Inside Heated Rivalry: Author Rachel Reid Shares Show Gossip, Her Fav Books & More

Summary

Podcast Summary: House of Maher

Episode: Inside Heated Rivalry: Author Rachel Reid Shares Show Gossip, Her Fav Books & More
Release Date: May 19, 2026
Host: Wave (with co-hosts Ilona Maher, Olivia Maher, Adrianna “Dre Baby” Maher)
Guest: Rachel Reid (Author, Game Changers Series)

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Overview

This lively episode brings hockey romance super-author Rachel Reid into the House of Maher kitchen for a candid, engaging conversation about the breakout success of her Game Changers series, the international hit TV adaptation Heated Rivalry, fandom culture, sports representation, queer romance, and the pressures and joys of writing in a genre she helped revolutionize.

The Maher sisters and Rachel dive deep into:

• The meteoric rise of Heated Rivalry and its cultural impact
• The adaptation process and behind-the-scenes gossip from the show
• Insights into Rachel’s writing journey, fandom relationships, and what’s next for her characters
• The state of queer representation in sports and romance media
• Favorite books, audiobooks, and the craft of romance storytelling

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Phenomenon of Heated Rivalry

• Heated Rivalry (the TV show, based on Rachel's second book) has become a global sensation, winning a Peabody Award and spawning international events and even themed nights at sporting venues such as Fenway Park.

• Rachel is still in awe:

  "It's hard to believe. I mean, it's not because the show's so good, but it's still like anything based on anything that I wrote being a Peabody Award winner is a pretty crazy feeling." (03:12 – Rachel Reid)

• The show's reach surprises even her friends and family. Stories of fans giving up social media for Lent because they were so invested (02:11) underscore the intensity of engagement.

Sports Fandom, Origin of the Story, and Representation

• Rachel, a lifelong hockey fan from Nova Scotia, was driven to write about closeted male athletes due to the lack of out NHL players:

  “There still hasn’t been an out NHL player ever. And so it was something I’d been thinking about since the 90s...As we moved into the 2000s and 2010s, I was like, I thought by now maybe there’d be somebody, but there still...it still didn’t seem like it was ever gonna happen.” (07:25)

• Hockey is written as a backdrop, but her inspiration comes from the archetypes of the sport, not specific players (09:03).

• The hosts highlight the contrast with women’s sports, where out athletes and teammate couples are common (25:01).

Adaptation Process & Creative Choices

• Showrunner Jacob Tierney DM'd Rachel on Instagram to pitch his vision; both emphasized casting age-appropriate unknowns—particularly important for authenticity and representation.

• Rachel was hands-off in the writer's room but trusted Tierney's creative direction completely, finding the final show remarkably true to her books:

  “A lot of scenes that I was really kind of emotional watching because it was so much like what was in my head. I mean, some things are different and maybe like better than I was picturing, but...it was very satisfying to watch.” (13:19 — Rachel Reid)

• The casting of Hudson Williams as Shane was especially significant for the nuance he brought:

  “What Hudson was able to do with his face is, like, unbelievable acting — you know what Shane is thinking and feeling at all times, even when he’s not speaking.” (19:27)

Success, Pressure, and Writing with Fandom in Mind

• With the next book, Unrivaled, anticipation is at an all-time high, making writing more stressful but “a pressurized privilege”—what Rachel calls “champagne problems.” (22:03)

• Rachel purposefully avoids fan theories and most online spaces:

  “If I see something that’s similar to what I’m writing, I’ll start to spiral...so I just generally don’t [look], because I don’t want to start questioning everything I’ve written.” (28:10)

• She writes in a windowless basement in Nova Scotia to stay grounded and separate from hype (29:00).

