I absolutely love a strong FMC that is perfectly imperfect, smart AND witty. This was my first Karen Booth novel and I don't like to compare authors, but I really hope everyone sees this as the compliment that it is when I state that this reminded me of an Ali Hazelwood.

Mia, the serial careerist, chronic overthinker and owner of multiple advanced degrees is many things, but being a Formula 1 race fan is now propelling her into the spotlight. Her 'Not So Fast' podcast gets her invited to a F1 race in Miami where she meets the driver that helped her gain popularity. Mia might have made some harsh remarks about the hot, young driver Xander Bishop but their meeting in Miami kick-starts a season of fun and a hot romance!

I am not a fan of Formula 1 and don't even know anything about this sport, but this book was really easy to follow and kept me interested!

A cute, fun, and quick (maybe too quick) F1 romance that was a great palate cleanser after reading some heavier books recently. I know very little about F1, so I can’t speak to the accuracy of the way the sport is depicted in this book. The narrative didn’t overwhelm me with details and made the sport feel accessible to a newbie.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC, which was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Is it any use saying that from the moment I saw the cover of the book I pictured George Russell and from there I couldn't stop?

I liked the book overall, I felt it had some parts that were a bit unrealistic, like the times when they were moving from one place to another which physically speaking would be a bit impossible, but otherwise I found it an interesting and agile story.

This was a fun romance between a british formula one driver and an American podcaster. I did not know anything about F1 prior to reading this book but you really don't have to know anything about the sport to enjoy this book. The romance was sweet and had some good spice scenes. I enjoyed reading through both their respective troubles with Xander struggling to perform on the racetrack and Mia second guessing her success and insecurities. I loved both family dynamics. This was my first book by this author and it is perfect for a lighthearted good time. Definitely makes me want to get into F1.

I thought this book was decent. It wasn’t really good but it wasn’t bad either.

I was hoping for more of a build-up to them getting together and more angst but it all moved so quickly. I mean by 25% they already really liked each other and were hooking up. After that it was just moving in a straight line. I was basically skimming for a bit at the end because nothing major was happening.

I will say I enjoyed the play out of the races and excitement around them. I know nothing about F1 but now I want to go down the rabbit hole. I really liked Xander, but Mia did get on my nerves for a hot second. Otherwise, I liked the two characters together.

I was so excited about this as a romance reader and Formula One fan! I love how accurate the F1 details were and I even learned things that I didn’t know before. I loved the fact that the fmc was also very invested in F1 and had so much knowledge and passion about it. I thought both characters were sweet and made a good pair. I wish that we got a little more depth with them. They felt a little surface level and I wish we got to have a more emotional connection with them. Overall a fun, lighthearted sports romance with decent spice and no third act breakup! 3.5 stars but I rounded up due to star limit.

I adored this novel. Mia and Xander are #couplegoals as they navigate a public relationship. Their mutual respect is #lovelanguage. Even if you aren’t an F1 fan, this is a must read.

4.25 ⭐️ I was very pleasantly surprised. Lots of action happened quickly and I was hooked.. but then everything slowed down around 60% for a bit. Ultimately I still really enjoyed it. It might be one of my top light, easy romance novels. Spicy, but not so much that it was uncomfortable or repetitive. All of this coming from a big F1 girly! Thank you NetGalley, Harlequin Books and Karen Booth for the ARC.

What an exciting read! This story truly captures the adrenaline and thrill of an F1 race. I don’t know much about the sport myself—most of what I’ve learned comes from my daughter and husband, who are huge fans—and they agreed the book’s portrayal of F1 was accurate and well-researched.

Now, on to the story itself: fantastic characters, genuine character growth, vivid descriptions, and a swoony love story. The romance is enemies to lovers, but the “enemies” part is really just at the beginning—and honestly, you can’t blame either of them. If someone hosted a podcast tearing you apart, you’d probably hate them too. And if you *were* that podcaster, you’d absolutely have beef with a hotshot driver publicly undermining you. But once they start geting to know each other, uff the chemistry sizzles and there is nothing hotter than Mia and Xander toguether.

But once they start getting to know each other—uff—the chemistry sizzles. There is nothing hotter than Mia and Xander together. Their banter, vulnerability, and heat? Chef’s kiss.

This book is for you if you like:

+Sports romance
+Enemies to lovers
+F1 (with accurate behind-the-scenes details)
+Emotional maturity
+Podcast dynamics and media insight
+Off-the-charts chemistry that burns.

3.25 stars. Rom-Com. Almost insta-love. Sports romance. Dislike to lovers.
Mia is a podcaster who is covering Formula 1 racing. Xander is a Formula 1 driver that Mia dislikes until she is able to meet him face to face, and then BOOM... love. Not really much play or lead up to them falling in love after meeting, and I think in my mind, I wanted that out of this story.
The characters lacked a bit of depth and complexity - they were one-dimensional. I just couldn't connect because I didn't find them engaging.
All this to say the book wasn't bad per se, it just wasn't what I wanted and expected. I was so excited to read this ARC, but it fell a bit flat for me. I also had some issues with the plot structure as far as the POV was concerned; it just felt like the pacing was off for me.
I did love to see an MMC that supported the FMC's career goals! This was such a great representation in the book - you rarely see this! This is a quick read. I still think it is worth a read.
I was so obsessed with Lauren Asher's Dirty Air series, so I may gone into the book wanting something along those lines, but this just didn't quite do it for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and Karen Booth for the opportunity to read this ARC!

In all the cringiest meet cutes in the world, this has landed a spot on my top five list. Now, before you let that scare you off, you should know that I love cringe. I love it when it is so awkward for the pair that you want to crawl under a rock and hide on their behalf. I love that secondhand embarrassment so acute that you’re not sure if you can keep reading. Not So Fast had it in spades.

