Crash Test

by Amy James

Formula 1 meets Red, White, & Royal Blue in this contemporary romance in which an F1 phenom battling for the championship is sent spinning after his secret love is involved in a massive crash.

Twenty-four-year-old Formula 1 driver Travis Keeping is halfway through an incredible racing season, with the championship well within his sights. But when a massive crash in Formula 2 leaves driver Jacob Nichols in critical condition, Travis’s world is flipped upside down. No one knows, but he and Jacob have been dating for almost a year.

Now the only boy he’s ever loved is clinging to life, his F1 team can’t understand why his performance is faltering, and he’s locked in a cold war with Jacob’s parents, who want him as far away from their son as humanly possible. Travis is sure everything will get better when Jacob wakes up, but he soon realizes he’s underestimated Jacob’s parents’ influence on their son.

As the F1 season barrels on, Travis and Jacob find themselves alone and miserable on opposite sides of the globe. But with some new friends by their sides, both drivers will be pushed outside of their comfort zones and onto a journey of self-discovery—one that just might lead them back to each other in the end.

Genres: Romance, Sports, M M Romance, LGBT, Contemporary, Queer, Sports Romance

348 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2025

About the author

Amy James lives with her husband and dog on the east coast of Canada. Her debut romance novel, A FIVE-LETTER WORD FOR LOVE comes out from Avon Books on December 3rd, 2024. Her second romance novel, CRASH TEST, comes out from Avon Books on July 1st, 2025.

Find her on Instagram @amyjamesbooks.

Reviews

[chan ☆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

none of this book is spent with us getting to know these characters and watching them fall in love. we get to see one guy in a coma for a long time and get flashbacks to their relationship before the coma.

then he wakes up and they're apart for the majority of the book. oh and this deals heavily with the homophobia one of the guy's faces from his parents.

so yeah i sort of hated this.

[Fairuz ᥫ᭡. · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars: ★★☆☆☆
Huge thanks to Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon for inviting me to read the eARC and to HarperAudio Adult | HarperAudio for the ALC via NetGalley 💌

IDK wtf that was but it sure wasn’t romance. I was this close to DNFing, but I betrayed my soul and gave it two stars instead of one. Not one redeeming quality. Not the characters, not the pacing, not the structure. And especially not the way the story was told. This was painfully mid-tier, and that’s me being generous.

✨ Premise? 10/10. Execution? Fell off a cliff faster than Jacob’s F2 car.

The idea was chef’s kiss—F1 drama, queer romance, heartbreak, high stakes. But somehow, this book managed to feel emotionally hollow despite its tragic setup. Like, how do you write a secret relationship between two men in elite motorsport, have one of them in a coma, and still make me feel nothing?

The first third is just Travis sulking in his feelings, and even that felt shallow. It was giving "summarized heartbreak" instead of showing us actual connection or chemistry. Travis keeps saying he loves Jacob but never shows us why. And Jacob? Bro, that man spent the first 50% unconscious and the rest acting like Travis personally ruined his life.

💥 Structure: A Mess in 3 Acts (Literally)
The book is split into three "sectors" (Formula 1 pun, cute... in theory). First sector? All Travis. Second? All Jacob. Third? Floppy ping-ponging that couldn’t decide whose head it wanted to be inside. And don’t get me started on the transitions—absolutely no flow, no rhythm. The POV switches in the final part felt like whiplash.

Also, can we talk about how everything was told in past tense reflections??? The tension? Gone. The chemistry? Skipped. The vibes? Deceased.

🚩 Jacob: The walking red flag.
I wanted to like him, I really did. But his whole arc was like a passive-aggressive apology note that never actually says "I’m sorry." He ghosted Travis, let his parents treat him like dirt, and came back like “my bad, babe” and expected applause. Travis deserved better. (Though lowkey, Travis didn’t even fight for himself so... maybe they were meant to be, in a sad, low-standards way.)

The emotional payoff? Wasn't paying.
They reunited after a year of silence and trauma, and within 5 minutes they were basically like “lol, wanna kiss?” LIKE BE SERIOUS.

⚠️ RWRB comparison? False advertising.
There were no royal vibes, no witty banter, no slow-burn enemies-to-lovers tension. Just a deeply avoidant couple who fell apart off-page and decided to try again... also mostly off-page. The comparison was pure clickbait, and I fell for it like a clown 🤡

Tropes:
🏁 Secret Relationship / Closeted Romance
🥀 Second Chance Romance
🏁 Sports Romance
🥀 Injured Love Interest (Coma Plot)
🏁 Queer Romance (MM)
🥀 Famous/High-profile Characters
🏁 Angst
🥀 Miscommunication / Lack of Communication
🏁 Hospital Setting

🎧 A quick audio note: the narration? Fine. The material? Not it. I appreciate the effort the narrators put in, but even they couldn’t save this lukewarm story.

⭐ Highlights (aka the few things that didn’t make me want to throw my phone):
✧ The F1 backdrop, though barely explored, was cool in theory.
✧ The first hospital scenes had some actual weight to them.
✧ The idea of showing how closeted athletes suffer in silence? Important. But it deserved better execution.

📝 Final thoughts:
This felt like the ghost of a good story—an outline that never got fleshed out. The bones were there, but the soul was missing. If you're looking for queer romance with actual chemistry, or sports drama that doesn’t rely on trauma dumping and unresolved tension, this ain’t it.

Would I recommend? No.
Would I reread? Hell no.
Do I regret it? Yes. But at least the cover’s pretty.

[✨⚡ Kelcey (felinebooktrovert) ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I don't live my life to please ignorant people. And I don't care about the opinions of small-minded idiots."

4.25 stars

An emotional story with a little bit of a rushed ending.

This story definitely packs a punch, and it was pretty hard to put this book down. The first third of this book is like death by a thousand emotional cuts, and I could see where it was going and dreaded it the whole time.

