Taming the Street Racer

by Kenzie Myers

He tips my head toward his with his index finger, keeping my eyes trained on him and driving me crazy with the primal look on his face.

His grey eyes look heavy, filled with dark desire, and a shock runs up through my core. Everything around us disappears and all I can sense is him and the hardness pressing between my legs.

"What are you doing to me, River?" he whispers, his voice raspy and utterly captivated. His face is lowering and I'm closing my eyes, waiting for soft lips to press against mine. My whole body is on fire as I hold my breath for his touch.

♔

Everyone in River Avelle's hometown knows about Grayson Maddox - the troubled badboy who almost killed another student in the middle of the school hallway. Those who look into Grayson's eyes only see pure fury and hatred.

They all think he's beyond redemption, even Grayson himself.

But not River. As the seemingly perfect good girl, River saw something more in those alluring grey eyes. Something worth holding onto.

From the first time their eyes connect, both Grayson and River feel the intense, undeniable attraction between them...but neither of them understand what's pulling them together so fiercely.

The closer they get and the more vulnerable they become, River has to wonder: is she saving Grayson from his darkness? Or is she just pulling him further into hers?

Genres: Romance, Sports Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Smut, Sports, High School, Racing

ebook

Published June 30, 2020

About the author

We are two girls who have been friends since fourth grade who decided to take the plunge and write our own books! We go by the pseudonyms Violet and Peyton but write under the pen name Kenzie Myers.
Currently, we both attend college in the US, trying to find time to write in our hectic lives.
Our main writing platform is currently Wattpad, so find us there @koolkenz.
Also follow us on Instagram @realkoolkenz.

Reviews

[soph · Rating 3 out of 5]

to whoever first commented that they read ‘Gray’ as ‘Gary’...fuck you, i never had a problem reading his name before i saw that comment but after that i could only read ‘Gary’ 😭

[Tarynrose · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars⭐

I read this ages ago but I remember enjoying it

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so good! It was a bit of a slow burn. I laughed, cried and wanted to punch some of the characters at times, but that’s the sign of a good book.

[𐙚 Khareema 𐙚 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this earlier this year. This book was something else. Grayson is your typical bad boy with a past that keeps haunting him. Gray and river’s chemistry was top tier.
I adored Gracie 🥺🥺

[maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished this at 1am at night and I am emotionally DRAINED

[sohana · Rating 2 out of 5]

12 february - 3 march (20 days)

characters were annoying. ending was unnecessary

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5stars/🔥🔥🔥
This book had me right from the start. I absolutely loved the characters and was so excited to see them develop more and more. Unfortunately I did start to get tired of the book at about 75% in but oh my god did that ending waking me up. Wow I was not expecting that and I find it ended off on a beautiful note. Of course there was times I thought some scenes were cringy but the romance and characters made up for it.

[Alechu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me han dado mini infartos leyendo este libro

[Aiza Safvi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was suchhhh a good book like it was actually so well written and i loveddd the found family it was so cute. The plot twists in this book were crazy and i loved them esp the end😈😈 Hi grayson

[katia · Rating 2 out of 5]

unnecessary angst 😭

[Sabrina Q · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a good book. I finished it in two days. Grayson is the ultimate bad boy with anger issues and a scary past. River is the perfect nice girl with a sad home life. They are very different but connect through the darkness that is within both of them. Gray and Riv and unforgettable. I wished it never ended. Luckily there is a spin-off, about their daughter which comes out in February. It has been one of my favorite books of all time.

[Ella :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this ages ago but I still remember most of the plot. I found the book on Wattpad and thought it was just going to be a great romance/love story, I did not expect to have my heart ripped out and put on a silver platter, I hold this book high on the fact it is one of the few books I have ever cried to. The story line and characters were amazing from what I can remember and I will never forget the ending.

[𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘢 ♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG I DIDNT KNOW THIS BOOK WAS OK GOODREADS. I read this a while back, it was actually one of the first well written books I had read on Wattpad. It was so detailed and it gave me a reading hangover because it was hard to find a good detailed book. Loved this book, 100% recommended it !!

