⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 5 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

"But a still photo couldn’t capture what she’s like in motion. It’s the way her full lips pull into a smile, or how her nearly black irises catch the light in such a way that it makes me wonder if there are actual sparkles in them."

‘You look . . .’ He trails off again, pausing to take a breath that practically shudders through him. ‘There are no words for how stunning you are, Stella. It’s a bloody privilege to even lay eyes on you.’

‘Let me pretend I get to keep you.’
‘I’m already yours, Thomas. No need to pretend.’

"My home is in London with a man who knows I prefer gold jewellery. Who holds my hand even when my fingers are freezing. Who outfitted his whole kitchen with my favourite appliances in my favourite colour and requests that I make the place a mess. Who let me leave to handle the things haunting me because he would never stand in my way."

i really LOVED this book. like love. love. love. i had the most fun time reading this book, the AMOUNT of times i was blushing and giggling because of stella and thomas (this was genuinely like half the time). once again, the romance simone created was so sweet, and the f1 aspect was very well executed. like who knew i would be a fan of f1 romances?

stella and thomas match each other so well and their banter is top tier! don't even get me started on the chemistry and tension between these two because it was to die for. my heart needs more! i also loved the side characters in this book, especially amara and mika, and let's not forget the tiniest glimpse of willow and dev that we got to see in this book! i seriously can't wait for the next f1 romance the author publishes because i'm way too invested and obsessed.

if you like sports romance, strangers to lovers, slow burn, accidental marriage turned marriage of convenience, then this is FOR YOU. you will not be disappointed! 🤭🤭

a few more quotes!

‘She . . . matches you. Matches your humour, your drive, your kindness. She’s thoughtful in the same way you are. Supportive without expecting anything in return.’

‘Because I can’t imagine my life without you any more. No one else is you. And you’re everything I want. Everything I could have ever dreamed of.’

‘I’d follow you to the ends of the earth, if you’d let me.’

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

A spicy, whirlwind Vegas romance with a dash of Formula 1 and a whole lot of chaos — Ride with Me is fun, fast-paced, and full of tropey goodness.
Stella and Thomas make for a compelling pair: she's reeling from a public breakup, he's drowning under pressure and PR disasters. Their accidental Vegas wedding? Totally unhinged in the best way. I loved the premise and the sparks were definitely there.
That said, I found myself wanting more. More emotional depth, more time to explore the marriage-of-convenience setup, and more insight into Thomas’s world as an F1 driver. The pacing felt a bit rushed at times, and some of the tension resolved too easily.
Still, it’s a fun escape read. If you're into impulsive decisions, forced proximity, and a sexy romance that doesn’t take itself too seriously, this one might hit the spot.

Tropes: Marriage of convenience, Vegas wedding, opposites attract, celebrity romance
Steam level: 🔥🔥🔥
Would I recommend? Yes — especially if you enjoy messy, high-chemistry pairings and love a bit of drama with your romance.

i really Enjoyed reading this one. stella and the thomas are adorable 🥰 i had so much fun reading their interactions. they had the best chemistry. I enjoy books with marriage of convince and this one was done so well. they match each other so well and their humor is top tier. I was giggling half of the time. go read this book !!

This book unfortunately wasn't working for me, and I decided not to finish it. There was nothing wrong with the writing or the characters; I just found myself not invested in the plot and very bored. I was almost at page 100, we were still in the night they met, and that is too long to keep me interested. When I read the first book in the series, Cross the Line, I had a completely different experience, so I’m very torn about DNFing this one. I’ll be setting this aside for now, and might try it as an audiobook in the future.

~
Thank you to Pan MacMillan and NetGalley for providing this eARC. All opinions are my own.

This is why I love going in to book blind. It's my first F1 romance and I knew it was going to be good. This book was so much fun to read. I was squealing and kicking my feet at the antics, especially when they woke up after the batcholour/batcholourette party.

The chemistry between the two main characters is instant, with their fun, flirty banter. Each character has depth and their own plot points to work through. Both having PR nightmares to try to recover from, they realise they could solve each others together.

