementia and I thought it was handled beautifully and brought so much emotion to the story, but obviously can be triggering for some people.

When they were writing the song and singing together I had that song from the movie Music and Lyrics stuck in my head!

4.5 stars

That ending had a little kick to it huh??? I knew going into it that, like any Ashley Poston book, it would have an emotional ending but THAT really had me sobbing into my pillow. Wow I loved this! After loving her first 3 novels, this one was no exception. The magical realism elements, the transcendent romance, the small-town quirks, every part of this book played out like a movie in my head and I couldn’t get enough.

I loved the connection between Joni and Sasha. The telepathy component felt so whimsical. Who hasn’t dreamed of being in a hot, broody, famous musician’s head who turns out to be someone more grounded than he shows?? And you can hear him think about how cute you are?? Their whole connection was amazing and I loved that they joined forces to write a song using the melody that’s stuck in both their heads. Hello forced proximity!!! The topics of grief were also beautifully done.

This one goes out to the ones who feel stuck, who’s afraid of chasing their dreams, who feel like they have it all but something is missing. Who wants time to slow down, even for a moment. The dreamers, the do-ers, and their unconditional support team. Ashley Poston has done it again and I’ll be cheering her on for all her future books. Thank you Berkley for the arc!!

Sounds Like Love
By: Ashley Poston

Thank you to @berkleyromance for free book and @prhaudio for the #gifted audiobook. #berkleypartner #berkley All opinions are my own.

“I still miss her everyday. But some days I miss her more than others. Some days I’d give up everything just for one of her hugs. And then I have to remind myself that she’s gone, but bits of her stay. The parts that made me, the parts that raised me, the parts she left behind”

I want to start by saying that this was one of my most anticipated books of the year and I am happy to say that I loved it from start to finish. The love story between Joni and Sebastian is beautiful. While their telepathic connection might not be for everyone, I just loved the idea that they were in each other's heads. Magical realism will always be one of my favorite genres!

Now for the more personal parts of this story. Dementia is something that I am sadly very versed in as my mom lost her battle with dementia earlier this year. When I picked this book up I actually had no idea that this would be a part of the story. Ashley Poston is an auto-buy author for me so I don’t think that I even read the description before diving in. When I realized the topic I thought about putting it aside but ultimately decided to trust that my heart would know what to do if it became too hard.

So many parts of this book hit close to home for me. I can remember the first time my mom struggled to use something as simple as a can opener and when watching tv or reading (one of her favorite things) became too much. Music was something that brought her both joy and comfort even when she could no longer remember the words to the songs she was listening to.

Ashley writes that “grief is just a love song in reverse” and boy does she get that right. For me, grief is missing her in the big moments and when my mind plays tricks on me and I forget for a second that she is really gone. It’s catching a glimpse of her in a picture that takes me back in time. It’s a smell or a sound or a song that catches me off guard and instantly brings me to tears. It is thinking that because I lost pieces of her for years, I was going to somehow be prepared for when I lost them all. But being prepared is not something you can ever really be.

With dementia, it is all hard -- the beginning, the middle and the end but reading stories like this one help. I said to a friend that this book is just the right amount of sad and I think that’s how I will always remember it.

Read if you like:

Magical Realism
Telepathic Connection
Slow Burn
Grief and Loss
Anxiety Rep

4.75 stars!!

no bc this was so beautiful & hopeful & exactly what i needed right now 😭😭

this book gave the same feeling of reading seven year slip for the first time but in a whole new way. it has the same whimsical magical hopeful and beautiful atmosphere, but sprinkle in a musical element. it was giving starstruck vibes & i wasn't mad about it AT ALL. it made me cry (classic). it made me swoon (loooove). it made my heart !!!!!!!! (iconic). when i tell you you're going to love this book, you're seriously going to love it so much!!!

sasha & jo are everything to me 😭😭😭 i loved the telepathic element so much. it was so unique to see how these two grew to love each other when they literally lived inside each other's heads. every moment they spent working on the song was so romantic and touching.

this book also does such a great job at touching on career burnout in a career that you genuinely love. it's so hard to go from loving your day to day and the work you're doing, having so much passion & excitement, to simply nothing. to feeling STUCK and hopeless and worthless. how do you make yourself do something that used to come so easy??? not to mention the family dynamics & the heartache of facing a new reality 😭 ashley poston perfectly captured this feeling while still writing a beautiful love story between two people who need a little extra love and the biggest hug!!!

thank you so much berkley romance & berkley pub for the arc! this is my honest review.

