The Winners by Frederick Bachman does not disappoint ! It is a novel about two towns that have hockey clubs and how these clubs seemingly control the various dynamics within the towns. How important should sports be in a person’s life and to what extent should people go to become winners? This novel raises these issues and allows the reader to explore just how far they will go to protect their hockey family? The characters are well developed and the various dilemmas encountered allow the reader to enjoy this well done novel. Thank you to Frederick Blackman for writing another excellent novel. Thank you also to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for allowing me to read this novel.

This is the third book in the Beartown series and if you loved the first two, then don't miss this one! It starts a few years later with a big storm coming. By the time it's done, someone has died and people travel back to Beartown for the funeral. I don't want to give away too much, but expect a few twists and life lessons.

The Winners by Fredrik Backman is so good! A great end to the trilogy. The book is really well written and a pleasure to read. It is a commitment at 600+ pages. All of the favorite characters from the previous books are included in this book plus some new friends. It might be good to go back and refresh your memory on what happened in Us Against You. It has been a couple of years and several 100's of books since I read Us Against You so some of the details were not top of mind any longer.

People want this to be Benji's book but he does not show up until later in the book. The book foreshadows some of the tragedy that will befall Beartown and Hed by the end of the book. Maya and her friend Anna are an interesting duo now that it is two years later and they have grown up. Peter and Kira are back. Peter seems like a lost sole working in Kira's law firm. Kira is as strong as ever and able to clean up other peoples messes. Many of the players are back in this novel as well as the coaches. Everyone in the book has grown as a person and for the most part for the better. There are still some slimy people hanging around Beartown and Hed.

This book is hard to summarize and I do not want to give spoilers. My best suggestions is to reread or read Beartown and Us Against You this summer and prepare yourself for a fantastic fall read. I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review. #NetGalley #FredrikBackman #TheWinners #Beartown

This is a book that will absolutely tear you apart.

Backman takes his time getting to the point- the first 1/4 of the book, we see what our old friends have been up to, are introduced to new players, and are warned: this is not a happy ending.

A death is the catalyst for events that will both tear Beartown apart… and maybe put it back together. Either way, bring the tissues because Backman is ready to destroy your universe with this gut-wrenching read.

Who doesn't love Fredrik Backman? No one writes about the realities of life and interpersonal relationships with more depth or humanity. "The Winners" is another must read.

It was so wonderful to get to know all these characters. I love the way a long book gives intimate thoughts, background and connections. The unfolding / storytelling technique by this author is so interesting. You have time to speculate before finding out. I enjoyed the variety in ages, backgrounds, intellectual and physical abilities of everyone. Would definitely be interesting bookclub discussion as to how they might represent current people and situations in the news. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I love Fredrik Backman's work, even his hilarious Instagram anecdotes about his family and the dog. FB has a magical way with words, putting incredible human feelings on the page, and creating characters who endure painful lives. THE WINNERS is the last book of a trilogy about hockey in two forest towns in northern Sweden. I treasured this new book as much as Beartown. I was thrilled to get the chance to read the last of the trilogy.

Most of the previous characters are present in this last book. I cared about what happened to all the players and families but especially Maya and her family. And who doesn't want to know about Benji's life after all the torment of Beartown? I could definitely see Benji in Bali or on a beach in Thailand, probably Samui or Phuket. I felt deeply for Peter and Kira, trying to keep their lives together for the sake of Leo and Maya.

I can't write too much about the plot, the characters, and the narrative without giving away all of FB's gifts of THE WINNERS. I can say that I admire the author's ability to create a huge game board filled with people who have secrets and fears. He moves them around while giving away huge hints at the end of many chapters. I cheered and I grieved. It is a perfect book and I recommend it to everyone!

Thank you, NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this ARC.

