Throttled (Dirty Air, #1) (2024)

THIS WAS SO MFFF CUTEEEEE plssss! such a good start to the dirty air series. Maya was an angel, and I loved that she was a vlogger & so relatable. Noah was unexpectedly spicy… I wasn’t ready 🥵 I adored them together!!!! The first couple in a series is always so soft and fluffy, we love to see it. & the epilogue? in usual Lauren Asher form… it gave. it always gives.

I’m so excited for Jax & Santi’s books… I have no words🤠

“Maya?”
“Yup?”
“Keep talking. I love hearing your voice.” <3

3.9/5 ⭐️

I didn’t hate or dislike the book, but I wasn’t super in love with it either. There are parts of the dialogue that I think could have been excluded. The entire story occurs within ten months or so, so as it progresses from chapter to chapter, you’ll get some where several weeks pass by vs several days.

This is as much romance as it is somewhat diving into their world as race car drivers, which is obviously the entire appeal of Noah Slade. The sarcastic, successful jerk who the media dubs as a playboy who takes no sh*t from anyone.

I’m just not really too into the pace of the book. It felt kind of... long? Like a lot happens while also not very much?

I also obviously want to acknowledge that I very much hyped this book up for myself, but I also kept an open mind going into it because I’ve never read a Formula 1 romance before, much less other works from the author.

I was invested with Noah and Maya and they had some really sweet moments. Some of their witty banter was great, some fell a little bit flat for me.

Found tons of additional descriptors in their dialogue which I felt like ruined the delivery. For example, “There’s a sh*t ton of smoke coming from the car, making it hard to breathe.” When read in context of the chapter, I feel like dropping that last part would have made it more charged, except it read as internal thoughts and not the descriptor dialogue it was meant for.

They’re a cute couple, I just wanted to be obsessed with them and I wasn’t. 😔

omw to ask my brother to become a F1 driver so i can travel the world with him and meet noah slade brb

it is so bad i want to give you a zero, but that's not possible so I give you... a one.

4.25!

“'Maya'
'Hmm?'
'Keep talking. I love hearing your voice.'”

Lemme start by saying that I love that part of the book so much where Maya talked to Noah through the radio (very unrealistic) but such a good moment, my dumbass was smiling wildly at that scene 🙄

The writing style, especially for a debut author was so amazing. Do not get me wrong it was not anything extraordinary but it was so gripping and hooking, so accessible that I actually read the first 300 pages in one day!! It was well done, well researched and well thought but most importantly well executed. Lauren foreshadowing other couples in this book was also something that I liked and this book having no third act breakup was honestly one of the best decisions ever. Lauren Asher writes such fast paced books with small chapters and dual POV's which I absolutely love in romance novels!!

“And that wicked smile he sends me when the cameras stop rolling? The one promising more? Yup. I see it. Oh man, I’m in trouble.”

Maya Alatorre, I loved her so so so so much. An FMC who has a backbone? makes the man grovel? AND makes vlogs about F1?? How can you not love her. She honestly has the dream job and ugh befriending other drivers 😫 I WANT THAT! I really liked her relationship with her brother, it was actually one of my favorite parts of the book because they were just so cute.

I think what Lauren really nailed with Maya's character was her bringing a brighter side of Noah, a better side and I loved it because that man improved so much and even went to therapy for her 😫

“I think you’ve ruined me.”

Noah Slade, I actually did not like him during the first half but as the story progressed, I fumbled and fell so hard for him. That man went to therapy for her, acknowledged how much she changed her and how she brought his good side and how much he liked and he also acknowledged how she made him realize how she had made him see life from a different perspective.

I also liked how well Lauren managed his relationship with his toxic and abusive family and how he tried to be better than that!

BUT.........Santiago easily stole the show for me , I was hooked and I want his story more than anyone else's. I LOVED HIM!

“Love the way she pushes me for more. To feel, to live, to breathe her in and never let her go.”

The romance was enjoyable and fine....nothing that really stole the show for me which is somewhat of a let down in a romance book but whatever we got from Noah and Mayas journey together I really enjoyed and the spicy scenes were also very enjoyable but nothing that I have not read before. It did not stand out for me but it was still enjoyable and made the book more fun to read.

“Fear is not always a weakness. It's what you do with the fear that shows your true strength. Most of all, I like how she makes me want to be a better person. For her, for me, for the whole goddamn world.”

The F1 part of this book, I love when sports romance actually focus on the sports and the sports in this book was very prominent and formula 1 being my favorite sport made me love this book so much more because it was done well, I did not have many problems with it and despite some things being unrealistic I still did not mind it. That part of the book was easily the best. I can not wait to get to the next books because each couple intrigues me so much.

Overall, I would recommend this book, definitely and it is wayy more enjoyable than The fine print!
-
Tomorrows the first race day of the year! So, I might as well just pick this up!!

Way better than what I expected. Ngl compared to her Dreamland Billionaire series, this is a FAR BETTER written book. Formula 1 paired with forbidden romance and brother's rival 🤭🤭 Let me tell ya, I ate it up. I had so much fun with this book.

Look, I get that some people hate Noah and claim he is a womanizer. BUT that was the first half Noah. In the second half, the man redeemed himself and worked on himself before jumping into anything serious. We all love second chance romances but when the time comes to give people a second chance, we back off. Like wtf 👁️👄👁️ Noah's character was a typical bad boy with a heart of gold who was always ready to man up for the woman he loves and honestly, I admired that.

Maya was sweet, patient and kind. She's the type of girl you wanna be best friends with. I didn't get her and Sophie's friendship tho, felt a bit odd to me but it's okay. I liked how supportive and unproblematic Maya was. She knew exactly what she wanted and she wasn't afraid to set boundaries and I loved seeing that.

The romance started off as insta lust with occasional cringe dialogues, which is why it's a four star rating for me. The chemistry between Noah and Maya was indeed explosive. Some of the scenes were so swoon worthy. I was giggling and kicking my feet, these two made me smile so much. The two were always encouraging towards each other and owning up to their own damn mistakes. The spice was hot and sweet and I got no complaints there.

