Book Review | The Favourites

My book clubs pick for February, that I’ve only just gotten around to writing about, and my second Layne Fargo book this year.

The Favourites
Layne Fargo

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

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 rollercoaster 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 obsession 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 either. 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.

Inspired by the powerful love and hate that fuel Emily Bronte’s classic, Wuthering Heights, The Favorites is an exhilarating dance between passion, ambition, and what it truly means to win.

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I was happy to be diving into another Layne Fargo book after enjoying They Never Learn earlier in the year because I was hoping that this would be another book that would have me gripped from beginning to end and luckily I was not disappointed. As soon as it started with a documentary transcript I knew that I was going to be hooked but I was not prepared for the rollercoaster that would ensue.

The story takes a little inspiration from Wuthering Heights, except that Kat and Heath in this book are not just obsessed with each other but also with becoming competitive ice dancers. I didn’t know much about ice dancing before reading this book but it has certainly made me curious to give it a watch at the next Olympics, and the competitive nature of the sport and the politics that go along with it added a thrilling tension as a backdrop for the story.

I loved the back-and-forth of Kat and Heath’s story, told from Kat’s perspective, interspersed with excerpts from the documentary. It rounded out the experience, seeing how other people perceived the pair and the events that they were involved in. It also maintained a breakneck pace because the chapters were short and snappy, and the excerpts sometimes offered a hint of what was to come, which made me want to keep reading.

It was easy to be captivated by Kat and Heath’s relationship, it was full of angst and intensity, especially as other people started to cause cracks in their bubble. The personal relationships in this book were intoxicating, I won’t go into too much detail but there were moments when I felt my heart sink at some of the treachery.

The one thing that didn’t quite meet my expectations was the obsession that was supposed to be present in Kat and Heath’s relationship, there was a lot of discussion about it throughout the book but I don’t feel like it manifested. I kept hoping it was going to progress as we got further into the story and whilst they were definitely magnetic and intense, in my opinion, they didn’t quite reach that slight madness that comes with obsession, with each other.

The Favourites is a book that totally consumed me, I was thinking about it well after reading and I am already looking forward to seeing what is next for this author.