Dirty Air

Formation 1 #1

by Desiree Champagne

Fritz has a reputation for being difficult, but his new race engineer is up to the challenge. Henry’s stern, but encouraging, voice haunts Fritz from the track to his hotel sheets. When a late night phone call crosses professional boundaries, Fritz and Henry must navigate the racing line between business and pleasure.

For fans x Race EngineerAge GapBrat x Brat TamerBDSM UndertonesDirty Talk/Phone SexChampagne Tongue Baths
🏎️ 🏎️ 🏎️ 🏎️/5
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️/5

The Formation 1 Series is a collection of stand-alone short romance novels. Each season spans one year of the fictional single-seater racing sport, Formation 1. The books can be read in any order, but they are interconnected by events that occur both on and off the track.

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

206 pages, Paperback

Published June 25, 2025

About the author

DESIREE CHAMPAGNE is a Sparkling Author, produced and fermented on the west coast of the United States. She pairs well with her wife and cats, but keep her away from social obligations and out of direct sunlight.

She is passionate about single seat racing series and the characters who bring the sport to life. She can only hope that her Formation 1 series does them justice.

Reviews

[angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could not put this book down!! So sexy and electric; the characters feel very real and I connected with them instantly. Loved every second of this read and adored Fritz and Henry!

The author does such a good job of balancing their relationship/connection and racing, it's very refreshing to see such a detailed focus on the sport intertwined with realistic inner monologue and tidbits of the main character's developing RS!!

[kailesbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8 ⭐️ thank you to the author for a free physical copy in exchange for a review! All thoughts are my own.

This was only my second-ever F1-style romance and my first F1 MM romance, and I had such a great time with it. As someone with very little F1 or racing knowledge, I really appreciated the background information, and I loved the race-day descriptions. They were immersive and made the entire experience feel exciting.

The romance itself was well done. While I would have loved a bit more insight into Fritz and Henry’s future, especially around coming out or becoming more public, the chemistry between them absolutely delivered. Their interactions felt natural and engaging, and the spice was definitely hot!! I found myself constantly looking forward to their quiet moments together, especially the phone calls.

The conflict was thoughtfully handled and felt very realistic given the circumstances, and the resolution wrapped things up in a satisfying and grounded way. I did wish the ending had been expanded just a little more, but it also felt like a strong setup for a potential second book? 🫣🫣

Overall, this was such a fun and quick read. I really enjoyed it, and it definitely sparked something in me. I will absolutely be picking up more F1 romances in the future!

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

while it was such a short and fast read it still have me all the feels!

the emotional and physical aspects intertwined and gave such a captivating read.

it was hot and heavy but also emotional. their relationship dynamic while steamy is also playful and natural.

also yes it’s 4am when i read this…now excuse me while i go read the others

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

hoping red boar's second sear isn't cursed

[Rod Lujano · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a breath of fresh air.

[Brooke Barnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book so fast it was funny, sexy, and so formula 1 heavy that was great because I love formula 1

[Emily Bierman · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

I could not put this down. Soooo good. The chemistry & connection between Fritz & Henry was so electric. LOVE LOVE LOVED them. I really appreciate when there's actual sports in a sports romance. And it's clear that the author knows racing. My only wish is that there's a glossary for racing terms becuz it would've made it a bit easier to understand the particulars of the races. Overall though I really loved this.

[✨️AJ✨️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need every author attempting to write a book about F1 to take note, because this was the first F1 book that didn't make me want to claw my eyes out because of inaccuracies and impossibilities!

This was genuinely so good, and my second favourite thing, other than the story itself, was trying to figure out who everyone was based on 😅

Also making Max German is hilarious to me as a German. My one tip to the author would be that if you write someone in a language you don't speak (sorry, I'm assuming here!), maybe have someone who speaks it proof read, since I realised some minor errors and things we as Germans wouldn't say (little things like instead of "guter Junge", even though that is the direct translation, we would be more likely to say "braver Junge". But this definitely didn't take away from it!

I immediately bought the other two, and cannot wait to read them/any more that might come out (please!).

[KRosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read from Desiree Champagne. I really really liked Fritz!! He and Henry had great chemistry and I loved the behind the scenes world of racing. The engineer details were spot-on and a joy to read through. I also read Switched Positions, part of the same series, and this was just as enjoyable. I would love to see this as a full novel - I think there’s so much more to this story that wants to be told and Desiree definitely has a strong grasp on the racing world. I’d love to see these characters more fleshed out and more about the various races of the season. And the spice? Well done. The angst? Just enough. The slow burn could be a bit more drawn out especially if it were a longer piece. Don’t miss this one - it’s terrific!!