As a fan of Beartown, I was thrilled to get this last in the series of three books by Fredrik Backman. It was nice to get closure with the characters I know from Beartown, and Backman is a great storyteller. I would recommend this book for those acquainted with tBackman's characters, those who appreciate hockey, and those who love books about "ordinary people." Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Lovers of Beartown will be drawn to this. I really liked Beartown and LOVED Us Against You, but I could have done without a third book. The Winners dragged on for me. I didn’t feel emotionally connected to the characters the way I’ve felt with the other two books. If I wasn’t already a Beartown fan, I don’t think this would even get three stars from me. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

Thank you for the preview of this long awaited book that completes the Beartown Trilogy. This book wrapped up the story of these characters and their struggles so well. The author does an excellent job of reacquainting the reader with these characters after 2 years. This book is so well written with its descriptive language of setting, feelings, situations. I am sad this trilogy is over but feel very satisfied as a reader. I will definitely be recommending it to my school librarians, book clubs and others. 5 stars!

I loved Beartown and Us Against You, so I was thrilled to get to read The Winners which revisits the villages pf Beartown and Hed and lets readers know what happened to all the wonderful characters from the previous books. Backman excels at telling stories about "ordinary unusual people and/or unusually ordinary people". Maya, Johnny, Peter, Hannah, Kira, Benji, Ana and all the rest could be any one of us. Yes, the focus is on hockey and the impact the sport has on the people in these 2 small villages, but don't let that fool you. The story is really about all of us trying to do the best with our circumstances and to cope with events that are sometimes out of our control.

The book starts slowly and is sometimes confusing since there are multiple characters and multiple references to events in the past, present, and future. I could not put it down, however, because every chapter hints at what is to come. At about the 60-70% point, I REALLY could NOT put it down!! Events that were percolating slowly on a back burner came to a rapid boil and seemingly unrelated people and events come together in one dramatic climax. What a great craftsman to set the stage so carefully and weave such an intricate plot into something that will break your heart and ultimately leave you with a strong faith in humanity. Backman is clearly one of my favorite authors, and I'm so grateful he took us back to Beartown for this final episode of the trilogy. LOVED IT!!!

The Winners by Fredrik Backman is well written as with all of Mr Backman's works. The story is quite lengthy with all the principle characters from the prior books in the series and new ones whose involvements are equally important to the story. A full range of emotions come to play loneliness, anger, disappointment, grief, denial, resentment, and hate, but also hope and love. While there are storms, funerals, hockey, corruption, sexual predators and a diverse range of emotions, the story is for me has a somewhat of a disappointing conclusion. Fans of Mr Backman will enjoy revisiting Beartown and it's residents, their trials and tribulations and of course, hockey.

Thank you to Frederick Backman, Atria Books, Netgalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

In Winners, the third book in the Beartown series, Bachman uses Beartown vs. Hed hockey as a metaphor for the realities of today’s society.

I don’t think anyone could say it better, so I’m using several quotes (that I hope are in the final copy since they are perfect!)

“as usual most of the stories won’t be about what actually happened, but about what people felt happened”

“We studied religious sects in school. About radicalization. The same thing as The ‘slippery slope’ and all that. No one starts out crazy, no one is born violent, they just do one little thing, then another. Radicalization is when all the sick shit gets normalized, everyone gets a bit more dangerous, one step at a time. That’s kind of what this town is like, everyone thinks they’re fighting for the right things. Everyone thinks they’re acting in . . . self-defense.”

“Show those (Star Wars) films to a hundred men with a hundred different political opinions, and every damn one of them will think he’s Luke Skywalker. No bastard ever thinks they’re that Darth Vader.”

“My dad loves history. Medieval, most of all. Whenever we went on holiday when I was little we had to go around looking at churches, and he would talk about every stone in them. I remember him saying that when a rich man had committed terrible sins, the priests would say he could get God’s forgiveness if he built a cathedral. Obviously that was just a way for the priests to trick someone into paying for their ridiculously flashy building projects, not altogether unlike the way hockey clubs exploit councils to build ice rinks these days, but when I was little it was . . . well . . . I don’t know . . . I still thought there was something nice about that. That powerful men at the end of their lives had to humble themselves by turning their money into stone.”

“We can’t fight against evil. That’s the most unbearable thing about the world we have built. Evil can’t be eradicated, can’t be locked up, the more violence we use against it, the stronger it becomes when it seeps out under doors and through keyholes. It can never disappear because it grows inside us, sometimes even in the best of us, sometimes even in fourteen-year-olds. We have no weapons against it. We h ave only been given love as a gift in order to cope with it.”

