Title: Not Another Love Song by Olivia Wildenstein
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult, Romance
Length: 329 pages
Book Rating: B
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss
Summary:
An aspiring teenage singer finds herself playing a different tune when she falls for a boy who could jeopardize her future dreams in Olivia Wildenstein’s romantic YA novel, Not Another Love Song.
Angie has studied music her entire life, nurturing her talent as a singer. Now a high school senior, she has an opportunity to break into Nashville’s music scene via a songwriting competition launched by her idol, Mona Stone. Discouraged by her mother, who wishes Angie would set more realistic life goals, she nonetheless pours her heart and soul into creating a song worthy of Mona.
But Angie’s mother is the least of her concerns after she meets Reedwood High’s newest transfer student, Ten. With his endless collection of graphic tees, his infuriating attitude, smoldering good looks, and endearing little sister, Ten toys with the rhythm of Angie’s heart.
She’s never desired anything but success until Ten entered her life. Now she wants to be with him and to be a songwriter for Mona Stone, but she can’t have both.
And picking one means losing the other.
Review:
Not Another Love Song by Olivia Wildenstein is a cute young adult romance.
Angie Conrad is a high school senior who is an aspiring songwriter and singer who yearns to be just like her idol, Mona Stone. But her mom Jade, who harbors unpleasant memories of life with Angie’s musician dad, does not want her daughter to have anything to do with the industry. So Angie has her work cut out for her when she wants to enter Mona’s songwriting contest. And after she becomes close to newcomer Ten and his younger sister Nev, will Angie have a change of heart about her aspirations?
Angie is single-minded about her musical dreams. She and her mom are close but on this one subject, they are miles apart. Jade has given a little and Angie is working with a voice teacher on honing her singing skills. Despite knowing Jade probably won’t let her enter the contest, Angie works hard on polishing the song she is working on.
Ten is a loner who is not at all happy about his family’s move. When he tells Angie he hates music, she writes him off. But since they share classes, she cannot avoid him altogether. She is a bit bewildered by her growing crush on him and he adds to her confusion with his hot/cold attitude towards her. But after she becomes friends with his younger sister, Nev, she grows closer to Ten. But will their relationship survive her plans for Mona’s competition?
Not Another Love Song is a fun young adult romance with interesting characters. Ten and Angie are multi-faceted with relatable flaws and strengths. The secondary characters are likable but they are not as well-developed as Ten, Angie and Nev. The storyline is engaging but the romance element is very slow moving. Olivia Wildenstein brings the novel to a sigh-worthy, heartwarming conclusion. Recommend to older teen readers.