[Betty Loves Books Galore · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a coworkers to more age gap racing sports romance, featuring Fritz and Henry, and is book one in the Formation 1 series.

Fritz has a reputation for being difficult, but his new race engineer is up to the challenge. Henry’s stern, but encouraging, voice haunts Fritz from the track to his hotel sheets. When a late night phone call crosses professional boundaries, Fritz and Henry must navigate the racing line between business and pleasure.

This was a quick read. Fritz and Henry’s dynamic crackles from the first radio call: it has chemistry both on and off the track. Henry’s firm, guiding voice follows Fritz everywhere, straight into trouble and directly into accidental phone-sex territory - I seriously cackled. This book shifts into the very spicy gears fast with champagne, control, and a sexy workplace age-gap. I am diving straight into book two.

Things to expect in this book are:
Book 1 in series
MM sports romance
Driver x Race Engineer
Age gap
Brat x Brat Tamer
Language barrier
BDSM vibes
Spicy times & Dirty Talk
Accidental phone s*x
Champagne tongue baths
Secret relationship
Calls him good boy
HEA

[Katya · Rating 3 out of 5]

listen. was this good? no. did I enjoy it? kind of? was I mostly laughing at the absurdity of this Max Verstappen/Gianpiero Lambiase fanfic? yes.

The racing was written decently enough. The characters were consistent, clearly based off of real people but I am a defender of RPF until the day I die. (do I also think the serial numbers could've been filed off better? totally.) If you like F1 romances, you will like how the racing and strategy talk was written. If you like a book with more depth than a kiddie pool, you might want to skip it. no conflict, no angst, high spice.

have I read fanfics better than this? oh, yes, totally. but if RPF weirds you out and you can get past the obvious allusions to the real world, it might be for you.

3.5 stars for the fact that it was easy to read and was what I wanted in this exact moment. just gay as fuck F1 and horniness.

[Ruby Dalegendaryreader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fritz, a Formula 1 racer, wanted to win and when Henry, his new race engineer, came into the picture, his goal is attainable. However, sparks fly between them and they embarked on a series of "unprofessional" relationship.

This was a short and quick read that's perfect for any Formula 1 fan.

However ~

As a non-Formula 1 fan, this was just mid for me. The story centers more around the mechanics on F1 and I was really confused sometimes but I just enjoyed the ride and learned a thing or two.

I didn't really connect with the characters but I did find Fritz funny and quirky at times. Their chemistry was just barely there considering it started mostly physical so I didn't really like that aspect but the spice was spicyyy. Had to fan myself at times.

[Nicole Daniels · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast and fun F1 romance

This is the first book in the Formation 1 Series. This book is a forbidden romance. Henry is the race engineer and Fritz is the driver. The two have an instant connection both on and off the race track. Henry helps instill confidence into Fritz and helps him become a better driver. The flirty anger between these two was amazing. I was kicking my feet and giggling during their spicy calls. I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait to continue the series.

[Olive · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fritz is quick to capture the heart with his dry humor. What seals the deal is his ambition and his admiration for Henry. Despite the sizzling tension between them, the two develop a real partnership that you can’t help but envy

[Zarlina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this. Fritz was so funny and Henry was lovely with his stats and numbers and being kind of nerdy but also so... demanding? There's something really attractive with men taking control, and the way he knew exactly what to say to Fritz to get the results he wanted was... everything.

I really adored their relationship, and I love how Fritz went from being just another driver, to someone his team really loved. Their little family was the sweetest and I almost cried in the end. They were so happy for him. Darlings, all of them.

Also, unrelated really, but being kinda new to the F1 world and finally starting to actually learn things, it was so much fun to read this and understand all the things I didn't when I read Switch Positions. I love the cheesy team names and can laugh at details I didn't understand before, but even if you're not an F1 fan and just want to read about hot drivers, I'd really recommend this series. The author is great at explaining things in ways that make sense even for us newbies.

Highly recommended!

[Fancy]

unusual read. the 3rd-present-pov keeps it distant for me. learned a lot aout F1 racing!

[Brooklyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do I know anything about F1? No I know nothing about it. This was very entertaining and I can’t get over Fitz snaking Henry’s bald head.

[kali · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

this was so much fun!! i am never immune to the rb golden boy mythos of it all

spoilery maybe but i actually need him to hook up with his childhood hero wtf "enjoy the ride" oh im sure - freaks <3