The Favorites

by Layne Fargo

She might not have a famous name, funding, or her family’s support, but Katarina Shaw has always known that she was destined to become an Olympic skater. When she meets Heath Rocha, a lonely kid stuck in the foster care system, their instant connection makes them a formidable duo on the ice. Clinging to skating—and each other—to escape their turbulent lives, Kat and Heath go from childhood sweethearts to champion ice dancers, captivating the world with their scorching chemistry, rebellious style, and roller-coaster relationship.

Until a shocking incident at the Olympic Games brings their partnership to a sudden end.

As the ten-year anniversary of their final skate approaches, an unauthorized documentary reignites the public fascination with Shaw and Rocha, claiming to uncover the “real story” through interviews with their closest friends and fiercest rivals. Kat wants nothing to do with the documentary, but she can’t stand the thought of someone else defining her legacy. So, after a decade of silence, she’s telling her story: from the childhood tragedies that created her all-consuming bond with Heath to the clash of desires that tore them apart. Sensational rumors have haunted their every step for years, but the truth may be even more shocking than the headlines.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Audiobook, Contemporary, Book Club, Sports, Sports Romance

437 pages, Hardcover

First published January 14, 2025

About the author

Layne Fargo has a background in theater, women’s studies, and library science, so it’s only fitting that she now writes deliciously dramatic, unapologetically feminist stories for a living. She’s the author of the novels THE FAVORITES, THEY NEVER LEARN, and TEMPER, as well as co-author on the bestselling YOUNG RICH WIDOWS series, and her work has been translated into over a dozen languages. Layne lives in Chicago with her partner, their pets, and an ever-expanding collection of books she’s definitely going to read before she dies.

Reviews

[Clace · Rating 5 out of 5]

All the stars!

“The thing is, when pushing your limits is all you know, when it seems normal to you...it's hard to remember you even have limits. Until you run right into them.”

It's been such a long time since a book has consumed like this, I actually was speechless because I was so obsessed with this story and how the events were taking place, the way the story was crafted and executed was so well done, and there were so many twists that would leave you gasping till the very end like I was practically begging for happiness and peace but ahahahahah I hate you Layne. This book reminded me of that one TJR book that I have read (Malibu Rising) and the way of writing resembled that so much like I was getting the same vibes but this was so much better?? It was honestly so good and I think what amplified my reading experience was that before picking this up I watched the movie (I, Tonya) and when I saw this book being along the same genre I was so excited to read it!! The pretty cover was also a plus point.

This was my first book by Layne Fargo and it was soo good that I had to put her immediately on my auto-buyers shelves!! This was so scandalous and toxic but also so beautiful and addicting. Honestly this book like a drug because I had to read this arc on my phone since Netgalley on my Ipad wasn't working and I hate reading on my phone but this was so hard to put down that I would just sit and read for hours. Layne managed to capture the beauty and dangers of the sport so beautifully, the competitiveness was also so well written and ufff the way my heart would be full on racing like I was at the edge of my seat for some scenes because they got so intense and the drama, it was SO DAMN GOOD!! . The interviews that were moving alongside the story was such an interesting way to keep the readers hooked because it created this sense of mystery where you would just want to know more and the main characters were not in the interview so you had no idea where this story would go or what would happen and I loved that feeling so much!!

Happiness couldn't be won. It couldn't be hung around our necks while a crowd of thousands cheered. It wasn't a prize, something we had to suffer and toil to earn. If we wanted happiness, we had to create it ourselves. Not in one shining moment on a medal stand, but every single day, over and over again.

Katarina, her character was so intense and passionate and I loved her development throughout the book but the way she was literally giving everything for the sport while the sport gave her nothing back ugh I hated it but I loved how she was determined to move forward, she lost so much but she always managed to move forward and it was so strong to read her determination and her intensity when it came to Ice skating and the sequences that she delivered were amazing and honestly I loved how so many people looked up to her and how when she got angry and stormed off from an interview and how the interviewer looked up to her from that events onwards lmaoo and I also loved the way she didn't give a shit about what people had to say about her, she had one job to deliver and she aced that.

“I thought our story was epic, you know. You and me. Spanning years and continents. Lives ruined and blood shed. Epic.”

Heath, was such a complex character to read about but I loved his character, it was kind of a mix there were moments when I was frustrated by him but he just made this book so much better because his presence to the story was so important and like I just loved reading about his whole storyline with Katarina, all the problems that they had. He himself was such a mysterious character because while we knew about Katarina's past and read about it his was very mysterious and I liked how it unraveled and we finally got answers, it was very satisfying to read. Bella, Idc what you guys say but this friendship was so fun to read, it had so many ups and downs and the competition between them at times would be so intense but friendly. Yes, there were moments when I was so angry at her but I don't know I just like how these two couldn't be separated and went back to each other until everything worked out. Garrett Lin Cute patootie. Ellis Dean, this fucking bitch with camera, I hated him and the slap was soooo satisfying but I kinda was okay with him near the end. Sheila Lin she was soooo intimidating lmaoo. She kinda gave me Shalom Harlow vibes for some reason lol but the cast of characters were absolutely stunning.

People didn't want Heath and me to be "subtle" or "refined." They wanted a grand, epic love story. They wanted raw rip-your-clothes-off passion. They didn't simply want us to be lovers they wanted us to be so in love, we'd burn the whole world down to be together.

The romance was *chefs kiss* it was messy and so out of control at times but I loved the chemistry between them, I just loved how everything between them felt so natural and I like the trust they held had but the thing that I loved the most was how inseparable these two were like these to quite literally went through hell, they faced sooooo many problems but came back to each other! Their chemistry literally could be seen on the ice as well the sequences that they pulled were so hot and honestly they were such a good pair that I just loved reading about them. I grew to be so close and attached to them that whenever something bad was happening to them I felt it!! it was THAT good.

"We used to joke they were going to die in each other's arms or kill each other with their bare hands. Nothing in between."

The plot and the setting, I feel like the writing was off the charts, it created this atmosphere, this world where we literally feel like sitting in the audience watching them, she just created it so good that I just dont how to explain it but I felt it like theres this inexplainable feeling but ugh it was so good. The whole championships that took place but the I loved how the timeline changed and with it how the characters changed and how we saw them develop leading to so many good scenes, some of the scenes were just straight up amazing like so well written. The insane competition was showcased so well, the ending sequence made me soooo mad like AHH I didn't see it coming and the epilogue was so needed it was so NEEDED like I loved it and the plot twists....dont even get me started on them because my mind was blown, jaw was on the floor, thoughts were scattered.

"It isn't a competition." I reached for her hand, "There are lots of different kinds of love."
Love like a steady, warming campfire that keeps you alive in the cold. Love like a raging blaze that burns down everything in its path until nothing but ash remains.

Overall, you guys need to read this book!! GO READ IT!
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I have no words. Honestly 😭 like what do I write for this. Definitely among my top 5 🙂‍↕️ rtc .
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I've read a decent amount of this and so far it's shaping up to be a 5 star read 🤭 could honestly be one of my favorite arc reads because this is just amazing!