On Romance Genre, Craft, and Representation

• Rachel and the hosts discuss the rise of romance—particularly queer and diverse romance—during the pandemic and in the BookTok age (39:51).
• The importance of pacing in romance is a recurring theme:

  “Pacing is extremely important with romance. You have to know when that moment is...because if it’s too soon, you got a lot of book left and maybe nobody’s interested anymore, but if it’s too late, they’ve lost interest before it happens.” (53:41)

Audiobooks & Reading Habits

• Rachel is a major audiobook fan and chose narrators for later Game Changers books, championing the art of professional narration (47:30).
• She prefers single-narrator audiobooks and discusses listening speed and reading routines with the hosts.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Casting Authenticity:
  “Whoever plays Ilya is going to have to hopefully really be Russian...if he’s not believably Russian, the whole thing falls apart.” (16:31 – Rachel Reid)

• On Living Through Change:
  “All I can do is kind of pretend none of the fandom exists and I’m just writing for myself again, because that’s what I did before for the first few books, and it was, you know, successful.” (28:34 – Rachel Reid)

• On Queer Sports Representation:
  “I’d be pretty surprised if [an out NHL player] was soon...Sometimes I wonder if [the show’s popularity] would make it harder, because people are so obsessed now. Like, they’d get too much attention.” (42:09 – Rachel Reid)

• On Manifesting Success:
  “I got my first tattoo...because I just wanted to remember that moment of anticipation right before the show came out. It was so exciting...We all felt like maybe all of our lives were about to change, which they did.” (10:39 – Rachel Reid)

• On Her Craft:
  “Probably Shane. Shane’s the one I, like, think about the most...he has the hardest time sometimes with things, so I’m always worried about him.” (26:26 – Rachel Reid)

• On Book Recommendations:

  • Sugar and Vice series by Allie Therin (57:29)
  • The Long Run by James Acker, “for YA fans or those who like my books” (60:53)
  • We Breed Lions by Rick Westhead, a nonfiction look at hockey culture (61:53)
  • Starship by Cat Sebastian, about actors fans “ship" and who become a real couple (62:05)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:11] – Fan Lent story & Heated Rivalry fandom impact
• [03:12] – Peabody Award, cultural reach
• [07:25] – Origin of writing about queer hockey players, sports & representation
• [13:19] – How closely the show matches her vision as an author
• [16:31] – Casting, focus on unknown/biracial/Russian authenticity
• [19:27] – Actor performance insights (Hudson Williams as Shane)
• [22:03] – Anticipation and pressure writing the new book
• [25:01] – Difference between queer sports stories in men’s vs. women’s sports
• [28:10] – Social media avoidance to protect creativity
• [39:51] – Role of romance as comfort/escape for readers
• [47:30] – Choosing audiobook narrators—criteria and favorites
• [53:41] – Pacing in romance, when to deliver the big moments
• [57:29] – Book recommendations

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Additional Memorable Segments

• [45:00] – Olympic-style ranking of queer romances: Rachel ranks Call Me By Your Name (Gold), Happiest Season (Silver) and Brokeback Mountain (Bronze).
• [55:28] – Rachel describes the emotional moment of watching Heated Rivalry episodes for the first time:

  “I had to really psych myself up. I knew it was probably really good, but I think it’s gonna be so weird to watch. And it was. But it was also just so satisfying and such a delight.”

• [60:53] – YA and nonfiction book recs tied to sports and queer themes.

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Overall Tone & Atmosphere

The conversation is warm, playful, and occasionally irreverent—with genuine fangirling and “tea spilling,” but balanced with thoughtful, honest discussion about the effect of queer storytelling, the realities of adapting personal work for a global audience, and the personal costs and rewards of finding yourself at the heart of a cultural moment. Rachel’s humility and wit shine throughout, and the Maher sisters’ affection for her work (and the wider romance genre) creates a welcoming, reader-friendly atmosphere—even for those new to Heated Rivalry.

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Summary for New Listeners

This episode is perfect for fans of sports romance, those curious about how hit books become cultural touchstones, and anyone interested in the craft of storytelling under the spotlight. Rachel Reid’s anecdotes and advice, combined with the Maher sisters’ infectious enthusiasm, deliver both insightful writing wisdom and pure pop-culture fun.

Transcript

[Host 1]

Wave,

[Host 2]

the TV show Heated Rivalry, based on the second book in the series, became a global sensation.

[Host 3]

Is there something you're really looking forward to seeing on screen in season two?

