This was such a fun listen! While I know next to nothing about F1 in real life, I loved that I could connect with Mia as a chronic over thinker and the chemistry between the characters felt mostly believable. There were some silly nit picky things that made parts unbelievable (who travels from Texas to London and isn't completely exhausted when they arrive?!), but nothing so bad that I couldn't push past it.

While the story did include a bit of insta-love, it also made a point to show that the characters grow and move past what they're working through together, which was super refreshing. Mild spoiler: it did NOT include a 3rd act breakup conflict! I have gotten really tired of unnecessary breakups just to move a story to the HEA, but this one didn't have that, which I loved.

Talon David did a great job narrating this book, too. I wasn't sure how I felt about one narrator for a dual POV story, but she managed to give every character a different voice, which was definitely needed.

The POV does switch between the characters frequently without any sort of indication so there's a little bit of mental gymnastics needed to get used to that. This might be better in a physical or digital copy of the book, but that was the only issue I had with the audiobook version.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for the ALC of Not So Fast!!

Thank you @netgalley for the ALC of @karenbbooth new novel, Not So Fast!
This was such a fun listen! The characters were so genuine and real, the emotion was so well portrayed, as well as the honest to God truth of Mia's situation of not knowing what to do with her life and just trying to find something that gives her enough freedom and also a sense of satisfaction! Xander battles with his own past and his mental state were so well characterized too, he really did work to trust himself and her through the book!

Super fun read and a great job by the narrator (though I low key wish it was a duel narration), it was super satisfying at the end!

While sports romances have not always been at the top of my TBR pile (unless it's hockey), this book has put Formula One books on my radar. (Or perhaps just books by Karen Booth?) So, for all of you who have the need for speed, it's time to pick up Not So Fast. Karen shows us that she's quite capable of crossing the finish line!

My only problem with the book was the multiple POV switches in the same chapter (but it didn't bother me enough for me to lower the rating on the book). While this may be denoted by scene/POV change graphics in the paperback/ebook, there is no such thing in the audiobook.

Talon David did a great job with the voices and narration in this book.

I'd like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

What a fun listen; as someone who never really got into racing I actually quite enjoyed this!
Mia who runs a podcast gets invited to an F1 race after making some comments & meets the driver in question Zander.
Little did either of them know they were gonna catch feelings and I honestly loved it!!

Hoping for maybe a second book from the author with Emilio’s story maybe! ;)

Big thank you to NetGallery and Harlequin Audio for an ALC oh Not So Fast

“Not So Fast” is my first sports enemies-to-lovers romance and I found it cute and very much enjoyable. I have absolutely no knowledge of F1 racing and that is fine because I don’t feel like any bit of the banter or lingo was lost on me. The storyline was easy to follow and fun. The FMC Mia is a sassy podcaster who gets the opportunity to meet various racers, one being Xander Bishop, who Mia has quite a few snarky opinions about. The two butt heads but each hold their own against the others banters and of course, what would the novel be without the two falling for each other.
One aspect I did like was the ‘break’ they took in the end of the story for Mia to put the relationship into perspective, this was an interesting turn because where other books may have had the inevitable break-up or some other storyline, this one allows for the characters to take the time to make the choice and tie up many questions that are lingering for everyone. And oh what an ending. It was everything I was hoping for and more.

This is an easy read if you want to snuggle up with a good book on a Sunday afternoon.
Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Romance for the digital ARC.

Overthinking podcaster Mia’s viral commentary on Formula One driver Xander lands her a VIP pass to the Miami Grand Prix. Despite their initial animosity, a sizzling attraction ignites, threatening Mia’s carefully constructed life.

Funny and spicy and smart, this novel left me smiling. Mia and Xander are sweet together with sizzling chemistry. The story is fast-paced with a strong family vibe. I loved the audiobook narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This was a first F1 romance read for me.
It was cute. Character building was great so was the story line! Very little spice, Insta love, enemies to lovers! Good Audio to listen to!