*Thank you to Random house publishing for an E-Arc of this book*

[bruna · Rating 3 out of 5]

★ 3.25 stars

𝅄 𓂃 𖥻 “Happiness couldn’t be won. It couldn’t be hung around our necks while a crowd of thousands cheered. It wasn’t a prize, something we had to suffer and toil to earn. If we wanted happiness, we had to create it ourselves. Not in one shining moment on a medal stand, but every single day, over and over again.” 𑇛 ˚

i went into this book with the highest of expectations after seeing everyone praising it left and right, but unfortunately, i couldn’t love it as much as i thought and hoped i would.

see, it is not a terrible book. not even remotely. even though i didn’t love it, i can still admit that The Favorites has a lot of strong points; it has a good writing, interesting format, complex and flawed characters that actually feel human, and a well-crafted story filled with lots of emotions. but the problem is that i just... wasn’t profoundly amazed by it like most people were.

for starters, i didn’t feel connected to the protagonists, which is probably the biggest issue here i’d say. a book can have the most compelling story ever — but if you don’t feel that profound emotional connection to the main characters, the whole thing kind of loses its impact a bit. Katarina & Heath, like i said earlier, are both complex and flawed characters. they don’t have an ounce of perfection in them and most of the times they weren’t necessarily easy to like (trust me when i say that these two can be absolutely infuriating). but honestly? that’s okay for me. it wouldn’t be interesting if they were perfect and flawless people that only made right decisions, there’s no fun on that. the protagonists’ complexities and flaws made them feel more human, vulnerable and authentic, and while they frustrated me more times than i can count, i still liked that the author made a nice effort to create fleshed out characters. so yeah, i don’t think they were badly written characters or anything like that, that’s not my point. the thing is that i just didn’t feel deeply, emotionally connected to them, and that prevented me from loving Kat & Heath and being truly invested in everything that was happening to them.

and i didn’t feel emotionally connected to the love story between Kat & Heath either. at the beginning, i did think it was going to be deep, addictive and remarkable, but at some point i’ve come to the conclusion that it wasn’t neither of these things. in the blurb of the book we read that their love story is epic and that Kat & Heath are an obsession to one another — but i, personally, couldn’t quite see that. their romance failed to evoke such strong emotions on me unfortunately. at times i did feel sort of touched, but in general i just... felt bored and nothing else, that’s the reason why i didn’t root for them to end up together. i wanted more angst, more chemistry, more intensity, and most importantly, more depth. it saddens me because the potential was right. there.

as for the overall story... well, i have to say that it made me feel super conflicted.

in one hand, i think it was interesting. it started kind of slow, but luckily, it didn’t take long to pick up the pace — i quickly got immersed by it and wanted to keep going to see how things would turn out. i mean, i wasn’t loving it completely, i had a few issues here and there and some aspects were weak/not good, but i was still having a nice time nonetheless and i didn’t want to put the book down due to my immense curiosity. and the storytelling made things even better, it alternated between Kat’s perspective and transcripts of documentary interviews, which i was a fan of. i listened to the audiobook and the narration was absolutely amazing, it actually felt like i was listening to a real documentary. it just felt so real and unique. needless to say, i was entertained.

in the other hand, it wasn’t exactly what i expected. i was told beforehand that this would be a super messy book full of drama and toxicity, but in my humbe opinion, it wasn’t as messy and dramatic as i thought it would be. sure, there is messiness, toxicity and drama — those things weren’t lacking, don’t get me wrong — but i just felt like it wasn’t enough. nearing the end, i thought “so... that’s all of it? what a bummer.” i wanted and needed more drama, messiness and crazy twists and turns. the twists and turns we had were definitely surprising, but still, i don’t think it was super crazy. the author should’ve been messier.

additionally, i also had problems with the pacing. it was a bit odd to me. it was either too fast or too slow, and i didn’t like that. i feel like some events needed more attention and time, and others didn’t, but the author still focused on them, which was... not very interesting. and on top of that, i couldn’t find the last couple chapters super good. i was obviously still curious to see how it would end, but somehow i wasn’t as entertained anymore. i wholeheartedly think that the first half was stronger than the second half.

with all that being said... i didn’t hate this book, but i didn’t love it either like i mentioned, it has a lot of strong points, but they just didn’t amaze me that much. win some, lose some i guess.

even with the issues i’ve had though, i still firmly think that The Favorites is a well-written book that deserves all the praise that it’s getting. i’m a little sad that i didn’t completely love it, but i do have hopes that other people will. i recommend this novel to those who are looking for an unique story that manages to hold your interest from the beginning to the very end.

many thanks to my friend charlotte for being the best reading buddy and for listening to my super long and chaotic rants about this book. 💌

[Paige · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Favourites lives up to the toxic drama it sets itself out to be, but was it an enjoyable experience? No. If I had my time over, I wouldn't have picked this up.

The book itself is captivating and will suck you into the story. I went into this with high expectations from the glowing reviews and it had a promising start. I love toxic, messy and drama filled books, however, I lacked a connection to the characters and this had some questionable plot choices. It had the potential to be a 5 star read but it completely missed the mark.

The first half of this book, I was intrigued. I can understand the comparisons to Taylor Jenkins-Reid (Daisy Jones & the Six and Carrie Soto is Back). The interview/documentary format, combined with Katarina telling the story through her own perspective allowed me to feel apart of the action and provide outsiders perspectives.

One thing I did enjoy, was the in-depth knowledge/research around the figure skating world. I've always loved figure skating and while i'm no expert, I found Fargo done a great job of capturing both the beauty and cut-throat nature of the sport.

As for the second half of the book, I had to force myself to continue. So much time was spent building up the "shocking incident" which wasn't all that shocking — just recycled plot. The characters were underdeveloped and one dimensional and the cracks showed as the plot begun to unfold. The lack of development made me seriously question why I should care about any of the characters. Where are the stakes if you don't build a solid foundation? Why should I believe what I'm told if you don't show me why I should feel that way? Too many things were off page and left for the reader to draw their own conclusions.

Full disclaimer — I had a feeling where this book was heading towards the middle, so I partially spoiled myself. If it wasn't for the fantastic audiobook, I would have dnf'd this. I wish I did but I was hopeful it would turn around.

જ⁀➴°⋆ The Characters

Katarina was unapologetically herself. She was determined and everything she needed to be, to be successful in this sport. This shows you the ugly side of ambition. She fought for everything she had to compete in such an elitist sport, where money, power and influence were stacked against her. She is a complex character you will either love or hate. While I did not agree with everything she did, I respected her ambition. She deserved SO much better.

I liked Heath (at the start) and the bond he shared with Kat, through their shared trauma. His character was never developed beyond his fixation with Kat. Unfortunately, his character was ruined for me and I couldn't have cared less about him by the end.

As for the romance, the author just told me how I should feel about their love rather than showing me actions that made me want to root for them despite the tumultuous nature of their relationship. He may have become an elite athlete for her, but they never talked about anything that mattered and they weren't happy together or apart.

I never liked Bella as a friend, although I can admit she pushed Kat to be the best skater. I loved Garrett, it was so unfortunate that this sweet man had such a garbage human as a sister. Ellias was a funny, complex character and I enjoyed what he brought to the story.

🚨 Spoiler warning — skip this section if you don't want heavy spoilers (I will warn again once the spoilers are over) 🚨

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Kat finding herself in a 10 year situationship, playing step-mum to Heath & Bella’s child because "winning isn't everything" had to be the most cliche and disappointing endings I've ever read. It just goes to show this story was never as complex as it made itself out to be.

Heath cheating with Kat's "best friend" was the moment I was ready to pull the pin. I feel strongly that it was cheating, but even if they had properly separated, nothing justified their disgusting behaviour. There was no grovelling. I don't even remember an apology. He just MOVED IN with Bella and continued to sleep with her while Kat practically gave up her entire career for 3 years after walking in on them. He never reached out during this time. It is presumed Kat was celibate the entire time. Bella made Kat come back into their lives just to continue to sleep with Heath in the same house as Kat AND get herself pregnant?! No, they weren't together at this stage and he didn't love Bella, but we are meant to believe that Heath and Kat are soulmates. Did such a trivial argument justify this? Could their epic love just fizzle out over a bit of celebrity status? Why didn't he try to win her back? Why didn’t Kat care enough? Were Bella and Kat ever friends? Can Heath still love Kat, but support Bella sabotaging her? I will never know. While i agree they needed time apart, these plot choices destroyed the romance and characters. Calling Kat auntie Katie was diabolical. I don't normally mind bittersweet endings, but Kat being reduced to being the other woman in some weird relationship dynamic just so Heath got everything he wanted infuriated me. This should not be marketed as a romance book.

