When the unexpected happens Harper becomes team members with one of his heros. Although star-struck, competition on and off the oval Stokes the heat between the two. Kian and Harper find their way in a super messy life to play hard and live hard

This was a fun listen for me. As an F1 girlie I was excited to read about queer racers. I did however wish the whole world were imaginary or set in real life. I found it weird that McLaren exists but there were racing for a made up team. Also the inaccuracy about how F1 works was a bit annoying as an F1 fan that watched every Grand Prix weekend. But overall I still had a fun time listening. The narrators were great!

🏁 Pole Position by Rebecca J. Caffery – Audiobook Review

Just finished Pole Position and wow, this book is everything! 😍 If you're into enemies-to-lovers, grumpy x sunshine, and forced proximity tropes, this one's for you. Kian and Harper's chemistry is off the charts, and the racing backdrop adds so much excitement to their story. The narration by Joshua Chase and James Joseph really brought the characters to life, making this audiobook a must-listen. 🎧

📚 Tropes:
🏎️ Enemies to Lovers
🌤️ Grumpy x Sunshine
🏁 Forced Proximity
🔥 Spicy Romance
🎭 Sports Romance

📌 Hashtags:
#PolePosition #RebeccaJCaffery #AudiobookReview #EnemiesToLovers #GrumpySunshine #ForcedProximity #SportsRomance #F1Romance #RomanceBooks #BookRecommendation

I love F1 and this romance was so fun! It was hilarious and the spice was impeccable. I really loved this book and look forward to reading more by the author!

3.75 stars rounded up

Have I entered my F1 era?!?! I had such a great time with this audiobook. The banter and intention were top tier. When the bad boy and golden child have to work together on the same team, tension is high. The narrators did a wonderful job of immersing you into the story.

3.75 Stars

While this is not the most accurate book when it comes to the F1 world of racing it is a good story to listen to as one is cleaning house and doing other chores. I was given the opportunity to review to the audiobook by #NetGalley for an honest review.

This story starts with the principal driver, Kian Walker, finding out his good friend and co driver on his team is out for the season due to injury. He finds out that they have called up a rookie driver from the lower level. They are calling up the randy playboy Harper James. Kian is very aware of Harper and his ways.

Harper James is ecstatic about being on the team and in the presence of Kian Walker. Harper has idolized his father for years and Kian is just as good as his dad. When Harper mentions this to Kian, Kian shuts down on him and marches off.

The author's attempt at a grumpy older driver and a golden retriever younger driver that fall for each other comes up a bit short for me. It seems like there are some holes in the overall plot. They circle each other like caged lions and are told to get over each other and get along by the team owner. They try to do things together but all of a sudden there is some mutual attraction while they are a club. It seemed to time wrap a bit.

Then Harper ends up call Kian after a bad night at the club, Kian comes running to help and then cuddling ensues. Then Kian pushes him away again only to run to Harper's rescue again when he gets food poisoning.

This story had some great potential of push and pull but it fell a little flat for me.

I am a huge lover of MM sports romance, so I was so excited to see this one available as an ALC! I loved the set up of this book, rivals to lovers, forced proximity, and age gap, sign me up! I did really enjoy this one, but would have loved a little more banter and pining!

Very cute and something I enjoyed reading. The writing may not have been for me, though. I didn't feel like the characters were likable, and I thought that the bad blood between them felt forced.

I absolutely LOVE MM and could not wait to get my hands on this one!!!! I’ve never read a F1 story and knew this would be a good one. The forced proximity and the journey from enemies to lovers was 🧑‍🍳 💋. Play boy turned obsessed partner is my FAVORITE. Well done.

