Not Another Love Song

I loved everything about this book. The way the story is like a symphony, and the way that all these nonverbal experiences and feelings are described through music. I loved the vulnerability of the characters, the heartbreak and hopefulness they found in each other - the ultimate win of the human part of us over everything else. Such a lyrical 5-star gem 💎. Also, will be playing 2Cellos and BrooklynDuo on repeat for the next week. 😅

This book was so beautifully done! I am, by no means, a classical music enthusiast. I know about as the much as your average person does, but this book made me want to listen to classical music on repeat (particularly electric covers of pop songs). As someone who has seen an orchestra maybe once in her life, I have a fairly poor grasp as to how it all works with chair hierarchies and such. Knowing this, I was a little hesitant to start reading a romance where it was all about this tension between certain "chairs" and different sections of instruments. Turns out, my worry was completely unfounded. The author did an amazing job at explaining how the orchestra worked and the life of a musician. It's not all glitz and glam, but sometimes eating ramen in your tiny apartment so you can live your passion of music. I wasn't confused or lost for a single moment. By the end, I had a very unfounded confidence that I was a music snob...if only for a moment.

Outside of the music element, the real heart of the book for me was the characters and their connections to one another. Gwen's commentary was truly entertaining and refreshing. Some of her thoughts were ones that I have had a hundred times. One aspect that really drew me to Gwen's story was the element of confidence that this book addressed. Gwen struggled with knowing her worth, and it wasn't done in this traditional, Hollywood way. It was realistic. Its the small things that build up to make you think that you are worthy of accepting less because you think you aren't "as good"...even though you are. It isn't always a "shy" girl hiding behind her hair, but a woman trying to do her best but taking the safe route. It really resonated with me in a way that I think a lot of people would appreciate. Xander, the male lead, is also about as loveable as you can get for a guy who is as subtle as a semi-truck. He pulls no punches on his words, and I loved it. He also played his cards close to the vest most times, but when his feelings peeked out...OH MAN! It was amazing! Talk about a man obsessed. We love! I appreciate the fact that while this book was mostly from Gwen's perspective (as it should be as the FMC!), I also got a small view of Xander (or should I say Alex's) perspective. You could really feel where the misunderstandings went wrong seeing it from each character's side. I also really loved how you got both viewpoints without having to re-hash the entire scene again.

Speaking of love, I can't talk about a romance book without mentioning the romance. It was very tension-filled in the best way. There were points went I felt ready to burst from their conversations. Their showdowns (excuse me...conversations) were legendary. SO MUCH TENSION! It made the romance parts that much more explosive and, let's be honest, downright steamy. This was a perfectly executed modern "Enemies to Lovers" trope.

I cannot recommend or sing this book's praises enough. I read the other author's book (that was semi-connected), and I loved it, but this one...this one has it beat. Something about the tension and the characters in this cutthroat world of classical music really hooked me.

*Special thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!