The ending and especially that epilogue was sooo adorable. Although I have read just book 1 in the series, am already in love with Santiago- so looking forward to reading his book the most. Liam seems like the type who might frustrate me and I got no opinion on Jax. So let's see how it goes 👀🤷‍♀️

Read this cause my bestie @Leonie loves it and I had to check it out. Also, her recs rarely do me wrong. Love ya babe 😉❤
~•~•~
My bestie will unalive me someday if I don't read it. Also first F1 romance, LET'S GOOOO

dnf@ 26%

I feel as if I have been mansplained.............by a women

Book: Throttled
Rating: 2 stars
Trigger Warning: Physical and Verbal AbuseSummary
This was about a F1 Racer, Noah and Maya his teammates sister. This was a bit of a forbidden romance since Santigo, Maya’s brother, hates Noah. This also had the cliches of an manwhor* athlete as the hero and the family-oriented woman as the heroine.Review
I saw a review before I read this that said this was like a well written Wattpad book. And I am not gonna lie, that literally is the best way to describe this book.

It had almost every cliché in the book, especially with Noah. He was the typical manwhor* with familial issues that did not want to settle down but that one girl – Maya – changed everything. To be honest sometimes the manwhor* act works for me but this time it sure as hell didn’t. Let’s start with this darling quote from our amazing hero:

“I got sh*t-faced last night, where one drink turned into five and here, I am, being called a dick by another chick. Some consider me nice. I make sure she comes multiple times before I do because my nanny raised a gentleman after all, no thanks to my parents.” ➟ this quote reminded me why I hate men.

Anyways, Maya wasn’t any better. I can’t really put on an exact thing that I didn’t like about her, but she was just annoying to me.

This might be a reach, but this book also was very similar to Off Campus. Noah was kind of like Garret. Similar dad issues. An athlete. His three other friends. Never wanted more until THE girl. It seemed like the deal, but the race car version.

Also, I hate when authors are describing someone who isn’t white as exotic. There really is no need for that.

I didn’t like the romance between Maya and Noah either. It felt forced. I didn’t see any connection or chemistry between them.

The only good part about this book was that the hero went to therapy. Most manwhor*s usually have commitment and trust issues but they NEVER go to therapy. So, I am glad Noah did before he tried to be in a serious relationship with Maya.

And it did make me laugh sometimes.

Mmm, yeah okay.
See you never again, book.

(DNFing this at 13% because everything about this whole thing -characters, writing, DIALOGUE- annoyed me to the point I was considering attending an F1 race only so I could throw myself under a speeding car and blame my desperation on this book)

—— 3.✰ stars.

‘I’ll always be okay and come back to you. Those cars are built for a bomb. I love you’

・❥・ Mood of the book: Womanizer by Britney Spears

OKAAAAAY, let's start by saying that the reason for these 3.✰ stars is the F1 stuff. If it were just for the romance, this book would easily be 2✰. stars. But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Even though it was not an incredible book, I am glad to have started the year with it, because it a very fast read, and above all, because my baby, one of the most important people of 2023 for me, aka, giuls, have been waiting for this moment since we met, so amo mio, this is for you.

'My favorite lullaby is the noise of the car'

Im sorry in advance since I feel this is a very bland and mid review, but the book didn't make me feel enough anger to do a rant neither enough happiness to praise the sh*t out of it, so mid book = mid review. hehe.

✧*̥˚🏁 about the plot: 🏁*̥˚✧

We follow Noah Slade, an F1 legend, womanizer, with an ego higher than the Empire State Building and teammate of Santiago Alatorre, Maya's brother. It is the start of the F1 season, and Santi offers Maya to follow him to all the racing destinations, there she meets Noah, and although they are attracted to each other, taking into account that the relationship between Noah and Santi does not start very well, Maya must stay away from Noah. But hey,

'Behind glitz and glam, people live with lies and unhappiness'

✧*̥˚🏁 about the characters romance: 🏁*̥˚✧

'Loving someone means you want to spend the rest of your life with them, on the good days, bad days and everything in between'

I'm not going to talk about them individually, as I don't think there was much depth to them, so I'll discuss the romance.

In my humble opinion, there is no romantic development between them, everything is too instantaneous, insta love, insta lust, insta everything. I was insta annoyed.

Noah is obsessed with Maya from the beginning and not only Noah, a certain part of him too, he was going full salute every time she… prepare yourself, SMILED! Yes, girly was throwing her head back and laughing and this guy got a f*cking boner, lol.

I have to admit that, yes, there are cute moments between them, which made me smile, but also others that made me cringe, especially Maya's attitude, who was trying to be funny and what she made me feel was second hand embarrassment.

The smut wasn't bad, have I read better smut? Definitely. Have I read worse? Yes, a wide variety of Ana Huang + Flawless books lol.

This was a sports romance, so let's talk about the sports part, I didn't know I was going to enjoy the sports scenes so much, I was always waiting for them to arrive, especially if Noah narrated them. I can't say that I am an F1 girly, but I can say that I am a fan in the making, and that the main reason why I continue with the saga is the F1 content. The sport is a big and main part of the book, with scenes dedicated to it and the entire book revolving around the F1 season. So if you don't like reading specific sports scenes, this is not a book for you.

✧*̥˚🏁 some quotes I enjoyed: 🏁*̥˚✧

'Can't be corrupted by something that made you'

'Her soft and breathy laugh makes the tripod shake, and damn if it isn't the best sound I'll hear all day'

'I nod because I'd do just about anything with him smiling at me the way he does'

'I can't change who I am to be what you want'

Last but not least, do I recommend this book? Meh, I guess??? if you like Lauren Asher books definitely yes, and also if you enjoy sport scenes or you are a fan of F1!!

Dirty Air Series:
╰┈➤ Collided , 2. ✰ stars.