[Rachel Reid]

Oh, yeah, there's like a wedding that's not like the wedding.

[Host 1]

I was really hoping you were gonna say that. That's my favorite scene.

[Rachel Reid]

There's a really scene early on in the book that I'm very much looking forward to. I don't know. Connor's gonna have so much work to do. Yeah.

[Host 2]

So he's gotta. He's gotta Buc. Welcome or welcome back to House of Mar A Wave original. Practice your Russian and help yourself to whatever is in the fridge. The Wifi password is come2. The number two underscore the cottage, all caps. You should know we have a few house rules here.

[Host 3]

Girls are magic.

[Host 2]

Reading is hot and so are you. Make sure to, like, subscribe on YouTube. Watch while you're doing whatever you do about your day, while you're getting about your day, you freaks out. Our fourth March today is the undisputed queen of hockey romance. She's an author who has turned her lifelong love of the game into the New York Times bestselling Game Changers series, which has sold over 3 and a half million copies and sparked a global phenomenon that has touched every sport and even the Olympics. The TV show Heated Rivalry, based on the second book in the series, became a global sensation and melted our icy hearts. Her upcoming book, unrivaled, releases June 1 next year, but its pre sale already created major buzz. Welcome to the family. Rachel Reed.

[Rachel Reid]

Very happy to be here.

[Host 3]

Thanks so much for coming.

[Rachel Reid]

This is so exciting. You're in person with us. It's an honor. It's an honor to be here. It's a beautiful house.

[Host 3]

Beautiful house.

[Host 2]

Beautiful house.

[Host 1]

I do want to kick us off with a story of mine. Well, of my friends, more like who's now my friend, but had told me this story on one of the first times we'd really ever had a conversation. Things were going well. I was like, what's your Instagram? She's like, I don't have Instagram right now. I gave it up for Lent. I was like, oh, good for you. And she was like, I got too obsessed with heated rivalry and she doesn't really know me, giving me all this information. She told me she woke up every morning and would go to Twitter and go to like, hudsonwilliamsupdates.com to all the updates.com and it was ruling her life. She gave up all social media for 40 days. And 40 nights, thanks to you.

[Rachel Reid]

That's really smart, though. I'm sorry to do that, but I'm glad she did that.

[Host 3]

Yeah, right. For her own well being. Was that for Lent?

[Host 1]

For Lent.

[Rachel Reid]

Wow.

[Host 2]

Right.

[Host 1]

And that's a hard thing to give up.

[Host 2]

For God it is. She had to give up.

[Rachel Reid]

Heated rivalry.

[Host 3]

He did. Rivalry. For God, he did. Rivalry is now officially a Peabody Award winner. Congratulations.

[Rachel Reid]

Isn't that nuts?

[Host 2]

Did you ever expect this?

[Rachel Reid]

No, no. When I was writing these books at my dining room table, like almost a decade ago. No, right, right.

[Host 3]

When did you get the call that it was at least nominated?

[Rachel Reid]

Nominated was. I feel like it was close to a month ago, maybe. And then I found out that we'd won. I found out a little bit in advance of when it was announced, but yeah, I think it was like maybe a week and a half ago, two weeks ago, something like that.

[Host 2]

I'll drink to that.

[Rachel Reid]

Amazing. Amazing.

[Host 3]

I wasn't gonna drink tonight, but Tea derivative is a Peabody Award winning.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, it's hard to believe. I mean, it's not because the show's so good, but it's still like anything based on anything that I wrote. Being a Peabody Award winner is a pretty crazy feeling.

[Host 3]

Absolutely.

[Host 1]

I feel like that's a drop in the bucket. There's. It's had so much reach. We were in Milan for the Olympics and we saw some of the ice hockey games, all of this. And I'm. I'm pretty tuned in to heated rivalry that I was like part of the soundtrack. Everything was always getting connected back. It was really wonderful. The reach it has. The Red Sox is even doing a heated rivalry night.

[Rachel Reid]

Yes.

[Host 2]

Oh, yeah.

[Host 3]

Are you going to go to that?

[Rachel Reid]

Yes, I am. So is like my whole family because we're big Red Sox fans.

