Thank you so much to NetGalley, Random House, and Layne Fargo for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review. I love this book so much! It reminds me of the movie Cutting Edge and TJR’s previous books. I love the writing style of multiple POV’s, flashbacks, and the interview style all mixed in together. This is a fantastic book and highly recommend it to anyone who loves women’s fiction, romance, coming of age stories, and ice skating. This will be one of my favorites of 2025! Thank you again for allowing me to review this book.

This was such a fun, stressful, and addicting read! If you grew up on CW TV shows and are now a fan of the Magnolia Parks books, you'll definitely enjoy this.
Layne Fargo really chose the format (a mix of of documentary interviews and the story told from Kat's perspective) well, and uses it not only to enhance the suspense and tension throughout the book but also to create captivating characters.
You can definitely feel the Wuthering Heights retelling aspect at the start of the book, executed in a very original way, but the story eventually takes on a life of its own. It truly feels like a TV drama, mixing contemporary events and culture with the story seamlessly, and it even had me convinced it had to be real and googling real-life ice dancers and their stories by the end.

Oh boy. I was super excited to pick this book up due to all of the early 5 star reviews I saw; however, this book did not work for me at all. I did not enjoy any of the characters, the plot line or the fact that the issues just keep repeating themselves over and over. I felt like I was reading a young adult novel the whole time.

I will leave my thoughts there as I do not have one positive thing to say about this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for allowing me to read an early copy.

Everyone in this book is terrible, which tracks for a Wuthering Heights retelling. However, unlike in Wuthering Heights, I struggled to feel anything about Kat or Heath and most of the book felt like being told things but never really going deeper on anything. The ending was a letdown for me as well.

3.5 rounded up

By far and away, my favorite experience with this book was the audiobook production! Reminiscent of Daisy Jones and the Six, the cast of characters made this story come alive. Former ice skating competitor, @johnnygweir, absolutely stole the show!!

Initially, I wasn’t interested in this story - I like ice skating enough, but don’t really know a whole lot about it - but then I started seeing rave reviews! For the first 50%, I was all in - finding reasons to do chores around the house - wanting to listen to it as fast as possible. Then somewhere along the way, the steam ran out of my engine and I began having to force myself to finish.

I think the drama started to be a bit much for me, I began liking Katarina less and less (by the end, I really couldn’t stand her at all), and I was frustrated by some of the turns the story took. Regardless, I do not regret the experience because the audiobook truly is top notch. I’m not sure I would have finished had I read the print version of this one, so trust everyone when they tell you audio is the way to go!

4.5 overall. Holy cow. I am unwell *and* completely satisfied. It was messy and compulsive and enthralling. I honestly want to reread it already and know that it’s going to be an ideal read as the Olympics roll around (also ice dancing is the perfect sport for this type of book, no notes)

The Favorites by Layne Fargo is everything. The format, the drama, the setting, the character dynamics, it all works so well together. The story never drags on and truly brings you into their world over the course of many years.

Absolutely loved! This book was so addicting from the first page. I loved the the format with there being documentary chapters and then chapters from Kat's POV. I flew through this book needing to know what happened next. I know knowing about ice dancing but this book made you feel like you were in the ice rink with them. So much drama! The relationship between Kat and Heath is just part of it. I could definitely see this being made into a TV series.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for an ARC of the Favorites by Layne Fargo for an honest review.

If you combine ‘Daisy Jones and The Six’ vibes with ice skating, you’ve got this book rolled up in a nutshell. I was completely immersed in the story and I loved how it incorporated the interview/documentary style too. I have no doubt it will be one of the most popular books of 2025! Thanks so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. Pub day was 1/14/25 - it’s out now!

The Favorites was book full of young emotion, ambition, and idealism. It was sometimes tense at it explored themes jealousy and toxic friendships through a variety of characters. The book was entertaining but occasionally faltered in its pacing and the depth of its character development. Halfway through reading I learned it was a retelling of Wuthering Heights. I am undecided if I enjoyed knowing that or if it distracted me while reading, trying to find parallels.

4.5 stars

This was a shockingly fun time. My expectations were low, as I didn't love "They Never Learn" by this author, and I probably wouldn't have even requested this ARC had I realized it was a "Wuthering Heights" retelling, but wow am I glad I missed that. Because this was a banger. I can't even really articulate what I liked about it, or really compare it to other books I've also rated highly, because it wasn't good in the same ways? I don't know. But oof. I have read several books since this one and am still pining for it and reading/watching more ice skating things to try to fill the void. Unsuccessfully.

I don't read a lot of books where the main plot is romance, and even though this is classified as a sports romance, it felt more like a romance between Kat and ice skating than it did between Kat and Heath. Much like in "Wuthering Heights", I didn't really care much about Heath(cliff). But I loved Kat in this. She was scrappy, bitchy, determined, and not afraid to be herself, even if that meant people didn't like her. Kat loved skating, and Heath loved Kat. Obviously that's pretty unhealthy and led to a lot of problems, but man was it fun to read about.