4 🌟



Ashley Poston does it again ✨

No one does magical realism quite like Ashley Poston. She has this incredible gift of wrapping real, raw emotions in soft, whimsical layers of magic and wonder. Her writing? Chef’s kiss. I was highlighting passages left and right on my Kindle because the imagery, metaphors, and lyrical beauty of her prose were just that good.

“𝙂𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙙 𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨, 𝙬𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩, 𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨. 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙞𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙞𝙛 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢? 𝙄 𝙨𝙖𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣. 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙤 𝙖𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙙𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩. 𝙊𝙛 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙮 𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙪𝙥 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩. 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮’𝙙 𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚, 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙮𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙣, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙩𝙝 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙙𝙞𝙖𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙙—𝙞𝙩 𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙩 𝙘𝙪𝙩. 𝙎𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙠. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙖 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙚.”

Sounds Like Love gave me everything I wanted: a talented songwriter and a struggling artist turned rockstar making his comeback, while literally falling in love through music and telepathic thoughts. Yes, please! 🙌🏼

“𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙠𝙞𝙨𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙚𝙬— 𝘼 𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙙𝙮. 𝙁𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙡𝙤𝙬𝙡𝙮 𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙤𝙪𝙙𝙚𝙧. 𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙄’𝙙 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚, 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙞𝙩 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙨𝙤 𝙛𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙧.”

The connection between Joni and Sebastian was so tender and unique. I loved getting a front row seat to their unspoken (or… mentally spoken?) moments. The way they comforted each other when things got hard? Swoon. It was soft, it was intimate, and it made me root for them so hard.

Poston didn’t shy away from heavy topics either. The grief representation and the Alzheimer’s rep were handled with so much care. There’s an underlying message in this book that really hit me: you never know what someone’s carrying on the inside, so lead with kindness. Always. 🤍

With twists I didn’t see coming, emotional depth, and a romance that felt like a song you want to put on repeat, this book was heartfelt, hopeful, and utterly enchanting.

Ashley Poston, you magical wordsmith, you’ve done it again. 💫

Thank you so much to Berkley Romance for the ARC of Sounds Like Love, I adored this book!!!

The little bit of magical realism in this book was just the perfect touch. I loved Joni, Sebastian, and all of the characters so much! Genuinely good, kind people trying to make their corner of the world a better place. This was a different perspective on the music business, through the songwriter and not the singer and I really enjoyed that. I am especially grateful that the third act break up was very short! Highly recommend this one. It would be a great beach read as well, with how central the ocean is to the story.

I really enjoyed The Seven Year slip so was excited to read this one. I loved the magical realism in the prior book so was hoping to get the same from this one and this book totally missed the mark.
I didn’t really understand their ability to mind speak and missed any kind of romantic connection between the characters. I actually felt like I didn’t really know them at all.
The side story of the mother’s dementia made me really sad but the author’s note said this was a love letter to music. I loved the chapter titles as I recognized a lot of the songs but since the characters were creating this love song together, I would have loved to really see/feel the lyrics they were creating for this love song and we didn’t get any of that. It felt very surface level.
I finished the book because I was curious enough to see how it would all go, but it just felt flat to me.

Ashley Poston has done it again! I adore her blend of contemporary romance and magical realism. This one is a play on the celebrity/musician trope. I often find this trope a little cheesy and have a hard time getting into them, but this one hooked me from the start. Poston knows exactly how to pull at your heartstrings and has a knack for blending heavy and emotional with light and uplifting. Our MC's, Joni and Sebastian have great banter and emotional connection, but are able to show a lot of personal growth together and independently from one another. I really enjoyed Joni's family and friends, as well as the story of her family's music hall. The author managed to make The Revelry feel like an additional side character. In addition, she paints a lovely picture of OBX, making this an excellent beach read as well!