[imaan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.6 ⭐

I'm not sure how exactly I feel about this, especially after reading the ending where River loses her memories. It kind of felt like the whole story went to waste because at the end River doesn't even remember who Gray is. I'm glad they had the chance to fall in love again for a second time but it's sad that she can't remember the memories from when they first fell in love. At the end she did get a single memory back so I'm hoping eventually she'll remember everything.

The story in general I do love. It's about a street racer, Grayson Elias Maddox, who has extreme anger issues and does not love anyone except from his little sister, Gracie. Eventually he falls in love with someone else, River, who is a soccer coach for his little sister. They're like a cute little family imo. I love literally all the characters, well most of them, and they were written so well.

There's only a few people that I do hate in this story:
- Trevor: sexually harassed River and purposely crashed into the car where Gracie, Tommy and Violet were (Gracie went into a short coma), out of spite. I'm not upset that he died in the process.
- Peter: he's just so unlikable, what is there to like about him?
- Peter's gf: I forgot her name but I do remember that she's annoying af, she literally pushed River away from Gray when they were kissing and kissed Gray herself.
There's probably some more but you get my point.

[Kristin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would have given this book a much higher score if the ending did NOT happen! The character development and story telling was so good. Loved how the relationship progressed and how much Greyson has grown into a good person. The aspect of therapy and mental health and self-love and acceptance was a great asset. It all would have been lovely to have a satisfying ending to wrap up this drama filled (sometimes unnecessary drama) book but no. The author had to end it like it did. This whole build up of the whole book was thrown away, only leaving us with a glimmer of hope and hint that 'hey! maybe this entire book and its build up was not for nothing!'. It is a personal preference of course, but if I had known that this book ended with Amnesia, I would have not touched it from a mile away. And yes whilst the ending was 'good', I did not feel that after all of this drama and heartbreak that the ending was satisfying and sweet. It was just bittersweet, leaning heavily into the bitterness. But what did I expect from a Wattpad book? Read at your own risk, I suppose. These are just ramblings from an emotional recked person who has invested too much time and feelings in these fictional characters.

[Mariama · Rating 5 out of 5]

before the ending
Sorry, this review will be lengthy.
river- She reminds me of myself since she loves football, wants to be a lawyer, and also because of her suffering. I can connect her suffering to how she withheld it all. She never revealed to her closest friends that she was a grayson.
A dubious character, Grayson is left to care for his 7-year-old sister alone and enjoys playing football, which is how they all came to know each other. We can see his rage, but we can also see what caused it.

The novel demonstrates how two individuals can experience agony and suffering, but it takes a lot for them to unite and support one another in overcoming this pain. The relationships that form between the power couples Payton and Saye, Tommy and Vi, and Grayson and River are wonderful. I really want to witness this fairytale since I love it. I ADORE THIS BOOK, oh my.

after the ending
Bro i have no words just know i cried my eyes out…
how can an author make a ending so sad yet so amazing at the same time?

[inês · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was slightly reluctant to start this book at first as I haven’t been reading many books that actually had me gripped. However, the first chapter itself proved my choice to read it to be completely correct. The book itself is very well-written and the descriptive writing style reinforces my idea that everything, from the simplest thoughts to the most beautiful love scene, was thought about carefully. Besides the well-rounded and unique characters, ‘Taming the Street Racer’ has a good pace from scene to scene and I think that’s what had me so enthralled. Furthermore, Grayson Maddox, the male main character, will be making your heart skip a few beats and the love between him and River Avelle will have you smiling from ear to ear. As you can probably tell I absolutely adored this book and I really cannot think of one single thing I did not like about it, so go open Wattpad and read this masterpiece! I genuinely recommend it!