The narration style in this flipflops between Kat telling the story in first person, thinking back on the events years later, and interviews with their friends and rivals who witnessed the events, being recorded for a "10 years later" documentary. Something that ended their ice dancing partnership happened at the Olympics, and the book tells us everything that led up to that big moment, starting from when Kat and Heath are 16-year-old hopefuls. I found the portions about the training and competing and the world of ice dancing and their fame more entertaining than the romance itself, but it all weaved together so well. I've seen people mention "Daisy Jones and the Six" as a comp for this, and while it's not as emotionally fraught as that one for me (which I gave 5 stars) I definitely get the vibe. This would make a great movie or TV show, and I need it immediately so I can fall back into this story all over again. Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book drew my attention right from the start since I have a son who does on line skating shows where he interviews former skaters and comments on their past performances as well as current skating shows. The author was spot on with a lot of the drama surrounding the competitions. The dialog amongst the professionals at the end of each chapter was perfect. I love the way the author portrayed their determination to win and the hard work it entailed. While writing about the skaters, she also showed their fragility as they try to balance out their professional lives with their career goals. She also details their costumes in relation to their music which is a very important aspect in skating. Well written!
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
#TheFavorites #LayneFargo #NetGalley

The comparisons to "Daisy Jones and the Six" are legit. If you were at all turned off by the cover like I was, don't let that deter you. "The Favorites" by Layne Fargo is first and foremost a love story that draws you in from the first page. If you love a good scandal-ly, gossipy story and watch a lot of docu-series about the rich and famous, I highly recommend this book! Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The drama was very well written.. there was a lot of ups and downs and the sort of behind the scenes/interviews were a great addition rather than just one POV
I think the FMC is supposed to be a little frustrating, but sometimes I wish it wasn't written so coldly
I didn't vibe with the beginning but the middle to end, all the drama and everything was definitely indulgent and easy to fall into and I thought the plot twists were super interesting
Was definitely a hit of the new year and I see why it's so hyped!

Well, this book has become my personality. I am OBSESSED. I did the audiobook for this one and adored the full cast of narrators - Johnny Weir was such a lovely addition. I had no idea this was a Wuthering Heights retelling until I was finished reading so if you love that one you will need to check this out. This will easily make my top books of the year list - I never wanted it to end!

I want to preface that this is not a bad book or badly written. It actually is so well written and thought out. With that being said, I hated it. I need to be able to latch onto one person I love and adore in a novel but I hated everyone which made me not care about the novel.

Also - we are built up this entire time focusing on Katarina’s goal of becoming a gold olympic winner just for the ending to fall so flat. I was just so angry.

the only interesting part of the novel was the sabotage at the end and the whodunnit. everything else was repetitive and annoying. i was over bella as being Kat’s best friend because they were not best friends they were actually people who hated each other. and heath was literally a flawed individual who couldn’t wait to make Kat angry because he knew she would come back. like i am so sorry i didn’t like this novel but like also, it is what it is. people will like this novel for what it is and for how it feels like a documentary about someone real (think Daisy Jones and the 6 or Honey) and this just didn’t cut out well for me even while loving Daisy Jones and tolerating Honey.

5 stars!!

The Favorites was an absolutely phenomenal book! There wasn’t a dull moment in this book, so often I would have to keep reading the next chapter and the next chapter after because I couldn’t put it down!

Told in both series of interview segments and the first person narrative of Katarina Shaw, this book is perfect for fans of Daisy Jones and The Six and I, Tonya. The story follows ice dancers Katarina Shaw and Heath Rocha, inseparable since they were kids, as they navigate their way towards their goals: for Katarina, that’s being an Olympian. For Heath, it’s just being with Katarina. They are two people that somehow simultaneously do belong together and definitely don’t belong together.

This book was emotional, it was messy, it was page after page of drama, and it all came together incredibly well. I was a tiny bit worried the ending would fall flat but it truly didnt, the ending was actually what made me round up from a 4.5 to a solid 5 stars.

Thank you SO much to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group-Random House for an ARC of this book. I received this ARC for free and am leaving this review voluntarily!

Note: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you, NetGalley and publishers.

The Favorites is a pulse pounding roller coaster ride. It’s the story of two ice dancers intent on being Olympic gold medalists, no matter what happens or what it costs them. The twists keep coming and you’ll never guess the end.

All the stars! I loved this one so much!! If you liked Daisy Jones and Carrie Soto, this one is right up your alley. I love a multi-cast narration and love a great figure skating story as well. The Favorites had the vibe of a “Behind the Scenes” documentary. Christine Lakin’s main narration made it even better!
*Thanks to Random House and Netgalley for my 500th review!!

Sadly, this one wasn't for me. All I knew about this book is that it’s about the elite ice dancing world, it’s compared to TJR’s Carrie Soto Is Back and it had a bunch of glowing reviews from people I know and trust: sign me up! I really WANTED to love this one but just didn't.

First, I think it’s insulting to compare this to Carrie Soto (one of my all times faves) for any reason other than they’re both about elite athletes. There is nothing beyond that that I found even remotely similar. And sure, it’s in a similar interview style to Daisy Jones at times. But again, the books themselves are not similar.

Overall, I found the characters super annoying and, for what was supposed to be a juicy drama, it was immature and boring? There’s a total lack of character development (esp. Heath) so I never felt invested in the characters as athletes nor was I ever invested in their romance. I’ll also say, my #1 biggest pet peeve is when characters are obsessed with each other and Kat and Heath give Harriet and Wyn a run for their money (IYKYK). Okay and while I’m at it, I’m going to say something inflammatory that you can all disagree with me about and that’s well and fine, but I don’t get why ice dancing is a sport and I think it’s boring (gimme pairs skating any day). I said what I said!

I listened to 51% of this on audio because I had heard great things about the full cast narration. It was fun but felt like it was taking 10,000 years to get through (it’s decently long) so I decided to switch to physical, which was definitely the right move for me.

I’m bummed because I LOVED They Never Learn by the same author a few years ago, which is a thriller about a female serial killer who targets men who do bad things to women.