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🚨 End of spoilers 🚨


Everyone should read this and form their own opinion as I'm definitely in the minority. It's been fun to chat about this to people who felt similar because I honestly felt like I read a different book to everyone else. While this was trigging and an unenjoyable experience for me, I can do understand the hype it's getting.

[Sara Carrolli · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

Oooo this one was gooooood!!!!!!

The messiness, the obsession (with each other & winning), the side characters that pushed them, the rivalries, (all of it honestly) was so well done!

Suchhhhh compelling storytelling, it felt like I was reading about real figure skaters history coming from nothing to everything and what it did to them. I also really enjoyed the documentary/interview style!!! It kept me turning the page & needing to know where the main characters eventually ended up. And of course I love me a strong female character & ones who aren’t perfect 👏🏼 Katarina is real and wonderful to me!

[Brady Lockerby · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alllllllll of that... for what?!?! omg I am so frustrated by this book lol. I wanted to love this book SO much and the audiobook was definitely a good time, but it was so much back and forth, the petty fights, young "love" that just didn't work for me. I like reading about emotionally mature characters with real life problems and this was quite literally the complete opposite of that 🤣 BUT if you like that kind of story, you would still like this!

[Em (semi-hiatus) · Rating 1 out of 5]

My only favorite thing about the book is how the author didn’t discriminate, they made everyone equally slap-worthy.

[Yun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Phew. There was a lot I enjoyed in this story, but also a lot that was a bit too much.

Let's start with the good stuff. The ice dancing! It was fascinating to get a glimpse into this well known, if lesser burnished stepsibling of the figure skating discipline. The competitions, the practice, the sacrifices, the years and years of hard work just for one glorious moment that will live on forever or a mediocre one soon to be forgotten, are all things I can get behind.

I'm loving this recent trend in books of following a fictional athlete, movie star, or musician on their path to superstardom, offering a behind-the-scenes look into their meteoric rise as well as their shocking fall from glory, often using a mixed media format to make the whole thing feel as authentic as possible. Layne Fargo must have done tremendous research into ice dancing to achieve this level of detail, and it makes for a riveting read, one that's hard to look away from.

I thought the first half of the book was about as exciting as they come. I was totally invested in Kat and Heath's journey from kids who loved skating to world-class champions on the international stage. I'm never going to say no to stories about starting from nothing and—through sheer determination and grit, hard work and sacrifices—end up achieving all their hopes and dreams. Those tales will always be special to me.

But even in the first half, I was starting to get an inkling of the things to come that would annoy me. Kat and Heath gave off tragic, melodramatic vibes in pretty much every scene they're in together; the interpersonal relationships of almost all the characters in here whiffed of toxic; and eye-rolling obstacles would pop up right before every major competition, preventing anyone from ever getting the coveted gold medal.

So imagine that, but dialed up even more, and we have now arrived at the second half of this book. Every small quibble I had in the first half was magnified, with more drama, more heartbreak, more miscommunication, more more more. I tell you, my fairly simple drama-free heart couldn't take such overload.

I have to wonder, how did the author come up with so many different yet equally unpleasant characters and manage to squeeze them all into the same story? Their selfishness and interpersonal theatrics led to conflicts popping up left and right, often to lamentable results. And what I loved from the first half, the ice dancing, was forced to take a backseat.

But that isn't the crux of the issue. Where this really went off the rails for me was its confusion over exactly what type of story it was trying to be. Was this meant to be a realistic sports docudrama or an over-the-top psychological thriller? For one is meant to depict things so realistic that we forget what we're reading is fiction, while the other requires us to suspend our disbelief in order to ingest as much craziness as we can.

And so this story tries to straddle both, expecting the reader to suspend disbelief while also expecting us to take everything we read as gospel. And that just didn't work for me. The lead up to the climax, in particular, was so eye-popping looney, I totally lost my ability to buy into this story.

My thoughts are decidedly in the minority here, so don't let me dissuade you. I think if you're looking for a salacious bonanza and you're able to buy into it no matter how wacky the tale gets, this is a good one for you. I guarantee you won't be able to put it down.

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[Roxane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this soapy, well-written, taut novel about a passionate pair of ice dancers across a several years of their personal and professional lives. Katarina Shaw is a talented ice dancer who partners with Heath Rocha, a young man with a difficult past. They fight and claw their way onto the national scene, but when they become training partners to Bella and Garrett Lin, the children of two-time gold medalist Sheila Lin, their loyalties and ambitions are tested. This is an unputdownable book, with a lot to say about competition, ambition, love and obsession. I only really questioned the narrative frame of a documentary about Katarina and Heath, which was primarily designed to easily (maybe too easily) advance the story and fill in some of the details. But still, this was a lot of fun. TOEEEEE PICK!

[Sophie Jayne Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

hey siri play The Last Time by Taylor Swift on repeat please (literal goosebumps)

[Sydney Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

450 pages and I still didn’t want it to end!! All the stars. More coherent review to come 😅

[Emmy Rosam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully brutal. This book gives a mix of ‘Daisy Jones & the Six’ meets ‘Magnolia Parks’. Perfection!

[Nilufer Ozmekik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scandalous, stimulating, thrilling, addictive—this book is the true definition of obsession! You don’t want it to end and just want to spend more time in the wild ride madness of Kat and Heath.

This is an epic sports romance with a heart-pounding, exciting, hyperventilating, and also very realistic approach to the ice dance world. It delves into how far contenders will go to win an Olympic medal, with ambitions, power games, speculations, and manipulations taking over their high efforts and performances until the skaters hurt themselves physically and mentally, pouring their souls, sweat, blood, hopes, dreams, and hearts into their dance. Eyes on the prize, stakes are getting higher at each contest, and only winning ensures survival. Prepare yourself for betrayals even from your closest circle—nobody is trustable. When the gold medal is within reach, you cannot see anything except that before your eyes! That’s the dog-eat-dog world of competitive sports!

This epic journey centers on the passionate, yet sometimes toxic and dysfunctional, love story of two Olympic skaters, Katarina Shaw and Heath Rocha—childhood sweethearts who ran away from home at the age of 16 to become an ice dance skating couple. Katarina escapes from her alcoholic abusive brother, while Heath is an orphan raised in the foster care system. Katarina is the only person he can truly be himself with.

Their fate changes when they meet the Lin twins—children of legendary Olympic Games golden medal-winning skater Sheila Lin. The Lin twins, living privileged lives, become new stars of ice dance competitions, following in their mother's footsteps.

When Sheila invites Katarina and Heath to train at her school, where they have the opportunity to reach the top of their game, Katarina feels like her dreams are finally coming true. She has admired Sheila Lin since childhood, seeing her as a role model, and is obsessed with becoming as tough and successful a skating star as her.

Katarina finds herself in the orbit of Bella Lin—a relentless rival, straightforward friend, and the charm of her brother, Grant Lin. Her close interactions with them and her thirst for winning create problems with Heath and ruin the relationship they built over the years.

Eventually, they find themselves in a rollercoaster relationship with so many ups and downs that push them to hurt each other, even though their passionate love still prevents them from killing each other in front of their fans. When a tragic incident leads to a sports scandal, a series of unexpected shocking events bring their partnership to a heart-wrenching end.