Mia is a Formula 1 junkie turned sports podcaster with some growing popularity. A lot of which came after she made a number of scathing comments about one of the sport's newest top drivers. When she meets him at a racing event in Miami, it’s all awkwardness and sparks.

This easily could have been an enemies situation with barbs and banter and it would have been a lot of fun, but Booth chose to take it a different route and turned them into nearly instant friends. I found it an interesting choice and honestly really enjoyed the dynamics between Mia and Xander as they struggled to balance their friendship and growing attraction while also dealing with both of them being in highly public positions.

I can’t say how accurate the racing stuff was since I’m not a fan of racing in general and have even more limited knowledge on Formula 1, I will say I enjoyed this book a lot for someone who isn’t a racing fan.

To paraphrase the title, the story went too fast for me to enjoy it. The transition from enemies to lovers is decidedly unbelievable and too quick for one to be credible even if to enjoy a love story between a handsome F1 driver and a normal girl the suspension of belief is already very very tested. However the engineering and historical part is well done and I still learned many new things.

Karen Booth's Not So Fast was my introduction to the world of Formula 1 romance, and I have to say—it was an entertaining ride! While I usually prefer books written in first-person perspective, that was the only reason this didn’t quite hit a full five stars for me.

Mia is sharp, knowledgeable, and never afraid to prove it. Xander quickly realizes that she knows exactly what she’s talking about, and watching his growing admiration for her was such a satisfying slow burn. The podcast drama surrounding Mia wasn’t my favorite aspect, but it did add a realistic layer to her journey.

This book delivers on its promises—a fast-paced celebrity/Formula 1 romance packed with enemies-to-lovers and secret dating tropes. I enjoyed Mia as a female lead. Her drive to continuously explore different paths until she found her true calling made her incredibly relatable, even if her motivations weren’t always the best.

That said, Xander absolutely stole the show for me. He was mature, principled, and always willing to stand up for what was right. Most importantly, he respected Mia enough to let her make her own choices about what she truly wanted, which is exactly what we love to see in a romance hero!

4⭐, 2.75🌶️

I love a fun F! romance and this book was so hecking adorable. I loved that it all starts because Mia has a GERAT F1 podcast and makes fun of Xander. So his rival brings her to a GP to get into his head, and she does...because he's attracted to her! I loved how adorable the romance between Xander and Mis is - how it felt like it could be a real story in todays world. I wasn't a great fan of the drama between Mia and her "fans" because while it was realistic it just made me sad. Xander was such a mature characters as well which was so fun and less stressful leading into the "third act break"

Great F1 romance if you've never really read the sport as a romance or know much about it. Karen Booth does a great job of explaining the elements of an F1 GP weekend and the choice of making Mia so knowledgeable of F1 was THE VIBE!

🩷Emenies-esque to Lovers
🩵 Secret Relationship
🏎️F1 Romance
🏁He Falls First and Hard
🩵She's his fan

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin - Romance for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

This was my first Karen Booth book that I have read, but it certainly won't be my last! Once I started, I was unable to put the book down. The tug-of-war felt between Mia and Xander keeps the story fast paced and intriguing. What starts off as enemies-to-lovers quickly turns into intense chemistry with the end results of something real.
Karen Booth has the gift of writing and bringing her characters to life. I enjoyed watching the characters grow into their own and watch their relationship grow along with them.
I highly recommend this book - it is a must read!

Fast-paced celebrity/Formula 1 Racing romance read with an enemies to lovers trope and secret dating trope AND Dual POV.

I enjoyed this book - it's sweet and spicy but the characters are both figuring themselves out and how they relate to their world. The headings of the chapter are the characters' responses to a mental health journal -- and it is interesting as the character develop over the book.

If you like the sport, even a little, this book is right for you. When I picked up this book, I expected just a story with slight F1 info but this book was more than I imaged. I loved the knowledge about the sport that is mixed in with the love story. Every time Xander was in the race car, I felt like I was watching the race on tv. By the time the last race happened, I was chewing my nails hoping for the best.
The spice level is pretty high and it adds more to the story than just some sex scenes.
Mia's perspective of life made me think about my life and if I should start a journal. She is a great character that is relatable in today's world.
Definitely a beach/pool read!

3.5 stars

This was a fun Formula 1 romance that I truly enjoyed. It was short, sweet, and spicy and was a perfect read after more intense books.

I enjoyed Mia as a FMC. I loved that she was always trying new things until she found her right fit, even if it wasn’t always for the right reasons.

However, Xander stole the show for me. He was mature and willing to stand up for what was right, and always gave Mia the space to make her own decisions on what she wanting, which we LOVE to see.

Overall, this was a fun read and I enjoyed how it integrated F1 into a story, and made it accessible.

Thanks to Afterglow by Harlequin and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I will read anything that has racing and F1 and this was just an enjoyable and fun experience. I want to read more in this world as soon as possible.

This was such a fun, lighthearted read with a great rom-com feel! While the “enemies to lovers” trope is a draw, I did feel the relationship moved a bit too quickly for my taste. However, I appreciated the way both characters evolved individually and together.

One of my favorite surprises was how much I learned about F1 racing—I wasn’t expecting to come away with such a new appreciation for the sport! The journaling entries at the beginning of each chapter were a unique and thoughtful touch that added charm.

Overall, this is a sweet, fast-paced romance perfect for readers who enjoy character-driven stories with a touch of personal growth and a fun, sporty backdrop.

Thank you Net Galley for providing me with an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own