Travis was such a sweetheart. Quiet guy with a heart of gold, always trying to do the right thing. I wanted nothing more than to hug that man throughout most of this story. And I liked Jacob but had some issues with him. It was hard to seem him after the accident and how he was thinking about everything, but it was highlighting the really hard situation he was in and all the complicated feelings he had but then seeing him progress in so many different ways and changing for the better.

But the ending was a little bit of a head scratcher for me. They were both in such a complicated relationship and situations overall, and I really feel Jacob should have been groveling for quite some time. Most of this book was really emotional and mostly in negative ways, so it would have been nice to have a little more time with them finding each other again and taking their time to get it right.

But I crushed this in a day and really enjoyed it so would absolutely recommend 🔥

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

[Susan Carolynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars! Crash Test is pitched as Red, White, and Royal Blue meets F1, and that's an immediate add-to-cart from me. Though I have mixed feelings towards this book because it had so much potential, but the execution didn't really line up for me.

I didn't love how Travis and Jacob's relationship (or at least 90% of their relationship) chronologically took place prior to the events of the book. Because of this, there was SO much telling of their chemistry and relationship progression in the past, rather than showing. Having the couple split up for what was essentially the entirety of the book doesn't line up with the expectations of a romance book. I wish there was more on-page, present-time relationship development.

However, the emotion after the crash was great. I felt so much for Travis and being expected to race/perform after a devastating tragedy is heart-breaking. Very I Can Do It With a Broken Heart by Taylor Swift coded. It's also quite angsty and miscommunication-heavy, more so than I expected. Jacob also felt a bit immature and unlikeable with some of the rash choices he made. But the general pacing (aside from some of the abrupt flashbacks) was great, and I loved the role of F1 in this book!

Thank you so much to Avon Books for a copy of Crash Test. As always, my reviews are one hundred percent voluntary and all opinions are my own :)

[Charlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

There isn’t a day that goes by that I’m not craving a queer sports romance book. I had yet to read a book about Formula 1 before starting Crash Test, so I went in blind and without any knowledge of the sport.

This story was very emotional and full of angst. Travis and Jacob start the book as a couple in a secret relationship, but end up spending the majority of the book separated. Crash Test is about two men fighting against their own demons to try and find their way back together. The writing was lovely and I genuinely enjoyed how the story evolved. I thought Travis and Jacob had great chemistry. I think starting the book with a traumatic event that eventually leads to the separation of the couple was an interesting choice that I haven’t seen before. It set up a second chance storyline that I really enjoyed and thought was well-written.

I loved Travis as a character, and liked Jacob too, even if I did find him a little bit frustrating at times. Jacob is struggling with his sexuality and what it means to be out as a queer man. This is the source of a lot of the tension in their relationship. Primarily, Jacob’s issues stem from the terrible relationship he has with his family, who are incredibly controlling. I despised his family, and was rooting for him to break free of their toxic control. Unfortunately, Jacob’s struggle with his family ended up causing Travis a lot of pain. It was a little frustrating how Jacob allowed this to happen, but I understood why he was afraid. Two things can be true.

I loved that Jacob went to therapy to work on his trauma. He needed to work on himself before getting back into a relationship. I would have liked to have seen him grovel a bit more before they got back together. I also wish the book had been longer and we had got more of their developing relationship, how they’ll navigate being together, and potentially reveal their relationship to the world.

I found the descriptions of the races easy to follow and really enjoyed the sport aspect of the novel. Overall, Crash Test was a quick read with a lot of heart. I thoroughly enjoyed my first experience of Formula 1, and look forward to reading more queer stories about the sport in the future.

I’d recommend Crash Test to anyone that loves queer sports romance. Thank you to the publisher and the author for the review copy!

I post about queer books on: Instagram Twitter TikTok

[Fernanda (ivyfer_isreading) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm conflicted. I really liked the start of this book, it seemed like it would make me suffer and sob like a baby, my exact type of book, but then it just lost all the appeal.
It is split pov and we follow Travis, a very famous F1 driver who is in a relationship with an F2 driver and the boyfriend in question, Jacob, who gets in a very serious accident while racing. As you can expect, no one knows about their romance so what happens when Jacob is in the hospital and Travis needs to keep behaving like nothing happened to keep appearances?
Like I said the beginning was great, but then I started to hate Jacob. I know he has a healing and evolving arc but before that it really affected how I felt for the book. I like unlikable characters, but here he wasn't supposed to be one(and not in romance, who wants to hate a lead in a romance book? You have to be masochistic). I liked Travis, but he had no personality whatsoever, and the way he acted towards the ending pissed me off. Jacob has internalized homophobia that's clear, but some other attitudes of his were the problem, he is just a dick. To be honest the best thing in this book is the cast of side characters, I love Heather, Hunter and Matty, hell I even like the other romantic leads.
I think there were a million better ways to write this book, unfortunately the wrong one was taken.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Amina · Rating 2 out of 5]

✰ 2.5 stars ✰​

​“If I’m honest, I think I fell in love with him that week. It sounds stupid, I know. But being with Jacob . . . it was like coming alive.”​​

I'm going to borrow a quote from the author to describe my feelings for giving their sophomore novel some of my time - 'whether you loved it, hated it, or something in between'; and unfortunately, it sadly fell into the latter.​ 😞

​​​ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ To me, the fault lay in the structure of storytelling, as how it was framed as a recounting of time together, which ​took away​ the depth of intimacy and connection that could have been felt between Jacob and Travis.​ The story is also divided into three parts - the first entirely from Travis' first person perspective as he reflects on the past year with his secretive relationship with Jacob, dividing his time between making daily trips to the hospital, where Jacob's life hangs in the precarious balance, while also continuing to fulfill his duties to stay on track to still be considered a top-rank F1 race​-car driver.​ 🏁 In an emotional confrontation when Jacob regains consciousness witnessed by his disapproving family, it spirals into a painful and dismissive break-up between the two, thus spiraling them into a separation of nearly a year, where Jacob returns to his family in Albuquerque, and Travis pursues his dream in London, while still trying to nurse a broken heart.​ 💔

​ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ When the second part shifts to Jacob's POV during his time in the States, we get a glimpse into his buried insecurities over his feelings - misunderstood feelings that led to their fallout, one fueled by insecurities and anger at himself for allowing his feelings to be guided by intrusive feelings - both from outside and from within. 😥​ The third part is divided between the two of them in an imbalanced alternation ​without preamble of whose perspective we're in​ save for the friends they're associating with that ​asserts that readers should just know​ who is narrating. Confrontations and realizations take center stage as the two of them barrel towards a Crash Test in accepting hard-earned truths and fierce longing that decides most easily who their heart truly belongs to.​ 🫶🏻😔

​ “This was madness—absolute fucking madness.

​“Impress me,​” he murmured, sliding both hands around my neck.”

​ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Due to their relationship being retold, there was too much telling and not enough showing. I don't want a summary of their time together, give it to me.​ Show it to me!​ Let me have those intimate moments where their bond deepened! I don't want rushed dialogue and scenes dedicated to other characters when that time could be better dedicated to showing their emotions, instead! 🥺​ That is why I strongly feel that a story that had potential suffered because of how it was told. That as Travis thinks back fondly of their shared memories, it's not enough to really feel anything or glean the strength of their bond. I know how the separate perspectives allow us then to see what the other was thinking during selective moments, but it was not enough for me to care for them.​ 🙍🏻‍♀️

​ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ I also failed to see the comparison with RWRB... Aside from having to keep their relationship under the radar, they weren't prior enemies, not even in the same league - no separation of such that warranted a breakup that compared to that. 😮‍💨​ Based on the blurb, I also did not get the impression that when they would be miserable by the ocean keeping them apart, it would be because of the distance that separated them from the other enforced by Jacob's parents dislike of Travis, ​rather​ than a self-imposed break-up that was unfair and unwarranted.... Not to mention how one misunderstanding was simply for prolonged drama, which was then resolved without much fanfare, angst, or drama.​ 😕

​“I could name a thousand things like that.

And it wasn’t just that you did stuff for me.” I search for the right words. “It was the way you made me feel. I didn’t realize how lonely my life was until I met you.​”

​ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎I wouldn't say it was as much of a reflective journey for Travis as it was for Jacob, aside from Travis realizing how much he gave to Jacob, but never received that much in kind. Time apart to evolve and reflect on what they're missing in their lives, how they've changed and better assess the choices and actions that led them here. The climax to their happy ending, however, left me feeling unsettled... I mean, a year apart, and rather than have him work for an apology or forgiveness, they jump right into their heated passion. Travis was ​too understanding and accepting​ of letting go of his hurt.​ 🙄 I know Jacob promises to redeem himself and be better, but it sounds sus... The ending also wrapped up a bit too quickly for me, not really allowing me to savor the fruit of their hard-earned​ - ahh, maybe ​not so much​ hard-earned - but a victory, nonetheless.​ 🫶🏻
​
​ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ I don't have any prior knowledge of F1 whatsoever, but it didn't quite bother me at the limited time we did spend on the course​; especially since the secrecy of their relationship stemmed from the fear of being seen as an openly gay driver.​ 🤷🏻‍♀️ There was also something off about the way the dialogue from the French-speaking staff at the hospital was depicted, but I can't quite put into words what it was. 🤔​ Single POV can work, but it did not translate well in the final part when it alternated in an arbitrary fashion. And I wouldn't quite say the writing resembled fanfiction, but one thing that bothered me was that we got no physical attributes to Travis - not one whatsoever. I know it shouldn't be an issue, but when every Tom, Dick, and Harry gets described, why didn't we ever get at least one glimpse of Jacob's contemplation of Travis' beauty of his hair, eyes, anything!​ It's a silly point to pay attention to, but it bothered me.... 😞

​ “It would be easy to wish it had never happened ... It was hard, and sometimes horrible, but it led me to where I am now.”

‎​ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Not everything was a total loss. Their first meet-up was quite cute; although considering how Jacob wasn't hesitant to make his moves, he still behaved the way he did. I really liked the beginning at how the author captured Travis' intense emotions as he grappled with the thought that he may very much lose the one person who has ever meant something to him, and having the fierce burden of keeping his desire of yearning for Jacob's health and safety under lock and key. 🥺​ As much as I disliked Jacob for his ill treatment of Travis, his breakthrough was a believable one​ at what a piss-poor boyfriend he was, albeit a hastily resolved one. And yeah, his parents - caricatures at the worst kind of unsupportive and homophobic sorts, but still enough for me to dislike them fiercely.​ 😒

*Thank you to Edelweiss for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

[Zoë · Rating 4 out of 5]

and you know what I don’t even care that there was less F1 in this than I anticipated because why am I so fragile right now over very strong feels for two very not real people lol

[Sophie (lambsbooks) · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I didn’t realize how lonely my life was until I met you.”

Emotional from the first page, this book tried to kill me.

Travis was so awkward and introverted and my little heart couldn’t handle all of it

I stand a few feet away from him, shifting from one foot to the other. I don’t know what to do with my arms.

4.5 stars

This was my first Formula One book! I loved F1 as a kid so this was super fun to read about. The romance between Travis and Jacob was also super cute and very angsty - but it was done well! This was a fast-paced, sorta second chance romance featuring Travis, who was quiet and reserved and Jacob, who was outgoing but so deep in the closet he was in Narnia. But his family was shit, so he had a good reason.

