Sports romances are often so hit or miss for me because there's times it feels like the author has never watched it or clearly didn't do their research. This book was definitely not that! Simone Soltani is clearly an F1 fan and that fact really came through.
It took me a little bit to get hooked on the romance (which is why I rated it 4 stars), but because I was hooked on the F1 side, the book had me from the beginning. It was incredibly adorable and a fun read.
Highly recommend especially if you are a fan of F1!

A dazzling debut!
I cannot believe that this is the authors first book.

So many elements of brother's best friend that I love and yes, some that I didn't like.
Slow burn with great spice pay off.

And as my first F1 read I learned a lot!

My first F1 romance and a solid debut from Berkley all rolled up in one story. Plus a true testament to Soltani’s ability to write a sports romance about a sport I know nothing about and not have me totally bewildered!

This was extremely cute and low angst and sweet, if that’s your cuppa. Dev and Willow are pretty sunk for each other from the start and their little movie nights watching Bollywood hits (ft. Shah Rukh Khan. REAL) was precious and adorable. And I LOVED that Dev, for all his “oh I’m such an F1 playboy” persona was really just a big marshmallow for his girl. A personal fav! Hypermobility rep? Super solid. The bits of desi culture sprinkled throughout? Delightful. The way the story blended the romance, the sports aspect, and the conflict in my perfect ratio for a sports romance? LOVED.

And while I enjoyed it and do recommend it, I will say I found myself bored at about 70% because this story is *so* low low angst (and honestly has low low tensions/chemistry) and I think we were supposed to rely on off page history (friends since childhood) to sell the relationship development and it didn’t really work super well. I think there’s a difference between angst and tension and this really needed some *tension* between the MCs that I didn’t feel. But I will say that I am not a fan of romances that don’t have a third act breakup so that’s entirely a me things and may not bother you! In which case, I think you’ll love this one more than I did!

But that aside, it was cute! A solid debut and lovely F1 romance and I do recommend it if you’re craving a sweet, fluffy romance. Soltani has a bright future in romance ahead and I can’t wait to see what she puts out next!

I really struggled to get through this one. It took me almost a week and a half to finish because I just couldn’t get into it. I really disliked Dev from the very beginning and I didn’t feel like he had all that many redeeming qualities. I also felt the romance didn’t have much build up and was a little bit inconsistent with the backstory. I did enjoy the F1 aspect of the story though.

I loved the slow burn with Willow and Dev’s relationship progression and how cute they were together overall. Willow is so sweet and supportive of Dev, while Dev is also supportive of Willow and treats her with the most care (and the nickname he gives her is cute too). Dev’s humor shined through in the dialogue and they were just two people who are basically a perfect fit in all the ways that matter. i also felt like, in my opinion, both the portrayal of Willow’s hyper mobility and the F1 aspect were done well and I learned so much about both of these topics. It took me a bit to get invested in the characters at first, but once I did I ended up really enjoying this one for what it was. I’d highly recommend this one and i’m down to read whatever Simone Soltani writes next!

Came for F1 and the romance, and I’m glad I stayed! It took me a while to get into, but once I did I truly found myself enjoying Dev and Willow’s story. If you enjoy F1, this is a fun one to get into, and I definitely recommend it!

I truly enjoyed this book!
It was fun, flirty and exciting. I loved that it focused on a sport that I personally haven't ever read (or even heard) about in a sports romance. I thought that the author did a great job explaining the sport, but also focused on giving thorough information and didn't make me feel dumb or needing to be taught,
I loved the dynamic between Willow and Dev. The "i love you" bit came a little fast for my personal liking, but I enjoyed their slow burn and banter. It felt real and dramatic and fun!
There was a lot of crude language and jokes that I didn't love. It could have been edited out to feel more "sweet" or enjoyable. I do understand that that is probably close to real life in the pit though so I understand it.
Overall, the storyline was cute & exciting & new for me! Also, I LOVED the cover!🤩 I would have picked this book up on the shelf automatically because of it.

If you like:
🖤 Bipoc characters
🏎️ Fast Cars
🧍 Brother’s BFF
👧🏼 Crush since you were little
🪷 Indian Culture
🤳🏻 Social Media Management

This book had a little bit of everything trope wise and really enjoyed the slow burn mixed with brother’s best friend, workplace romance, off limits, sports romance, biopic rep, and disability rep!

For me, I am not a huge sports romance girlie but I don’t think you have to be to enjoy this one as it wasn’t too heavy on the sports aspects.

I think my favorite parts along with the slow burn were the bipoc and disability rep and I really love that the author shared parts of herself through these parts of the book and made that so special!

Thanks so much to Berkley and PRHA for my arc and gifted audiobook in exchange for my review!

I enjoyed this book so much! 😍 still very new to sports romance but I loved the banter between Willow and Dev! I loved how much Dev just adored Willow! To every little thing he did for her (the macroon parts was my fav) and Willow was the sweetest and caring person towards Dev and I LOVED LOVED LOVED!! 🥹 and I also loved the chronic illness/disability rep in Willow :’) overall I would recommend if you’re looking for a cute sports romance with the tropes of brother’s best friend, forced proximity, dual POV and F1 romance!
Thank you NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC!

