Double Apex is a contemporary romance centered around F1 motor racing, the first in a
new series by Josie Juniper. Our heroine is Phaedra Morgan–a thirty-something mathematician who’s also possibly neurodivergent.

Phaedra is very prickly, with a foul mouth and plenty of snark. Her father owns the Emerald racing team where she works as a race engineer. Cosmin Ardelean is a new F1 driver on the Emerald team. He’s gorgeous, young and brash and his popularity means he can hit on just about anyone. Cosmin has a heartbreaking backstory which is gradually unpacked. He’s got that Alpha swagger about him and he really antagonises Phaedra. I do love their names!

Cosmin and Phaedra clash at every turn. It’s unprofessional on both their parts – initially she is hostile toward him and he sexually harasses her. Of course, it’s a burning attraction that they are fighting. Cosmin recognizes it, but it takes Phaedra a bit longer. When their sexual tension bleeds into race time the team manager sends them away for the weekend to work out their issues. After a couple of days in Santorini there’s a fiery kiss but their employment contracts ban personal relationships.

Back with the team, their volatile chemistry keeps bubbling and when they eventually give in to it, there’s lots of energetic sex on the page, but will their physical connection eventually lead to more emotional intimacy?

There’s plenty of Formula 1 action as the race season progresses with wins and losses for Cosmin, then a race crash puts their relationship in the spotlight. A few subplots flesh it all out – Phaedra’s dad is ill so she spends time with him, away from Cosmin, and she’s also fighting with her bestie Natalie, who may or may not be involved with the team manager. Cosmin has issues with his sister back in Romania, and there are races to win. The action takes place over a year at different racetracks as they follow the Formula 1 race schedule.

I particularly liked all the Romanian words, and Cosmin has speech patterns that show English is his second language. Phaedra learns Romanian using an app, which is hilarious and there’s some lovely banter between them. They sneak around having sex when and wherever they can as they follow the circuit – Barcelona, Monaco, Montreal and finally the USA. It’s vanilla, but it’s plentiful and detailed. Phaedra wants to keep it as sex only, while Cosmin works hard to hide his feelings. She lets her guard down eventually, but fights it every step.

My biggest issue with this otherwise clever romance is Phaedra’s ugly behaviour. She is defensive and unpleasant (mean, at times) and one altercation with Cosmin felt like domestic assault. There is some character development for her, but she lacks empathy and is self-absorbed to an extent that it made me uncomfortable and she pushes everyone away, not just Cosmin. She’s defensive and thoughtless and I didn’t find her behaviour redeemed by her excuses about her upbringing. She has anger management issues for sure and this is not addressed. Her family background is imperfect, but for me this didn’t justify how nasty she was.

If you like smart heroines who are prickly black cats, then Phaedra might work for you, I just felt sorry for the people in her life, especially Cosmin.

That said, I loved the insider view of Formula 1, how their lives are itinerant and focused entirely on winning the next race. This is a sports romance with a difference, an engaging plot and there’s plenty of action and drama.