Ugh I love female friendships so I really enjoyed this book. A really good debut novel and I can see it being a big hit in 2025

What a treat to enjoy this as my first read of the year! Kate Fagan’s writing in this emotional tale sings - it is funny and sharp and insightful.

Our protagonist, “Cate Kay,” is a successful author using a pen name and throughout the book we learn about her other names, and how closely her past mirrors the bestselling books she wrote. Told as a memoir with short chapters from many different POVs and timelines, this story is a rollercoaster! Friendship, love, longing, regret, betrayal, reconciliation…it’s all here.

If you loved the complicated relationships of Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, the wit of Margot’s Got Money Troubles, and the storytelling format of Daisy Jones & the Six…definitely check this book out! Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for the eARC!

Ummmm.. I’m obsessed???!?! This book was everything I needed and more to start the year. The storytelling had me from the start, and I loved the strong personalities that came through with each character that entered the story.

Although the vibes are comparable to Evelyn Hugo, I do think this story carries its own weight. To fans of the story - READ IT NOW. If you weren’t an EH fan - don’t let the comparison deter you from picking up this heart wrenching book.

An overall amazing read. I was crying and giggling and just cannot recommend it enough. Many thanks to the publisher and author for this ARC!

I really enjoyed this one! The writing was unique and I appreciated having multiple points of view to help connect the story. It ended up being a bit more emotional than I expected, but in a good way.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the e-galley. The opinions here are all my own.

This book has a lot of buzz comparing it with the Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. To be honest, Evelyn Hugo is in a category all its own.

I was intrigued at the start having a vested interested in the Capital/Upstate New York region in where the book begins. I enjoyed Annie and Amanda's friendship and understood their wanting to escape their tiny hamlet.

To be honest, Cate's post- tragedy escape bothered me. The "accident" was not her fault. She ended up not living and floundering for most of the book.

Some of the POVs were unnecessary, such as Carl (lovely story) and Jake( added some suspense, but not enough, I had already figured out who was behind one of the turning points).

This is a generous 3 for me. It has quick chapters, is somewhat riveting, but there are too many plot holes and weird decisions for me.

The Three Lives of Cate Kay shows the true love of friendship, growing up and finding yourself, and the layered history of relationships. I loved watching Annie, Cass, and Cate intertwine into the person they fully weaved into by the last chapter. Any fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid, or even just fans of frienship will love this.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an advance copy in exchange for honest feedback. Recommend for fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this book.

The foreward tells of a box that is delivered to a home in South Carolina addressed to Cate Kay. But who, exactly, IS Cate Kay? She says she was born Anne Marie Callahan, but her best friend called her Annie. She legally changed her name to Cass Ford, but published several books under the pseudonym Cate Kay. And thus the story begins.

Two teenage girls in Bolton Landing, a town in "very upstate" New York are simply too EVERYTHING for this little town and they plan to leave it and never return after their high school graduation. But the exit is delayed and just before they are finally leaving a tragic accident puts one of them in a wheelchair for life and no one knows what happened to the other one. She just vanished on the same day her friend was injured and no one has heard anything from her for 23 years.

But one day the injured friend picks up a book, THE book, the most popular book in the world, and when she reads it, she immediately knows what her best friend has been doing, at least for the last few years. But it is IMPOSSIBLE to reach this author. She is surrounded by people whose sole job is to keep her identity a secret, and they do it very well.

When THE book is about to be made into a movie, the star of the film insists she MUST meet the author in order to better understand the part and the story and make her performance believable. So she finally does meet Cate Kay and their relationship is not really good for either of them, at least in the eyes of those who feel protective of their charges.

If you can get past the lesbian sexuality, which sometimes seems gratuitous, this is a good and strong story.

