Throttled (Deluxe Edition) (Dirty Air, 1)

Thank you, Lauren, for bringing back my love for F1! Maya’s brother Santiago is signed to the Bandini F1 team, and she joins him during the season. Her brother and Noah Slade, his new teammate, are not friendly, but she wasn’t expecting his air of superiority. But she doesn’t back down. Ever. Their banter is fun. She’s aware he’s wrong for her, but she can’t stop herself from staring. He knows he shouldn’t want her, but he can’t help himself. This is what Lauren excels at—developing feelings. They both know they’ll be in a world of trouble if her brother—or anyone—finds out, but it doesn’t matter. They still wonder what if. And when Maya becomes an F1 vlogger and starts being around a lot more, avoiding each other becomes impossible. I loved seeing who Noah is outside his F1 persona and how gone he is for her. He falls first, even if he would probably deny that because he’s fine with taking risks while driving but not where it matters. Yet he takes the leap anyway. And there’s one specific thing he does for her that melted my heart. When it finally happened, I was squealing! It’s every bit as hot as I imagined. The two of them together are incredible. That couch scene... There's no third-act breakup and I loved the secondary characters. The two McCoy boys, who have their own books, and Santi—I already know I’m going to love his. I loved seeing their friendship develop, leaving the rivalry on the track. And I loved how Noah finds a family. Not all family is blood, trust me. The guy who didn't believe in love falls for the girl who showed him what unconditional love is. It may sound simple, but the best things often do.

"Hi, this is Maya. Do you copy?" "Hi, this is Noah. I copy." I've read this series earlier in the year and I still find myself thinking about these books months later, specifically Wrecked and Redeemed. However, Throttled provided a wonderful introduction to the Dirty Air Series and I enjoyed it. Son of a prominent racing legend, Noah Slade is an unstoppable force on the race circuit. Santiago Alatorre's little sister, Maya, is following him around the world as he starts his F1 journey racing for Bandini as Noah's new teammate and rival. Despite being off-limits, Maya knew there was an instant attraction between the two as their forbidden romance unfolds. I enjoyed the slow build-up between Noah and Maya, and watching their chemistry progressed in different stages. Both of them knew they were clearly attracted to one another, but didn't want to cross that line. The tension in this story is sky high and I was dying from it till the first kiss happened. Noah's character progression was so good. He gradually went from F1's bad boy to a softie over Maya! Is this the same man that went to therapy to better himself and sort out all his personal feelings for her? Yes! Maya's love for her family is the one thing that has been missing from his life, and it makes him want a life he never even considered. After learning about his relationship with his parents, I felt so bad for him and understood outlook on life. I found Maya to be super relatable and easy to identify with. She's determined to find her purpose while travelling with Santi, and it turns out to be vlogging and going behind the scenes of F1. She's sweet, feisty, and wouldn't settle for less. I did cringe at a few scenes here and there, but I'll give it a pass since it was Lauren's debut novel. I loved seeing the McCoy boys, Jax and Liam, and Sophie. I have no complaints with all the characters, bringing the story (and the rest of the series) to life. I also liked how she explained every aspect of F1 so that readers who aren't familiar with it could get the full picture.

Love the idea behind this story and the characters, though would have loved to see some of the side characters more involved throughout the whole plot rather than just a couple scenes. I think the writing style just isn’t for me- there were a few points where we were told about something that happened, rather than actually having the thing happen (if that makes sense) and it was a bit more of a slow burn than I typically enjoy. I did also expect the “vlogging” aspect to have more involvement in the story ie. fans of her vlogs coming up to her, people suspecting something between them, etc. but that just didn’t happen, which is fine, just something to note. The conflict also felt a bit rushed- all this build up to it, only for it to be pretty much resolved within the same scene. Overall, I wouldn’t say don’t read it, I just probably wouldn’t go out of my way to recommend it to a friend either.

From Lala’s Book Reviews To my knowledge this is Lauren’s first published book, so I started her books backwards by reading the Dreamland Billionaires series first, but the series aren’t really connected other than a couple of mentions of F1 racing. Not going to lie, I like the Dreamland Billionaires Series better. Don’t get me wrong I really enjoyed this book and found it hard to resist once I first picked it up, but it just didn’t hit all of the marks like Lauren’s later books does. Throttled alternates between Noah and Maya’s POV throughout the whole book giving a wider experience not only in their story progression but also their character growth. Maya has always kind of lived in the shadows of her brother, Santiago, since they were kids as his racing career has developed into what it is now with him signing onto a well-known F1 racing team who just so happens to have the one racer who he cost a win a couple years back. Maya recently graduated college and is looking to travel the next year with Santi while he starts a new chapter with team. She’s looking to start off her vlogging channel and just live life to the fullest with this opportunity to travel along side her brother. She knew all about Noah’s reputation of being the bad boy who isn’t shy about his extracurricular activities outside of the race track and is fully prepared for the devilishly good looks mixed with his broody attitude. But even her expectations does nothing compared to seeing and being near him in real life making it much harder than she initially thought to ignore him, and despite her growing and undeniable attraction to him, she won’t hookup her brother’s teammate. Plus, even with her traveling so much, she would much rather have a serious relationship rather than a casual fling that Noah is more known for. But, Noah doesn’t back down from a challenge, especially one that is Maya Alatorre who makes his body react like no other and make him want to do things that he isn’t known for. Noah knows how good he is on the racetrack with years of experience to back it up. He’s cynical at best when it comes to relationships thanks to his parents less than stellar relationship. His dad is one of his sponsors and is only looking for Noah to win his next race while his mom only wants tickets to the best events that Noah can score with his popularity status. He knows that Maya is different from any woman that he’s ever met that leads to him giving her those small smiles and his signature smirk, and despite the sexual tension that comes alive anytime they so much as look at each other, he respects her boundaries. But he can only be pushed so far without cracking. After working on himself, Noah is ready to try a relationship with Maya, but could it be to late and could he have already blown his chances with her with some of the things that he has done? Like Lauren’s other books that I’ve read, there is great character develop from both Noah and Maya as Noah has a lot of personal stuff that he’s molded him into the person he is now for better or worse, and Maya just grows up a lot given everything that she goes through. Lauren also does a great job of the relationship development with of Maya and Noah as they are both complex people with completely different personalities and outlooks on life itself. Throttled is a great first book to the series. Despite this book being about Noah and Maya, there was such great incorporation of the other characters that will be focused on in the other books of the series. This book has it all from witty and sarcastic characters to the spicy scenes to those moments that will tug on your heart strings!