[Micaela · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have come back to this book over and over when another book lets me down. It is SO good and despite accidentally reading “gray” as “gary” multiple times throughout the book, I have no complaints. The beginning was confusing to me at first but the enemies to lovers slow burn was EVERYTHING and so worth it in the end. Their relationship had so many layers and the love was so evident in how it was written. If you’re thinking about reading, DO IT- it is so good, I wish I could print it out and have my own copy.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book that I’ll always recommend. The writing is really good and I was intrigued from the very start. We all love our typical troublesome bad boy with a haunting past but Grayson was just top tier. The way he opened up for River and let her see all of him was real heartfelt. I adored how they were both struggling with their lives separately but when their together they made each other happy and gave each other a place of belonging and acceptance. I love kids in books because it always shows a different side to characters when they’re interacting with them . Reading about Grayson with Gracie was just so wholesome and adorable. The chemistry between River and Grayson was everything.

I loved reading about their fears and struggles and how they overcame them. The ending is just perfect.

[vasu.susu · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had everything and more I was looking for. It is a whole damn package!! I love the writing style of Kenzie. She has done a brilliant job in making this book better than any expectations I’ve ever had. It’s shows shortcomings of both the leads and also how they overcome it. It’s so realistic and also dreamy at the same time. Every character in this book has so much importance and value. I love how she respects every character and gives them equal screen time. Ahhhhh this book has my entire heart

[maria r. saghbini · Rating 1 out of 5]

I tried to read this book twice. TWICE, and I hated it more and more as I attempted to read it. If I could rate this book zero stars, I would in a heartbeat. The main male character is quite literally clinically ill in the sense where he is happy in one sentence and infuriated in the next. Spare yourself the time when looking for a new book to read, because this is not it. I've got nothing more to say about this. it's pretty self-explanatory by now.

[Carlota Figueiredo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, I just finished it and I’m still in shock. The last chapters made me feel things that I rarely feel over a book, and the balance between the scenes was perfect since it was spicy but not too much, loved it. Above all that I appreciate the topics that came out and that were used to build the characters, probably the first book in wish I loved them all.

[flor · Rating 4 out of 5]

aaaaa no sabia que habia libros de wattpad en goodreads no puedo ni acordarme los nombres de todos los que lei pero este es definitivamente mi favorito AUNQUE no me gusto una partecita del final pero posta que tanto la chica como el chico eran 100% los mejores personajes que leí ambos tenían una personalidad decente

[Cookie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book! Really enjoyed the street racer aesthetic, its not common so it was really interesting and enjoyable. Gray and River are adorable!! I love them so much.
I also have to mention how much i love Gracie, Tommy, Violet, Peyton and Sadie.
Tommy and Violet tho <3 They so cute and perfect for eachother too.
THAT ENDING THO OML
This book was great overall would totally recommend.

[Carrie Landers · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.3 ⭐️
My third time reading this book. So amazing. Grayson Maddox was one of my first favorite book boyfriends. Reading about him and River holds a special place for me. I used to rank this book five stars, but after reading other fantastic books, I've lowered its ranking a bit. I want Gracie and Liam to have a book. ☹️

[sathvika · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could I give this less than five stars EVER? NO.

This is my comfort Wattpad book. There is no way I can ever move on. This created my obsession with "bad-boy' love interests and sports romance type books. I forever bow down to the author. You are a queen ma'am.

Anyway, life goal is to find me a Grayson.

[Amyiah Jenkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

grays character development was everything. i never related to a character more than i related to river. i said it once and i’ll say it again some of the best books i’ve ever read have been from wattpad.

[Kamryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the best online books I've read. It was sad, funny, exciting, and angry. The plot twists are really good. Grayson and River are such a good couple together. I loved the enemies-to-lovers trope. I recommend this book!! I'm so excited that there is a spin-off.

[Heln · Rating 3 out of 5]

knappe mappe 3.5 sterne aus prinzip weils einfach langweilig wurde, nichts passiert ist und oft sachen wiederholt oder unnötig langgezogen wurden
dafür mochte ich aber das thema (car racing!!) und der smut war ziemlich basic aber nicht schlecht

[rin ⋆˚✿˖° · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was so good and so bad. i couldn’t help but read “gary” after people kept mentioning that name 😭

but he was kinda crazy but i liked it, she was a tiny bit cray too yet this kept me entertained and was pretty good… i hated the ending though