I absolutely love the FMC. She is sassy, confident and unapologetic with who she is. I feel it's important to have representation of strong successful females who do not allow anyone to dull their shine. The way they build each other up and cheer each other on is so fantastic to read and is an important lesson for women to not accept anything less, and to not feel bad for being successful.

The MMC is just perfection. Handsome, British, an F1 star! But most importantly he notices and remembers the littlest things, he is her biggest champion. It's setting the bar where it should be for book boyfriends, and men in general.

I've since realised this is book two in the series however, this can be read and enjoyed as a standalone without missing anything from the story.

It's a feeling good, fun, flirty romance with an accidental marriage turned marriage of convenience.

Thank you to Pan Macmillan for this advanced copy.

I'm so pleasantly surprised—this book was sooo good! And maybe it's because I'm a sucker for a good accidental marriage in Vegas trope, okay. Or maybe it's because this book felt so incredibly real. The story blossomed and felt organic—not forced and not overly romanticized. Moreover, this book delivered great chemistry and sizzling tension, and I feel like I might be thinking about these characters for a while!

I'm not going to lie, I was anticipating this book, but at the same time, I was quite scared because I wasn't a big fan of the first one in the series. So I started this book hoping it would be good, but it turned out to be amazing! The story between Stella and Thomas was incredible. Their bond developed slowly and gradually, letting us witness how two complete strangers could become so close in such a short period of time. As they say, when you know, you know, right? Here, even though it started with lust, the connection grew deeper and developed into something so beautiful and pure. I swear, I was trying not to cry at the end because I just felt too emotional!

I devoured this book in one sitting, and I can say it's very bingeable! The story itself was fast-paced, but the narration didn’t feel rushed as the events unraveled gradually, and the whole journey was so entertaining to witness.

Stella was kind of introduced in the first book, but really getting to know her here was even better than I imagined! She's fierce and independent, she's very determined, but at the same time, she needs someone to hold her hand and be there for her. I love how, even though she had her own storyline and insecurities to overcome, she was still able to help Thomas—to be there for him—and she also let him see her true self. I feel like Stella's traumatic past with Etienne was properly explored, and that final part of the book, in which Stella was finally able to deal with everything that happened, was so well-executed. I think a lot of people might not like it, as it has the vibe of a third-act breakup, and while I usually don’t like those, here it felt organic.

Stella's growth throughout this book—her story of giving her heart a break and then letting another person in—is something I’ve needed for a while.

Now, Thomas Maxwell-Brown, the man you are! Oh my, where do I even start? I liked Stella, but I really, really, really loved Thomas! He was so perfect—calm, steady, and caring. I feel like I might add him to my list of all-time favorite book boyfriends because of how sweet he was. I have a soft spot for men like Thomas, so you can guess there was no way for me not to love him.

Also, Thomas's story wasn't as emotional as Stella's, but still—him trying to reestablish his image after that scandal kind of broke my heart. We all say things, and we all have to take responsibility, but still, saying things without actually meaning them in a heated moment—it's so human. And yeah, it's problematic, but reading about Thomas taking responsibility for his words and trying to be better was really refreshing. I just wish we had more time with the Formula 1 world, and I wish we could’ve seen how Thomas's career developed after the epilogue.

The chemistry between the main characters felt electrifying. The tension was tensioning, and I really feel like that tension was so alluring. It was a slow burn despite the story being fast-paced, and oh my, how well that slow burn was executed! Ah, I can't stop thinking about Thomas and Stella, as they quite literally became a part of me. They were two polar opposites, but when their worlds collided, they created such a powerful and beautiful bond.

Overall, this was such a great, cute little read! One of my favorite F1 romances, which I will for sure be coming back to! These characters are now part of me—what can I say?

Give me a Formula One book and I’ll devour it in the blink of an eye.

Last year, I read Cross the Line and absolutely loved it. So when Simone announced Ride With Me, I was beyond excited — I could barely contain myself!