-sports (formula 1) -brothers rival -reformed playboy boy -he falls first I saw this book everywhere on TikTok, so I decided to read it, and I'm very glad that I did. If you enjoy books with engaging plots and romantic elements, this is a great choice. The female protagonist is a charming Spanish woman, which I particularly appreciated. While the male protagonist may have had a past as a playboy, his difficult childhood and troubled family background provide context for his behavior. Maya, a kind and loving family-oriented woman, decides to follow her brother, a Formula 1 race car driver, after graduating college and starts a vlog. Unbeknownst to her, while discovering her passion, she also captures the attention of Noah, a highly desirable Formula 1 driver. Noah is a bit of a charmer, but his reluctance to form close relationships stems from a fear of vulnerability. His father's attempts to live vicariously through him and his mother's emotionally distant and manipulative behavior have contributed to this. When Santi brings his sister to the races, Noah witnesses a healthy family dynamic and spends time with Maya. His hopes for a casual relationship with Maya are rejected, leaving him to contemplate his inability to move on. This book was sweet and heartwarming. I appreciated that Noah had to work independently to become worthy of Maya. I also enjoyed that Maya finally prioritized herself. The heartwarming moments beautifully overshadowed the more intimate scenes, which I found delightful.

I loved Maya so much. She was a little lost, a little reckless, but very excited to figure out what’s next! I loved her and Santi’s relationship so much, how quick he was to want her to come with him on his first season racing. At the end of the day they just wanted each other to be happy and I loved that for them so much. And Noah! I love a sad broken boy who falls SO HARD SO FAST! The middle was a little tough, but I do really appreciate how hard he worked to pull it together and do the work to change not just for Maya, but for himself too. The two of them together were perfect. The banter, their chemistry, their inability to resist each other, the sneaking around which made things risky and oh so fun!! They were so soft for each other and I loved seeing the change in them as their relationship progressed.

This was my first Lauren Asher read AND my first F1 romance. I would say this is a solid 3.5 stars for me. I had some issues with the storyline but really enjoyed meeting all of the characters and entering this world of money and fast cars. This story takes place over the course of a season of F1 and involves Maya and Noah. Noah is the BA of racing and is working towards his next world championship. He doesn't have time for women beyond one night. Maya has just graduated college and is traveling alongside her brother Santi. She is trying to figure out next steps and gets sidetracked by a hottie with blue eyes who has the largest ego she has ever encountered. You guessed it- Noah. Not just anyone but the Noah who hates her brother for an incident that happened on the track several years ago. One that Noah can't seem to move on from now but has to since Santi is his new teammate. Maya tries to convince herself nothing will ever come of them, but then Noah surprises her by asking her on a date. Which is where my challenges come with the storyline. That doesn't go as planned and then she "moves" on. Until Noah gets his head on right and focuses on his new prize, Maya. Noah has no love in his life. His parents could care less about him as a person. They want the fame and everything that comes with his name- the power, the money, the parties. This no love reflects in everything Noah does. He is with a new lady when he feels like it. He is not drawn to anyone and doesn't want anything until he meets Maya. He finds himself intrigued until he finds out that she is his new teammates (also his old nemesis) little sister. He tries to stay away but keeps finding himself thinking about her. He decides to throw caution to the wind and asks her out, but she is clear on what she wants. And that is not something he can give her so he blows it all to hell. He messes up big time but then comes crawling back after their break and makes it clear he can change if she can give him a chance. I have never read a book where there is "cheating" and mam did I not like it. They weren't together when anything happened but come on- they had just gone on this date and then because of her rejection he goes and gets blackout and hooks up with someone. He feels ashamed which ultimately leads to him realizing he needs to change. I think that is why this book has lower ratings but like I said I think this was overcome by the rest of the book. We meet the future characters of the books- Liam (German driver), Jax (English driver) and of course Santi (Maya's brother). Onto book 2 with Liam and Sophie who is Maya's new BF in this book. I am looking forward to that banter. Sophie holds Liam to the flame! What were your thoughts on this one??

Okay, this has been on my bookshelf for about a year and wow, I’m so glad i read it. I only starting reading sports romances last year, and hockey is the only sport I’ve read and I do love it. But this, might be the best sports romance I’ve ever read. The sport is actually evident throughout the entire book, I felt like I was on the race track, I knew nothing about racing before and it definitely wasn’t a thing for me, but wow. I feel like the story was enhanced because of how well written the entire theme, being F1 racing, was throughout the entire book. Everything else I’ve read is just the romance with a side of the sport, this was so well written and the story kept me wanting more. I didn’t get bored at any point, and I kept wanting to know where the race and season was going to go next. I also love that this wasn’t just a fall in love within 2 weeks kind of romance, this was an entire year, with all the ups and downs, which gave time for a lot of personal growth and development to occur. The characters are a chef kiss, I loved the sass and banter, the relationships and friendships built. I understood and related to Maya so much in not knowing what comes after college and wanting to have time to figure herself out and make mistakes. Super well written and truly beautiful!