[Host 3]

Are you really?

[Rachel Reid]

I'm. I'm more. Yes, yes. Looking at the camera. Yes.

[Host 2]

You're a sports fan, though. So you love hockey, too?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, hockey's my number one. I did grow up a Red Sox fan. I've kind of been enjoying the Blue Jays lately too. But I still have a place in my heart for the Red Sox, so I'm excited. And I love Fenway. It's just a great park.

[Host 3]

Oh, yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

So I'm excited to go there. I heard it's sold out or close to sold out.

[Host 3]

So have you been to a game already?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I've been to a couple. Once when I was a kid and once with my kids.

[Host 3]

Oh, hell yeah. And now you say you love sports. Obviously. Big hockey fan. You just told us that your dad played rugby?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. Right, yeah.

[Host 3]

Do we have a rugby romance potentially in the world?

[Rachel Reid]

Well, that would be. I mean, there are rugby romances. There's a lot of rugby romances. There's not enough of them.

[Host 2]

But not by you.

[Rachel Reid]

No, it's true. That would be a fun sport to write about, I think that would be. Yeah, that would be really good.

[Host 2]

Ooh, they're rucking and mauling. Well, let's get on over to the group and see what's going on online and what's just happening while we're chatting. First off, do you have group chats? Do you have group chats with the friends?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I've got. I've got a few group chats with friends. Yeah. Some with people from the show, some with other authors, some with my longtime besties. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Host 1]

Do you have a favorite one?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I mean, I think the one with, like, I'm in, like, I used to be in a band and we still have a little chat with the four of us.

[Host 1]

What'd you play?

[Rachel Reid]

I played keyboards. We all sang, but it was like. Yeah, just four women, and we're still all really good friends, so it's nice to still be chatting.

[Host 3]

Were you guys write your own music and everything?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, mostly. Yeah.

[Host 1]

Can we find it online?

[Host 3]

Yeah. What's the name?

[Rachel Reid]

We were a very fun live show. I don't know if it, like, I think our recordings are good, but the live experience was more what we were known for. But we were called the Stolen Minx. It was a fun little. Yeah, I love that little rock band.

[Host 2]

Did the group chat pop off when heated rivalry was going crazy? I cannot imagine what that was like with your girls in there and everybody be like, what's happening, Rachel?

[Rachel Reid]

I was obsessed. Yeah. I think it was. It was kind of like, when the show came out, I definitely found out which of my friends had not ever read my books because they were like, I don't know if we can spoil the show. We can spoil the show.

[Host 3]

It's been out.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, but like, when the. Like when the kiss with Scott and Kip happened on the ice, like, I had friends who were like, oh, my God. I wasn't expecting that. And I was like, that was the first. First book you didn't read.

[Host 2]

My sixth grade.

[Rachel Reid]

Way to expose yourself. Wow, that's so wild. Yeah. No, I mean, I think all of my longtime friends are just kind of baffled by all. Not baffled in a way that they don't think, like, they love the show and everything, but it's Just hard to believe that any of this is happening to.

[Host 3]

To me freaking lutely. I also don't think you could spoil anything on here. I feel like our audience firmly is heated rivalry fans.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. I don't know who's only on, like, the third episode right now.

[Host 2]

I just remember that it was so funny. In the span of one weekend, I had three different people telling me about this new show was out. Heated rivalry. And the thing about me is I have trouble watching or reading, like, sports things a lot of times because I'm like, oh, my gosh, the team doctors with a player. That. That's wrong. So I loved your books were so good. But tell me, so you came out with them 10 years ago?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

When was the first one out?

[Rachel Reid]

The first one was out in 2018, but I'd started writing it in probably 2016. So, yeah, we are talking about 10 years ago for the writing.

[Host 1]

The writing portion of it.

[Host 2]

And what drew you to writing about two male athletes?

[Rachel Reid]

It was really just an idea I had about hockey because there still hasn't been an out NHL player ever. And so it was something I've been thinking about since the 90s, honestly, just because, like, back then, it was really like, there was no way, like, it was definitely no way that that would happen.

[Host 3]

Right.