*Thank you net galley for letting me read this*

Well damn. That's all I have to say. I love MM romances so it's hard to dissatisfy me. I will say that this lowkey reminded me of this Thai BL dram pitbabe.. probably because it involves racetracks and that's it but still! I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This is a captivating enemies-to-lovers audiobook set in the world of Formula 1. Kian Walker, a seasoned champion, meets Harper James, a bold rookie with a fiery reputation. Their rivalry is electric, and the tension crackles as they navigate personal struggles and professional ambitions. Narrators Joshua Chase and James Joseph deliver dynamic performances, capturing the characters' emotional depth and fiery chemistry. While the miscommunication trope felt overused, the heartfelt moments and sizzling romance kept me hooked. The story's exploration of trust, vulnerability, and self-discovery makes it a rewarding listen. Whether you're a racing fan or not, this audiobook is a thrilling and emotional ride worth taking.

I had the pleasure of listening to the audiobook of Pole Position through Net Galley and it was an experience! The narration exceeded my expectations and was a dream come true for this F1 fan! The narration for Kian and Harper were distinct and matched their personalities -- from Kian's grumpy seriousness to Harper's playfully flirty, yet relaxed delivery, it was easy to distinguish whose POV you're listening to and added dimension to the dialogue. The best surprise was in the narration of the team principal, who gave Gunther Steiner vibes (my fellow F1 fans will know what I mean) in the BEST way.

When you have so many beautiful people in a sport and now with the help of social media and Drive to Survive such a spotlight on player relationships and friendships, fans are bound to wonder what happens behind closed doors. Are those friendships purely platonic ooooooor is there something more? I’m not going to lie, like a good little fangirl, I’ve shipped my favorite drivers and I think this book does a great job of building a narrative between player dynamics within a team and across teams. But the way Rebecca wrote the suppressed longing, built tension and gave us glimpses into each character's most intimate wants, made me wish I could live in this world to facilitate a conversation between Kian and Harper to simply get the ball rolling.

For my fellow F1 fans, Kian Walker gives Lewis Hamilton vibes, but with fewer WCs. He's family-centric, but fully dedicated to the sport giving his all to be the best team player while maintaining his own regimen to stay at the top of the sport. Meanwhile, Harper James gives more of a Ricciardo vibe (or even a young Lewis), but amplified on the party boy front. He's a bit silly, in it for a good time... “the guy you hook up with oat a club, but not have a relationship with." But my favorite quality about Harper is how he truly admires Kian, his childhood hero. He wants to learn from him, get to know him, and is so excited to be able to race with him. And he's talented. Even Kian begrudgingly admits Harper is a circuit genius who “always knows exactly what’s coming next but doesn’t overthink things.”

But their first few days in pre-season training are bumpy as they each make assumptions about each other based on their reputations and their relationships (or lack thereof) with their parents impact how they approach each other... or prickle any progress they make. Their love story unfolds in the way forced proximity and undeniable chemistry does -- with an overwhelming explosion of frustrating emotion undeterred by the highest walls of defenses. My heart could not stand the agony and my stomach was in knots as Harper and Kian found the balance between performance, strength of character, and finding love off the track.

Ultimately, the balance between on-track coverage and off-track romance was nicely done. It was fun to ride-along with the drivers during GPs and to listen in on their radios as we do when watching a GP from the comfort of our own homes. And the off-track coverage provided a nice glimpse into what it's like to travel from country to country during the grueling season. There were moments where I wished we could have felt more of the grandiose atmosphere of a GP because there is nothing quite like it... but as this was written from drivers' POV, it made sense that they would be in the zone and bring a different perspective than what the crowd experiences.

With all the ups and downs in this story, I appreciated that their relationship didn't require a grand announcement or an official coming out. It was just accepted that two people can fall in love and it just is. But I think it was also good to acknowledge that not all countries F1 races in would have embraced their relationship openly. It’s something that Lewis Hamilton has raised attention to, which makes this romance a statement.