I savored every single page and chapter of this book, and I have zero regrets. Stella and Thomas were perfect together, and their banter? I’m still on my knees for them. Love, love, love them.

Stella was such a pleasant surprise. I loved how different she was from some typical female main characters — she wasn’t afraid to be spoiled or speak her mind. Her personality and outlook were so refreshing!

Thomas gave off classic bad boy vibes, but with a beautiful soul underneath — the kind of character that drives us all a little crazy. His development throughout the story was spot on, and I truly appreciated him as the heart of the narrative.

Even though this book wasn’t as focused on Formula One as the previous one, I still deeply enjoyed it. The tropes, the scenarios, the dialogue — everything was incredibly entertaining.

All in all, Ride With Me delivered everything I was hoping for: laughs, chemistry, heartfelt moments, and characters I won’t forget anytime soon. Simone once again proves she knows exactly how to craft a romance that keeps readers hooked from start to finish.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of the eBook.

This was an enjoyable read but I didn’t like it as much as the first book. I liked Thomas and Stella as characters but I do feel like we were missing something. They definitely had chemistry but I can’t quite work out what was missing.

Maybe it was just me but I do feel like Formula 1 was forgotten. We also didn't get much insight into Stella’s work. She runs a bakery empire, tell me more!

Overall, it was an easy and fun read but just wasn’t as good as the first book for me.

This is the second book in the Lights out Series by Simone, this follows the same racing series this time focusing on Thomas, his leaked video which has caused his reputation to go massively down and Stella who has just been left at the alter and left broken after her relationship breakdown.

I loved this book from start to finish, I really enjoyed how this followed on from the previous book but at the same time you could easily read this as a stand alone book. I enjoyed how the two female characters in this series have are linked without being the typical friends or siblings which you find in a lot of books like this.
I enjoyed the small snippets of the previous characters coming in to this book to see how they progressed in this book.

Really recommend if you enjoy an F1 romance book, accidental marriage and both falling but not wanting to admit it!

who doesn’t love a fake marriage that ends in the most lovey dovey romantic relationship ever to exist?

boy oh boy did i fall in love with simone’s writing after cross the line, and this was like coming home. it was so easy to fall into and the little snippets of characters was just chefs kiss 💋

i LOVED the plot. i LOVED how it was Stella that was the fmc in this book, a little homage to cross the line. the plot was so well thought out and executed even better

the chemistry was there. the british humour was there. i genuinely loved this one and it kept me hooked enough to read it in two days

I absolutely ADOOORED this book. I was grinning non-stop. It’s one of those stories that makes your heart melt and skip a beat at the same time. We’ve got: a grumpy British F1 driver with a guarded heart, a sunshine-y bakery owner who radiates warmth and a surprise Vegas wedding.

Thomas and Stella’s dynamic? Absolute perfection. Stella is sweet, funny and delightfully chaotic in a way that feels so real. And Thomas is all broody with British sarcasm, 100% done with the world… Until Stella comes in and starts breaking down his walls. Their chemistry? Delicious. The tension? I devoured it. And the way he shows up for her quietly but consistently? I melted right then and there.

Also, big bonus: the F1 backdrop was surprisingly fun and totally enhanced the story without overshadowing the romance.

This book hit that perfect balance of heart and heat, angst and tenderness. It was charming, swoony, hilarious and completely addictive. Simone Soltani has officially been added to my auto-read list.

𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 : marriage of convenience, grumpy x sunshine, forced proximity, opposites attract, found family, slow burn.

Thank you to Simone Soltani, Pan Macmillan & NetGalley for my e-ARC copy.

𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙩𝙚 : 22 may 2025

I absolutely loved Cross the Line so I was really excited to get an ARC for Ride with Me!

Unfortunately, it didn't have quite the same pull and it took me 3 weeks to read it. I enjoyed the plot and the marriage of convenience trope, I just found it easy to put it down which is a shame!