[Rachel Reid]

But then I thought, as we moved into the 2000s and 2010s, I was like, I thought by now maybe there'd be somebody, but there's still. It still didn't seem like it was ever gonna happen. So. Yeah, it was just something I thought about a lot. What it might be like if you were a closeted NHL player.

[Host 2]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

And so it was just an idea I had that I wrote. I didn't think it would become a whole series, but, like. Yeah, then it did.

[Host 3]

You're from Nova Scotia, so who was your team?

[Rachel Reid]

Montreal Canadiens are my team. It's. Yeah. I mean, Nova Scotia is kind of like, you can pick your own team because we're not really close to anywhere, but most people are either Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, or Boston Bruins. Right.

[Host 3]

And you just. You just knew the lore about all of them.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I've just been obsessed with hockey since I was a little kid.

[Host 1]

Was it.

[Host 3]

Well, you said your dad played rugby,

[Rachel Reid]

but was he also. He played hockey as well? Yeah. And, yeah, big sports fan. Just generally. He also played baseball. He played all sorts of stuff, but, yeah, big sports fan. So watching hockey was something we could do together.

[Host 1]

And look what it's turned into.

[Host 3]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

You were really the first one at those Hockey games. Because there's, like, tiktoks now of people like, okay, when do they kiss? That was you in the 90s.

[Rachel Reid]

Okay, dad, this is fun.

[Host 2]

But when do they kiss?

[Host 3]

The og? Waiting for it. Did you base when you first started, like, this process and you sat down at your dining room table and you're like, I wonder what would happen? Were you basing them on players?

[Rachel Reid]

No, I don't like to do that. I think that there's types of players that are maybe inspiring the characters. So there's really kind of stoic good boy captains that would be kind of like Scott Hunter or Shane Hollander. And then there's the cocky European bad boy, which would be Ilya, obviously. So just different types of.

[Host 1]

I've read all six books, read them a few times.

[Host 2]

She's read them back in the day

[Host 1]

before the show was even announced. She's an O for you. I actually was looking at my messages because my friend was the one who recommended me it, and I was like, I wonder if I can. And it was. I think it was early 2025. And I just remember I have the text to be like, no, because I hadn't read the Long Game yet. And I was like, no wonder they get happy and, like, out together. And she's like, just keep going, keep going. And so then, you know, all the way through. And so I felt almost like the person standing on a cardboard, like, or on a box shouting to town square.

[Host 2]

Like, a show is coming out.

[Host 1]

I need everyone to watch it. Like, get with it. We were in Mexico City when the first episode went out, and I was like, okay, guys, when we get back to the States, I'm gonna need to use your tv. My show is on. This is my show.

[Host 3]

It was just so exciting. And I think I love too. Just like, you made a post on Instagram for your 45th birthday. Just saying, like, hey, can't say I'm too excited, but who knows what will happen? And now you know what happened.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. Like, what was.

[Host 3]

Like, was that manifestation? What was it like making that post and then immediately all this happening.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. I got my first tattoo right before that, right before my birthday. And I got a loon. It's like, here on my arm.

[Host 1]

Aw.

[Host 2]

Very nice.

[Rachel Reid]

And I got it because I just wanted to remember that moment of anticipation right before the show came out. Like, it was so exciting. And, like, as we got closer and closer, just, like, the excitement seemed to be building online and stuff. And I saw more and more of the show, so I knew how good it was gonna be. And, you know, I was talking to the actors and stuff a lot and, you know, about their own kind of excitement. We all kind of felt like maybe all of our lives were about to change, which they did. Maybe way more than we respected. Right, Right. But, yeah, I just wanted to remember that moment, like, however it went, I was like, I always wanted to remember how excited I was.

[Host 3]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

This exact time, so.

[Host 3]

And why the loon?

[Rachel Reid]

The loon is, like, from Heated Rivalry. There's, like, a little part at the cottage where Ilya is scared of a loon because he's never heard one before. And, yeah, I thought when the show was on, because a lot of people were talking online, like, making loon references, and I was like, people who are new to this are going to be wondering why on earth people keep talking about loons. Because it doesn't get answered until the final episode.

