I had read this during the summer and didn't realise I hadn't submitted my review so I'll quickly add it now.
This was my first F1 read and although I'm not the biggest F1 fan but still slightly follow, Simone made it very easy to be able to understand the terminology and what was happening in the F1 world. Willow and Dev were great leading characters and provided the chemistry we all love. I'm not typically a brothers best friend trope kind of girl however Simone wrote it really well and it had a lovely outcome.

3.75 stars 🌟

Plot: Willow and Dev are childhood best friends. Willow's brother is also best friend's with Dev which has always served as a barrier to their connection. Dev is a F1 driver, however, his career is taking a turn for the worse. After receiving some bad press, he's desperate for someone to help repair his image. After a bad stroke of luck, Willow is in need of a job after graduating and gets is offered to be Dev's social media manager and try and ignore the undeniable chemistry they have together.

Tropes

🏎️ F1 x social media manager
🏎️ Brothers best friend
🏎️ Biracial MC's
🏎️ FMC has a chronic illness
🏎️ She falls first, he falls harder
🏎️ Dual POV
🏎️ Open door spice

I looove the brothers best friend trope because the tension is always INSANE... This did not fail to deliver on that front. They shared a lot of cute moments together and their romance was gradually developed throughout the story.

I favoured Willow the most at the start of this book because I took awhile to warm to Dev's womaniser tendencies. Once I got to know him more, he definitely grew on me and I loved seeing his sensitive side. He treated Willow with so much care and admiration.

The representation in this book was a welcome change - the author did a great job of depicting Dev's culture and Willow's experience with chronic illness without coming across as tokenistic.

This was a win for the romance girlies as it has no third act breakup!! YAY. It's generally the only downfall of brother's best friend trope but I liked that this wasn't dragged out unnecessarily. Her brother was really sweet.

Thank you Pan Macmillan & Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I read Cross the Line waaaaay back in May and pretty much devoured it in a day.
Willow is a strong-willed woman who highlights that you can do anything even with a disability.
Dev, a man who, when he falls in love, treats a woman like a queen.
Throughout this book, you want them to get together, but because they feel so strongly not to hurt Willow's brother and Devs best mate feelings, they resist, but for how long?

I loved Dev and Willow throughout the whole book, The chemistry was perfection, and the storyline was cute and all set in the world of racing.

Roll on the next book!!

4,5☆

This was my first time reading a F1 romance that I actually enjoyed!! Seriously I don't have words to describe how much I loved this book and these characters!

I'm a fan of the author and can't wait to read more about her work.

Thank you for my earc of this book. Unfortunately I didn’t finish this. Though I liked the premise, I was bored by the delivery and wasn’t invested at all

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 5 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

"She’s like pure sunshine, illuminating anything and everything around her, drawing me in like a moth to a flame."

"‘Thank you,’ he says, his eyes holding mine. ‘Seriously. I needed this. I needed you.’"

"It’s gone, and all I know is her. My sunshine. My moon guiding me in the darkness. My Willow."

"Her happiness is blinding, like staring into the sun. I don’t want to look away. I’d let her steal the sight from my eyes, the breath from my lungs. I’d let her do her worst and still be eternally grateful."

"I wouldn’t have to give up my sunshine. My guiding star. My heart and soul."

this was my first f1 romance and it was so much better than i expected! everything about this book was so sweet and i really enjoyed reading it. willow and dev's relationship is everything because he cares about her SOO much!! like seriously, the way he described her every single time 🤭 he's PERFECT! if you like sports romance, friends to lovers, brother's best friend and a slow burn then this is FOR YOU. and the best part about this book is that there was no miscommunication and no third act breakup! absolutely adorable read.

˗ˋˏ ୨୧ thank you to NetGalley and Simone Soltani for the digital arc in exchange for an honest review! ୨୧ ˎˊ˗

DNF'd 167 pages in.

This is both a slow-burn and also insta-love and I'm very confused. I'm not invested in the relationship at all, which is a huge shame, I had high hopes for this one. I think it'll be perfect for other people, just not me, unfortunately.

I’m a sucker for a romance, particularly when it comes to a sports romance. This book was fun and flirty, it was predictable in places but for me what great romance isn’t! There is also a really great diverse amount of characters so I loved this aspect.