Ten years later, an unauthorized documentary reignites Shaw and Rocha's obsession, uncovering the truth about their untold story. The narrative moves through the timeline, telling how Katarina and Heath met, how they escaped from their hometown, and how their lives changed with the Lin twins. Interwoven are the perspectives of various characters, including ex-skater and popular gossip blogger Ellis Dean, Kat and Heath’s instructors, and their rivals.

The questions remain: what really happened ten years ago? Could Kat and Heath train for a surprise comeback? How will their epic love story resolve? Will they kill each other, or will they push each other like magnets forever against all odds, finding their kind of happy ending?

I fell in love with this book! It’s the best thing I’ve read lately. I can honestly declare it one of the best fictions of 2024, deserving more than five stars! Interestingly, sometimes I wanted to slap the characters, scream at their faces. Especially Katarina brings out so many mixed feelings from you. You respect her, but you also hate her for acting like a vindictive, self-absorbed person who only focuses on the gold medal, walking over anyone without looking back to get what she wants.

Heath made my eyes roll at some points, as he acted like a loyal puppy, letting Katarina treat him like trash without defending himself.

Let’s not forget Bella, who is also reckless when it comes to winning, manipulating people against each other.

Interestingly, I easily connected with each of these characters, even though they have qualities that made me irritated. Even Ellis Dean was the secret ingredient of this book—he was an antihero you dislike, but you get arrested by his weird charm.

Overall, this book made me excited, as if I’m watching sports performances in real life. It made me cry at some tragic parts, but honestly, it brought out so many complex emotions that I embraced them with the help of this powerful and somewhat inspirational, honest story!

And did I mention I adored the conclusion, which might be the best end or the beginning for the characters?

So far, this is the best Layne Fargo book I’ve read, and I advise you to read it over and over again!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for sharing this marvelous book’s digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

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[jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

this reminded me a lot of netflixs “spinning out” in that, while not a completely accurate representation of the sport, the story sure does deliver on the dramatics. its wild and messy and, like a car crash, you just cant look away from the scene of it all.

figure skating inconsistencies aside (although, i will say, this IS the best portrayal of the sport ive read about in a fiction novel), i think the world of ice dance is a great setting for such a turbulent relationship. the competition and rivalries really do a great job at propelling the characters forward and providing something entertaining to read about. i also think the dramatics help distract from the repetitive nature of the plot.

i just wish i cared about the characters more. i think the use of the documentary dialogue, while engaging, does take away multiple opportunities for LF to show the reader certain events, rather than just telling us through interview scripts. as a sucker for childhood sweetheart stories, i wanted to experience more of kat and heaths formative years together and see them bond. i think it would have helped me believe in their relationship more and feel more empathetic towards them.

but, all in all, this is a highly fascinating story that makes me want to grab my skates and hit the ice.

↠ 4 stars

[myo ⋆｡˚ ❀ * · Rating 2 out of 5]

kinda starting to hate when you can tell that books are being written in hopes to become a limited tv series

[Violet · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Favorites by Layne Fargo is pure perfection!! ✨

I am new to Fargo's work but a huge fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid, and this one really resonated with me. In the vein of Daisy Jones & the Six, this interview style mockumentary was as fascinating as it was moving.

Not since the world, as a whole, sat slack-jawed watching Nancy Kerrigan's infamous ugly cry have I been so enamored by figure skating! The Favorites immediately pulled me in and never let go. A tragic story of two young ice skaters who have the odds strongly stacked against them in every sense. With no money or family support, and only each other, they manage to claw out of their less than ideal circumstances while staying determined to make their dreams come true. Spanning decades, this story has it all...young love, love triangles, family drama, self discovery, scandal, betrayal, sabotage, tragedy, triumph, and a cutthroat will-stop-at-nothing passion for Olympic gold.

As enamored as I was by the pages of this story I can only imagine the level to which it will rise to with an audio book & coming to life up on the big screen. Couldn't have asked for a better book to kick off 2025. A must read!
Lace up and enjoy the ride!

Thank you to Random House & NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. 5 stars!!

[chloé ✿ · Rating 4 out of 5]

carrie soto is back except ice dancing rather than tennis and a lot more romance.

”i’d convinced myself if i became the best, it didn't matter who i hurt, because in the end, it would be worth it. even if I hurt myself most of all.”

this was addicting, interesting, and immersive. it felt real and made me want to search hours worth of ice dancing videos on youtube. (highly recommend looking up tessa virtue and scott moir‘s performances fyi👀)

i was convinced this was going to be a five star read until two major things happened that i DESPISE in books. i won’t give away anything specifically due to spoilers but there’s no doubt the relationships in this book are toxic, intense, and a bit frustrating on occasion. the drama!!!!!

overall i do really recommend this read. if anything can ever feel like a taylor jenkins reid book, i’ll make it my life’s mission to read it asap.

”we weren't enough, and then we were too much.”

(seriously go look up tessa & scott. THE CHEMISTRY!!! that’s what i imagined this entire read.) 🤭🤍

[kenzy · Rating 2 out of 5]

i'm actually being generous

[Mir · Rating 1 out of 5]

This review is gonna be full of spoilers, so if you don’t want any of that, feel free to skip this one.

This book made me ANGRY and im surprised by the amount of people giving it five stars. I don’t even know why it’s labeled as a romance. If this is supposed to be romance, then i hope it NEVER finds me.

Let’s start by saying that i hated almost every character in this book -except for Garret god bliss his soul- but some more than others.

Katarina:
I hated her the least. She had her issues but she was hardworking and focused on her goal. She was selfish towards heath in the first half of the book and did not communicate with him, which led to heath overhearing her conversation with another skater -Ellis- about how frustrated she is that he is not on her level. Heath then disappeared for three years, and Kat becomes Garret’s partner after his twin sister and Kat’s friend -Bella- leaves to find another partner, and convinces Kat to join him by telling her that Heath is not good enough for her.

Sheila Lin:
Manipulative. Did not care about Katarina’s career and tried to sabotage it multiple times to let her kids win.

Heath:
Second hated character. I hated Heath. In the beginning I was on his side and actually felt bad for him because Kat was being so selfish. And i was still okay with it when he showed up after three years and became Bella’s partner and started using her to make Kat jealous because it didn’t mean anything at the time. And i liked him when he left Bella before the final competition to go with Kat to the hospital when she got injured. But then him and Kat were back together and it didn’t make any sense because they literally hadn’t said but 10 sentences to each other ever since heath came back. They go back to skating together after Kat heals and they keep winning. And then Heath proposes to Kat .After that they go on tour and become celebrities and i could understand the plot of them drifting apart, however, after they lost the olympic gold is when it went downhill for him. I get that he and Katarina had a big fight and that she took her ring off and stormed out of the room, but tell me why she comes back like an hour later to find him in bed with BELLA???? Like???? Katarina might have deserved a lot of things, but she definitely did not deserve for him to cheat on her with her “best friend” at one of the worst days of her life. I thought it ended here but apparently Heath stayed friends with Bella after Kat left. And they slept together AGAIN and live together. And when Kat came back and started competing with him again he was sleeping with Bella behind closed doors while Kat was sleeping with them at the same house. I know him and Kat were not together at the time but excuse me is this the guy that is supposed to be in love with her?
AND THEN BELLA GETS PREGNANT WITH HIS KID which honestly was just the cherry on top for me at this point. I had already given up on him the second he cheated. He can go to hell.