[Host 3]

Right.

[Rachel Reid]

So. But. But that's what fans of the series call themselves now.

[Host 1]

Does Ilia get the Elune tattoo in long game?

[Rachel Reid]

Yes. Not nervous. I was wrong for a second. This is up on his kind of upper arm kind of situation. But, yeah, it's a different kind of loon tattoo, but same little idea, I guess.

[Host 2]

Who first came to you with the idea to make these books into a show? And were you, like, gung ho about it, or were you, like, could you not see it as a show?

[Rachel Reid]

Well, it was. Jacob Tierney reached out to me on Instagram, just DM'd me, the showrunner, and he. And he's a pretty big deal in Canada. So I was surprised because I didn't think my books were particularly adaptable because they're, like, pretty raunchy.

[Host 2]

So.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. But then we had a zoom call, and he just, like, laid out this amazing idea for the show, and it was exactly what I would want to hear. Like, it was. Yeah, it just sounded amazing, everything he said. And so I was very excited right away and really touched that he was such a fan of the books and just really wanted to do this.

[Host 3]

And he saw the vision.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. And the show is exactly what he laid out. Like, the show everybody watched. That's what he told me he wanted to do. And it's nice.

[Host 1]

Did the show pan out similar to what you had in your mind when you were writing it? Does it look similar or what were the big differences?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, there were a lot of scenes that I was really kind of emotional watching because it was so much like what was in my head. Like, the line deliveries, the expressions, just everything. I mean, some things are. Are different and maybe like better than I was picturing in my head. But like, yeah, it was very satisfying to watch.

[Host 1]

Was there anything you told Jacob this is how I would like it to be, like that you had a super strong opinion about.

[Rachel Reid]

I didn't really have to because we were pretty aligned. Like he really understood the characters, the story, everything that was important. Yeah, right from our very first conversation. I wasn't worried about it. He really got it and then he sent me the scripts and all of that. So, you know, I knew how good it was going to be, how faithful it was to the books. But also the things he added were really great.

[Host 3]

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This is our section called Tea Time, where we're just really going to get into all these details. So I love that. Kind of like, it is what you saw. And even then it was something better because it was like in your head. Now it's these, you know, these humans doing it. Who were you picturing as actors? Like, when he first came to you, you were like, okay, perfect. I want this person and this person. Or were you kind of like, I trust him?

[Rachel Reid]

We were on the same page about going with unknowns. We both thought unknowns was the way to go. I mean, for one thing, these characters are quite young, so there's that. We definitely didn't want, you know, guys who were like in their mid-30s to be playing, like, guys who are 17 to 25. Over the course of the show, we. It was really important that Shane was Asian, biracial. We weren't going to change that. And I think when we first started talking, we were like, well, the act, whoever plays Ilya is going to have to hopefully really be Russian because there's no way that we'll find somebody who's believably Russian. We just like, if he doesn't. If he's not believably Russian, the whole thing falls apart, you know, like, it's so important that. That that's believable. So, you know, much, much later when Jacob's like, we think we might go with this American guy. I was like, oh, but Jacob was so excited about him. And I was like, okay. And, you know, as soon as I saw what he could do, I was

[Host 3]

like, yeah, we're going with the American guy.

[Host 1]

The show is so Canadian, produced in Canada, mostly Canadian actors behind the scenes. It's Canada. Like, I so I think it's a. You guys are very intentional with casting him and it worked out.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

Just so I don't.

[Host 1]

Isn't.

[Host 2]

It wasn't also, like, a smaller Canadian production house too?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. I mean, it's a pretty. As far as Canada goes, it's a big one, but by like, Hollywood standards, it's very small.

[Host 3]

And. Were you in the writers room?

[Rachel Reid]

No, I wasn't.

[Host 3]

Or.

[Rachel Reid]

Nope. I was just like, Jacob would send me the scripts.

[Host 2]

Cool.

[Rachel Reid]

And he was, you know, he liked to hear my notes, but, like, I wasn't really giving him much as far as notes went. I was just like, this is great.

