SOUNDS LIKE LOVE by Ashley Poston – Review

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Sounds Like Love by Ashley Poston
Published by Berkley on June 17 2025
Genres: Adult, Magical realism, Romance
Pages: 384
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads

The nitty-gritty: Ashley Poston channels the joy of music in this funny, romantic story about following your heart.

This is the fourth book in what I’ll call Ashley Poston’s magical realism romances, and I say, keep ‘em coming! Sounds Like Love is an ode to music and finding your passion in life. It’s also about dealing with tough life events, like the death of a parent, but it’s all handled with a deft touch so the story isn’t bogged down with too much drama and heartache. This is probably my least favorite book of hers, but I still had a lot of fun, so even my least favorite is still very good. 

Joni Lark is a songwriter who lives in Los Angeles. She wrote a song called If You Stayed that rocketed to the top of the charts after pop star Willa Grey recorded it, but now almost a year later, she’s having writer’s block. With the recent news that her mother has early onset Alzheimer’s, her joy for writing music has disappeared, but she’s going home to visit her family in Vienna Shores, North Carolina with the hope that she can get back some of the magic she’s lost.

The night before she leaves, Willa invites her to a concert, where she decides to hide up in a private balcony to watch the show. Joni is surprised to find someone else there, a man she recognizes right away. Sebastian Fell was famous as a teen, part of a boy band called Renegade, but he’s even more well known because his father is Roman Fell, rock superstar. Joni and Sebastian butt heads, but when Willa’s “kiss cam” puts them in the spotlight, the two decide to go with the flow and kiss. 

Later, after Joni has left for Vienna Shores, she starts to hear a man’s voice in her head. Neither one can figure out what’s going on, only that they can hear each other’s thoughts, as well as a melody they can’t stop thinking about. The man, who calls himself Sasha, suggests they meet in person to solve this weird mystery. Perhaps the tune is a sign that Joni’s music mojo has returned? In any case, if they want their lives back, they’ll have to work together first.

This was a fun, fast read, which is just what I needed and expected. My favorite parts of the story were the ones where Joni and “Sasha” (you probably don’t need to read the book to figure out his real identity) are together and working through the bizarre situation they find themselves in: they can read each other’s thoughts and carry on telepathic conversations. This made for some very funny moments, especially since they’re both attracted to each other and can’t always control what they’re thinking. It was all done in a very PG 13 way, and I thought it was adorable.

Both characters are going through some personal struggles, and so part of their getting to know each other involves dealing with and helping each other through some tough times. Joni of course is dealing with her mom’s Alzheimer’s, and it’s even worse because her family doesn’t want to talk about it. Both her mom and dad act as if everything is fine, but then her mother has a bad day and Joni is faced with some hard truths. She’s also feeling guilty about her success as a songwriter, while her family seems to be falling apart. Sasha is also dealing with an identity crisis and is uncertain about his next career move. 

We also meet a bunch of side characters, all with quirks and unique personalities. Gigi is Joni’s best friend, and has lived in Vienna Shores her entire life. Gigi also has big dreams and she might not be able to find them by staying there. Joni’s family is larger than life—and I have to admit, they annoyed me at times. Both parents have cutesy nicknames for Joni (her dad calls her “daughter” and her mom calls her “heart”) and this got old very quickly. I did like the way the the family handled the mom’s illness, as they are trying to shield Joni from what’s happening, not realizing they’re actually shutting her out. These scenes felt honest and believable, but the interactions with her family were, for the most part, just a little too much for me.

What I did love, though, was the way Poston integrated music into her tale. Each chapter title is a song—”Closing Time (You Don’t Have to Go Home)” for example—and not only a song, but an earworm. I knew just about every one of the 43 chapter song titles, and to be honest, I’m still singing them to myself! Joni and Sasha write a song together over the course of the story, and those scenes were lots of fun too. Finally, Joni’s family owns a concert hall in Vienna Shores called the Revelry, where local musicians perform, and it’s the life blood of the family and a place where they’ve made so many memories over the years. There’s also a bit of drama surrounding the Revelry that added some nice tension to the story.

And if you’ve read The Seven Year Slip, there are a couple of fun crossover moments when some of the characters from that book show up in Vienna Shores!

An interesting twist with the song Joni and Sasha are writing happens near the end, and it sort of brought everything together in a nice, feel good way. Ashley Poston fans will love this book, and I hope there’s more to come.

Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.

Read my reviews:

The Seven Year Slip

A Novel Love Story