"I don't need to hide a single aspect of myself from him. He's already seen it all. And yet, he's still here, looking at me like I'm the centre of his universe."

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Book: Cross the Line
Author: Simone Soltani

this was such a fun, easy read and so perfect for the summer months! the chemistry between Willow and Dev was sizzling and so believable! The whole time I was reading I just couldn’t wait for them to kiss 😂

This was my first F1 romance and it won’t be my last, i enjoyed it so much more than i expected!

Read if you enjoy:
🧡 F1 romance
🧡 sports romance
🧡 dual timeline
🧡 brothers best friend
🧡 chronic illness rep
🧡 forbidden love

(Thank you so much to Pan Macmillan for the EARC! 🫶🏻)

🫶🏻

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC of "Cross the Line".
Ohhh... the slow burn in this book. I loved the characters and how navigated their way from friendship to courtship. Plus Dev's mom's definitely the perfect matchmaker. And I adored the F1 references. I loved all of it. Plus, the book had good chronic pain/illness / POC representation.

Thank you Panmacmillian for granting me the opportunity to review Cross the Line. I am so sorry that I won't be able to review this book as I had to DNF it. I don't think the book and I had the right chemistry. I just couldn't get hooked into the plot, I bowed out in the first few chapters after the scene with a lackluster chemistry between Dev and Willow when he asks her to become his social media manager.

This book is perfect of all fans of the Dirty Air series by Lauren Asher, the perfect mix of a great romance, a good plot and great friendships.

I really love sports movies and my friend recently got into F1, so I decided to give Cross the Line a chance since she also requested and ARC, and we were buddy reading. I am glad I gave this book a chance because Dev and Willow were a delight to read about. I found their story very enjoyable and their characterisation felt natural. The story is low stakes (well, as low as one can get in a professional sport story), and felt free of unnecessary drama between characters—very refreshing. Overall, it was delightful.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC copy of this book, in exchange for this honest review.

I was really curious about this book because the only F1-centric books I’ve read before were the ones written by Lauren Asher and they were pretty meh to me but I will start by saying that u really enjoyed seeing how F1 was incorporated to the book. You could feel that the author really did her research and it made me enjoy the sports talk even though it’s not a sport that I follow.
This was a best friend’s sister trope and I’m usually a big fan of it. I enjoyed Dev and Willow’s story. They were really cute together and I liked seeing how their relationship grew. I also liked how the side characters were webbed to the story in a very natural way. And I loved how Dev and Willow’s relationship wasn’t treated like it was a sin by her brother, it was refreshing to see..
It was a no drama, fun and quick read, I loved the representation and the fact that she fell first but he fell harder was pretty cute!
I just had a little problem with the pacing of the story which made it boring at some points but all in all, it was still a nice read!

When I saw this was a motorsports romance I immediately added it to my tbr. and gosh!!! this was so so good. this was cute, sweet and spicy and was everything I was expecting and more.
I’m a sucker for brother’s best friend romance but then you add a F1 romance to that? I’m sold!!!
I truly had the best time reading this book and I won’t stop recommending it to everyone!!

(review on the blog and other socials coming soon)

Growing up, my family was really into F1, so I ended up picking some knowledge about it. Sports romance is very popular, but I did not see many F1 books out there (though I am sure there are a ton) so I was intrigued by it. When I read the synopsis, I like both characters backgrounds and I thought the tropes would be a nice touch to include and gave the story a good push.

Willow has had a crush on Dev for a long time, but she has kept things platonic, especially since Dev is her brothers best friend. That would complicate the situation as it is, but she is also considered off-limits within the friend group after a terrible breakup with her ex, who was part of that friend group. Now a job opportunity arises for her to work with Dev, which will benefit her a lot professionally, but it might also bring back some feelings for both of them.

I really enjoy when the main characters are forced into a situation, not necessarily a professional one, and end up spending a lot of time together. In this case, Willow is offered a job to work as Dev's social media manager, so she can repair his media image. This premise was great for the story, because it involved Willow in Dev's life and career, but it also gave them plenty of time and scenes to spend together and reconnect, which was very nice to read about. Their chemistry was evident from the start, and it was fun how unaware of it they both were. It was also very funny, though frustrating at times, how they had to push down their feelings for each other, but they handle things quite maturely and it was especially nice how they were there for each other. As the story progressed, their feelings also grew, to the point were it was difficult for them not to act on them.