*Que drama*

But also, the humour in this was amazing! I’m a big fan of funny stuff in serious-sad-etc. books

“Plus, I still think it’d be kind of rude to just show up out of nowhere at his door. If he wanted to see me, he could. So, I should just . . . respect that. Right?”
Kelsie doesn’t look up from her typing.
“Right?” I say again. “Kels?”
“Huh? Oh—sorry, babe. I was just Googling synonyms for ‘coward.’”

I loved the fact that when they were separate, Travis found his own little family *sob* Found family is absolutely great in books, and Travis was so alone. And Jacob went to therapy which was a huge positive thing cuz that boy needed it, badly. It allowed for some well-needed character development! I wish more books would show the characters going to therapy, god knows most need it lmao

If you wait for everything in your life to be perfect before you take action, then you’ll be waiting forever.

I did wish that the accident was more front and centre, I guess? Or maybe the recovery, but the pace of the book was fast, so it was glossed over a bit. But what was talked about, see my first sentence again 😭

Eventually, I drag myself to the shower down the hall and stare at myself in the mirror. It’s hard to do. I hate myself so much these days. It’s like—I can hear myself being a dick, but I can’t stop it. I feel so awful and hateful inside, it spills out into everything I say, everything I do.

Anyway, definitely recommend!

Big thank you to Harper Collins Canada for this eARC and the author for a physical ARC!



____________

Phew, this was Emotional with a capital E

Rtc

[⋆｡°·☁︎ sydney ⋆｡°·☁︎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED THIS SO MUCH
Its four in the morning right now, and im exhausted, but this was incredible. by the fifth chapter i was absolutely SOBBING, which is rare for me, and by the twentieth i was in love with all of the characters.
im unwell and need to go to bed now, but easily five stars.

[Jordan Fischer | julietfoxreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG I AM OBESSED WITH THIS BOOK. The hype is REAL y'all. I've been on the hunt for a new sports romance obsession with hockey romance season (haha) winding down, and I think Crash Test by Amy James might have sent me right into my motor sports romance era. This book is ANGSTY y'all, I cried through the entire book. And while some of the choices the characters make might be frustrating in the moment, the character development in this book is SO GOOD that you see significant growth by the end. I was on the edge of my seat the entire book, absolutely could not put it down. PLEASE read, it's INCREDIBLE.

The basic premise of Crash Test is that Formula 1 driver Travis and Formula 2 driver Jacob have been in a relationship for a year, but no one around them knows. I basically went into this book blind, and y'all, I was crying in chapter one. Travis is OBSESSED with Jacob, and completely all-in from the very beginning. His utter devotion is really kind of heartbreaking - I didn't realize that this book was second chance at first, and its a PAINFUL one y'all. The first half of the book is told from Travis' POV in the present with flashbacks to the development of his relationship with Jacob, and there really are some REALLY sweet and swoony moments. But, I'll be honest, I was pretty mad at Jacob for a while there - until I got to his POV chapters, which come in part 2. Despite hurting Travis, he is really hurting too (physically and A LOT of internalized homophobia to get over) and watching him overcome his own issues and come to realize what he lost really helped me understand him. I was also really proud of Travis for finding himself beyond his relationship with Jacob - the friends he makes are amazing, just THE BEST secondary characters. And the end?! OMG, this was when I really couldn't put the book down, SO MUCH HAPPENS and it all makes everything these guys have gone through worth it.

I was gushing in my stories the entire time I read this book, frantically DMing the few people I knew who read it. I cannot wait for it to release! THIS BOOK is exactly why I love second chance romance so much - while Travis and Jacob's initial relationship might have been sweet, they really needed to work on themselves before they could truly commit to each other. This book is already one of my favorites of the year, prepare for me to start yapping about it nonstop.

[abby :) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25/5

my hidden talent is starting books at 11pm and finishing them by noon the next day!

i was very kindly sent the arc of this book by avon and i loved it. its been a while since i'd picked up a f1 romance and i was missing it a lot. this story is also told in such a unique way, the structure was unlike anything else i've picked up. we are following travis and jacob as they deal with a secret relationship and the issues that arise when jacob is in a horrifying crash. this book is perfect for girlies who love tension, a.k.a. me!

the fast paced writing style gets you right into the story and i was hooked. i cared so deeply for both of them because they had their own slew of problems and they struggle but they end up happy and thats all that matters. travis is kinda a recluse, same, and he hasn't been in a relationship, same, so he falls in love instantly with jacob. when you get the flashback to the start of their relationship i was cheesing, it was adorable and so wholesome but you saw the issues. you may not like jacob for certain parts of this book but he gets the help he needs and i was cheering him on by the end.

the only issues i had with this book was the last two chapters. it honestly felt like everything wrapped up wayyyy to quickly and it seemed too picturesque. i wanted more from them reuniting and having conversations about what happened. like yes i'm happy they are happy but their should've been more to the ending. if you like mm romances and f1, pick this up in july!!

*thank you so much avon for the arc*

[Renae Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crash Test is an emotional and angsty romance about two F1 drivers who fall in love. The story of Travis and Jacob focuses on their relationship and whether it will remain private or finally be revealed to the public, and how that affects their personal and professional lives.

I appreciated that this story took its time for both characters to process their feelings for one another. Both are shocked by the depth of their emotions; thus, the risk of admitting to themselves and others how in love they are with each other has significant consequences.

I also enjoyed the groveling and emotional arcs both characters undergo throughout this story. Travis's perspective is gut-wrenching as he grapples with his intense devotion to Jacob while feeling completely lost and out of control due to various factors. I really felt for his character and only wanted the best for him. He deserves someone to care for him and love him in return.

Jacob's perspective fills in many blanks as you understand his conflicting emotions regarding his sexuality and how it impacts his family and racing career. I appreciated seeing him put in the work to understand and process his trauma while admitting the reality and depth of his own feelings.

Overall, this is a strong romance that left me extremely frustrated at times while yearning and rooting for these two to finally communicate and express their feelings to one another. Their HEA is hard-won and such a relief after the intense hurdles both go through.