ೃ⁀➷ 𝓹𝓻𝓮 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀:
ok…👀 rtc!
jan 03: first read of the year let’s hope this doesn’t disappoint 💅🏻. giuls, my amo, this one is for you🩵

Imagine a guy going to therapy so he can get better for you, damn...

before i’d read this book, i’d made hating on the spanish love deception my main personality trait but now it’s hating on the spanish love deception AND this book. yes, i did know that this would be terrible because i very intentionally asked for bad book recommendations (thank you diana, i am traumatised) but i still expected something better than this.

i don’t read books for their plot but the it was SO terrible. maya’s brother is an f1 racer and because she is unemployed, she decides to tag along with him while trying to be a successful youtuber. along the way, she falls in love with her brother’s riVaL noah (he has blue eyes that challenge the caribbean ocean) and because noah (with the blue eyes) is santiago’s rival, maya wants to keep it a secret.

i really tried to like maya but she was just so annoying. and honestly, i can see why she’s unemployed because she is SO INFURIATINGLY STUPID??? the only reason her vlog was successful was because she had a supposedly famous brother and because noah (don’t forget his blue eyes) made guest appearances in her vlogs. i have nothing against vlogs, and i’ll admit that i enjoy watching vlogs because who doesn't want to know unnecessary details about someone's life but something about maya’s youtube channel was just so juvenile. i was surprised to see that this book was published in 2020 because she was still doing cringy sh*t like 'tequila talks' and the newlywed game on her channel (i don’t remember what the games were called but they were drinking games you'd only see single people who base their self-worth on their relationship status in low budget christmas movies playing). i thought we left that behind in 2016.

her most original idea for her vlogs was ripping off the web’s most searched questions interview. maya was also a marketing prodigy, she pulled the boss move of making her instagram private so that she could get more viewers.

as you can see over here, maya really said it’s big brain time:
“I keep a translated list of popular phrases from each country we visit to prevent making myself look like a fool, at least not more than usual.*Note to self: double-check what phrases sound stupid.*"

and don’t even get me started on noah (he has blue eyes btw). for more than half the book, he acted like an asshole and then pinned all his sh*tty behaviour on his mommy and daddy issues? as? if? that? just? fixes? everything? he’d do something terrible, feel bad and then say, “sigh... if only i didn’t have daddy issues. if only my dad’s gaze wasn’t cold enough to rival the arctic ocean... i’d be a better man.”

i didn’t make the arctic ocean part up, that was actually in the book.
“Cold eyes land on me, two blue orbs as inviting as skinny-dipping in the Arctic Ocean. He
keeps his dark hair slicked back and his suit perfectly pressed with not a wrinkle in sight. To others he comes off as welcoming, but his deceptiveness covers up all the darkness simmering beneath his skin.”

not to mention how noah (his eyes are bluer than the bluest thing you can think of) was always and i mean ALWAYS horny. he needed to see a doctor more than anything, it’s like he had the opposite of erectile dysfunction.

noah (with the sapphire eyes) was a creepy guy. he’d just randomly walk up to maya and start kissing her, even though she had not openly expressed her feelings towards noah (blue eyes). he was just super touchy even when she claimed to hate him, or after their unsuccessful date.

for example (and this is one of many), when they were returning from some party:

““Maya and I can ride back together since we’re staying at the same hotel.” His hand possessively splays across my stomach, holding me hostage. I like it as much as I hate it. My body tries to wiggle away from him, but I stop once my ass rubs against his front. I choose to ignore the bulge I feel pressing against me.”

and (this is from noah’s pov):

“I haul her over my shoulder like a fireman’s carry. She squirms about, making it difficult for me to hold on to her. My hand smacks her ass playfully to get her to stop.”

or when he’s talking to maya’s dad:

““Take care of my little girl.” Hidden meaning fills his statement. I don’t try to get into his daughter’s pants, I just think about it a lot. But I’ve been respectful compared to the way I act with girls I want to f*ck. He should be grateful.

Call me an entitledprick. f*ck if I care.”

idk i just did not like that man, he kept licking his lips and it made me uncomfortable. every word that left his mouth made me cringe. and when he started talking about himself, it was even worse. i’m going to refrain from pasting his little speech where he elaborates how he himself is his biggest threat.

the only thing i liked was how noah went to therapy instead of getting 'fixed' by maya but let's face it, lauren asher probably took that idea from one of those tiktoks that give unsolicited advice on how to make your partner fall in love with you.

the spelling in this book was terrible, the word ‘fazed’ and ‘unfazed’ were constantly misspelled as ‘phased’ and ‘unphased’. and not to be that person but this is a published book so here are some instances of the wonderful grammar in this book

“You act like your God’s gift to Earth.”
need i explain?

“Sometimes she seems in to me, but stuff she does makes me uncertain.”
mmhm she’s in to him😼

some parts of this book were so terribly written that i audibly laughed. noah (with the blue eyes, remember?) would crack what i believe was his version of a joke and then maya would be scandalised and offended. this would lead to noah (with the smurf coloured eyes) apologising and internally he’d start his too-broken-for-you routine and channel his inner jughead. he really gave off that "in case you haven’t noticed, i'm weird. i’m a weirdo. i don't fit in. and i don't want to fit in. have you ever seen me without this stupid hat on? that's weird” energy sometimes. maya would get offended by absolutely anything that came out of his mouth but when sophie asked her how her english is so good even though she was from spain, she was happy about it??? if someone asked me how i could speak english even though i’m not from *insert country that largely speaks english*, i would be so so SO annoyed.

and finally i would like to bring your attention to the main conflict of this book, which was that santi would be pissed if he found out noah (his eyes are so blue that billie eilish sang about them) and maya were together. maya is a grown woman. i don’t know why she was so scared of santi’s disapproval. santi and maya don’t have a normal brother-sister relationship. i know some siblings are more appreciative of each other but theirs was borderline creepy. maya would dive into chapter-long essays on why her brother was so special and amazing. if my brother ever tried to control ANY aspect of my life, you best believe he’s not my brother anymore. and here she was having a sEcRet relationship because of her brother??? idk anything about racing but the rivals thing was very hard to buy. what happened to sportsmanship?? they were all so childish and immature. it was all incredibly stupid

noah (with blueberries for eyes) and maya confessed their love to each other so quickly. they barely knew each other but all the characters lacked depth and there wasn't much to know.

do i recommend this book to anyone? yes, if you want to read about a horny man, this is definitely the book for you seeing as how noah (guy with the denim orbs) is constantly turned on. if you would like to preserve your braincells, then you should stay away from this book.

this book has furthered my fear of fictional men with blue eyes.

buddy read with MyBookJourney, you can read her hilarious review here

Crack open the kindle because it’s time to take a couple of pointers on which sports romances to read next because I am just so consumed with it lately and so I decided to read one of the talks of the towns to see if it lives up to the hype. The verdict? I don't know where the book stands. It was enjoyable and easy to go through, but it also did not hit the mark as I expected it to.

