Rating: 4.75 🌈

“If you no longer go for a gap that exists, then you’re no longer a racing driver.

-Ayrton Senna”

I’m so used to R. J. Scott’s outstanding hockey romances, that I was surprised to see her jump into the world of Formula 1 racing and do it so immaculately.

Lights Out is a multi author series that focuses on one racing season. Each author takes one racing team, a driver or two on that team , the international races in the series , and the dramatic events that occur during that season. We see it impacting on the various races , season team standings, the emotional reverberations on each driver, as well as the relationships that arise between men on the circuit.

Even if you’re not a fan or motor head, the descriptions within this story of the adrenaline rush, the sheer amount of intensity, the desire, the passion,the planning and execution behind the drivers and the racing that Scott delivers here is incredible. She writes as though F1 has been circulating in her bloodstream for decades, motor oil replacing the platelets driving her systems. It’s that excellent.

So are her characters. Each well crafted character a driver at a different level in their careers. One, Noah Fournier, who, along with his teammate and best friend, Augusto Romero, is at the highest level of his team and aiming to take the podium this season for Deacon-Graaf Formula 1 Racing team. The other, Archie Harris , is just entering F1 as a reserve driver after winning the F2 championship. He’s just beginning his F1 journey.

There’s another aspect to the series and each character in these stories. That they are closeted by necessity, because of their passion for racing, and the fact that the companies and teams that are involved in the sport have sponsors and race in countries where any sexuality other than heterosexuality is not allowed. Some races are held in places where it’s punishable by jail or death. In reality there’s no out driver In Formula 1 today. So for any LGBTQIA+ driver, they must, for their career, stay silent and closeted about who they love if they want to race.

Scott layers that stress , indecision, inner turmoil and frustration, and fears into her characters personalities and emotions as they battle through the struggles of the team dynamics.

Outside of this structure, Noah is someone I’d would have perceived as an ill mannered, unlikable person at first. A bit of a jerk. However, put Noah within the tight constraints and emotional contexts of this sport, and he comes across as a man under unbelievable pressure. Someone who’s never been able to have a lover, or deep foundation other than his friend Augusto. And when that’s removed in the most frightening way, it makes Noah fragile, then angry.

Scott makes him relatable in all his various states of mind and heart.

Archie is just as complicated as Noah but in an opposite sense. He’s fighting for his right to be in F1, feeling a need to be his true self while realizing and being told by Noah, and others that to succeed, he’s to continue to hide, and concentrate on his driving, the team’s pursuit of the win being the goal, not his individual pursuit of the podium. His brilliance is being rewarded with orders to step aside.

It’s all extremely well plotted, richly told, exciting, and believable. The high speed action is intense, the racing breathtaking, the danger heart stopping, and the one excruciating accident on the track that will have you holding your breath is an event that is one mentioned in every book.

If I had a small quibble, it’s that it is tied up too quickly. There’s a final race, then an epilogue years later. I would have loved to have had more depth and exposition to that section of the story before the epilogue because of how fantastic the narrative was that came prior to it. It just doesn’t live up to its layered nature.

However, Team Orders (Lights Out, #1) by R. J. Scott is a fabulous novel. Scott takes the podium in her first season as a F1 writer and I’m highly impressed with the plot, the characters, and the depth of the world of F1 racing we become a part of.

I’m also impressed with her use of and ability to let her readers know that, like other sports, F1 racing, is trying to be more inclusive.

Please see below.

Racing Pride🌈

“Racing Pride The F1 calendar takes place in some countries hostile to those identifying as queer, and teams have sponsors who might not support a queer driver. As of April 2023, there is no openly out F1 driver.”

“Racing Pride is a new initiative embracing all elements within motorsport, and actively promoting, and supporting LGBTQ + participants in order to create some desperately needed role models for aspiring LGBTQ + participants in motorsport.

Find out more here: racingpride.com.”

— Team Orders (Lights Out Book 1) by RJ Scott

Lights Out:

✓ Team Orders by RJ Scott

✓ Full Throttle by Lisa Henry

◦ Pole Position by Charlie Novak 6/6

◦ Scoring Points by HL Day 6/13

◦ Black Flagged by Emma Jaye 6/20

◦ Rookie Mistakes by Beth Laycock 6/27/2023

Buy Link:

Team Orders (Lights Out Book 1)

When tragedy strikes and team orders are called for, will Archie and Noah’s love survive the fallout?

Noah is devastated when his best friend is badly hurt in a fiery crash, and shocked when the team’s rookie steps up to take Augusto’s place. Not only is Archie inexperienced on the track, but he’s a threat to Noah’s heart when giving in to lust and passion could only end badly. Caught in the chaos of Formula 1, and despite being terrified of losing everything, Noah falls for Archie one passionate but secret moment at a time.

In his rookie F1 season as Deacon-Graaf’s reserve driver, Archie is called up to cover for an injured driver. He’s determined to earn a permanent place in a team, but for now he’s thrilled that he’s driving alongside his idol, Noah. Falling for his teammate is as simple as breathing, but their romance threatens to expose them to a media frenzy, leaving Archie facing a stark choice — love or career.

This M/M romance from RJ Scott features teammates, a secret affair, hurt/comfort, and is set in the high octane world of Formula 1 featuring fast cars, driving at the limit, spectacular crashes, heated rivalries, and of course, a HEA.

Please note, ‘Team Orders’ contains details of a serious motorsport accident and subsequent fire.

Each book in the Lights Out collection is a standalone story, and the books can be read in any order.