*** I reviewed a complimentary copy of this story***

[Justin Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

A surface-level good time, Crash Test feels like a strategically-timed 'product', riding the promotional wave of this summer’s soon-to-be blockbuster (the F1 movie with Brad Pitt), rather than a story written from the heart. That’s not to diminish its entertainment value—Crash Test checks all the boxes of a solid contemporary romance, and in a year that’s been relatively dry for a traditionally published M/M romance hit, it’s refreshing to have one that feels timely and taps into the cultural zeitgeist.

The best way to experience Crash Test is its audiobook, which features two male narrators, each voicing one of the heroes. Not only does this format smooth over some of the rougher patches in the writing (the tonal shifts between overwrought melodrama and banter-filled rom-com can be jarring), but the energetic delivery—even a touch over-the-top at times—breathe vivid personality into the leads. By the end, I was genuinely invested in their happy ending.

There’s plenty I can objectively critique about Crash Test, but the fantasy of a queer romance set in a hyper-masculine world (one already in the media spotlight thanks to a big-budget film), combined with the excellent narration, elevates what might otherwise be a mediocre story into a genuinely enjoyable guilty pleasure. I wholeheartedly recommend the audiobook as the way to go.

**This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Much appreciated!**

[julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.7 ˖⁺‧✮

i have a love / hate relationship with characters of this book. at one point i understand both of them and i can’t imagine how hard it was to open and come on public, however, because of this fear, they both became toxic and unfair to each other.

while both characters were in love with each other, they used this power to hurt one another. sometimes it was unimaginably hurtful to see, especially when jacob left travis without really an explanation.

I wanted him to love me, and I never wanted to have to say it back.

i liked travis even though i feel like he was led by jacob since the beginning. by reading chapters, i wouldn’t say that jacob wanted just sex and nothing else. they would talk about deep topics, spend time together and message each other. travis was open, supportive and real. i enjoyed his characters and his character in general.

«“Good luck tomorrow,” he said. He strolled away, hands in his pockets, and threw his last words over his shoulder along with a challenging grin. “Try to impress me.”»

i definitely enjoyed how jacob started to realize his actions and how much travis loved him. the tension throughout the book was intense and seeing jacob somehow be interested in travis was finally relaxing. HOWEVER, i do believe that jacob was experiencing jealousy toward travis when he started to post his new girlfriend. of course he probably liked travis, but not the same way travis did. he knew that travis would do anything for him and i think it was the reasons for jacob’s return. it really felt like it. jacob was toxic and he does not deserve travis. here

«Alone in his hotel room, being sad about me. I had all the power in our relationship, and I was using it to hurt him.»

the plot was good and refreshing. chemistry was definitely there and characters had define personalities. i would definitely recommend this book if you like racing and mm romances, even though there wasn’t as much racing.

Thank you Edelweiss and Harper Collins Publisher for copy of the book.

[Esme · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a decent book. To me personally this didn't read as romance. While I still enjoyed the romantic elements I just wish there would have been more of them together so you could actually want them to be together. The characters were a bit annoying at times. Sometimes you just wanted to reach through the book and shake some sense into them. It was just hard to root for them together when both characters did a lot of fairly unforgivable things in my opinion. Also I wouldn't go into this expecting a cute fluffy romance (especially going in wanting the F1 meets R,W&RB vibes) cause it's depressing and very deals with decently heavy topics.

When it comes to the F1 accuracies; I'm not a huge F1 fan personally so I can't say how well those elements where delivered but the references where easy to understand as a newbie! I also learned there was not only an F1 but an F2 and F3?

Overall the book is good, it just wasn't what I was expecting.

The audiobook was very well done! loved the dual narration!

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Audio for the audio ARC!
*All thoughts and opinions are my own!

[Lauren (lololovesthings) · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars!

"Crash Test" by Amy James is a gripping and emotional MM F1 sports romance that made me smile, cry, and even chuckle. I loved the main characters, Travis and Jacob, even when they were infinitely frustrating (mostly Jacob!). They both feel like fully-realized, fully fleshed-out, realistic people. Their character development didn't leave me wanting at all. They both have terrific character arcs that satisfied me, even when they made the wrong decisions. The growth that they both display is tremendous! They are forced to face their problems/demons/issues and put in the work to change for the better. This book has an incredible dual narration by Gary Furlong and Patrick Zeller. This might be one of the best audiobooks I have heard this year. Zeller and Furlong bring these characters to life in passionate, fitting, intense ways. The pacing of this audiobook is perfect. I didn't find this book to be too long; I found it to be the perfect length. I *had* to keep reading to find out if Travis and Jacob were going to get their happily ever after. I can see some readers having an issue with some of the things that happen in this book, but it all makes sense toward the book's end. Trust me, this is one you have to stick with! You won't be disappointed by "Crash Test."

Thank you to NetGalley, Amy James, HarperAudio Adult, and Avon for the complimentary ALC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

[Amelia]

so what if i read this in one day. curiosity doesn’t kill cats it kills ME

[Isabelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Huge thank you to Avon, Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for the Advance Copy!

4 ⭐️s!

Crash Test by Amy James is an angsty, emotional, and ultimately tender F1 romance between two drivers. This book is told in alternating POVs and in 3 Sectors (because F1, get it? 😙).

The 1st Sector is all Travis, our sweet and reclusive F1 driver who represses his emotions like it’s his job. Poor guy is successful, but alone and not sure what to do with himself. Enter Jacob, an up and coming F2 driver who takes our repressed little Travis and teaches him how to live by guiding him through new experiences (including but not limited to make out sessions and hiking).

Sector 2 is all Jacob, and we get a lot more detail on why he is the way he is and his motivations throughout the story. I personally despised him at certain points of this book, but he really grew as a character during his POV. Turns out he is a little repressed too!