Bella:
Kat keeps calling her her best friend, but honestly she’s the devil. She was jealous of Kat her entire life. She sabotaged three of Kat’s most important competitions. Always pretending to “ACCEDENTALLY” push her and making sure to make her read the article about Heath right before the olympic finale knowing that it was gonna put her on edge. She and her mother always plotted Kat’s failure. And as if that was not enough she went and slept with her fiancé in the same damn night.
And she never said sorry. And when she went back to meet Kat after three years to convince her to skate with Heath again she tells her me and him are just friends “we slept together only one time after the olympics, it was only a physical release” only a physical release??? Is that supposed to make it better?? And then SHE GETS PREGNANT WITH HIS CHILD???? In what world do you stay friends with that type of person??

The decisions made in this book are so unrealistic, and literally no one in real life would make those same decisions. I don’t know how people are saying that it is “so real” or trying to defend these characters by saying “we are all humans and we make mistakes” as if that had happened to them they would be okay with it.

The romance is so cheap and ugly. The characters are immature and keep making the same exact mistakes over and over and over again. There is barely any character development, i swear they acted more mature at 16 than at 29. The ending is so lackluster and doesn’t make up for the torture i went through to finish this.

[♥︎ Heather ⚔ (New House-Hiatus) · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG Masterpiece! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Bravooo! Layne Fargo!! I loved this!!!

˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗ 𝔸𝕝𝕝 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕤!! ˗ˏˋ★‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹

To the world, they were a scandal. To each other, an obsession.

An epic love story set in the sparkling, savage sphere of elite figure skating about a woman determined to carve her own path on and off the ice

From a young age we follow Katarina and Health’s friendship, love for each other and their love of ice-skating grow. We are walked through the cut throat world of ice skating your way to the Olympics, country rivalries, sabotage and the loss of loving your dream so much you lose sight of your real love.

These two obsessive, willful teenagers have dreams they are unwilling to let go of: Katarina, to take gold in the Olympics; Heath, to love Katarina.

Penniless, reckless, the two fight their way in scuffed skates and ill fitting costumes into the skating academy of Kat’s idol and former gold medalist, Sheila Lin. Once there, they will train with Lin’s twins and ice dance competitors, Garrett and Bella.

What transpires between these four on and off the ice as they entangle themselves in each other’s turbulent lives has devastating consequences.

Oooooohhhweeeee! Let me just tell you guys! Wuthering Heights is one of my ALL-TIME favorite classics. This is SUCH a great retelling! Omg I loved every single word of it!

The tension! The drama! The cut-throat business of it all! It's all so scandalous and delicious!

Layne Fargo did a brilliant job with this one! The characters just pop right off the page - or in my case, right out of my beats headset. I went with the audio on this one, being that it's written in documentary format - with an entire audio cast. What a fantastic audio production! If you loved Daisy Jones? You'll love this.

I was so invested in all of these characters and their lives. What a roller coaster for real! Omg the highs and lows of this book are indescribable! I swear! When I say this really gave me Wuthering Heights... These are characters you love to hate and hate to love! You can't help but get emotionally tied up in this absolute toxic mess lol... I swear.

The development and growth was amazing though and I really ended up just loving them in the end. (Not all lol but most of them)

I thought this was excellently crafted! A super immersive read that feels like it's real life... And you have to remind yourself... Oh yeah, they're not actually real.

⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ Connect with me on Instagram ˗ˏˋ★‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹

Throwing all the roses to Layne Fargo! This was spectacular! Highly recommend!


╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Wuthering Heights Retelling
╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Figure Skating
╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Multiple POV
╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ All the Drama x Angst
╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Sports Romance
╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Documentary Style
╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Full Cast Audiobook

[Kail Lowry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have the physical copy of this book but a friend recommended it on audio & it absolutely did not disappoint. I never thought I could be so invested in figure skating!

[RiRi💌 (back in January) · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m never trusting y’all again…

[anh · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[ଘRory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Where is my oscar award of acting everything is ok in the favorites ???

[ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

[ashlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Layne Fargo, OH MY GOD, the woman you are!!! You deserve a standing ovation for this masterpiece. No joke this book will win so many awards. The Favorites had me hooked from page one and refused to let go. The tension?? INSANE. It’s like every moment had a heartbeat of its own, pulling me deeper into the cutthroat, glittering world of elite figure skating.

This story is everything I’ve ever wanted: raw ambition, heartbreak, betrayal and a love so consuming it’s impossible to look away. Katarina Shaw deserves the entire world and then some. Her journey is both gut-wrenching and awe-inspiring. And Heath? Don’t even get me started every part of their dynamic is fire and PASSION.

The skating world is brutal, and Fargo doesn’t shy away from showing its darkest corners. It’s cutthroat, ruthless, and oh-so addictive. This gave me major Daisy Jones & The Six vibes also, reminded me of the huge train wreck in the 2023 Olympics (specifically with the figure skating queen Alexandra Trusova) ,but with its own unique brilliance.

Layne Fargo took passion and ambition, cranked it to eleven, and gave us a story that is as electrifying as it is unforgettable. This is the kind of book that lingers with you, leaving your heart aching and your thoughts racing. Bravo, Layne.

[Becky · Rating 1 out of 5]

Okay, so Heath and Bella fucked the very same night Kat and Heath lost the Olympics gold because he betrayed her trust, because yes he sacrificed a lot to be able to be her partner, but he still betrayed her trust and yet this is not properly acknowledge. She is the bad girl, her fiance a couple hours after their worst fight and not even a proper break up is fucking her best friend sort of enemy at their shared room.
She then goes away for three years and lives alone by her choice, the author makes it clear to point it out she ended up alone and in kind of miserable life because she chose loneliness.
During those years he is fucking Bella and they are living at the same house and he even confided at Bella about his past.
Of course he would fuck Bella again, they were the only ones there for each other.

After the years Bella has the gal to ask Kat to skate with Heath again and she says she and Heath are not friends with benefits and mentions being with Heath one other time, but gets mad when Kat asks if it was only those two instances, contracting herself and making it sound it was more.
So she says she knows they (Heath and Kat) still have feelings for each other. She makes it sounds like there is nothing between them. We are told again and again Heath loves her, Bella has again the audacity to say Heath and Kat are not only skate partners.
Guess when she says that? When Kat discovers Bella is pregnant with Heath's baby that they produced after Kat were already a part of their lives again. Kat was already Heath skating partner and in August, months after they were skating together again he fucked bella (if they ever even stopped) and produced a kid. Kat noticed they were away a lot at nights during the obligatory time the federation demands them to be there, she naively assumed they were only escaping the media, but they actually were fucking. Bella asks if she is upset about the baby's news.

What the fuck is that? Why Bella would ask Kat to be there and says she and Heath are not lovers and only had some carnal moments when they were alone if they continue to fuck even after Kat is back and a part of their lives every single day.

Bella is a fucking bitch and Heath is a piece of shit, if they were only together during those three years because they were the only ones there while Kat was away and Bella knew they have feelings for each other and was the one who invited Kat back. What is the excuse they have to be fucking now?
We don't know because the author didn't explain it, the only logical conclusion is that their love is not so strong after all, doesn't matter what people say in the book. We are told again and again how they love each other. We are shown again and again this love doesn't mean anything.


Kat said before she never want kids, but Heath wanted them. In the end this author who claims to write feminist books wrote a book that has the man having everything he wanted at the end. The heroine was portrayed as a selfish cold hearted bitch for wanting gold, like her ambition was wrong. At the end, she doesn't have her gold, her man has a kid with someone else and she is reduced to "autie kat" while he has his daughter, Kat playing step mother and Bella there being the mother of his child and of course we can't discard her as an option for a bed warmer if Kat and him separed again. Oops they did, during those then years after the end, pre epilogue, they were together, separated and everything in between so I guess he could have been with her again. He proved his love is no guarantee for loyalty. He betrayed her by telling the russians about her traumas, he betrayed her by fucking Bella the same night they had a big fight, he betrayed her by continue to fuck Bella during the three years she run away because she caught Bella mounting him and he betrayed his allegedly love yet again by making a baby and fucking Bella I don't know how many times while being Kat's skating partner again.