I loved Stella and Thomas, their chemistry was so good and Thomas was just head over heels for Stella. Stella has been through a lot and that history causes the third act miscommunication and running off, I could've done without it to be honest - it didn't really add much to the story and just made Stella seem quite juvenile when she's a high-flying business woman. Speaking of, we see a lot of Thomas' work but not a lot of Stella's! I would've liked to see more of that.

Thomas and Stella. Where do I even begin? I absolutely devoured this book. I literally couldn’t put it down and was always thinking about it. I absolutely love a fake marriage and even more so with these 2! From the moment they spoke I absolutely adored their chemistry and the tension between them. And boy the slow burn between them was intense. I just wanted them to give into their feelings already. I absolutely love both characters so so much and the side characters who were they supporting them throughout just amazing. Stella had the most amazing and funny one liners I’ve read. I laughed so much reading this. Absolutely love when they went on holiday together. And I loved that they both managed to get the closure they both deserved from what happened. So so sad it came to an end but boy am I happy with the ending.

4.5 ⭐️

This was an amazing read, Thomas and Stella I love them and the slow burn of them wanting to share there feelings but also not had me not wanting to put it down.

I genuinely didn't think this could be better than book one, but it was so freaking good. The main characters were so lovable and funny and had such good chemistry. Stella is such an independent and strong FMC, and I love how Thomas complimented her so well. The fake dating aspect was done perfectly, with so much tension and 'we shouldn't' moments. Highly recommend 😍

(4.25)

THE SLOW BURN TO END ALL SLOW BURNS

I was really excited about this book after reading and loving Cross the Line from the same author, it did not disappoint.

This an accidental marriage/marriage of convenience F1 romance where both MCs come from wealthy privileged backgrounds and both have successful careers. Thomas is a Formula 1 driver and Stella is at the helm of a bakery empire. What was supposed to be a no strings attached one night stand in Vegas turns into, well, lots of strings attached when the MCs get drunk married.

I really enjoyed this story. The slow burn was excruciatingly delicious because it allowed us to know the characters as they go through all the emotions on the spectrum.
The banter between Thomas and Stella was also very well done. Their chemistry was well crafted throughout the book and i liked that it was dual pov so we could see the disconnect between how one character is perceived by the other MC and their inner monologue.

The Formula 1 aspect was really interesting too. As an F1 fan, i liked how this book takes place at the end of the season, and during the winter break. It allows for the more political aspect of the sport to be explored, This book takes place during the same racing season as Cross the Line, and while characters from book 1 do appear, you do not need to have read it to follow along.

One thing i thought was a bit contrived is the third act drama. I understand why it happened and the resolution of that particular plot point was really satisfying (go Stella!), nonetheless there were so many ways to go about it that it felt a bit frustrating.

Overall a very enjoyable read with incredible chemistry between the love interests.

"𝘼𝙝 𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙩. 𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙄'𝙢 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙛𝙚."

Readers, start your engines!! Because I have just discovered my favourite romcom of the year 😍

Simone Soltani has absolutely smashed it with this F1, marriage of convenience romantic comedy. From picking it up, I couldn't put it down, and if you follow me over on Threads, you'll have seen me gushing all about it.

"𝙄 𝙙𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙩. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙚𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩, 𝙤𝙧 𝙄 𝙙𝙤 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜."

Holy crap 🥵 Thomas, the man you are. Is there anything hotter!?

Stella is a queen, no question. She is confident and beautiful, and her humour is incredible. Never mind Thomas falling for her, I did too 🤣 she's so used to taking care of herself that when someone else does it, she doesn't know how to react. She's been mistreated by a narcissist, so Thomas is such a breath of fresh air that she knows she won't survive losing him.

Thomas is the ultimate gentleman. With his politicians smile™️, British wit, and his delightfully filthy mouth, he is top-tier book boyfriend material. Where can I buy me one of those? He buys her all of her favourite baking appliances in the exact colour she likes so she can be comfortable working in his home, but he makes sure she has silk pillows because he knows she needs to look after her hair. Stella didn't have to tell him what she needed, he made it his business to know, and for that, he is a king.

