Thomas you wonderful soft boy. I am aaaaaaalways a sucker for he falls first (and harder) and this did not disappoint. Our man was down bad immediately and unapologetically and we love that for him (and also for Stella).

And Stella!!! A smart, savvy, sometimes sharp woman who knows what she wants and goes for it. I do not blame her one bit for her defenses and neither does Thomas. They were both so obviously heart-eyes emojis that it made me question how these otherwise very smart people could not recognize this in each other. But also, mood.

I wanted more??? Give me more of Thomas’ racing career, give me more of Stella’s London bakery. Also, they are both so forgiving I would have fought my family if I were either of them tbh

Ooo I enjoyed this it was so fun to see different characters and tropes done unexpectedly and uniquely. I love seeing a strong powerful business woman female main character get her happy ending and build her empire and he’s just there his job is drive and love her and we love that for him

I will be the first to admit I don’t know a lot about car racing but I thought this was a great book and I really liked the setting. I love books set in Vegas and while I sometimes thing the waking up in Vegas married storyline can be cliche I really liked this one.

Another great addition to the world of racing romance! I loved the nods to book one while keeping the story original. It's not super common to find a Vegas marriage in books these days, and I enjoyed every minute. A man who is simping over his fake wife?? SOLD. An independent business girlie ready to stand on her own? YOU GOT ME. This is a sloooooow burn. There's yearning and fake-puts, and "maybe just this onces;" these two actually kind of suck at being fake married with the intent to not fall in love. Simon Soltani, you've got yourself a long-time fan.

it was so good to have Stella be the main character!!

I also loved the way the trope of accidental wedding was written.

4/5 stars.
Not realizing this was book 2 in a series. I definitely need to go back and read Across the Line. That being said, you do not need to read book one before reading this as these are interconnected to standalone‘s.
Our MC’s meet in Las Vegas at a wedding. Both are kind of down on their luck. One was left at the altar—Stella— the other got bad press for wishing one of his competitors ill will. Needless to say they kick it off very well and find themselves the next day married.
This book is an:
F1
Accidental marriage/marriage of convenience
Slow burn romance

I will say I have been reading a lot of F1 romances lately and this scales to more mentioning of F1 and not a lot of racing on the scale of the F1 romance in my opinion and is more place than an F1 world more than anything. I did like how our author turned an accidental marriage into a marriage of convenience. I really liked how our characters relationship progressed overtime. And I really liked just watching them fall for each other more overtime because a lot of time marriage of convenience. They still might be that spark, but this starts off with the spark very much established in the very beginning of the book. I can’t wait to go back and read book one and I can’t wait to continue to read the author as they continue to release more titles.
Thank you so much Berkeley for providing me with an advanced reader, copy and exchange for an honest review

I adored book 1 and this one did not disappoint either! Cute, funny and racing galore! This author knows how to write romance and fast speed stories! This one will knock your socks off! The characters were so cool!!! 😎

3.5 ⭐️ I loved Cross the Line so I could not wait to jump into this one! Unfortunately, I did not love this one as much as I did the first. I absolutely LOVED Thomas, he was the absolute sweetest and the perfect love interest in my opinion. Stella, however, was a bit of a let down. I loved how she was an independent, successful business owner, but her actions in the latter half of the book did not make a lot of sense. There was absolutely no communication between her and Thomas despite their supporting one another and their relationship development up to that point in the book. It seemed like miscommunication thrown in solely for a third act breakup that felt disjointed and out of place. I wished their relationship started earlier than 70% of the book and that we could have seen more of them together because that part felt super rushed. I did really enjoy getting to know both characters and seeing their relationship develop, but the book just left me wanting more! I still would love to continue reading books by this author, they are a really fun time and I love F1 romances!

Features:
💜 F1 MMC x Bakery Owner FMC
💜 Accidental Marriage/Marriage of Convenience
💜 Forced Proximity
💜 Obsessed MMC
💜 “My Wife”
🌶️ 1/5

Publishing 5/20/25

Thank you so much to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing me with this eARC in exchange for my honest review!