Surprisingly, I also enjoy the career aspect of the book, having Dev navigate being part of a team that doesn't value, whilst Willow makes him realize that he can do better, and Willow enter the work scene in a field that has always fascinated her. They made each other better. I have been a bit disconnected from the F1 scene, but I do think the book provides enough context to understand what is going on. Scenes related to the sport were woven into the story and not just there because they had to be in it. What is more, the setting was easily and wonderfully described and I believe it is a great introduction to F1 and F1 romances.

Adding to the sparkly drama, tension, and building relationship between Dev and Willow, we also follow Dev's team and see different family dynamics. Apart from the tropes mentioned, I want to point out that the book also has South Asian and Black leads and chronic illness rep. Those aspects are integrated within the story, not making it feel forced or akward, on the contrary, it brings out some elements, and neatly balances it within the story.

I am not sure whether the rest of the series will follow characters we already know or if they will also be F1 romances, but I will be reading them for sure.

Sorry to say it was fairly boring, really just another nothing special romance novel but for F1 fans.

This was a really cute formula one romance, i loved the slow burn, it was really well done and really enjoyed their dynamic together. It did take me a little time to warm up to both characters but by the end I was really invested.

Full of my favourite tropes, you have the forbidden romance, forced prox, dual pov, hes obsessed with her. All the good ones.

Its an easy read and kept my attention, I highly recommend it.

This was such a good read. I really liked he relationship between the FMC and the MMC! And for everyone who doesn't like third act breakups this is the book for you! I also liked that there was a big focus on Formula 1 and it wasn't just a crutch to call it a sports romance.


tropes:
-secret dating
-workplace romance
-brothers best friend

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - such a great read, with amazing characters and an excellent plot.
🌶️🌶️🌶️- some detailed tense scenes of passion and need. The characters showed pure desire for each other.

‘Just like that. Good girl’ 🥵🥵

Brothers best friend
Forbidden love
Workplace romance
Old friends
Hypermobility
Slow burn
Tense wanting
Banter
Childhood friends

I love a good sports romance and Simone Solanti delivered an amazing F1 romance! Her writing was so much fun and I could not recommend this book enough!! It has everything a romance reader needs… tension, love, ambition, plot twists and of course a brilliant trope selection!!

The plot follows Willow and Dev in a dual POV way leaving us with no doubt the love and feelings each of the main characters have for each other!! It is refreshing to not be left guessing if they both feel the same!

Dev is a F1 driver whose reputation has been shattered by his previous social media manager leaving him social ruined and in need of someone to save his reputation. Luckily his best friend’s sister ‘willow’ has just graduated marketing and is in need of a job. With her brother’s acceptance she delves into the world of F1 in her new role of social media manager for the sullied Dev who she has always had a crush on… can they keep it professional?

I loved the F1 aspect of this book, I am not a huge fan of F1 IRL but give me a high speed race car romance and I’m a sucker for every word.
The dangers of driving, the need for success is portrayed very well in this book showing the highs and lows of the sport and the hurdles both drivers and people within the community have to jump over to work their way up to become the best!! F1 is a huge part of the story and I loved it. Despite not knowing much about F1 I was hooked and intrigued massively by the aspects of this book. And F1 romance is for sure my favourite romance 🥰

Willow and Dev were so freaking cute… despite some issues and things to overcome I am so glad they got their happy ending!! Their relationship blossoming was delightful and so so good.

Also showing the aspect of hyper mobility and the limitations of disabilities without preventing the FMC from doing anything she loved was inspiring! I loved this side of the story, it added great depth to the story and despite definitely not taking the main focus it was constantly thought of throughout and considered. The FMC knew her limitations, she knows how to ask for help or gentleness and despite her disability she thrived and showed her passion for her work in the stressful and ever challenging environment of F1 🫶🫶

Eeeekkk I loved it so much! Read it!! You absolutely have to if you’re a romance lover! 🫶🫶