I honestly don't know what I expected from this book. I just know that it left me deeply disappointed.
Nothing about this was RWRB. Both main characters lacked depth, which caused them to come over as selfish and arrogant. There was zero chemistry between them. Kian was obstinate and bland and it bugged me that, as the driver in the tea with more seniority, he never gave Harper a real chance and just wrote him off as an annoying party kid. Meanwhile, Harper's lack of professionalism was just disrespectful towards the team, and the way he borderline sexually harassed Kian at the beginning never sat right with me. They've known each other for mere days, are practically strangers, and Harper has the gall to shamelessly oggle Kian and make lewd remarks about his swimwear.

As someone who's not at all into the F1 scene, this book lacked the proper explanation for me. No terms were explained properly. If you don't know anything about F1 or how the racing works, you will get lost in this book. I clocked out around the 20% mark and then just listen-skimmed over it.

There's better gay books out there. Don't bother wasting your time on this one.

I ate this book up! The tension, the drama, while also diving in to some deeper topics. Loved it! The audio for this one was amazing. I would definitely recommend listening to it if you can! Thank you Netgalley for the ALC!

3.5 stars

Thank you to Harper Collins and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, I enjoyed this one. I felt like it took too long to get started in their romance aspect… the slow burn was almost too much. Every conversation and monologue led in circles, but once the book finally got into the groove I liked watching Kian and Harper’s dynamic turn from simple desire to a deep companionship.

I also really appreciated Kian’s love for his family, and his sister caring from their ailing mother.

The ending of the book really gave this book an extra 0.5 stars for me with how everything played out. The epilogue was so sweet.

CW: sexual content, death of parent, panic attacks/disorders, alcohol, car accident, injury/injury detail, homophobia

This audiobook took me a little while to get into, plot-wise. I considered DNFing it, but I am so glad I didn’t. Once I got past the enemies part of the enemies-to-lovers trope, I was hooked!

As someone who knows little about Formula 1, this was easy to follow with the racing subplot. It was not confusing to me.

Please make sure to check the content warnings before reading this book.

It’s marketed as Red, White, and Royal Blue meets Formula 1, and that’s exactly what it is!

I will say, the reason I did not give this book 5 stars is because the audiobook felt SO LONG (which, depending on your preferences, might not be a bad thing, but I prefer audiobooks that feel like they fly by as opposed to one that feels longer).

I definitely recommend this book to Formula 1 lovers who double as readers!

Audiobook Review 🎧

This was such a fun and sexy listen! I loved the attraction, chemistry, and banter between Kian and Harper! Kian showed so much vulnerability and growth, and I was mentally screaming at Harper to get it together for my heart’s sake! Ultimately, this ended up being a sweet, heartfelt love story that I didn’t want to end!

The narrators for this audiobook were both amazing and Pole Position is a must read or listen for all rom-com lovers! Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys sexy sports romances with just the right amount of sweetness. Definitely for fans of Red, White, and Royal Blue!

Thank you to HarperAudio Adult and NetGalley for the incredible audiobook!

There are repeat words in chapter 6 around 35-40 seconds in.


I really enjoyed the story. The book could be edited to make it flow better and faster. Some things were a bit too drawn out. But the story was good, unique, and realistic. I liked the characters so much that I would want to be friends with them. I look forward to more books from Caffery.

I loved this romance between two F1 drivers who are navigating tough things both on and off the track. Harper's storyline had a coming-of-age aspect that I really liked that added depth to this romance. It was both sexy and sweet, and I loved the F1 setting. The audio narration from both James Joseph and Joshua Chase was outstanding.

Thank you to the publisher and net galley for copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Audio Adult for an arc copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

I want to start by saying I LOVED this book. I read via audio and I loved the narrators as well.

This book is full of the competitive nature with sports, hot hot tension, and character development that made me swoon for both main characters. I just loved Kian and Harper’s dynamic and how they progressed through the story.

Also, the title is super cute playing on the theme of the book.

Once again, I want to thank NetGalley and Harper Audio Adult for the arc audio copy of this book!