It has been a hot second since I have enjoyed such INSUFFERABLE characters. Kian and Harper managed to not only make each other better but also can make each other WORSE, and I do love that in a relationship.

This was cuuuuuuute.

I have zero knowledge of racing, but that was fine cause nothing got TOO in depth that someone knowing nothing would get lost.

This is sort of a grumpy/sunshine, Kian is very much a rule follower, stays in his lane, and Harper is a partier, golden retriever, very new to this level of the sport. They end up on the same team, do a sort of enemies to lovers thing, Harper has an issue with commitment and you know how that goes.

Couple things. I wish we could have gotten some time with Kian’s mom. It would have made the ending more impactful I think if we had some scenes, flashbacks, anything? We hear a lot about her, but we don’t really get her. And the epilogue, usually I love a good epilogue, but this one was just too much. Like way too cheesy. Could have done with trimmed down and less fluff. Also there’s a random scene with Kian’s dad that could have been cut, it added nothing to the story.

Overall, very cute, quick read, spicyyyyy 🔥.

I don’t recommend the audio for this one, the narrator for Harper is like whispering the ENTIRE time, and I had to keep turning the volume up so loud to hear him clearly.

Thank you @netgalley and @harpercollins360 for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This book required another few rounds of edits - at no point was I really rooting for the couple because Harper never really matured and I don't buy them lasting together post story at all. I also would have hoped for a bit more in terms of the actual racing but it was lackluster and also weird like why is Fernando Alonso in this book but like all the other racers are just made up people.


2/5

✨ Pole Position by Rebecca J. Caffery (@rjcafferyauthor) ✨

Red, White, and Royal Blue meets sports romance. I love this combo—and I love Kian & Harper. This book gave me so many of the good vibes I loved about RW&RB.

F1 isn’t always my speed—no pun intended. I just don’t know a ton about the sport so it often goes over my head or isn’t relatable. But I felt that this book did a good job making F1 understandable to an outsider, while not taking away from the romance elements of the book either.

📚 Tropes 📚
✨ Grumpy x Sunshine
✨ Age gap (25-33)
✨ Rivals to lovers
✨ Forced Proximity
✨ Found family

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Spice: 🌶️🌶️/5

🥰 Thank you One More Chapter (@onemorechapterhc) / Harper Collins (@harpercollins) for this eARC/finished copy 🥰

This was such a fun read! I love a good sports romance and with so many friends into F1 racing, I was immediately drawn by the concept. I really like an opposites attract and the MMCs could not have been more opposite. I enjoyed how what initially made them such opposites became strengths they saw in one another. I also liked the level of depth they and several of the supporting characters had. It made them feel more real and it made me love them so much more. I liked their relationship too, how it ebbed and flowed and changed as they did. There was a bit of spice! Less than I thought but it was well done. I also LOVED that therapy was involved in one of the MMCs working through his very real trauma. That was so refreshing to see. I do think you have to suspect disbelief a little to truly enjoy the book, especially when it comes to the reactions to them being together, but I liked that too. I found this to be a quick, easy, and very fun read! Looking forward to more from this author!

✨ Review ✨ Pole Position by Rebecca J. Caffery, narrated by Joshua Chase & James Joseph

Thanks to Harper360, Harper Audio, One More Chapter and #netgalley for the gifted advanced copy/ies of this book!

Apparently m/m formula 1 romance is exactly what I needed! Kian and Harper find out at the last minute they’ll be teammates this season - Kian toward the end of his career, Harper just being called up to the big leagues - can they figure out how to get along? Kian's bitter that his bff and teammate got hurt days before the season started and that he's getting matched up with a playboy who can't take anything seriously.

Kian and Harper seem like opposites but as they begin to find ways to work together to protect both of their careers, they begin to find a magnetism they can't ignore.

This was so catchy - I didn't want to put it down! If you like queer romances + sports romances, you need to check this one out!