Sector 3 flips between the POVs and this is where the story got a little rocky for me. It felt very rushed. The angst was there and it was delicious, until it suddenly wasn’t. I wanted more yearning/groveling/emotional conversations! I think there was potential for groveling and forgiveness being hard to earn, but then it was glossed over. I still like the ending, just wanted more from it.

I think this author is going places because it takes a special talent to make me enjoy a book told in past tense. I like to feel like I’m IN the story, and usually that is hard to pull off in past tense. But Amy James somehow made it work! I felt sick with what Travis was going through. I felt his loneliness and hurt even when he was just telling me about it. I wanted to throttle Jacob for his actions sometimes, but his POV had me in my emotions. I love me some good character development. Also the found family? The hilarious side characters? Incredible. I actually laughed out loud a couple times. 😂

Overall I felt like this was a great read! I didn’t really get the RWRB comparison, but it holds its own in the mm sports romance genre. Other than a couple issues with pacing towards the end I have no complaints! 🩷

[Evelyn Bella (there WILL be spoilers) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shocking that I'd enjoy a story this much when the two MCs weren't together in the present day timeline for around 80% of this.

I wanted to dislike Jacob but I actually couldn't because it kept circling my mind that he's 23 so his actions made so much sense given the context of his parents opinions and the accident. Explanation. Not excuse.

It really fucking helped that he figured his shit out and worked on himself in every way that needed work before he went to get his man.

A good thing, too, because Travis is a forgiver💀

Literally saw his man struggling to get explanations and apologies out and said look, there's really only one thing I need to know 😂😂😂

Sigh.

But honestly, I can't hate it. No unforgivable crimes were committed here. And they'd both already had SUCH a hard time of it that I couldn't begrudge them an easy reconciliation.

They deserved something easy.

Travis is an exceptional boyfriend, even though he can't keep secrets worth a damn💀

Jacob isn't. Not at the start. But even without an epilogue, I know he will be, going forward.

And he read his parents TO FILTH. I'm honestly glad there was no rising above when it came to them. Travis whacked the mom a bit, and Jacob finished them off.

What more can I ask for?

Nonetheless. This is romance, and while I appreciate the unconventional approach to the storytelling, it's CRAZY that they're barely together in this.

It did give Travis a chance to build a life for himself beyond Jacob, though. Because if living your life for someone was a person, it would be him. He really had nothing else going on. Except work.

Definitely a hard won HEA, though.

[James]

DNF@45% I guess don’t go into this expecting a romance. In fact, it’s basically in the name—there’s a crash, and it tests the relationship between these two race car drivers. But aside from a few flashbacks it skips over the getting together phase, which for me is always the best part, and goes straight to the dramatic coma/separation/family drama, none of which is fun to read.

[ren ౨ৎ (jiwoong's version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

⁀➷ 4.25 ★ ´ˎ˗

▶︎ •၊၊||၊|။||||။ ၊|• 3:03
romeo - bryce xavier

“i used to think that, before jacob, my life was colorless. when i was with him, everything was brighter, and better, and it never occurred to me that i could find that brightness anywhere else.”

words cannot describe how much i enjoyed this book. despite being in a reading slump for the past month or so, i ended up devouring this book in one day. ironically, i’ve been searching for a book with this very specific premise for a while — a f1 driver in a secret relationship with a f2 driver. so, i think it was somewhat fated that i ended up getting accepted to read this arc.

most sports romances follow a very specific formula (pun intended), but crash test breaks the mould in multiple different aspects. i’m not a massive fan of multiple povs, but i like how the chapters of this book were divided. the first half of the story follows travis and includes some retrospection of their relationship. the second half of the story follows jacob and how he copes with the fallout of both of his relationship and career. then at the end, the two povs come together, but they mesh together so well. it never felt like reading the dual povs was repetitive, but rather lent necessary insights to each of the main character’s mindsets and emotional journeys.

initially, i ended up really adoring travis from the start, and it was easy for me to empathize and connect with him as a character. but, that empathy and draw toward jacob didn’t click for me straightaway. i was a bit worried that i wouldn’t ever enjoy him as a character, but that changed after getting the glimpse of the dynamic between jacob and his parents — making it easy for me to understand why he chose to act the way he did toward travis. there were definitely a lot of intricacies that were revealed through reading his pov that made me like him more than i did when the story began.

i think the only thing that knocked my rating down from a 5-star read was the fact that the ending felt a bit rushed. there was a lot of angst building up to their reunion, and it felt as if them getting back together was too easy. in my opinion, it would’ve been a bit more realistic to have some reluctance on travis’ end due to the heartbreak that jacob unintentionally caused him. it would’ve been more satisfying to have jacob grovel a bit more and have to show that he’s actually serious. but, this small gripe didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of the story and amy james’ writing.

it’s also a little silly, and i’m not sure if amy james will ever read this review, but i’m on my hands and knees begging for a book about matty if you have the muse for it! your writing brought me so much joy, and there were so many background characters that felt like this was a well-rounded and curated fictional world that could be built upon.

thank you to netgalley, avon and harper voyager, and amy james for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

[Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐
Amy James, I got my eye on you girl...

This was a story between two racecar drivers - Travis Keeping and Jacob Nichols. When Jacob gets in a serious wreck and their secret relationship is threatened with exposure, these two will be tested (no pun intended) and asked what they are willing to endure for the love of each other.

This was such a delight to read. James's writing made it where you given solid perspectives on both of the characters; I found empathy for both Jacob and Travis (although, I did end up favoring one over the other). Also, I'm glad the author made F1 racing so accessible to the everyday read. I don't know the first thing about F1 or F2 racing, but I think James does an amazing job of giving you just enough information that you get the gist of what's happening without boring you with extraneous details. It did take me a minute to get into her writing style at the beginning, but once I was a few pages in and had the pace, I was locked in. I will admit, the ending didn't sit right with me (but, I'm willing to admit that that might be more of a "me" issue).

