Jenni Fletcher shares her top F1 romance novels
"It’s been so hard narrowing this list down, but here are a few of my personal favourites to get your heart and adrenaline racing."
This post was written by Jenni Fletcher, author of Lights Out.
With only a handful of races left, the 2024 F1 season is coming to a nerve-wracking end (I’m writing this right before the Mexican Grand Prix) but if you don’t want the excitement to be over just yet, there’s a huge range of F1 themed romance novels out there to keep you busy – and as an added bonus, most of them are series! It’s been so hard narrowing this list down, but here are a few of my personal favourites to get your heart and adrenaline racing. It’s not totally complete, as there are still some recent releases on my TBR pile, such as Cross the Line by Simone Soltani and Double Apex by Josie Juniper—both of which I’ve read great things about—but no matter which team you support hopefully there’ll be something here to inspire you, at least until the new season starts in March.
Lights Out – It’s a little cheeky to start with my own book, but I’m so excited about my first F1-themed romance, inspired by my almost 30 years of fandom! Lights Out features MTB rider turned psychology student, Maisie Evans, and rookie F1 driver, Giovanni Bauer, both of whom know a LOT about wanting to win. After a chance meeting, she agrees to a fake relationship to help save his racing career and ends up wondering if she gave up on her own sporting ambitions too early. This is a friends-to-lovers story that also deals with issues of grief, loss and the emotional toll of following (or not) your dreams. You don’t need to know anything about F1 to read it, as Maisie’s a beginner too, but hopefully there’s enough track action to keep motorsports fans happy.
Offtrack by Esha Patel – Diana Zahrani is the first female F1 driver in decades while Miguel de la Fuente is the world champion favourite who’s determined to win and not get distracted. It’s so great to read a book with a strong, career-focused heroine, fighting to be taken seriously in a male-dominated arena, and Patel does an amazing job with some thrilling race scenes. Diana is such a wonderful, relatable character, I’m hopeful this book will inspire some more women drivers! A slow burn romance, but totally worth it.
Pole Position by Rebecca J Caffery – Four times World Champion Kian Walker is a grumpy veteran driver and Harper James is his new hot-headed rookie teammate – and only one of them is happy about it. They’re total opposites in a mm love story with a great balance of romance and sport that also deals with some really serious issues. I’m also an absolute sucker for tropes and this has lots of them: enemies-to-lovers, grumpy/sunshine, workplace, age gap and forced proximity. Unputdownable!
Downforce by Hannah Lily – This book is for everyone who’s sick of being asked if they only watch F1 for the drivers. (I mean, I don’t personally object to watching Carlos sweep his hand through his hair, but obviously there’s a lot more to it!) Jonah Scott is an F1 driver with a confidence crisis and Olivia Fraser is a presenter who’s determined to prove her worth. Their slow burn relationship has great chemistry and banter and is perfect for readers who enjoy enemies-to-lovers and workplace romances. I also love the ironic twist of an F1 driver on a road trip!
Falling Fast – I started with my first F1 book so I’m going to finish with the second one! This has a little less racing content than Lights Out and is more of a behind-the-scenes take on F1, as Maisie’s best friend Ava gets a job in communications with Rask Racing, a formerly great, now struggling F1 team. After a celebratory night out in Monaco, however, their number 1 driver, brooding Norwegian Leif Olsen, goes from being Ava’s favourite driver to the one she most wants to avoid. Yet the more time they spend together, the more they each realise second chances – and second thoughts – can be a good thing. But with workaholic Ava’s sights set on a different team, she finds herself having to choose between the goal she’s set herself and the man she’s falling in love with. Out March 2025.
Get your copy of Lights Out by Jenni Fletcher here.