To begin with, the dialogue is what bothered me the most. It seemed incredibly unnatural and was written as informational dialogue for the reader rather than as actual individuals conversing with some parts that got me cringing with secondhand embarrassment. Unless you're creating literary fiction with a lot of introspection, dialogue, and dialogue framing will make up most of your book and you definitely don't want to write it poorly. I am no killjoy, I love cliche and simply a well-written book, but this comes off as a little bit underwhelming.

On the good side, I can be meek; so the dialogue does not entirely deter me from continuing this —but I reached satisfice when I find the plot to the characters to be equally mundane. The narrative doesn't benefit from the lengthy page count at all. Throttled tends to drag at times and lacks the angst I would anticipate from a romance of this length. It lacks tension with a less inviting and uneventful love story.

I adequately like the characters but they did not pique my interest enough to remember them. Due to Noah's parents' less-than-ideal relationship, he is cynical when it comes to partnerships, but none of the crises appeared to have been given the necessary weight; instead, they all seemed to have been thrown in as a quick attempt to create a multifaceted character but lacked elements from other literary genres that would have given the protagonists a sense of struggle on their road to redemption. That's Noah, who.

Meanwhile Maya? I am fond of her sweet character but she mostly appeared as a doormat throughout the novel. There are a few qualifying moments, but they are few and far between. We never learn that much about Maya and her personality outside of F1 and the vlog and the bar is in hell with Asher's female character. There was no redemption made from Noah to prove that he is capable of being in a serious relationship, especially after the "date"— he didn’t demonstrate any growth to her and she simply caved in. That itself is simply a disgrace (you can do better Maya) 🥴.

All criticisms aside, I love the insights we get about F1 here. I've been reading a few other sports romances from the mainstream field, like football, hockey, and rugby, so this is a breath of fresh air. It is compelling to read about the racing intricacies, pre-race rituals, galas, and everything else in between, making the series unique on its own. Although the writing could use some overhaul and mending, the simple writing style makes this casual to read than most as well. If you want a quick read in between hectic schedule, might as well pick this one up.

Eventually, I did not plan to continue the series, but later received a lot of encouragement that it does get better. I also just made aware that this is Asher's debut book which probably explains a lot of the blatant flaws. So, isn't two stars seem too harsh? Well, I still don't think it deserves to be on my three stars bookshelves either. Throttled is just something predictable that I ended up reading because sometimes, we just love cliche and this one happens to be deliberately prosaic. Having good faith for whatever comes next though!

2.5 stars

You know how we as reviewers always say “this was so good for a debut book” or “I can’t believe this is a debut book”? Well, I totally can see that this is just a basic debut book. Totally believable. Nothing memorable about it. I didn’t like the writing, it lacked something. Like it was all so monotonous if you know what I mean? I was stuck with one facial expression through it all. It didn’t make me feel anything. Both characters lacked any kind of depth. They were so forgettable. The story was just so meh. Honestly, this felt like a long introduction for the whole series. I hope it gets better for my sake because I bought the whole series.

This book actually made me lose my mind.

The story is set during a fictional Formula 1 World Championship. As a Formula 1 fan for over 7 years, I am aware of the system F1 is based on and the basic workings of the sport. And if you use an actual sport (or city) in your story, it can get risky. If things are inaccurately or nonsensically portrayed, it will fall flat and cause considerable criticism, since it can indicate poor research on the author's behalf.

Although Lauren Asher is a lover of Formula 1, according to her Instagram, reading this felt like she only watched 3 episodes of Drive to Survive and 15 laps of any random race. There were so many hiccups with her trying to explain F1 as a sport that if you are a seasoned watcher, it does nothing but make your blood boil.

"The crew and I roll up to the front of the group, situating me in the P1 spot while testing my radio connection. I grin to myself beneath my helmet. Pole position will always be the most ideal for the whole Prix, and pride fills me that I claimed it. Have to start the year with a boom.
My heart pounds in my chest, the rhythm similar to the shaking of the engine. The team slips off my tire warmers before they rush off the pavement. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Five red lights shut off."

First of all, where is the goddamn formation lap? These tyres have to be warmed up properly on the track. It isn't a matter of tyre warmers off, engineers gone and then we start.

An additional thing I hated is why are there so many damn people over the radio? The team principal? The engineer? A mechanic? Usually only the head engineer communicates with the driver, so there will be minimal distraction for the driver while racing. The reason why it is the head engineer only is because they are able to understand what to do when the driver for example mentions there are vibrations or loss of power.

This is one of the many examples of inaccurate portrayal of Formula 1, and it makes me absolutely infuriated. Another big gripe is the attitude that is assumed the media has about F1. This should take place in 2019 or something, but my god, everyone here still assumes F1 and their mindsets are still stuck in the 1970's.

""I've been reading gossip about those different drivers. Men like Liam Zander and Noah Slade pop up all the time, and you should see what women say about them. Don't get my started on Jax, that man has trouble following him like a bad smell." Her voice fails to hide her disdain. "

Apparently the media is so obsessed with the drivers (particularly their love and sex lives) that it is almost as if they have dedicated a whole section of the Daily Mail to them. F1 journalists are usually the most gossipy during transfer season, and overall, their private lives are left for what it is. Journalists in the sport usually focus on the facts. But in here they treat the F1 media has if they are all tumblr/twitter people who have no life and lurk for the latest scoop.

