Love at First Note by Jenny Proctor

Book reviews are subjective. I tend to rate books not according to how “perfect” they are, seem to be, or are said to be in general but rather to how perfect they are to me. I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

Love at First Note by Jenny Proctor

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Concertmaster Emma Hill isn’t exactly an obscure violinist, but, fame-wise, she’s not on the level of pianist and current pop culture sensation, Elliott Hart. There are plenty of reasons why a relationship between the two of them would never work, but, still, off they go in Love at First Note by author Jenny Proctor.

Initially, I wasn’t sure how far this story led by its tongue-tied and rather quirky heroine might pull me into the music, but, goodness, did it ever pull me. One rendition of “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” had me lifting my hands in the air. And it wasn’t just the music that got me. What I thought started off as a humorous and entertaining enough story became a symphony of emotion and (sometimes painful) discovery, to the point where I felt everything. The joy, the fear, the frustration, the passion, the doubt, the determination, the romance.

The story’s pretty central question of “What do you want?” cuts deep, in a down-to-earth way, and it’s interesting to see how the characters deal with the price of fame, the cost of careers, and what it all shows them about themselves. Now, I did find one theme to be fairly redundant; I don’t imagine the reader would miss the significance of Emma’s being a Mormon even if she and the other characters didn’t keep repeating it so much.

But I think it’s a novel that any fan of contemporary romance can enjoy, especially arts enthusiasts. Not to sound corny, but it really is a “you’ll laugh, you’ll cry” type of read, its own kind of quirky but ultimately harmonious masterpiece.