Life goes on. It doesn’t give us any other choice.”

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The length of this book surprised me and I went in without expectations because I enjoyed the first book. After reading this, I still prefer that somehow. Full review to come and rating m ay change

I do not know how he does it but the characters he creates stay with you for a long time. I have found that I cannot ever skip even one word because every word is a big part of the story. This is another great story about community, communities working together and sometimes not. A story of love and hate and forgiveness.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The third and final in the Beartown series takes place 2 years after US Against You, over the span of 2 weeks. What can happen in 2 weeks? Only everything!
Relationships, loyalties and debts will all be tested. Thisbis lengthy at 600+ pages, however, Backman gives a really nice recap of the first books and brings us right back, fully immersed in Beartown. New characters are introduced, and woven seemlessly with out beloved favorites. I can't say enough about this series. You just have to experience it.
Best character arc: Bobo
Best character ever: Benji
Next book focus: Alicia🤞

In true Backman style, this book made me cry repeatedly. There were points when I read pieces to my mom who had no connection to Beartown at all and she was sobbing next to me. It’s beautifully, poetically, and tragically written. It’s plot is poignant and timely, while feeling fresh and new. It’s both the oldest story in the book, and nothing you’ve ever read before.

Backman sticks to what he does best: being philosophical while still weaving a tale that seems so real, that after three books I felt I truly knew these characters and mourned, cheered, laughed, and longed with them.

If you haven’t read the previous Beartown books, you MUST before you pick this one up, and if you have read them, I’d try to google a thorough synopsis of the others so you remember who is who and what is what, as I felt myself having to really think about who certain characters were.

The only thing I would change if I could would be the title, while I understand why they switched it to The Winners, the original title “Those Who Run Toward Fire” feels more genuine to the story overall.

This book slides right in with its predecessors as being in my top five ever. Thank you Fredrik Backman for telling a story I won’t ever forget, and one that has taken up ample space in my heart.

And to Benji Ovich, thanks for being my literary hero.

We are back in Beartown where hockey is king, winning is everything and us against them (Hed) still reigns. The joys, sorrows and struggles at being good at hockey, parenting, marriage, friendship and love. Mother Nature unleashes a storm that ignites another storm of hate when Beartown and Hed's feud blazes again. This story could happen in Sweden or in Michigan as the characters and their situation speak to all of us where the parents are trying so hard to make their children's lives better than their own and their dreams reality and the kids are trying just as hard to become worthy of those dreams. In a way only Fredrik Backman can deliver, you will sigh, cry and try to memorize whole paragraphs of text. This one is a winner in every way. While you should go back and read all the Beartown books this one is the icing on the cake. This will appeal to hockey and small town junior sports fans as well as readers of deep family dramas. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

I've loved Fredrik Backman since reading 'Ove.' I also really enjoyed Beartown. This is the next book in that series and it continues to build on the great characters/storyline from that book. Great story full of hope and grit, showing what its like to be young and involved in sports.

The Winners is the third and final novel in the Beartown series. The rivalry between Beartown and Hed is still going strong, this time, Beartown is on top, with Hed suffering all sorts of misfortunes.

The omniscient narrator employed by Backman works splendidly, it allows us to get into the head of so many characters. We are back with Maya and her parents, Peter and Kira; her best friend, Ana. We’re back with some of the hockey guys, they’re all young adults now: Amat – the boy from the poor neighbourhood, is an NHL prospect, and Bobo is still playing. Benji is returning to Beartown for a funeral. He’d been travelling the world trying to forget the past. There are other peripheral characters making an appearance, arguably, a few too many. Some side characters and some other issues kind of bog down the novel in the middle, but with some digging (ie patience), I was back on steady ground.

'The Winners' has funerals, a huge storm, hockey games, corruption and another tragic event. The full range of feelings is on display - loneliness, anger, disappointment, grief, denial, resentment, and hate, but also hope and love. Backman is a masterful storyteller who creates realistic, three-dimensional characters, whom you come to love.

As always, I’m looking forward to reading whatever he writes next.