Since the background of this story didn't do anything but disappoint me and infuriate me, let's talk about the main characters in this story.

Noah Slade

A dark-haired, blue-eyed (like the Barcelona coastal waters (this is how it is described by the female lead, I am not joking), 30-year-old American driver. We get introduced to him 2 years before the actual story takes place, when he wasn't able to crown himself as a World Champion.

This man.

It feels almost like an insult to call him an F1 driver at this point. This man is literally just the embodiment of a cliche Wattpad bad boy, but instead of riding motorbikes (he actually does that too, but more as a hobby) he rides F1 cars! Wow!

With coming as a Wattpad bad boy reject, there is also a plethora of other stuff that comes with him as baggage. Playboy lifestyle, daddy and mommy issues, you know the gest. Charles Leclerc should get financial compensation for being used as the faceclaim of this asshole.

So he is a F1 driver, and two years after the incident that cost him the WC, he gets a new teammate in the form of Santiago 'Santi' Alatorre. A twenty-four year old Spanish prodigy who debuted in Formula One at twenty-one (which is supposed to be revolutionary, while in real F1 drivers have debuted at the ripe age of seventeen), who in fact was the only bearable character in this whole story. And that is when he meets Maya.

Maya Alatorre.

So about Maya. Maya is twenty-three, Spanish (VERY emphasised in the story only when convenient, but also in such a stereotypical fashion that my Spanish friend actually got insulted by it) and Santi's younger sister. This is one of the first things that we know about her:

" Five grueling years and two major changes later, I can happily say I graduated. Turns out I wasn't cut for a biology degree; I fainted during a dissection lab when my partner cut into a baby pig's stomach. And pre-law didn't exactly work out for me; I threw up in a nearby trash can during my first debate, forfeiting before the questions begin. People would count these restarts as failures, but I think they built character. That and resilience for messing up. "

The author probably wrote this with the idea that this was quirky, and that she is a strong female that overcomes adversity. But all this did was infuriate me because how badly can you screw up your university choices? And for what reasons? It just makes me feel that she has no direction, no aim for life, and that she has to pay the price later. Yes, I am those people that consider this as a failure instead of a restart.

But in what did she graduate? Arts in Communications. What does she want to do with this? Become an influencer.

So her brother getting into one of the big F1 teams at the time is very stonks for her. She can follow him around in the name of vlogging and establish herself as a vlogger, and something more than Santi Alatorre's sister. But oh no! She has the hots for her brother's new teammate! Being in kahoots with your brother's rival is an absolute no-no.

____________

Since we have established a bit of the setting and the characters, let me list a bit of the stuff that I absolutely couldn't stand.
- The poor portrayal of Formula One as a sport : I have already described how important accurate portrayal is of an existing sport, and Lauren Asher completely missed the mark here. A good portion of this book was me screaming to the book at how badly everything was shown here. Some points I hated, in addition to the points mentioned above:
- Drivers NEVER strap themselves in the car. An engineer does that.
- There is NO steel in the car anywhere.
- Drivers will absolutely never miss out a practice because they SLEPT in.
- I have never heard a Grand Prix be called a Prix by someone. Literally. It is either GP, Grand
Prix or race. Never just Prix. It is said in this story a whopping forty-three (43) times.
- A good portion of the races in real life are really, really boring. Particularly Monaco. You literally can't drive side by side in Monaco.

I probably missed some more, but all these things made me pissed off for at least a good half of the story.

- Maya and Noah's characters : Maya is like bland coffee and Noah is just the same. And two bland coffees can't make good chemistry.

Maya is literally portrayed as American, even though we have to believe she is Spanish. She went to an American school in Madrid, speaks with no accent whatsoever, and actually talks in miles instead of kilometers. But no, she is still Spanish: she loves sangria and paella and her mother knows they are her favourite things to eat. She has the fiesty personality, the tan. Things that make her look a bit more 'exotic', a bit different than the other girls.

But she just feels so bland and at times so incredibly stupid? I get it, you want to sell romance, but Maya NEVER bothers to know more about the sport and how it works. Instead, she spends her time constantly hanging out with the same 4 unseasoned guys plus her brother and depending on them in order for her channel to take off. It takes her until the second race to realise she could make a weekend vlog of the Grand Prix (screw this story, I will never call it a Prix). And the content she makes for it, definitely belongs in the somewhat cringy category. Usual travel vlogs, wannabe Buzzfeed questions with drivers. How this can reach 900.000 subscribers by the end of the season Can only be explained by peak nepotism energy.

She keeps pining for Noah ever since the beginning of the book in the least subtle way possible, but what is there for him?

Spoiler: Noah isn't much more interesting than Maya.
(at this point I am getting tired of writing this review, so excuse me if it gets sloppier)

Noah is coming straight from Wattpad. And I think that establishes a lot on his character. Lack of daddy love, shallow mother, never experienced any genuine love, the 'brooding' type. Spends his days with racing, alcohol and women. Until that one (1) girl and he wants to settle.

- Their whole relationship : It is just so boring? While the first half made me angry over the poor F1 portrayal, once they have established they like each other and are borderline boinking, the story gets so incredibly BORING. There is nothing interesting for them. The one fight Noah had with Santi had more chemistry than these two had in the entire book.
We don't know what either of them genuinely likes, and what they think is attractive about the other beyond the physical features. Of course, before that there had to be a commitmentphobe!Noah in the picture because there has to be conflict, but this isn't anything original either since as a reader you will know that they will boink eventually. It was boring to wait for the inevitable and even during/after that it was boring.