This dual POV F1 romance features quippy language and reads quite quickly. It's intriguing and made me very interested to keep reading. It's cute, fun, and indulgent -- with some spice content, but not too much that overpowers the plot. Plus, there's a teeny, teeny little glimpse of Willow and Dev's HEA if you've already ready this author's "Cross the Line." But, if you haven't (like myself), don't worry, you aren't missing a crucial piece to the puzzle of Stella and Thomas' marriage of convenience story. It's a perfect summer beach read, or perfect to read during the actual F1 season -- whichever is more applicable to your preferences.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

This was such a cute, quick read! There were oh so much tension and love declarations to make your heart melt!

Stella is reeling over being left at the alter just weeks earlier when she attends her cousin's combined bachelor/bachelorette party. She is itching for a night full of fun and bad decisions when she sets her eyes on Thomas, an F1 racer and friend of the groom. Thomas has been trying to avoid the spotlight after being caught in an outrage saying terrible things about another racer. He could never believe that his forced attendance at this party would lead to him meeting the irresistible Stella. After hitting it off and having a few drinks, they sneak away from the group for some privacy and end up waking up the following day married with no idea how it happened!

Stella was an intriguing character. She was powerful, witty, and funny. She had her faults, but overall, you could understand her motivations and fears. She had such a solid backstory and characters that sometimes her vernacular was off-character, specifically in the beginning characters speaking to Thomas compared to the rest of the novel. I think it was a way for the author to make her seem more down-to-earth and relatable, but it did not make sense with her character.

Thomas was compelling as well. He was first mentioned in Cross The Line and was known as a likable but a bit stuffy British type. He was very likable, and I loved his character. We could have gone more into his backstory and family dynamics, but the glimpses we got allowed us to understand him and his actions.

I definitely recommend this if you want a quick romance that shows you have to be loved and how to give love while still being funny and super steamy! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book, which is set to be published on May 20, 2025!

This was soo cute!!! I love F1 and I love marriage of convenience so this combo of the two was so good🤭I must say out of the two books in this series so far this one is my fav. This story was fun, funny, sweet and so swoon worthy! Stella and Thomas were a perfect match and their angst, tension and banter was so delicious! The man that Thomas is PLEASE!!! I had a great time reading this and I enjoyed it so much!!

🏎️ arc review🏎️

⭐️⭐️⭐️/🌶️

Thank you to Berkley for sending me an ARC of Ride with Me by Simone Soltani!

This was my first time reading Simone’s work, and I was really impressed at first. Her writing is strong, and I was hooked right away. But as the book went on, I did feel like it started to drag a bit. While the writing itself is great, I kind of wished the story was a bit shorter—maybe about 150 pages less.

The first 30% of the book is all about the characters meeting and accidentally getting married, which I thought was a fun twist. But then, the next 50% felt like a lot of unnecessary rules about keeping things platonic, and it slowed things down for me.

I really wanted to love this one, but it just wasn’t quite my vibe. That said, I think fans of Lauren Asher’s Dirty Air series will enjoy it, especially if you’re into slow burns and marriage of convenience stories.

Tropes:
F1 romance
Marriage of convenience
Strong FMC
Slow burn

Really really liked the character growth and genuine respect and devotion they had for each other.
Wish there was a little more F1 in it though.

I love F1 romance and can now say that I will be reading more - it's just so good!

I loved all of the racing aspects that Simone Soltani included - it made it feel real and kept me engaged and excited. The chemistry between the characters was off the charts - a marriage of convenience turning into so much more and crafted in a way that feels absolutely delicious and true. From the fast cars and bright lights of Las Vegas, I never stopped wanting more and I absolutely ate this book up in a sitting. I was only focused on the book and honestly felt a wee bit dazed when I reached the end! And that - that is the sign of an incredibly well written book!