⭕️ Enemies-to-lovers at its best
⭕️ Forget one bed when you have one motorhome...
⭕️ A+ banter
⭕️ Forced proximity

🎧 I didn't start listening to this until pretty late in the book, but the British accents really amp this up, and make me wish I'd listened to more of it!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: m/m contemporary romance
Setting: all across Europe and the world
Length: 10 hours 2 minutes
Reminds me of: Rachel Reid's hockey romances
Pub Date: Mar 11 2025

I really wanted to love this, but both of the main characters were really hard to root for. Harper was so childish and immature, and I get that he is continuously self sabotaging himself, but it just got so old by even 30% of the way through the book. And Kian was so frustrating with his holier than though approach and constant “I’ll be the bigger man.” It read more like high school drama than two men in their twenties and thirties. I guess I was just wanting more.

I feel like you don't see a lot of racing/F1 romances, so this was a fun chance of pace from the usual sports romance. The plot was fun, and Kian and Harper have great chemistry! The writing felt a little stilted at times, though.

Had an enemies to Lovers trope which isn't my fave. Fun and quick read but for me it fell a little flat, it wasn't missing something. Great for F1 fans.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review as always, all words are my own.

I know next to nothing about F1 and I usually like to get sport romance with sports I understand so I don’t get lost in the terminology, but this book was so Bloody Fantastic I loved all the moments. The Cheeky banter, the self destructive antics, I’m so sad I finished it.

I read to have fun and this was a fun time

ARC Review

Thank you to Rebecca Caffery, HarperCollins - One More Chapter, and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25/5
🌶🌶/5

There is something about a sports romance that I just love! This one adds to the ever growing list of sports romances that I will rave about!

This book was so cute! At times, I was so giddy over Kian and Harper. These characters were so well-rounded. The decisions they made and the thoughts they had perfectly matched with their backgrounds!

I loved how both of these characters grew individually and together! The only plot point that I wanted out of this book and didn't get was a confrontation with Kian's father. Otherwise, I enjoyed this book a lot and will be recommending it!

Are you considering a Formula One racing romance? Do you enjoy sizzling slow-burn chemistry where opposites attract? Then don't hit the brakes until you pick up Pole Position, by Rebecca J. Caffery! 🏎️

Kian Walker has been racing professionally for fifteen years. He's a well-oiled machine, both on and off the track. But someone is about to knock him off balance: James Harper. Harper has just been handed a shot a the big leagues. At nine years Kian's junior, acts more like a teenager than an adult. They decide almost immediately that they can't stand each other, which is unfortunate, because they're forced together at every turn, and they're extremely attracted to each other. Will they make it to the finish line? You'll have to read to find out!

I found this novel endlessly entertaining! It may have stalled just a smidge in the third act, but I found the ending extremely satisfying. I love an M/M romance that delivers on both slow burn and spice while not overloading the story with it. Caffery creates complex characters who I rooted for the majority of the time. I love the empathy that's shared between our two MCs as they learn to accept not only each other, but themselves. I was fond of the ensemble cast, especially Johannes, who I believe we'll be seeing in a book of his own soon! Can't wait!

Trigger warnings: death of a mother, parent suffering with Parkinson's Disease, car crash/concussion, being sent by biological parents into the foster care system (before story begins), unhappiness with in the foster care system (before story begins)

I'd like to thank Harper 360 and Netgalley for the eARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

"Isn't there a chance it might be anyone's last season? I could crash this weekend and never be able to drive again, or Hendersohm could choose not to renew my contacts with them and no other team picks me up. And the same is true for any of us. It is what it is, and I'll cross that bridge at the end of the season. But if I go it'll be my choice."

Firstly thank you to netgalley for the Arc and now...

DAM where to begin... this book was an absolute smash hit, I LOVED the way Rebecca writes and how easily I was able to dive into the story after the plot got going.