I went into this book thinking I wasn’t going to like it as much as I did. When I started it, I felt like it wasn’t the right ‘time’ for me to read the book, but by the end, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I actually enjoyed it.
I loved how Fagan dug into the characters and really focused on Annie and Amanda’s growth throughout the novel. It was also interesting to read this novel as Cate’s ‘memoir’ and as a fan of footnotes, I enjoyed the additional commentary. There were some POVs that I felt did not add to the plot and I also found myself really disliking Sidney (though I felt like that wasn’t what was supposed to happen due to Cate’s okay-ness with Sidney’s crazy actions). I liked the theme of self-love and how strong of a force love can be in motivating actions and intentions. I’m excited for Fagan’s future works!

Enjoyed reading something completely different. Annie changes her identity twice due to bad decisions and the need to stay under the radar. It took a while to get into the story but once the defining bad decision was made things picked up. Multiple points of view helped clarify each event and not being able to predict what happens next was refreshing. Loved the short chapters which allowed me to pick up reading when I could carve out a few minutes to spare.

I love a book that has a story that’s told over a specific timeline, especially when it goes in and out of the present, and the author did a great job keeping it easy to follow, even when one chapter was in the past and the next wasn’t. I also loved the format being that the character is writing the book herself, or at least it reads like a personal journal. I would definitely read more from this author.

The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a compelling and an emotional roller coaster read. The story beautifully explores how a questionable decision can create ripple effects that transforms into life (in this case a well-curated lie). It’s emotional, poignant, and exquisitely written as the narrative delves into the complexities of identity, love, relationships, and the process of personal reinvention.

One of the highlights of this book is the relationship between Cass/Annie and Amanda. It’s so deep, so intimate, that they know each other perfectly well , in ways no one else could. Another intriguing aspect of this book for me is the use of multiple perspectives, giving each character a voice and empathy to the readers as they add layers to Cass/Annie’s story. At times, it almost felt like reading a memoir disguised as a fiction.

The ending of the story was well-crafted, creating a full circle moment and open-ended, which I really liked.

I devoured this book in two days, completely captivated by every second of it. Ultimately, The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a story about love–the love that Cass/Annie feels towards Amanda and Ryan–that serves as the heart and soul of this narrative, making it unforgettable.

Thank you so much to Atria Books and Netgalley for the eARC of this book.

The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a compelling and emotionally charged novel that delves into the complexities of identity, memory, and personal reinvention. The protagonist, Cate Kay, lives multiple lives in parallel, each offering a unique lens on her growth and struggles. The narrative weaves together themes of self-discovery, regret, and the impact of past choices in a way that keeps readers engaged from start to finish. While the book shines in its exploration of character depth and psychological nuance, it occasionally veers into predictability. Still, the rich storytelling and relatable emotional beats make it a rewarding read. I give it 4/5 stars for its gripping premise and strong character development, though there's a bit of room for more unpredictability in the plot.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for this ARC!!! I DEVOURED this book!!! I was a bit skeptical at first because of the marketing comparison to Evelyn Hugo (which is my favorite book), I was worried a description like that would feel like it was trying too hard to be similar to Evelyn Hugo but that wasn’t the case it all. Similar vibes but with a unique and fresh storyline that brought me on a rollercoaster of emotions throughout and a truly cannot-put-this-down-because-I-NEED-to-know-what-happens-next-read. Truly adored this book and can’t recommend it enough!!!

🖊️ The Three Lives of Cate Kay - Kate Fagan

4.25 ⭐️- OKAY, y’all know Lake George is my heart so extra props for one of the locations of this book! I got this Netgalley and I was excited to read it; but hesitant to start. I’m not really sure why that was because I really enjoyed it !

While the characters all frustrated me at times, I still loved them. I loved the way this was written - interview style but also still storytelling style. I was invested in all the many lives of Cate (it does give a little Evelyn Hugo) and at times I was rooting for certain ones over others. I enjoyed the growth and connection multiple characters experience across the many years of Cate Kay fame. I felt a rollercoaster of emotions while reading this - happy, sad, frustrated, satisfied, annoyed; you name it, I felt it. The ended felt a little rushed for me; I wanted more! I’m missing a couple of conversations to wrap up stories, but that could also be a me thing. I deff recommend reading this one this year or adding it to your BOTM box!

Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for the early copy! This one’s out TODAY!!

I’ve said before that there are some books that deserved to be put in another category. The Three Lives of Cate Kay is one of them.
There is something enthralling about books reliving the character’s life, kind of like a fictional memoir. I easily got caught up in the mystery surrounding Cate Kay’s story starting by the title of the book. Why does she have three lives? What are the reasons, motivations and events that led her to create multiple identities?
This is a story of unravelling the truth but also of escaping home and coming back. Home here is not only the physical place but also the people you consider as such.

Our main character is complex and intriguing, not just because she contains multitudes but mainly because of how her mind works. It is sometimes complicated to understand her actions but it’s such a part of her identity that it doesn’t need to be explained. She is driven by this strange energy that make her who she is.
People are complex. Some are greedy. Some use others for their personal fulfillment. Others are just victims of machinations they are not aware of. Others are the pawns of the big machine that is the entertainment industry. All this complexity is explored in the book through the POV of each character who were involved, in one way or another, in our main character’s life. I strongly disliked some of them (I mean only one of them) and I sympathized with others.

There is more that can be said on this book like how I enjoyed the excerpts of the book within the book, but the best way to experience The Three Lives of Cate Kay is to take a leap of faith and immerse yourself in this adventure

I love books about books and authors so this was just a delight. The style of a fictional memoir of an anonymous author is such a great set up and was well executed. I loved each character and looked forward to their chapters. Highly recommend! one of the most engaging books I've read in a long time, I couldn't put it down.

4.5 / 5 stars

Anne Marie Callahan and her best friend Amanda Kent plan to set off for Hollywood as soon as they graduate high school. They know their enviable friendship and acting talents will help them make it big. But a horrible accident sends Annie fleeing alone and needing to change her identity.

Now, years later and having penned a wildly successful trilogy of books, Annie is ready to share the story of how she became Cate Kay. Her memoir will include perspectives from other important people in her life, including the lawyer who helped her conceal her identity for so long, and the Hollywood actress with whom she shares a (probably) doomed romance. Further enhancing her story will be snippets from her novel, which are of course deeply informed by her lived experiences.

The Three Lives of Cate Kay was an incredibly enjoyable read. The tight bond portrayed between Amanda and Annie during their teenage years reminded me of close friendships that I enjoyed. The poor choices that Annie makes feel incredibly genuine for a scared teenage girl.

My one small quibble with the book is that the conceit that this is the memoir of Annie/Cass/Cate doesn't quite work. There are large portions told from the perspective from other characters, and I would argue that this is Ryan and Amanda's story as much as it is Annie's. Also, Sidney would have no reason to contribute to the memoir given her actions and her background as a lawyer. But that's just quibbles.

The Three Lives of Cate Kay is an uplifting story about female friendship, soulmates, and the power of fiction. I adored this book and will be thinking about it for a long time.

Wow. This one was told from multiple perspectives and jumped around in time and it was done so masterfully. The story telling is top notch. It’s an easy read to get into and at about 20% the jaw-dropping moments start. I couldn’t put it down and I just wanted to finish it right then! Sadly I couldn’t but I was reading at every chance I got.
Some of these character’s actions were just so horrible. This would make a great book club pick! There’s lots of regrets or things that shouldn’t have been. Missed opportunities and misunderstandings that take years to resolve. I didn’t love the very end-I wanted to see more and it felt like it was cut too abrupt. We as the reader understand the ‘where are they now’ but I just wanted to see it play out a little more.
An enjoyable read. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

I was wanting Evelyn Hugo vibes, based off what the blurb said. Unfortunately, that did not live up to my expectations. However this was a fun book and I would recommend to most people!

Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for my early e-arc.