1 star solely because Noah has the balls to go to therapy at last and Santi is the only character with braincells here.

tl;dr : for the sake of your sanity pretend you know nothing about f1. also this story would be way better with Santi and Noah as the main leads.

not me putting this book down to start binge watching formula 1. will be making this book into my whole personality brb

“I think love is about happiness and sacrifice. Compromising instead of arguing. Having someone who is always there for you even when you don’t deserve it. Loving someone means you want to spend the rest of your life with them, on the good days and the bad days and everything in between.”

I'm a racing girlie and love everything from Nascar racing, drag racing (my hubby drag races) to Formula One! When I saw this series, I had wanted to read it, but there were mixed reviews on this book. It wasn't until I heard that it gets better with each book that I decided to give it a try.

Throttled is the first book in the Dirty Air series that is a forbidden love, brothers teammate/rival, Formula One racing sports romance with drama, sexual tension, banter and rivalry. This had me laughing out loud at times and smiling to myself. There were even some parts that had me swooning.

Noah Slade is a world-famous F1 racer for Bandini, and he is the best. He has three world champioships under him, but his world is flipped upside down when his team hires a new driver to be his partner, Santiago, who is also his rival. Maya Alatorre has just graduated college and decides to travel with her brother Santiago for the season of Grand Prix's, and that's when she meets Noah. She is working on her vlog, trying to get her name out there, and decides to start vlogging behind the scenes about the races and interviews with the drivers growing her viewers. She is warned by her brother to stear clear of the other drivers, but she can't seem to stay away from Noah, and they aren't able to hide from their attraction to one another any longer. When her brother finds out about their secret relationship, will he forgive her?

There are special bonds between some of the racecar drivers, and we get to see the interactions that they have with one another. We meet Liam and Jax, who are on a competitors team, as well as Sophie, the only other female traveling with the race teams. Maya and Sophie quickly hit it off and become close friends hanging out and looking out for one another.

“I’ll let you in on a secret though… f*cking you is the equivalent of winning a World Championship. I could never win again and be perfectly fine so long as you’re by my side. In my bed. Me inside of you. I like you a lot.”

“I didn’t f*ck around with her. I love her. I’ll keep loving her through everything, no matter what you or anyone else says, or whatever you try to do to break us up. It’s insulting for you to even think I’d be with Maya to f*ck around with your racing. She’s the end game. I don’t hook up with her for a sh*tty trophy, and sure as f*ck not for a Championship win. I want everything with her. Everything after this.”

Noah and Maya have a connection that neither have ever felt before from the very beginning. She makes him want to be a better person, not just for her but for himself, and he even goes to therapy (talk about making me swoon). I love how he is obsessed with her and constantly checks her IG and watches all of her videos. Though there were some cringy and cheesy moments, I enjoyed this and loved watching Noah grow throughout. I can't wait to read the next book, which is Sophie and Liam's.

How many times do you think he looked her up and down while biting his lips? You don’t wanna know.

I also got this on audiobook and please, next time you want to represent Spanish culture and the Spanish accent, just hire someone who’s bilingual and actually has the accent.

Thanks

1 star
The tension and epilogue were the only redeemers.

Yuck! This was a disgusting read... I actually expected better, for once, based on the hype around it. I try to go into hyped books without preconceived opinions or expectations but I've just only heard good things about this series. After reading, I truly don't understand the appeal of this book. I was nauseous for the majority, literally having my fight or flight senses tingling nonstop, especially during the intimate scenes.

I get it. This is supposed to be a smut forward book but all the ogling and constant talks about sex or sexual things were honestly such a turn-off more than its supposed purpose of being a turn-on for the reader. I mean truly... not everything revolves around sex. Sex is a plus, and we readers know that, but it was utterly gag-inducing, mainly coming from Noah but also from Maya.
"It's only human to check people out and think about people in sexual scenarios!"
Correct, but almost every other sentence? ICK

Now let's get into these intimate scenes... Gut instinct always had me wanting to run away. THAT is not something good for something we are supposed to like. Noah was always overpowering Maya, never asking permission, and always coming off as a predator and a creep. He's a sleezebag and yes, his character was made that way but my God that is not something we should want, and this is coming from a dark romance reader! I'm a simp for murders and MANY red flags on the daily. This was like a creepy old man coming up to you in a bar and putting his hand under your dress type feel. RUN GIRL RUN! His dirty talk sucked and the smut wasn't anything great. In another type of intimacy, Noah only praised Maya in his thoughts for how she was in bed...

The tension between them during outings and while trying to avoid each other was the only thing that kept me reading (well, also because this is a book club read for me). Take the gross remarks out and I enjoyed those interactions to a point. The epilogue was sweet, I will give it that.

Im 80% sure i wrote a review on this one, and it's Gone? Or im being delusional?!
_____
Updated!!! I'm not delusional, and it's actually gone!cuz now i can see the comments . What the actual f*ck

3.5 ♡

4.5 Great debut!

Noah is one of the best F1 racers in the world. His father is a legend in the industry, so racing is practically in his blood. You would think that would make his parents supportive of him and his career, but you would be wrong. They fake enthusiasm and love in public, but in reality, they use him as a status symbol they can control. It's no wonder Noah isn't a feelings kind of guy. He's a playboy that uses women like Kleenex, but when he meets a certain dark haired beauty at a press conference, his curiosity is peaked like never before.

Maya is the newly college graduated sister of his former rival turned teammate, Santiago. Santi and Maya are super close, so when he invites her to come along with him as he travels the world, she graciously accepts.Santi's very protective of his sister andNoah's reputation proceeds him, so Maya tries her best to stay away from Noah despite their attraction. ....Too bad, the heart wants what it wants.

Throttled is Lauren Asher's debut novel, and I have to say, I'm pretty damn impressed! I've read a lot of debut novels, and this one is definitely a standout. The author's writing is fantastic, and her knowledge of F1 racing makes the story even more interesting and immersive. I flew through the book with ease, and when it ended, I had a big smile on my face.

Noah and Maya's romance is super cute. Expect lots of flirty banter, strong chemistry, and plenty of sweet and sexy moments! If you're a person that doesn't love a lot of angst, this should be a safe bet for you. Noah and Maya confront each other with any issues they have instead of hiding it and letting it cause problems between them.