The slow-burn build up was intense and delicious, how either of them lasted so long I'll never know because I would have folded like a deckchair the minute Thomas called me "love." I mean, I'm British and he even had me swooning for him 🤣

Stella and Thomas might have found themselves in an accidental marriage, but they turned out to be exactly what the other needed at the time. With bumps along the way; French ex-fiancés, a snake in the pit-box and a social media frenzy; this book will have you up late kicking your feet with a crazy grin on your face.

You'll have to read it and let me know 😉

Thank you to @simonesoltani and @panmacmillan for an ARC of Ride With Me 💜

Basic info:
- Contemporary romance
- Double POV, 1st person, single timeline
- Part of a series of standalone books

Tropes & hooks:
- Sports romance (MMC is an F1 driver)
- MMC is the owner of a very successful bakery business
- Both FMC and MMC are extremely rich
- Interracial couple
- Accidental marriage in Vegas
- Forced proximity

What the book is about:
Stella and Thomas met at a combined bachelorette/wedding of their friends in Vegas, and once they met, the sparks flew—so much so that they woke the next morning married with no recollection of how it happened. After giving it some thought, they decided to stay married for PR purposes. Stella needs to look professional in the eyes of the executive board of her family business. Thomas needs to evade any scandals because he has just been in one (and currently is the most hated F1 driver), and besides, his family is trying to get him married to another woman he has no interest in. So Stella and Thomas decided to stay fake married for about a year.

My opinion:
- Generally speaking, it is a nice, easy read.
- Stella. She is the kind of badass, independent heroine I usually love. She has just been left at the alter by her scumbag of the ex, so now she is very weary of new relationship. If you read book one and remember the macarons scene, those macarons came from Stella's bakery.
- Thomas. We all need Thomas in our lives. The way he just knows and takes care of Stella. For example, when she moved into his house (for pretense obviously), <spoiler>he stocked his kitchen with all the appliances she might need for baking.</spoiler> He also has some history with his family and doubts about his career.
- Romance. Generally speaking, Stella and Thomas are cute, but I was nowhere near as obsessed with them as I was with the couple from the first book. I would say Thomas fell first and felt harder, but Stella was putting her walls up because of her previous experiences. So even though they were all the time in close proximity, they didn't really start dating until the very end. So we could even say it's a slow burn.
- Pacing. I found the pacing of the book a little off. We don't even leave their friend's wedding surroundings until around the 30% mark, and no one knows about Stella and Thomas's drunken wedding until around the 50% mark.

I received an eArc in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you to everyone involved in eARC distribution.

Objectively, I don't think this was a bad book but it seems unfair to review when I'm probably not the intended audience.

This was well-written and cutesy but I hate the uprising of Formula One romances. Again, I have a masters degree in sociopolitical responses to F1 drivers and campaigns that they work on so this does seem a little bit of a step backwards for me.

I don't hate this, I can see a lot of people who enjoy romance and don't know a lot about the ins and outs really loving this so it is entirely unfair to say that this book was bad. It just wasn't a good fit for me.

Thank you, Pan Macmillan for always having my back and sending me the most amazing ARCs!

After loving Cross the Line. I had high expectations for this book and it didn't disappoint.
Stella was a great FMC. She was sassy, confident, hard-working, a girlboss...😍 But let me tell you about Thomas "my wife" Maxwell-Brown. Honestly, reading about him made me want to go to London to find myself a man like that because WOW🥵 He was so supportive of Stella, so understanding and respectful – their chemistry combined with forced proximity, marriage of convenience and slow burn, was off the charts.
Like in Cross the Line, I loved the diversity. This time, we had an interracial couple and it made me so happy to see Thomas being so considerate and getting her silk pillow cases – it's the little things in life!
As always, the F1 drama and character development were very well-written and I had such a good time reading this book that I was sad when it was over way too quickly.
I can't wait for the next book (I hope it's Reid) and I'd also love listening to Ride with Me as an audiobook with dual narration, so we can hear the different accents (please make that happen😭).