He fucked bella when she is there, when she isn't there and even after knowing how hurt she was because of it and being right there daily.

There is no talk about this, no explanation, no discussion, not even a single sentence. One chapter she finds out Bella is pregnant because she faints in front of her and Heath comes and holds her putting his hand in her belly, the next she is saying they are going to be great parents. Then the Olympics and the end with her being auntie Kat ten years later. Heath didn't need to do anything in order to gain her forgiveness, the author makes it looks like she is the one in need of a redemption. Her ambienton is treated like the catalyst for how she ended up alone for three years, she chose it. Yet his own actions are also treated like it was her ambitions fault.

We are supposed to believe he loved her when he fucked bella at their room, when he continued to fuck Bella at her absence instead of at the very least trying to explain himself, when he fucked bella in August and impregnated her when Kat was there.
Where the fuck is his love? We don't see it, he doesn't act like he loves her, he doesn't tell her he loves her, he doesn't show her he loves her. So why we are supposed to believe he loves her? I bet if Bella wanted to be a family in order to give her daughter a house with both parents he would drop Kat as fast as a snap of the fingers.


The author at the last quarter of the book chooses to make their relationship a backgraoud part of the story so why even bother trying go give them a nasty hea. Make them friends able to be close to each other in a health way, without hurting each other instead of saying you are a feminist and punishing the main woman in this book for being ambitions.

In the end she doesn't have a gold medal, she doesn't have a loyal man, she doesn't even have her own training center. She was sabotaged, her man past time is betraying her and she trains in Bella's facility. Well, I guess they are used to sharing, first the man, now their work place.


Heath on the other hand, ohh he won. He has everything he ever wanted and if kat ever dream on leaving again, we know he won't be alone, unlike her. He will be fullfied, he has his kid and his Bella.

[Ri ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 perfection stars!

“Everyone thinks Heath Rocha was my first love. He wasn’t. My first love was figure skating.”

There is only one word to describe this book—‘masterpiece’. It completely consumed me in every possible way. I have always loved reading messy and toxic stories; they’re my kryptonite, and this kind of story always hits right in the heart, body, and soul. The Favorites was no exception. I loved the story—it’s unique, captivating, and so unputdownable that you feel like you exist in Katarina and Heath’s world. It’s theirs, and everyone else is merely living for the show they’re putting on to win.

The Favorites is an addictive, profound, and complicated yet impactful and beautiful story about two people—the infamous favourites of the skating world, Katarina and Heath. I am obsessed with their story, their lives, their competitive nature, and the way they dance so soulfully and skilfully. Layne Fargo’s writing is riveting, and the exquisitely detailed narrative pulls you right into the story, into the world she created. It feels like being part of the audience, a part of their ice-skating world.

Katarina Shaw is an ambitious, confident, and competitive ice skater whose only dream was to be just like Sheila Lin, the queen of ice dancing, and win gold. Her character is so intense and raw that it could make you hate her at times, but I never did. Not even when she did everything in her power to win competitions, even pushing and hurting the people she loved. She embraces her spiteful demeanour, even when it gets her into trouble, but she is the queen of her own world. Her character is multilayered, filled with complexities that make her difficult to love, yet her determination and passion for ice dancing make it impossible not to. She gave everything to the sport, practically worshipped Sheila Lin, and kept coming back stronger and smarter every time the sport, and the people within it, tried to break her. That resilience makes her even more compelling. She may be an ambitious bitch, but you can’t deny the legacy she left behind for all the women in her world.

“He wanted to be everything to me, the way I was everything to him. And I would always want more.”


Heath Rocha is the most complicated and mysterious character in this book. I loved him, but there were times he made it difficult to do so because of the petty things he did to hurt Katarina. His entire life revolved around her and her dream of winning gold, he was so pathetically in love with her that he followed her dream just to be with her, until he became the best ice skater, the one Katarina could never have. I admire the way he loved Katarina, however messy and toxic it was, his love for her was all-encompassing and consuming. I loved his growth over the years they skated together, how he eventually found his own place in the sport and fought for it. He helped Katarina in many ways but also tore her down with his hurtful antics, which frustrated me. But despite that, I understood his choices and decisions. I may not have liked them, but I understood them.

“He looked at me like he’d been wandering in the dark for years, and I was the sunrise.”


Heath and Katarina are everything to each other—ice dancing partners, childhood sweethearts, star-crossed lovers, rivals, haters, and soulmates. Their story is epic and unforgettable in a way that completely consumes you. The way they perform on the ice is mesmerising, and the way they love each other is toxic and messy, yet all-encompassing. It’s everything. I am utterly enamoured with their love. The yearning, the hatred, the love, and the rage they feel toward each other are poured into their dance performances, making them even more beautiful and addictive. You can hate them or love them, but you cannot ignore their talent on the ice, or their love story.

“There are lots of different kinds of love.” Love like a steady, warming campfire that keeps you alive in the cold. Love like a raging blaze that burns down everything in its path until nothing but ash remains.

Their chemistry, both on and off the ice, was everything. They truly bring out the best and worst in each other. Since childhood, Katarina and Heath have been inseparable, bonded by sadness, loneliness, and their shared love for skating. They’ve been through hell together, put each other through hell, yet they always found their way back to each other. The push and pull was maddening, but so damn good. Heath and Katarina are the very definition of right person, wrong timing, and it took them years to finally get it right, the last time.

“You’re my home, Heath had said to me once. Despite all the years we’d spent apart, all the time we’d wasted, he was my home too. He always had been.”

Bella was such an interesting character to read about. I struggled to love her at first, but once I did, I never looked back. She’s similar to Katarina, but more intense in a mean and competitive way. I loved her and Katarina’s friendship, however unhealthy it was at the start, because it was real for them. Garrett is the best, the most precious character, who deserved only good things from the very start. I loved him, even though I had my suspicions early on, but he turned out to be such an incredible, exceptional human being. Sheila Lin was a calculating, conniving, and ruthless bitch, but one you hate but also admire.

The world competitions, the Olympics, the drama, the romance—everything was so intense. Yet, the new and old friendships between the characters added a layer of warmth and comfort, even as the rivalries continued. The interviews added a layer of mystery that kept me hooked, and the drama only made the story more intense and addictive. I loved the side characters and how everyone had their own stories unfolding, each pushing the other to their absolute limits. Layne beautifully and intricately captured the challenges and complexities of ice dancing, along with the spellbinding beauty of the performances.

The ending was perfect. It was true to Katarina and Heath’s story of winning and losing. Layne must have put some kind of drug into this book because I’m now addicted to watching ice skating!

———————
did i finish the book or did it finish me?

this book is now haunting my dreams so i guess it's time to give it a try 🫢

[manas (NEW YEAR) · Rating 3 out of 5]

➳ i am a hoe for toxic shit ☆

to the world, they were a scandal. to each other, an obsession.

➺ this book was a breath of fresh air. i have currently been reading some DUMBASS flops and i appreciate how exhilarating this felt. lots of people compared this to wuthering heights, i personally will be reading that to verify, and then update of course. majority of this novel felt like an old time classic, taylor jenkins reid, and magnolia parks blended into one story. while there are elements to this story that are different and work better, i do believe there is a lot of the narrative that was either under utilized or over done.