This author deserves bonus points for making me enjoy a sweet, slow burn romance, because it's not the type of book I normally gravitate towards. On top of that, the steam is on point! It's way better than I expected it to be for the author's first book. Overall, I enjoyed Throttled, and I look forward to seeing what Lauren Asher comes up with next!

If you're looking for a book with hot guys, fast cars, and an adorable romance, this one's for you!

ayyyyyy, me gustó mucho.

en verdad es una historia súper básica, pero de su simplicidad me enamoré. era justo lo que necesitaba. full recomendado si quieren algo muy cursi y sensual.

This book was so good omg!! I've never read a book about F1 drivers but I'm now obsessed. You all 100% need to give this book a read

Reread: just as good as when I first read it! In love with all the characters

This made me want to start watching F1 😍

the dialogue was corny as hell sometimes but the smut?? was very much giving. i liked this book i just don’t think i cared about the characters as much separately as i did together but i thought it was so good!

DNF at 23% read!

If I DNF a book, I usually don't give it a rating unless I've actually read at least half of it. However, there are books out there that I've read and that very quickly made me realise that I don't need to read the first half of them to know that they deserve a low rating and Throttled unfortunately is one of those books. I simply can't get myself to read another page of it and reading some of the other reviews that were left for this book showed me, that Throttled is not going to get any better if I continue reading it. I don't really feel like writing a long review on this book right now, so I'm just going to leave a list of things here that bothered me about it:

- the writing style: I think this is Lauren Asher's debut novel, so maybe the writing is a bit better in some of her newer novels, but the writing style in Throttled unfortunately was very similar to what you can find on websites such as Wattpad and I just really didn't enjoy it.

- the hero Noah is such an unlikable guy and also a bit disgusting, I just didn't like him at all and after hearing what apparently happens around the halfway point of the novel, I just know that reading the rest of the book wouldn't change my opinion on him

- the way F1 is portrayed: I'm a huge F1 fan and have been for most of my life, so I was excited to read a romance set in the sport but I wish the author had done a little more research. Firstly, random team members, mechanics and the team principal kept talking to the driver over the radio during the races while the driver's race engineer only came onto the radio like once. That's very inaccurate, the only person talking to the driver during a race is their race engineer because it would be incredibly distracting and not at all helpful if everyone could talk to him and the drivers constantly heard their reactions to the race. The team principal might come onto the radio if they have to use their position in the team to give an instruction to someone or intercept if things get too heated out there. The author also described how the driver was strapped into his car and rolled right onto his grid sport before the race and how the mechanics then took off the tyre blankets and 5,4,3,2,1 off they went. The drivers usually do one or several reconnaissance laps before they are greated by their team at the back of the grid and are then rolled to their starting position. Those laps are used to check if the car is running fine and to do things such as a radio check. Furthermore, the drivers go on a formation lap before the race actually starts so that everyone can get their equipment and themselves off the grid and back to the pit lane before the lights go off.

- the heroine's (Maya's) reaction to the hero: Whenever Maya and Noah were in the same room, the only thing Maya could think of was how hot and handsome and sexy Noah was. She could barely think of anything else anymore and it was incredibly annoying.

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"Fear is not always a weakness. It's what you do with the fear that shows your true strength."

Noah Slade.
Top F1 Racer. 2 time World Champion.
Looking to make it 3 time.
There is nothing but racing.
It is in his blood. It is his legacy.
The American Prince of F1.
Until he gets a new teammate in Santiago Alatorre.
And with his new teammate comes his sister.
Maya Alatorre.
And if it's one thing he doesn't need is a distraction.
But he can't seem to get his rival's sister out of his head.
Especially when she's not going anywhere.

"Men like Noah are only built for wickedness."

Maya Alatorre.
Fresh graduate with a Communication degree.
And no idea what to do next.
Until her brother offers her to come with him on the F1 Circuit.
Vlogging her way with the team.
There's only one thing she needs to stay away from.
Or one person. F1's American Prince. One of F1's biggest playboys.
Noah Slade.
Her brother's rival and new teammate.
Seems pretty simple right?
But Noah Slade can't stop looking at her and that look…
Why does that one look make her heart race so much?

"Noah screws up everything inside of me, including my common sense."

As a Formula 1 girlie, this book and this series is everything!
I love rereading this series so much especially during F1 season and in general.
Noah and Maya will always have a special place in my heart. Their chemistry and their storyline is just beautifully crafted. Getting the F1 aesthetic and vibes in this book with the spice and romance is just perfection ✨
This was one of the first books I read when I got back into reading and it is amazing every single time. Legit a Bandini Babe forever and I have no problems with that 💓💓

"Champagne sprays all around me, but I barely pay attention, too enamoured by her. And f*ck, it scares me."

Noah Slade is F1 premier playboy. Noah's story sticks with me each time.
Him living with the pressure of his family name, trying his best but it still not being enough, and trying to get out of his father's shadow and his grip.
While he is an alpha-hole (in the best way lol) his attention to Maya is mesmerizing to say the least.
The way, even from the first moment with his huge f*ck up of an assumption, he still knew there was something different about her.
For my F1 girlies, please let me know who you think of when you think of Noah Slade, because I have a mix of Max and Charles, you know what I mean?
Anyways, we have a playboy pure and simple, makes mistakes, but the journey he has in this book is amazing and everything.
And the way he is with Maya 🪭🪭🪭

"She's heaven. Perfect for me."

"Looks like I went to hell and back, scoring an angel along the way."

Maya Alatorre.
Maya takes Santi's offer and goes on the circuit with him for the season (dream am I right?) vlogging and instagramming away everything related to Bandini racing.
I want to describe Maya as a free spirit I think that fits best and I love her for it.
Her and Sophie's friendship is adorable and I think gives so much to both characters which I love.
She is very close with her brother and she wants to protect him any way she can and he wants the same with her. Only there is a very fine line between protecting her brother and preventing herself from living her life and I think that is Maya's journey through this book and Noah Slade is more than happy to help.
She is sassy, funny, and Noah Slade cannot get enough.
And I cannot get enough of them - cut to me gobbling this book up each and every time 👏👏👏

"Maya breathes new life into me, not wanting to piece me together but accepting all my jagged parts."