I loved loved loved Kian since the first chapter, he was such a real and lovable character who I just grew to love even more, my beautiful bi-disaster boy AND JAMES HARPER OMG I never would have thought I would grow to love him so much.

he was such a chaotic monster but always hilarious but his growth as a person and a racers was so god! Seeing him acknowledge his flaws and that he needs help was such a breath of fresh air.

I love the way the author made their relationship and bond grow, she did a fantastic job bringing them together and their happy ending was the best thing in the world.

*SPOILERS*

I CAN'T BELIEVE THE WAY SHE BROUGHT THE PLOT TOGETHER AT ONE POINT I EVEN WONDERED IF KIAN AND JAMES WOULD END UP TOGETHER AND SUDDENLY I WAS CRYING BECAUSE THEY WERE SO IN LOVEEEEEEE

I absolutely adored all the silly mishaps they got through and their banter was epic!!!

The way we Kians arc about retirement was handled was so so amazing and I was crying with joy at the end

Rebecca truly an applause from me because you wrote an incredible book

This is a cute feel-good story. I really enjoyed Kian and Harper's story. This was a good quick read but I don't think it's one that's going to stay with me.

First and foremost as always thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book. This was an incredibly good read! The story was beautifully written and the characters were flushed out really well! F1 racing? Steamy scenes? Hell yes!!!! Definitely worth the read!

As a Formula 1 fan who is fairly new (pandemic era) to the sport, I have been looking for books with this particular setting. It’s such an underrated sport setting, and I’m glad I found this. The author knows her stuff, and it was refreshing to read from the business side of things.
I found the characters to be well written and complex. Family life was a large theme of this story from many angles, and it was presented well. Spice level was about. 3/5. I feel like a lot of it was added because that’s the way Harper showed his love in the beginning.
7/10 stars for good writing, style and knowledge.

Who among us doesn’t love a teammates to lovers story? This one tells the story of F1 teammates Kian (the seasoned veteran) and Harper (the rookie wild-child). It’s grumpy/sunshine adjacent and has the one teammate gets injured and the other loses it in a way that makes people go “they’re just teammates?” trope, which gets me every time 😍😍 Sweet Harper is a real idiot who wouldn’t know his feelings if they punched him in the face (and they do, multiple times!), but Kian just kinda gets him so it works.

I’m only peripherally familiar with F1, so I can’t speak to the accuracy of what’s written here, but it does play a pretty prominent role in the story for a sports romance. I had no issue following what was happening despite not knowing the sport.

When Pole Position landed on my desk, I thought, "Oh great, another sports romance." Little did I know how much I would fall in love with these characters. Damaged and defiant Harper meets his Grand Prix hero, Kian—his complete opposite. Kian is organized and focused to a fault, while Harper is struggling to find his way. Both are fighting to win—not just on the track, but in life and love.

The racing scenes are so vividly written I could almost smell the hot rubber and petrol. The storyline is excruciatingly relatable and deeply heartwarming. I found myself cheering one moment and bawling my eyes out the next.

Pole Position takes first prize. 🏁🏆 4.8 ⭐

"Hearts collide in Pole Position, where love is the real finish line." - Arc Review

Thank you to Harper and NetGalley for gifting me an eARC of this book.

This was my first race car romance and it’s gonna be hard for any other to live up. First of all, let me say that the information provided about the sport was so detailed and appreciated as someone who isn’t a big watcher of racing but finds it interesting. It is clear that a lot of research was put into also making this informative and that gets points.

Now to the romaaannccceeeee! Kian and Harper were a pain first (yes both of them) because Harper was being irresponsible but Kian was being uber judgmental. I’m glad that as the story progressed the plot line also became more developed and though there was a bit of a missing link for me in one instance, I really had a blast reading this one.

Actual Rating: 4.5⭐️

(4.5 stars) Pole Position hits several of the sweet spots in queer sports romance without feeling tired or dragging on too long. A satisfying quick read, will be looking at her other sports titles!