Move over The Seven Year Slip, Sounds Like Love is my newest favorite novel by Ashley Poston. I adored this book. Like always, Poston did a fantastic job creating an interesting and unique plot. The telepathic storyline was such a clever way to expand on the main characters' relationship. I loved how Jo and Sasha's relationship developed. Their banter and chemistry were spot on. Their internal conversations were adorable. I enjoyed how Poston used Sasha and Jo's telepathic communication to further their relationship development. Their first kiss scene together was written perfectly! I liked the way Sasha would comfort Jo when she was upset. The bird nickname for her was 🥹. Jo and Sasha were layered, relatable, and charming. I liked how Sasha and Jo came into themselves and found their purpose. Jo was going through a lot, and I thought Poston did a great job with the heavy themes of the book. Readers will empathize with Jo and her struggles coming to terms with her mother's dementia. I thought the side characters were written nicely. Uncle Rick and Gigi were a hoot. The writing was smooth, and the setting was vibrant. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

A magical love story where the melody for love is in your head. Joni returns to her families music venue in hopes it will spark the next great lyrics to a new song. But nothing is as it seems, her best friend is avoiding her, her mother’s sickness is robbing her of memories and the venue is shuttering its doors.

A alluring voice invades her mind, luring her to her next great masterpiece. Surely this man can’t be real until he is - the boy band recluse who’s grumpy, aggravating and opposite of the man that invades her thoughts. Together, they finish a song that’s haunting both their thoughts, unlocking their hearts for love and memories long lost.

Is there a reason they both have the same melody?

A supernatural, emotional, deeply romantic love story.

Thank you for the free book Berkeley Pub/Berkley Romance.

“Grief is just a love song in reverse”

Joni has everything she ever dreamed of, she is writing songs for the stars and in high demand. Except that she can’t right. Ever since her mom’s diagnosis she hasn’t written a word. When she returns home, the last person she expects to get close to is a voice inside her head. The has confirmed he is a real person, but why can they hear each others thoughts? When the real man shows up…he is not who Joni was expecting.

I listened to this one and it was the perfect way to take in this fantastic love story. I loved the narration, and I listened from start to finish in a single day! Ashley has such an amazing way of mixing a romantic story with just a twist of magical realism that is just perfection. This book filled me with all the feels and was just what I needed right now. Romance has not been a genre that is working for me currently, but with the unexpected twist of magic in this one, it hit the mark!

Thank you to @berkleypub and @prhaudio for my gifted copy of this book!

This was my first Ashley Poston book even though I own most of her recent releases and I had pretty high expectations considering how beloved she is as a romance author. Do I think the hype is accurate? I'd say it's definitely not wrong! I found a lot to love about Sounds like Love and I will be picking up Ashley's backlist sooner rather than later. Sasha was such a little shit that I couldn't help but have a soft spot for and Joni was a realistic main character I enjoyed sending POV time with. I think the magical realism was the perfect touch of whimsy and originality some contemporary romances lack and the ending was exactly what I wanted as the reader. The grief Joni experiences related to her mother and the discription of her illness was obviously well researched and screened by sensitivity readers - I must applaud all the apparent effort put into this element of the story. I can't wait to discover more sweet stories from this author that have me experiencing all the feels!

Thank you to Berkley Romance, NetGalley, and the author for sending me an early copy!

Sounds Like Love is a beautifully written tribute to the power of music and creativity that grounds us even in the most challenging of times. The unique twist of being in each other's heads is that extra "something" that you always find in Ashley Poston books, and I appreciated how she invoked both those thoughts mixed with actual dialogue to give us a sense of what the MCs wanted to share vs what they were actually feeling. The details regarding the mother's early onset Alzheimer's were nuanced in a way that stuck with me after I closed the book, particularly the concept of no last "good days." I really enjoyed Dead Romantics, but this might be my new favorite Poston book.

4.5 stars

Sounds Like Love was a beautiful novel about chasing and choosing joy. It was about the battle between who you think you're supposed to be and the person you are. It was a love story between parent and child and about redefining success, friendship, and happiness. There's a very sweet (after a hilariously awkward meet cute) slow burn romance, but Joni's journey is the focus of the novel, so this one fell a bit more into women's fiction for me. The author's note at the end was poignant and heartbreaking. Even before reading it, I knew that dementia had touched the author's life in some way because of how unflinchingly she wrote Jo's experiences and feelings.