Lauren Asher as we all know by now has superior playlists - these are the songs that fit the vibe in my opinion so yay 🏁🏎️💨

(Link - https://spotify.link/jgEchxEhHJb )

🎶 "Ferrari" - James Hype, Miggy Dela Rosa
🎶 "parents" - YUNGBLUD
🎶 "Family Line" - Conan Gray
🎶 "Human" - Rag'n'Bone Man
🎶 "I Would Hate Me Too" - TX2
🎶 "The Pretender" - Lewis Capaldi
🎶 "Friday" - Riton, Nightcrawlers, Mufasa &Hypeman, Dopamine
🎶 "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" - Taylor Swift
🎶 "FU In My Head" - Cloudy June
🎶 "Shivers" - Ed Sheeran
🎶 "Boy In The Bubble" - Alec Benjamin
🎶 "Love The Way You Hate Me" - Like A Storm
🎶 "A Little Party Never Killed Nobody (All We Got)" - Fergie, Q-Tip, GoonRock
🎶 "GOSSIP" - Maneskin, Tom Morello
🎶 "Natural" - THE DRIVER ERA
🎶 "Break My Heart" - Dua Lipa
🎶 "Blow Your Mind (Mwah)" - Dua Lipa
🎶 "Bad Child" - Tones And I
🎶 "Speed Drive" - Charli XCX
🎶 "Vroom Vroom" - Charli XCX
🎶 "Champagne & Sunshine" - PLVTINUM, Tarro
🎶 "Drinking With Cupid" - VOILA
🎶 "HEARTBEAT" - Isabel LaRosa
🎶 "Confetti" - Little Mix, Saweetie
🎶 "Hey Look Ma, I Made It" - Panic! At The Disco
🎶 "Cheap Thrills" - Vitamin String Quartet
��� "The Hearts Wants What It Wants" - Selena Gomez
🎶 "salvation" - Christabelle Marbun
🎶 "Devil In Her Eyes" - Bryce Savage
🎶 "OWN MY MIND" - Maneskin
🎶 "No Control" - One Direction
🎶 "There's No Way" - Lauv, Julia Michaels
🎶 "Espresso - Double Shot Version" - Sabrina Carpenter
🎶 "No Shame" - 5 Seconds of Summer
🎶 "Daddy Issues (Remix)" - The Neighbourhood, Syd
🎶 "The Winner Takes It All - Acoustic" - Jae Hall
🎶 "Sneakers" - Knox
🎶 "Sucker" - Jonas Brothers
🎶 "telepatia" - Kali Uchis
🎶 "HONEY (ARE U COMING?)" - Maneskin
🎶 "MONACO" - Bad Bunny
🎶 "Focus" - Charles Leclerc, Sofiane Pamart
🎶 "Dazed & Confused" - Ruel
🎶 "Heaven" - Julia Michaels
🎶 "Cologne" - SM6
🎶 "I Want To" - Rosenfeld
🎶 "Say It Right" - Nelly Furtado
🎶 "feelings" - EMELINE
🎶 "Northern Attitude" - Noah Kahan, Hozier
���� "I Think I'm In Love" - Kat Dahlia
🎶 "Do It For Me" - Rosenfeld
🎶 "If Walls Could Talk" - 5 Seconds of Summer
🎶 "Better Man" - 5 Seconds of Summer
🎶 "Be Someone" - Benson Boone
🎶 "Fallin' (Adrenaline)" - Why Don't We
🎶 "Make You Mine" - Madison Beer
🎶 "Rush" - Troye Sivan
🎶 "Snow On The Beach" - Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey
🎶 "Heat Waves" - Glass Animals
🎶 "Greedy" - Ariana Grande
🎶 "You Put A Spell On Me" - Austin Giorgio
🎶 "Kiss It Better" - Rihanna
🎶 "Midnight Memories" - One Direction
🎶 "Breathing" - Jason Derulo
🎶 "Wise Enough" - Lamb
🎶 "Grace" - Lewis Capaldi
🎶 "Cinnamon Girl" - Lana Del Rey
🎶 "Call Me When You're Sober" - Evanescence
🎶 "Architect" - Livingston
🎶 "Not Afraid Anymore" - Halsey
🎶 "That Should Be Me" - Justin Bieber, Rascal Flatts
🎶 "Lay Me Down" - Sam Smith, John Legend
🎶 "Tell Me You Love Me - Rock Version" - Demi Lovato
🎶 "Hands to Myself" - Selena Gomez
🎶 "Talking Body" - Tove Lo
🎶 "Shameless" - Camila Cabello
🎶 "Pictures" - ECAF
🎶 "Strings" - Shawn Mendes
🎶 "Only Girl (In The World)" - Rihanna
🎶 "Ruin My Life" - Zara Larsson
🎶 "Afterglow" - Taylor Swift
🎶 "Spectrum" - Florence + The Machine
🎶 "To The Moon" - Meghan Trainor
🎶 "Never Let Me Go" - Florence + The Machine
🎶 "Beautiful Things" - Benson Boone

And as Lauren Asher said in her dedication - prepare the holy water 🌶️🌶️🌶️

"Always ready for me. Tell me, do you get this way while watching me race? Does it turn you on?"

"Holy sh*t, you're so sexy. Look at you, sucking my co*ck while getting yourself off."

"Always dreamed of f*cking the sass out of you."

🏁 Tropes 🏁

🏎️ Brother's Rival
🏎️ Sports Romance (Formula 1)
🏎️ Secret Romance
🏎️ Forbidden Romance

Book Edit - https://www.instagram.com/p/C7G3JKvrw...

i want noah to visit a gynaecologist because his 'dick twitches' way too much necessary

booktok you are like papa