The pacing of this book felt pretty fresh to me because you didn't have just the single perspective of one of the main characters. I'm actually glad the relationship wasn't written chronologically, and you get to understand the relationship in a realistically, flashback-oriented way of understanding. In this, you feel more empathetic of the characters and get a better understanding of their thought process. Both characters seemed very fleshed out, and I'd argue that all of the characters felt realistic, even the side characters.

I think this book does a fairly decent job of addressing its topics, such as self-acceptance, trauma, humility, and understanding what one's limits are in a relationship. There's questions of independence, questioning of boundaries, and, finally, learning what it truly means to be in a relationship with someone.

Sidenote: I'm so glad this book didn't have an overloading amount of spice/smut scenes! Thank you, Ms. James. I appreciate you.

Thank you so much to Avon, Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for this ARC!

[Frank Socha (franksforeword) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hello? Yes, I'm Frank, and I want all the F1 romance reads now, ok? Thx.

Oh this was good. These two together are ELECTRIC! Any time our two MCs were on the page together I just absolutely melted :) Not only them though, the whole cast! The personality types were DIVERSE af and everyone brought the exact thing I needed them to bring to the story. The kind ones. The serious ones. The silly ones. The c*nty ones. Not one person felt like a filler. I just love them all!

I now have the UTMOST obsession with Travis and will be placing him in the hall of fame of book boyfriends from here on out. This man is PERFECTION. He is the ultimate selfless gentleman. Good at his job. An absolute joy to others. And is FREAKIN HOT!!! I know he's fictional and doesn't have a face, but in my head he's real and has the best face so....periodt.

Ok and amidst all the romance, the whole F1 plot and the journey through the race season was freakin FUN! Especially with this sort of flip the MCs have when they're in race mode vs romance mode. There's this whole journey to become the league champ and I got SO excited when race day came around :) laying pipe at night and then laying...wheels to the pavement in the day! It felt like such an evolution of a budding romance while also the evolution of these two racers in their careers, which adds such a fun dimension to the story!

Such a fantastic read from Amy and can't wait to see what else she drops!

So thankful to the publisher for the arc :)

[jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full disclosure, I already read and liked this book months ago, but the audiobook fully made me love it. Apparently I am such a sucker for an angsty slow burn romance; especially when the narrators fully commit to their performances and bring the characters to life with quite affecting raw emotion.

There's a common plotline in a number of MM sports romances where everything is going fine with a secret relationship until one of them gets injured during a game (or, in this case, a race). Typically, this happens about 75% of the way through a book, but Crash Test smartly opens with this scenario.

F1 driver Travis has the championship in his sights when news comes through that there's been a major crash in an F2 race involving his secret boyfriend of the past year, Jacob. The narrative then follows the fallout of this accident and how it impacts both of their racing careers and their chance at a future together. In short, I read this whole book in a day while traveling and cried a lot in public. It's not a perfect story (simply put, not enough groveling), but its narrative structure felt fresh, and I loved the way things unfolded through flashbacks and switching POVs.

Hoping there are more solid F1-related romances to come from this talented author. Many thanks to Avon, HarperAudio and NetGalley for providing me with an ALC and ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Lauren Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hope Jacob’s parents have an awful day.

[Caz · Rating 4 out of 5]

B+ / 4.5 stars

Amy James’ Crash Test is an angsty and emotional story set in the world of motor racing that features two young drivers – one a contender for the Formula 1 world championship, the other driving in Formula 2 – whose lives are upended, in very different ways, by a horrific on-track accident. A serious or life-threatening situation that sends one half of a (usually closeted or secret) couple rushing to the bedside of the other that then results in their both realising that life is short, they want to be together, and they need to tell the truth about their relationship is a frequently used trope in m/m sports romance. In the books I’ve read that have used it, the accident usually happens near the end – but the author turns that convention on its head here, using it as the starting point for her story and then following the characters through what happens next with its attendant mess of complex emotions and life-changing revelations.

Formula 1 star Travis Keeping doesn’t immediately hear about the F2 crash on the Circuit Paul Ricard because he’s been in a post-qualifying press conference, but he quickly realises something is wrong when the big screens that should have been showing the race are blank, the pits are almost empty and the whole track is eerily silent. There was a terrible crash involving several F2 cars that has killed two drivers and seriously injured three others, who have all been airlifted to hospital. Desperate for more information, Travis approaches some of his crew, and finds out that one of the drivers is Jacob Nichols – with whom Travis has been in a secret relationship for almost a year. Travis is a mess. He feels sick, he can’t breathe, he can’t move, but everything in him is screaming that he needs to get to the hospital. It doesn’t matter if someone guesses why he’s there, not any more. It might be his last chance to see Jacob alive.

When Travis arrives, he manages to find out that Jacob is in the ICU (having answered “yes” when asked if he’s a relative) and heads up there to see that things are much worse than he’d imagined. One of Jacob’s legs is in a cast and hanging from some kind of pulley contraption, he’s got tubes and IVs going in and out of his body and, worst of all, he’s on a ventilator. The people sitting by the bed, who Travis knows must be Jacob’s parents and older brother, look up as he approaches, clearly disappointed when they realise he isn’t a doctor, and just as clearly about to ask him to leave, but then one of the monitors goes off and he’s edged out of the room anyway, just before the door is closed in his face.

We then jump back in time to around a year earlier to witness Travis and Jacob meeting properly for the first time. They know each other’s names of course, but that’s about it; they’ve never really interacted. Until one rainy Friday afternoon at the Austrian Grand Prix when Travis, who, like everyone else, is waiting for the rain to stop, inadvertantly walks into the middle of a TV interview. He doesn’t immediately register who the interviewee is, and when the reporter smilingly asks if Travis would join them, he hesitates for a moment – then Jacob Nicols grins at him, and Travis is toast. He’s ruthlessly pushed the part of him that is interested in guys to the tiniest corner of his mind; like most male-dominated sports, F1 isn’t particularly queer-friendly and Travis has no wish to have his private life dissected and propelled into the media spotlight. But Jacob is everything he’s never let himself want or imagine having – funny, charming, gorgeous, smart – and, it seems, interested in Travis.