I really loved the set up for the book and the touch of fantasy/magic worked perfectly with the story. The romance was very sweet and seeing these two opposites come together, become friends, and then more was beautiful. They both struggled with self worth and what it means to be successful, but I loved how soft they were to each other in those quiet vulnerable moments. Yes, there was a bit of push away at the end, but I appreciated that the characters didn't let a miscommunication derail them and that their happily ever after didn't have either of them giving up their dreams. They both knew what they wanted, did what felt right, and didn't get in their own ways. The cameo by one of my favorite Poston couples was also such a treat!

I read and listened to the book and Patti Murin's narration was phenomenal! I loved the addition of the singing and the song at the end was the absolute best way to bring everything full circle. Seeing that the original music was credited to Murin's husband, Colin Donnell, made me love it even more. Please, please, please do yourself a favor and listen to this one!

Audiobook Review
Overall 5 stars
Performance 5 stars
Story 4.5 stars

CW: parent with early onset dementia, grief, parental abandonment and estrangement, death of parent, life threatening car crash, hurricane

*I voluntarily read and listened to a review copy of this book*

Music and rom com fans will love this one! I have loved all of Ms. Poston's books, despite not being a romance/rom com fan. This one was not my favorite of hers because the magical realism was a bit lighter, but I still enjoyed it. I loved how music was the main theme.

*Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review and to PRH Audio for the gifted ALC*

Dementia books are hard for me. I'm happy to say that it didn't detract too much from the reading experience for me, but it does play a prominent role in the story.

Now onto the LOVE!! I found the mind connection so interesting, especially as they realize that they both have the same song stuck in their heads. There were so many humorous moments with thoughts that they didn't mean to share, but also a lot of romantic subtext to seemingly banal conversations. Patti Murin did a fabulous job with the narration, both in Joni's grief at her mom's illness and loss of her songwriting inspiration but the sillier moments with Van and Mitch. It did still feel like Ashley Poston's special brand of magic, but wasn't my favorite of the 4. Even with that said, you'll catch me riding the Marge this summer sipping on chiwi margs.

Joni Lark returns home to Vienna Shores hoping to find inspiration and escape her creative block, only to face a town and a life she barely recognizes. But when a mysterious melody leads her to a gruff musician with the same tune in his head, they team up to finish the song and discover whether it’s just coincidence or something more.

I had mixed feelings about this book. The music references and chapter titles inspired by songs were a nice touch and it would have been great to see a curated playlist at the end. Unfortunately, the magical realism felt underwhelming and didn’t fully make sense within the story. Joni’s parents’ relationship, the music venue, and her best friend’s relationship with her brother ended up outshining Joni and Sebastian’s romance. Most of the characters, especially Jo and Sebastian, were severely underdeveloped. There was so much potential and so many subplots, but they just weren’t executed well. Given that Jo and Sebastian could hear each other’s thoughts, it was disappointing that we didn’t get more insight into Sebastian’s perspective. Jo’s inner monologue became repetitive. I wasn’t a fan of the nicknames they gave each other. One of the most disappointing aspects was how Jo’s mother’s dementia was handled. It lacked depth and emotional weight. Books like Can’t Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan and Say You Remember Me by Abby Jimenez address memory loss with far more care and nuance. That said, Patti Murin did a fantastic job with the audiobook narration. While the ending felt rushed and overly neat, I did enjoy the original song featured at the end. Overall, this one didn’t quite work for me, but it kept me engaged enough to earn a low 3-star rating.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 5/5 stars

Ashley Poston is the master at emotional and magical romances and Sounds Like Love tore my heart out and gave it a hug. The story is about two people magically drawn together by a shared song. As they try to figure out their connection, they find themselves falling for each other.

This book. It has everything. Banter. Whimsy. Coastal setting. Family. Love. Magic. Music. I loved every single page. Ashley Poston, you are magic.

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.