⌞kat & heath⌝

katarina shaw and heath rocha are our prominent characters in this novel. there is a lot of back and forth, toxicity, and mutual obsession our two main characters display. while on the surface lots of people called this a love story between the two, i say this reads more like a drama, with glimpses of their relationship. this is told through kat's POV and through a multi POV interview style in sections. at the fore front, this narrative usage worked really well for the story. i found both characters to be passionate, driven, and primal with their wants and needs. however, layne started to really lose me with their forced mutual pernicious. this toxic nature felt very forced at times for the sake of sexual tension and angst. take it from a dancer, you don't need to force these scenes as dancing and skating are naturally sports that will seamlessly allow these characteristics to shine through. while there are some really well plotted scenes, due to the length of the novel and the lack of consistent direction with the side characters, there was lots of plot lines which became superfluous to the overall story. lastly, people compare these two characters to magnolia + blowjob, i have to DISAGREE. while katarina & heath had their issues and drama, i believe they did everything for the other persons' benefit.

⌞side characters, plotting, & pacing⌝

this is where layne fargo started to really fumble the story for me. there is a lot of unnecessary importance she emphasizes throughout the plot. when people described this story as «intoxicating», i expected some REAL drama and sabotaging. instead, i felt like we got some kindergarten〝tom & jerry〞fights which lead... NOWHERE. one thing i believe that could've worked is making this 100 pages longer. there are too many side quests and characters that are thrown in for 5 pages here and 10 pages here which do NOT help the continuous flow of the plot. to emphasize this point, there entirely too much repetition in the latter 40% that we could've done without. ultimately, the pacing truly suffers since this novel in parts is a sports literary fiction, a messy romance, and a theatrical drama. i don't feel like layne had the best sense of what she wanted to write. the concept was there, but the execution is lacking severely.

⌞the writing⌝

the last relevant note that i wanted to point out was the way this novel was written. now... i am no damn expert but this truly feels like a grab at a big picture. the entire time i was listening to the audio book, something was bereft. after i finished the book i realized that this book reads like a movie script rather than a novel. there is too much off page reconciliation and redemption that was jarring to witness, since there is ZERO indication as to HOW or WHY the characters got to that point in their lives. while i am not saying this is poorly written—the opposite in fact—this immoderate erratic behavior displayed through the relationships—romantic, platonic, hateful, and lustful—was choppy and blaring. this would've worked better had we SEEN this with our eyes, rather than read about it in passing.

➺ as i mentioned, this was something i DID enjoy reading. very overhyped for me, especially since these recycled concepts she used ARE done better in other prominent works. i would however, like to see this get adapted. i truly believe this will work better as a live action, rather than a book.

[Iqra · Rating 5 out of 5]

ೃ⁀➷ 4.5 stars *ੈ✩‧₊˚

[ambulance noises blaring]
[rushed on the stretcher]
[incoherent medical jargon being thrown about]
…fading in and out of consciousness…

*record scratch*
*freeze frame*

You must be wondering how we got here, well let’s start from the beginning…

The second my fingers gained access to this book I cracked it open and HAD to read it because everyone I knew said this book was made for me and so I couldn’t resist I’m a simple girl.

At first I was kinda underwhelmed?? But thought okay there has to be some reason there’s a craze over it so I’ll just be patient. Then came a turn in the story like fifty pages later and I was all yess we’re finally getting somewhere until it started to get boring again. It wasn’t until then that I realised the docu parts of the book kept taking me out of the story and I’d start daydreaming about other shit. Clace and Hoda had to scream at me to keep going, so persevere I did. And i can finally tell u that yes it was fucking WORTH IT. Idk what I would’ve done had I not stayed patient.

It wasn’t until I think the third part of the book where I was RINSING thru the pages like it was water. I was thirsty for answers I didn’t get up once during the second half of the book for NOTHING not food not air nor water, this book became my sole sustenance for those last moments. I was so consumed with it I didn’t see anything but Kate and Heath.

The plot twists, the mindfucks, the angst and tension kept me fed for decades to come. I truly don’t think you can replicate the feeling this book gives. You can look elsewhere but the characters you find will not compare.


|| IMPORTANT ||

I wanted to clear smth up, there was NO cheating in this book between the characters. Shit happens but there’s a really fine line. Inferences and opinions can be made however anyone sees fit but factually speaking there isn’t any cheating. I went into it with the misconception that there is and it kinda made me a little ?? bc the whole time was bracing myself only for it to not happen. Left me confused and a lot annoyed over the unnecessary stress.


The characters:



Kate — she’s such a passionate person. Whatever she puts her mind to she does it and sees it thru. I loved how flawed her character was and how her complexities were depicted. She was frustrating as fuck. She was endearing. She was cruel and a bitch. She was sweet and vulnerable. It’s these intricacies and nuances that I value in any written character. Her every facet added to her character and it made me love her a little more for it.

Heath — him I couldn’t get a read on for the life of me. To be very honest he’s still a mystery. He was an open book so easy to read for the first half of the book and then after it felt like I didn’t even know who he was. There was no safety in his character which was a new.. uncomfortable feeling for me.


||| SPOILERS AHEAD ||| ur girl needs to scream about the absolute fuckery she just experienced 😝🔫

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-
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Imma be so real the main reason it got interesting was bc the drama ramped up so high and I was living for it.

When they became celebrities and started drifting apart mentally and emotionally? 😮‍💨 that was masochistic type shit. Idk why I didn’t just stop there (we all know why) but I kept reading. It was like watching a car skid on ice and slam into the nearest tree. You simply cannot look away.

When he said fuck u to Bella and took Kat to the hospital carrying her bridal style (which was so hot btw) I felt such satisfaction. That bitch. Didn’t like her from day one and still don’t lmao. Never gna get over the shit she’s pulled on Kat especially to do with her physical and mental health. I’m a bitter bitch to the very end.

The actual funny thing is that I called Bella and Heath’s revenge fuck so early in the book but clace and hoda gaslit me into thinking i was off my rocker and it wasn’t gna happen, THOSE RATS (I’m glad they did it tho bc it made the betrayal that much worse and a shock but fuckkkk 😭)

at that point I felt numb bc like what the fuck?? It was crazy. I know it’s not cheating and shit but that betrayal CUT DEEP. Like I gasped so hard I almost vacuumed the air outta my room.

I’m so glad Kat dumped him and fell off the face of the planet. Served ‘em right, them bitches.

However, I feel like it kinda got swept under the rug after?? It was weird. It’s not the only time things got swept to the side too and it irks me to this day.

AND SHEILA?? That last betrayal fucked me uppppp. I did not think she would do it. It didn’t even come to my mind that she would be behind that leak or that she’s the one that made Heath leave. So much wasted time 😫 she broke them apart and it killed me. Heath, my baby Heath just wanted to be better for Kat and she drove him away I wanna scrrrrrreeeeeeeeammmm.

That betrayal has nothing on/doesn’t cut as deep as the time we find out Bella’s preggo with HEATHS FUCKING BABY.

That one shredded me
flayed me
shattered me.



It felt so fucking unnecessary. And while Kat was right fucking there?? He went to Bella while she was skating with him? After she came BACK???? Unacceptable. I wanted to murder Heath. Scream at him. Shake him so hard his bones rattle. It was the most shocking shit in the book- it HURT to see him dote on another woman 😭😭😭😭 no bc what the fuck

Me to Heath:


It was supposed to be Shaw and Rocha forever. They wasted so much fucking time. I’m so frustrated with both of them. Argh.

**edit — after time away from this fucking book, I can finally appreciate what Fargo was doing by trying to give everyone a happy ending in her own fucked up way, like Kat not having to compromise on birthing a child, Heath getting to fulfil his by having a kid with Bella, Kat and Heath still managing to be together and get the things they want from life. It’s fucked up but I see the bigger picture (DOESNT MEAN I HAVE TO FUCKING LIKE IT UGH) im sooo pettyyyy I will hold this against Heath forever. **

It came to a point when I even began to accept that they wouldn’t be together in the romantic sense. I almost made peace with that (I was still soooo salty about it and I’m never gna deny it) I cussed hoda and clace out tho bc I’m never forgiving them for the shit they put me thru.