I definitely enjoyed my first F1 romance. This was a fun easy listen. I enjoyed the narration and it was multiple unique and distinctive voices from Talon David. They did an amazing job giving everyone there own accent and unique traits. This played out with a fun romance storyline and good spicy and bonding moments. Ikight need to go and see what other book Karen Booth has written it had a perfect conclusion and lots of giddy cute moments.

This was such a cute F1 romance read! The sexual tension between Mia and Zander was strong from the beginning and the low level spice was great. Zander seemed like such a great guy who just had some outside of F1 stuff going on that was affecting his driving. Mia was struggling herself to really find her place in the working world after getting two masters, one in journalism and one in psychology. Her mom was and interesting character but I loved how she came around and was more supportive of Mia by the en of the book. The story does give a look at how people think that they are allowed to have opinions about other peoples lives just because they share some stuff on the internet. I loved Zander's family and the storyline with them. The narration was great!

Rating ⭐3.5
Spice 🌶️2
Cover 3/5
Narrator 4/5

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a review, that being said I will not let that affect the content of my review, My thoughts and opinions shared here are my own, and I am committed to offering a fair assessment that does not aim to detract from the author's work.

I liked it, I thought it was cute. I did find myself agreeing with the mom most of the time though simply because it is unfathomable to me to work hard for not one but two Masters degrees in a viable field (journalism and psychology) and then not use it and basically work some minimum wage job or have no job at all simply because you got bored with it, the author does expand on it making that the reason she wanted to start the podcast and Mia does sort of acknowledge in the end that it is an issue which does make sense to the story, it just made it difficult for me to connect with her character because I don't understand that mentality.

Zander on the other hand was a good character, he was sweet and caring and I like male protagonists written like that, he took care of his family even if it was detrimental to his mental health and was an all around good guy.

I don't know how accurate it was to Formula One history or any details mentioned because I had no prior knowledge of the sport before reading this novel, but it was interesting. It's not normally a genre I would normally read, but it was cute.

F1 romances are really having *a moment,* and Not So Fast by Karen Booth was a fun additional to the F1 romance roster.

Mia Neal is a popular F1 podcaster who has had some *choice words* about Xander Bishop's performance this season. She's invited to the Miami Grand Prix by his antagonistic teammate in an attempt to mess with Xander's head, and while she's there, she and Xander cross paths. Needless to say, there's tension from the very beginning, and sparks fly. One thing leads to another and before long, Xander is flying Mia out to Silverstone and then subsequent grand prixs. Initially, it's to help her podcast and defend his image and performance on the track, but all too quickly, it's because he can't get enough of her. They try to keep their relationship under wraps, but nothing can stay secret for long when you're both surrounded by cameras and speculation.

Talon David delivered a wonderful performance as the sole narrator. The audiobook was easy to listen to. The plot beats were just a tiny bit predictable, but I loved that Mia was curvy, smart, and successful, and Xander, well, he was delightful and gave off serious George Russell vibes. Overall, it was a fast-paced, steamy romance with race cars that go really, really fast. Do I wish it had had a *smidge* more depth? Sure. Did the romance move a *little too fast* for my liking? Yes. Did I enjoy it anyway? Also yes.

A solid four star read.

Thank you to Harlequin Audio for my ALC.

I just finished Not So Fast by Karen Booth and I might be into F1 racing now?!

This was such a fun read full of great banter, cute characters, fast cars, amazing locations, and some crazy chemistry. I LOVED Mia and Xander! They were pretty much every fan girls dream!

From the moment they met, you KNEW there was chemistry and the more they were together on the page, the more it settled in and you didn’t want to put the book down! Or turn it off because I listened to the audio book!

On that note, I loved the audio! Mia’s voice was perfect and when you hear Xander’s British accent?? I mean, I understand why Mia fell so hard and fast 😉

I may just get into some F1 races after this one!