Crash Test is divided into three parts. The first – which is the longest – is told from Travis’ perspective, in chapters that alternate between the present day - the crash and beyond - and the past, in a series of vignettes of the time together they manage to snatch from their packed schedules over the year leading up to the crash. The author does a fabulous job here of capturing all the intense, difficult emotions Travis is experiencing – the gut-wrenching fear of losing the one person who has ever meant something to him, his frustration at not being able to be at his bedside because nobody knows what they are to each other, and the burden of having to keep the truth of his feelings and their relationship under wraps. Travis visits the hospital daily and sometimes doesn’t even get to see Jacob, and it’s heartbreaking to watch him having to fulfil his commitments to his F1 team and to pretend nothing is wrong.

The second section follows Jacob after he’s returned home to the US to live with his parents during his recovery. It’s in the blurb, so it’s not a spoiler to say that Travis and Jacob are no longer together at this point, and here we get into Jacob’s head as he starts to face up to the long-buried insecurities and internalised homophobia that caused him to act the way he did while he and Travis were together, and how those things, together with the external pressure being exerted by his family all combined to cause him to push Travis away.

The final part of the story is told in alternating PoV chapters (although we’re not told at the beginning of each chapter whose PoV we’re in, which makes for some confusion), and unfortunately, it’s the weakest part of the novel. I desperately wanted Travis and Jacob to get a long-awaited and hard-won HEA, but while they do get it, it comes too fast and too easily. After a year of silence and heartbreak, their reuinion happens at warp speed; I wanted Jacob to have to work to earn Travis’ forgiveness and trust, but Travis – who has, by now, worked through some of his own insecurities and is in a much better place – pretty much caves the minute Jacob turns up on his doorstep.

That’s what brought my final grade down a bit. Up until the end of the second section, I was reading a DIK – I loved the angstiness and intensity of it all; I liked watching Travis picking up the pieces of his life and learning to move forward, making friends and just generally reaching a place where he’s happier and more content with life and with himself; and much as I disliked Jacob for the way he treats Travis, I liked getting into his head and watching him finally admit what a shitty boyfriend he’d been, the genuine remorse for what he’d done and making plans to move forward and, hopefully, fix things with Travis. But the fixing needed more time to breathe for it to feel as though it was properly earned, and I confess it was something of an anticlimax, even though I was rooting for Travis and Jacob to get together.

One last thing. The blurb describing Crash Test as "Formula 1 meets Red, White, & Royal Blue" is bollocks. The only similarities are the ages (mid twenties?) and nationalities (one British, one American) of the protagonists, but that’s it – and there are a number of early reviewers who were clearly pissed off when the book didn’t live up to that comparison.

Even though the ending needed more time for it to deliver the kind of emotional payoff the rest of the story deserved I’m giving Crash Test a strong recommendation - and I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for whatever Amy James writes next.

[ari ⋆˚ · Rating 4 out of 5]

˚ ༘♡ pre-read:
╰┈➤ i am so excited for this... 🏃‍♀️

⋆˚࿔ crash test review 𝜗𝜚˚⋆

┆ ⤿ 💌 4.5 stars!

As someone who has been reading a lot of F1 romances this was such a great change of pace! We follow the emotional rollercoaster of an F2 driver and F1 drivers relationship as they deal with the reality of what it would mean to be together.

I found myself actually crying a ton during this and I completed it all in one day 😭 I loved the dual povs but loved even more that it wasn’t a constant rotating POV but rather the first 1/3 of the book is in Travis’ view, second part is in Jacob’s and theirs part is more interchangeable. This really gave us a time to really learn who these characters are!

I did feel that the reconnecting was done a bit too abruptly and there wasn’t enough apologies and communication before such a pivotal moment but other than that I really had a great time!

Thank you to Avon for the digital arc! <3

｡ﾟ• ┈ ┈ ┈ ┈꒰ა ♡ ໒꒱┈ ┈ ┈ ┈• ｡ﾟ

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[KT · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75⭐ (Rounded up)

Why do so many MM books have to advertise themselves as XYZ meets Red White and Royal Blue?? And why are none of them actually similar in any meaningful way?
The tag line for this did it no favors, so I went in expecting something a little (a lot) different than what I got. Once I was actually able to wrap my head around this being a SAD book instead of a FUN book, I enjoyed it a lot more.

I really felt for the characters, specifically Travis. He was so awkward and genuine and just precious. Jacob was almost too realistic in his negative traits, so I had a tough time with him, but I did enjoy the growth of his character.
As seems to be a trend for me though, I think I liked the side characters most - specifically Matty and Heather. Matty was just so funny every time he was on page.

I probably took the most issue with the ending....the resolution between the two was quick and Jacob really didn't deserve forgiveness so quickly. I didn't need him to grovel, but I definitely needed more than there was.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for providing me with this ARC.

[Brianna ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖࣪ | briannasbooknook · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for an ARC of this book!

I am giving this book a solid 3.5 stars! I really wanted to rate this higher, but I felt the execution fell a little short. For most of the story, we don't even see the two main characters (Travis and Jacob) in their current relationship but for maybe 15% of the book. A lot of the story takes place thinking about their relationship prior to Jacob's accident and a majority of the story centers on Jacob and his horrible family and how homophobic they are. I also feel like Jacob was just flat out mean most of the time and that was really hard to read because Travis was nothing but nice and kind to him. He was just kind of a dick. I wish that there could have been a lot more showing of their relationship and not telling. I think this could have been written differently and I would feel a little better about everything.