Pole Position - Rebecca J. Caffery

Kian Walker has always been the golden boy of motor sport. The four-time Championship winner has racing in his DNA – his father was a legend on the track, just don’t let him catch you comparing the two. As reckless and unreliable at home as he was behind the wheel, there’s nothing Kian wants less than to be just like his dad.

Enter Harper James. This year’s rookie called up to compete with the big boys – and Kian’s new teammate. Cocky, hot-headed and with a reputation for breaking as many hearts as he does new track records, Harper’s the opposite of Kian in every way. But when the season starts, there’s no getting away from him.

This might be one of the most dangerous sports in the world, so why then does Kian’s heart feel safer flying around the track at 220mph than when he's anywhere near his teammate?

Blurb taken from Goodreads. 

*

I was provided with an advance copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

Pole Position was described as Red, White and Royal Blue meets Formula 1, which immediately seemed like a combination that was right up my street!

This book is a very cute, fluffy, queer romance, and I enjoyed it for what it was. The characters were quite, I liked their stories and how they connected, and what Formula 1 content we got was enjoyable. 

There was nothing really wrong with the book, but it just didn't blow me away. I think there's probably a lot of readers out there who would enjoy this one a lot!

Rating: ✫✫✫

My Thoughts

For me, the appeal of Pole Position was the Formula 1 setting, and it was nice to see little pockets of the sport scattered throughout the narrative. I was a bit disappointed not to see more of the story revolving around F1, and the mentions are quite limited. However, that does mean that the story is quite accessible to readers who don't know anything of the sport.

The story itself felt a little basic to me, and it was predictable in the way that all traditional romance books are. Boy meets boy, there's a bit of an enemies-to-loves vibe going on, and then there's a (spoiler alert) happily ever after. It was sweet and I enjoyed the build-up, but it didn't leave me with any oomph. 

I think what really shines about this book is the drawing of the central characters: Kian and Harper. They are very different characters, but are equally well described, and had a lot of depth. The author clearly put a lot of time into creating their back-stories and making them endearing to the reader. The connection between them did feel a little forced at first - all the right components were there, but it seemed to go from 0 to 100 very quickly, and their relationship probably could have benefitted from more growth. I also would have really liked to have learnt a little more about the secondary characters too. They're all there and are just waiting to jump into the story, but they're kept at arms length. It's a shame, because the little glimpses we get of Anders, Johannes, and some of the other characters really elevate the story.

Overall, I enjoyed Pole Position. It's a cute queer romance that has some really fun nods to Formula 1. I really wanted to love it, and all the elements were there; the story, the characters, and the tropes were all there. It just didn't quite have the oomph that I would have wanted to see in the connection between the characters, and in the secondary storylines and characters. I'd read more from the author, as I think all the potential is there!