AND THEN WHEN HE STARTED CHOKING ON HIS BLOOD AND DROPPED TO THE ICE???? I FUCKING STARTED HYPERVENTILATING LIKE FOR REAL I THOUGHT HE DIED DEAD 😭😭😭 EVERYONE STARTED BEHAVING LIKE HE WAS PAST TENSE AND THAT FUCKED ME UP SO BAD 🤚 I was so scared.



This brings us right back to the present, the ambulance, the fading in and out = this book was reaching its last moments with me. I was SO ready to give this book one star lmao. I was locked and loaded. Safety off. My finger hovering above the one star til the second I read that he was breathing and he’d be okay. The relief I felt 😫 ! nothing in this world I can even compare it to. WAS ABOUT TO PASS OUT MYSELF FROM HOLDING MY BREATH FOR WHAT FELT LIKE PAGES AND PAGES.

There was so much to process here. Like what the fuck is the mafia doing in this 😭 and franny that backstabbing grimy smelly bitch!! And Dimitri? I just knowwww he stinks of piss and sprays cologne on his sweaty pits.

Also Lee? That rat bastard 👺 didn’t expect him to DIE tho. That was a shock. *Good riddance* who said that 🌝

Garrett the only green flag 😭 poor guy got shit on by everyone. I just wanna hug him. The most self aware sweet soul in the whole book 😫💗🫂



||| Spoilers Over |||




The writing:

Okay so here’s where I get stuck. The writing was so mid. If it wasn’t for the characters themselves and plot I would’ve been bored outta my mind. The writing was dry.

The docu style shit bored me to tears. I would be so invested and then turn the page only to find the interviews like WHAT IS IT NOW ARGH?! I started daydreaming whenever it came up lmao 😭 I did not care until at least the halfway mark. It wasn’t until then that I started to actually give a shit about who was talking.

The story drove a lot of the book but when it came to the important, plot twists and emotional scenes there wasn’t much detail?? Idk it felt like everything was happening to these characters, we were being told and not shown in any detail.

For example: there would be a betrayal and Kat would just feel betrayed but the emotions would be described very briefly and not expanded on. It felt very rushed sometimes.

I also hateeeee the time jumps. I will NEVER appreciate having chunks of time just missing. It feels like a copout and messy work. It ruins the momentum and detaches me from the characters which doesn’t help. It’s one of the reasons Heath isn’t as much of a loved character by me.

Somehow all these flaws still can’t make me give this any lower than a four and half star? It’s a confusing position to be in right? Like u hate so much about it but it still gets a high rating what the fuck? . . . Yeah, I’m thinking the same thing!

But I can also explain that too, it’s frustrating, pisses you off, rlly digs in on ur last nerve, right? well, that’s the whole point. The author did her job phenomenally in that department. She MEANT to make us hate and question and doubt the characters. They’re not supposed to be flawless cookie cutter 2D cartoons, they’re complex and hard to digest but that’s literally my bread and butter. I thrive on this shit. I love seeing the raw unfiltered messy toxic side to characters. It’s makes them human. It makes them real and gives them a life outside of the book where I can be like yeah I could totally see so and so doing or saying this in any situation.

So as much as I hate a lot of the flaws, it’s what makes this book unique and refreshing. Not the docu style or the rags to riches story. It’s their reactions to the things that happened to them which made this a unique experience for me.


TL;DR

This book hurt in strange ways and left me wanting while also satisfying my curiosity but just on the surface. A lot of shit happens that didn’t go the way I wanted it to. Any time I created expectations they were DEMOLISHED and then were never really built back up with the right foundations? Can u tell how confused this book made me? It’s so hard to articulate the effect this book had on me.

But bc it made me cry die sob laugh and scream in both frustration and agony it’s getting the almost five star treatment. The way this fucked me up mentally?! I still think about this book wanting to cry tears of frustration daily 😝🔫

Me after the book finished me:





***

It’s been 16 hrs post finishing this book and I’ve still not stopped thinking about it. I’ve been in this state of shock, reeling since it’s finished.


***

…I need like ten to twenty business years to process what I just went thru

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

ITS FINALLY HAPPENINGGGG

My copy just came in the mail and I am readyyyyy

Every single person I know that’s read this has said this book is made for me and I’m litch on pins and needles till my copy comes bc what do u mean it’s toxic and messy and I’ve not read it yet!!

Book Club Pick of the Month ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ Join my book club!

[Hoda · Rating 5 out of 5]

” you’re my home, heath. Had said to me once. Despite all the years we’d spent apart, all the time we’d wasted, he was mu home too. He always had been.”

OMG, this was so intense! I’ve never experienced this level of frustration and toxicity while reading a book since I finished Wuthering Heights, but even Wuthering Heights wasn’t as frustrating as this! 😭 It kept me on edge the whole time. It was so captivating that I couldn’t even put it down unless I was forced to. The ending of every chapter made me want to go to the next, and the whole interview style was perfect. I loved it because it showed us what happened from everyone’s perspective and how differently they saw and translated everything that happened. It was honestly so intense, thought-provoking, and frustrating, and I loved every minute of it!

” we’re shaw and rocha,” I said.” And there’s nothing we can’t do together”

the characters

The toxicity of all the people in this book is on another level, but OMG, I savored it! I hated all of them halfway through the book and i still hated them, and I think that was the point. Like, yes, we were supposed to hate them to be able to see how much they changed by the end and then love them! But the way I was so frustrated with them—OMG, I was screaming with my friends for hours because we were all frustrated. Then I turned to Clace and freaked him out with my screaming because this book made me this frustrated! ✋🏻

”even as children they were intense. That was their greatest strength, and their greatest weakness. But they loved eachother, and they loved skating. I think that’s what people will remember most: their love”


Heath & katarina

They’re toxic. The way I wanted to smash their heads against the wall so many times just to knock some sense into them! But ugh, they just kept being frustrating! I hated everything they did to each other, but I also couldn’t fathom the idea of them not being together because it’s always Shaw and Rocha! Their love was so strong, intense, wild, beautiful, and breathtaking. OMG, you could see it from the way they danced and the way they couldn’t keep their eyes away from each other. Every time they got away from each other, I just knew that they would still go back to one another because it’s them. They belong to each other no matter what.

I understood kat obsession about skating and her determination to win it was honestly so admirable but frustrating at the same time but her actions were so selfish and she didn’t even notice. And i loved how heath loved kat but I didn’t love how he made his whole world revolves around her it was honestly so suffocating because the smallest unintentional act from one caused the other to hurt. But i loved the ending it was honestly so refreshing and i didn’t see it coming 😭

”heath rocha and i will be in eachother lives until we die. Even if we end up killing eachother.”

bella & katarina

I'm just going to say that their friendship wasn’t for me because let’s be honest: if Bella were my best friend and she pulled all that stuff on me, I would have killed her long ago! Both of them were bad friends. But I think this was only because of how competitive they were back then, and that was Sheila's doing. Once Sheila was gone and they stopped being so competitive, I really enjoyed their friendship and how they supported each other in the end.

the thing is, when pushing you limit is all you know, when it seems normal to you.. it’s-hard to remember you even have limit. Until you run right into them”

Garrett

I feel guilty for feeling suspicious of him at the beginning but in mu defense he was overly nice like really nice which was so weird since every single character in this book was selfish and toxic 😭 i love him tho 🤍

Overall i definitely recommend like 💯 it’s soo good 🤍