Thank you so much to both NetGalley and Berkley for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review! I cannot wait to have this gorgeous book on my shelves!!

i didn't quite feel butterflies with this one, but i'm still convinced that stella and thomas are always on each other's teams. not sure if i'm feeling slightly more cynical and jaded with the romance media (both books and tv) that i've been consuming recently, but the pacing for stella to get over (likely not everything but at least enough) to trust thomas felt confusing. and a bit abrupt.

i'm still fairly new to f1 romances, so i'm not sure if this is how all of them are. that being said, i've noticed that they jump around to different settings much more than other sports romances (even though other pro athletes travel also travel a lot for work). i find it kind of jarring and hard to always have the characters jetting around to different places, in addition to the fact that there were so many characters and things happening in this book, that i felt a bit like i was in a whirlwind too.

i'm always going to champion romance authors of color, but i can't say that i'm going to be waiting with bated breath for the next book in this series.

Loved this book! I love Formula 1 romance and this checked all the boxes. Married in Vegas? Fake dating? An absolutely delightful, wild ride with a couple I rooted for right from the start!

Ride With Me features Stella, baker and entrepreneur and Thomas, F1 Driver. Stella and Thomas meet at a co bachelor/bachelorette party in Vegas. With sparks absolutely flying between them, the flirt and dance and drink and wake up the next day married. They decide to ride it out for publicity reasons, even as they both are falling for each other.

This started off so good. I was right there for all the flirty and steamy banter. Thomas and Stella immediately clicked and I loved the tension of their flirting. But then they were married and it was like the book slammed on the breaks. I read the first 25% percent in a day, the next 50% over the course of a week and then the last 25% in an afternoon. The middle just… stalled. No banter, no time spent together, just two hot idiots pretending they weren’t totally in love. So frustrating.

Overall, it was fine. The ending did pick up, but I’m sad that the middle wasted all the good beginnings potential.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Ride With Me is the second book in the Lights Out standalone series.

Two weeks ago, Stella was left at the altar. She was supposed to be fresh from her honeymoon, but instead, she is wallowing while at her cousin's combined bachelor/bachelorette party in Vegas. Stella decides to make the most out of the night by flirting with a handsome race car driver attending the party. One thing leads to another, and the next morning, Stella wakes up married to Thomas Maxwell-Brown - the man she flirted with the night before. As crazy as it is, the two decide to act like their marriage is a real thing because of the mutually beneficial situation. As they get to know each other, they try to fight the inevitable feelings they develop for one another.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I mainly picked up this book because I need more race car driver romances in my life. I'm not surprised that this marriage of convenience romance hit the spot for me. It had just enough race car stuff for me to get a feel for the sport and culture of the sport. Those race scenes were an exciting change of pace for the story and I thought they were integrated into the romance perfectly.

Stella was a woman who was meant to dominate the world. She made things happen and there was no wonder why she was such a successful business woman. I liked that she was the one to help Thomas and not a damsel in distress who needed saving.

Thomas was sweet, thoughtful, and funny. I loved that he fell head over heels for Stella even though he had no intention of settling down before he met her.

Pick this one up for a fun and enjoyable marriage of convenience romance set in the Formula 1 world!

Steam level: 🔥🔥🔥

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

This was so much fun! I thoroughly enjoyed Cross the Line for all of the F1 tidbits and I was a bit disappointed that we didn't get to see much racing here. That said, I did enjoy more of the behind the scenes team/sponsorship aspects. Banter was good, spice was just enough.

Accidental marriage is so not my trope, but boy do I love a "take your hands off my wife"" moment.

This book was such a good ride ;) I am a sucker for a fake-dating/ marriage of convenience story and this is a bit of both. Thomas and Stella drunkenly get married in Vegas then decide to "stay together" aka present a united front to the media to help repair their image and they think they can keep faking it for the public and keep things platonic. But gooooosshhh the tension was good. I loved Thomas' character, how sweet he was and attentive and noticing the small details. We all need a Thomas am I right?
In all seriousness, this book is an easy read that you will undoubtedly enjoy about two characters that are afraid of falling in love. Sweet, a little spicy and enough action that you won't want to put it down.