Not Another Love Song

Soto (Forget Me Not) makes philharmonic music downright sexy in this taut contemporary. Self-taught violinist Gwen Jackson is playing a fancy wedding in New Jersey when she borrows a cello from a grumpy wedding guest—who, insultingly, doesn’t recognize her as a fellow member of the Manhattan Pops, “the largest popular music orchestra in the United States.” Gwen knows him as Xander Thorne, bad-boy lead singer in a rock band when he’s not at the Pops. Later, thanks to YouTube, she learns that his real name is Alex Fitzgerald, that he was a violin prodigy and stopped playing the instrument for mysterious reasons, and that he’s her boss’s son. The initial animosity between Alex and Gwen obviously belies a blistering attraction, but the road to love has many bumps, including Gwen being promoted to the orchestra’s first chair over Alex and the machinations of both Alex’s manager and his stepfather, who aim to sabotage the relationship. While Alex comes off as a bit of a jerk at first, readers will fall for him as he falls for Gwen. Their chemistry is explosive, and the author injects the plot with just enough suspense to keep the pages flying. Soto’s sophomore outing will leave readers eager for her next story. (July)