This book will be out in the world on May 27th! So go get that preorder in and get excited! I’ll see you at the races 🏎️
•
• Thanks @NetGalley and @Harlequin Books for this amazing read!!

The story was okay it was more like a pallet cleanser book for me. This story was okay. I loved the narrator though, It was hard to believe that this wasn't narrated in dual. Also, this was my first F1 racing book I'm going to have to get some more I really liked that aspect of the book. Mia is a podcaster the goes viral for saying something about Xander and she gets invited to a race by Xander teammate/rival. One thing after another they end up going to races then falling in love. Very insta love once it starts, I do wish that part would have slowed down I'm not the biggest fan of insta love unless it's a novella. But overall I did enjoy this book.

Thank you Harlequin Audio and NetGalley for the audiobook ARC.

Karen Booth delivers an enemies to lovers romance full of fast cars, sharp banter, and undeniable chemistry. Mia Neal is the kind of heroine I love: smart, passionate, and unafraid to speak her mind, especially when calling out a certain cocky F1 driver. Xander Bishop is charming and frustrating in all the right ways, and watching these two clash was a lot of fun.

This was actually my first Formula 1 romcom, and I found the racing world really interesting. I even learned a bit about the sport along the way, which I always love. Give me a romance and a new-to-me sport to obsess over, and I’m in.

I listened to the audiobook ARC, and the narration was good and easy to follow. The performances kept the energy up and helped bring the tension and banter between Mia and Xander to life.

That said, I'm more of a slow burn reader than an insta-love fan. I found myself wishing the relationship had more room to build, which would have given the plot and the characters more depth. Still, I really appreciated how Mia stood in her power and how Xander had to rise to meet her.

If you're into sports romances with strong women, fiery tension, and a little glamour, this one’s worth picking up.

4/4 stars
2.5/5 spice

Tropes
-Enemies to Lovers
-Forced Proximity
-Grumpy/Sunshine
-Sports Romance (Formula 1)
-He Falls First
-Opposites Attract
-Woman in a Male-Dominated Field
-Public Rivalry to Private Tension
-Mutual Pining (with some denial)

Such a fun F1 romance. I loved the character dynamics and how the MCs supported one another in accomplishing their dreams. I loved the way the third act conflict was written without a huge breakup but still allowing for huge character growth.

First, if this would allow me to give half stars this would be a 3.5 for me. It was a cute romance, with a splash of spice thrown in. This was my first F1 book and I did enjoy it. I wish there would have been a little more depth and complexity added to the characters and their situation. But in all, I did enjoy the listen and a huge shoutout to NetGalley and Harlequin Publishing for allowing me the ARC!

Thank you to #NetGalley and #HarlequinAudio for an advance listening copy of #NotSoFast. A cute romcom set in the Formula One racing world. 4 stars.

The cutest romcom, fun F1 enemies to lovers, she bad mouths the upcoming F1 racer and he is not happy. They reluctantly talk and he helps her escape spending time with an older racer. Lots of heartfelt moments between Mia and Xander, loved the ending.

3 Stars

For a book called "Not So Fast". the romance for me needed to take this advice. The romance in this book just moves a little fast for my preference and unfortunately did not work for me. I did enjoy the characters themselves and I like the idea a lot of a racing romance. I really appreciate the change from hockey romances.

Unfortunately however I just don't have a lot to share about this book. It was just ok, nothing to rememberable.

The narration and audio production of this book was fine. I liked the narrator and nothing about the production made me dislike this book. I really appreciated this a lot more as a narration rather than reading it with my eyeballs.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for this advanced listener copy. My review is voluntarily my own.

This was super cute in theory, but something about it fell short for me. I think maybe insta love isnt it for me, but also jumping right into phone sex felt weird for how our FMC was set up, she went from freaking out over a kiss to getting freaky on the phone in like one chapter.