Hot Lap (Arkadia Fast)

Leslie
Scott
Genre: 
New Adult

Hadley Morgan loves Aiden Casey. The trouble is, he is her best friend’s brother, her boss, and her landlord. She idolizes Aiden and thinks she isn’t good enough for him. Her dark secret and shame is her father, Eddie, who is the town drunk and accidentally killed most of the family. Aiden is a top racer at the track, but his heart is really in street racing. He works with his father at the family garage when he isn’t racing or raising his two small children. Life is difficult for Aiden, juggling things as they are, but Hadley jumps in and volunteers to help with the kids. She finds herself in love with the children, but she is too frightened to dream of a life with Aiden. What if he learns of her past?

“Hot Lap” introduces the reader to the wild, competitive world of racing and the personalities involved. Aiden is a strong character who knows what he wants and knows what he must do to keep his motherless family together. Hadley thinks of herself as a strong person, but when trouble comes, she races into hiding. She allows her father and past to define her even though they don’t matter. Pacing is slow due to so much description and repetition during the racing scenes. Secondary characters such as Eddie and Breanna are not fully developed despite being essential to the story. The two accidents referred to at the beginning of the story aren’t fully explained until the very end. The world building is realistic and brings the reader into the story. A fun girl meets boy next door tale.

Belinda Wilson