A cute sports romance with some fun characters. I really like Dev and Willow. They were emotionally intelligent and fun to root for. They have some good development throughout the story. I wish the stakes had been a bit higher. It's almost cozy feeling at times, and while I like that, in this type of story, I would've preferred a bit more intensity. I like Dev's friends a lot and would be very down to read more books set in this universe. Overall, a fun light read.

This was such a cute and enjoyable F1 romance book! Dev and Willow’s chemistry is undeniable especially with their past.

Dev is so thoughtful and down bad for Willow. His heart is hers!! Willow is supportive and caring. Every stolen glance and interaction was so cute🥹
Dev and Willow are both family oriented and it was very sweet seeing that throughout the book as well.

Read if you like:
✨brothers best friend
✨dual pov
✨sports romance (F1)

4.5 stars.

I had never read a F1 romance before and the whole world of F1 was so vivid and super fun. The driving conflict of this book felt like the right amount of stakes as the FMC is hired by her brother's best friend to fix his image and manage his social media. They had an ill fated kiss months ago and swear not to talk about it or flirt with each other and plus this is her first job out of college so if she is caught dating her client anyway won't that look unprofessional and doesn't he want the best for her?? And again the brother's best friend thing.

The MMC is proposed as a playboy kind of racer but I appreciated that in actuality he was a nice guy from the very beginning. The FMC has a chronic illness/disability and that is not on me to comment on I just want to mention it in case readers are seeking out that rep.

My reason for the half star is that this was a bit slow. I didn't mind it due to the chemistry between characters even their funny side character friends but with dual POV and going back in time or rehashing what just happened from the other perspective that got a little old after a while and I was ready for the next scene. But again, the quality of writing was so good I can forgive just a o.5.

Thank you to Berkley for the free book. I will def look out for this author's next.

Wanted to read this one for the cover, stayed for the romance. Such a good book! Made me want to get into F1

🏁 Cross The Line by Simone Soltani 🏁
Formula 1 driver Dev Anderson is having an image crisis after his social media manager quit by blowing up his socials with inflammatory rumors. His best friend’s little sister Willow Williams has a newly minted sports marketing degree and would be just the woman for the job of fixing Dev’s reputation. The only problem is, Dev and Willow have been avoiding the fact that they’re totally into each other for years.

I am so in to Formula 1 romance lately and this one did not disappoint! I loved Dev and Willow, and how carefully they both try to avoid the fact that they’ve been pining for years. The actual racing drama and intrigue was super interesting too!

I love how clear Dev is with Willow once he’s accepted that his feelings aren’t going away and aren’t avoidable. So often in romance the characters agree to a physical relationship even when they know they want more, and I loved seeing Dev buck this trend and state his intentions with no room for misunderstanding.

I recommend this one for romance readers who enjoy:
🏁 F1 racing romance
👦🏻 brother’s best friend
🏎️ forced proximity
🚫 forbidden romance (boss/employee & brother’s best friend)
🗣️ dual pov
🌲 mutual pining
❤️‍🩹 no 3rd act breakup

Huge thanks to Berkley and Netgalley for the advanced copy to read and review! All opinions are mine. Cross The Line is out on July 23.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for this arc! This one was so cute and with a happy ending. I enjoyed the dual POV, and the storyline around F1. I only just have trouble to get to it from the beginning until 50%, after the midpoint, it was good and adorable. Will read more about the author.

LOVED THIS. It was so fun to watch Dev and Willow fall in love all over the world. Love a best friends brother and she falls first, but he falls harder. I had a blast with this one! Highly recommend!!

I’m usually not a fan of brother’s best friend so was a little hesistant to read this but I was pleasantly surprised! I loved how Dev loved Willow and how he showed up for her throughout the relationship. I also absolutely adored Willow as an heroine and hope to see more of her in guest appearances in future books. Overall this was a cute and fun read!

This was such a cute book. I really loved the chemistry between Willow and Dev. I also really appreciated the diverse cast of side characters. This book has the perfect set up to become a series.

It did take me up until the halfway mark in the book to become really invested but after that the pace definitely picked up and I was hooked.

If you’re a fan of sports romances I definitely think you should give Cross the Line a read.

This book was an absolute delight. I loved following Dev and Willow as they grew into themselves. Relationships that are built off of history are always complicated, but often worth it in the end. I enjoyed getting to know more about Formula 1 too, which I didn't expect

I'm in my F1 era, so I was so so excited to read this and it was exactly what I wanted. There was tension but not overly angsty and no 3rd act breakup, and it was just a great time. Even if you aren't into F1 everything was easy to follow! Forced proximity is favorite trope of mine, so I ate this up. I could absolutely read more about Willow and Dev! The dual POV was perfect and I loved that we actually got a lot of the sport in a sports romance! Definitely recommend!