[Host 3]

Yeah, you did the work already.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. My note was, this is amazing.

[Host 3]

That's amazing. To be able to have that trust in him as a creative partner for that.

[Host 1]

Were there any romances that inspired you when you were writing?

[Rachel Reid]

There's a series called Captive Prince, which is a very. Like, I really enjoy the series. It's by CS Pacat, and it's an. Enemies to Lovers. It's. It's like very. Like a very slow burn. Like, very epic. It's spread over three books. The love story, but it's like a prince and this other prince who's been captured and is now kind of his slave. And it's very good. It's very raunchy, but it's very romantic. And it's two very different personalities. And I think that was. I definitely read it after I'd written at least Game Changer, maybe a little bit while I was writing. Heated rivalry, but I think it definitely made me realize what you can do as far as pushing boundaries. And I really like the dynamic of the characters. So I would say that was probably a bit of an influence.

[Host 3]

Absolutely. And now, did Connor Hudson bring anything to these characters that was unexpected?

[Rachel Reid]

They brought so much to those characters. I mean, yeah, I liked everything that they brought to those characters. I think the thing that amazed me the most, and it was right away, the first day I visited the set, because the thing about Shane as a character is, like, he's very in his own head. So it's a lot of people were wondering how we were gonna see what Shane's thinking and feeling without having a wonder year style commentary running over the top of it. And I think what Hudson was able to do with his face is, like, unbelievable acting like, you know, what Shane is thinking and feeling at all times, even when he's not speaking. And I was just like. Even the very first tiny scene I watched him film, which didn't have any Dialogue. I was amazed. And I said that to him at the end of the first day. Like, just, you know, the way that everything's just on your face is.

[Host 3]

Is incredible.

[Host 2]

I just.

[Host 3]

The choice to have these unknowns was so incredible and so exciting, I think, for the audience and also added to everything that was this amazing moment because people want to get to know new people. I think we're tired of seeing the same faces in the same movies and the same shows, and there they are again. And, like, to be. To be able to, like, grab onto and see these two very talented, very cool new people. Just like, I made me so excited. I was like, who are they? I gotta know everything. Tell me what's happening. I love that choice.

[Host 1]

We've never seen them in any other roles, so it's not like, oh, that's a. That's a Marvel character. That's a superhero. I know who's now doing this. It's. They're fresh. I've only ever known them in this. They smashed out of the water, smash

[Host 3]

out of the park.

[Host 1]

Smash out of the. Sports. Sports.

[Host 2]

People smashed off the ice. She smashed off the ice, off the boards.

[Rachel Reid]

I don't know.

[Host 1]

The boards smashed into boards.

[Rachel Reid]

Over the glass.

[Host 1]

So we discussed that you started writing he de Reverie 10 years ago, and now you are starting to write the third one of Shane and Ilia. The seventh book. Is it included in the Game Changer series?

[Rachel Reid]

It is. Yeah. It'll be the seventh book in that series. It's a very confusing series because books two and six are about the same couple now, seven as well, but that just. They just became the breakout stars of the series. So that's just what we're doing.

[Host 1]

And when you read it, it makes sense.

[Host 3]

It's your series, so you can do whatever the hell you want.

[Rachel Reid]

Exactly. We can break all the rules.

[Host 1]

Cameos, they blend one another. So I personally like the way you did it, but since that was 10 years ago when you first started, your life has changed.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

You know, you've changed as a person. How do you think that will reflect in writing Shane and Ilia now?

[Rachel Reid]

Well, the biggest change is the anticipation that people have for this book. Like, I think I'm in, like, really, like, rare air now for authors where, like, not many people are writing a series where there's this much anticipation for the next book and that people have, like, this many opinions about the characters. So it definitely feels like way more pressure than I've ever had before. But I'm also, like, really lucky to be in this position. So it's kind of like. Yeah, it's a double edged sword.

[Host 3]

Are you in a pressurious privilege feeling situation?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 3]

Billie Jean King or.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. No, I mean that is a good way to look at it. I mean. Yeah. I also keep saying like champagne problems.

[Host 2]

So many people want to read.

[Rachel Reid]

I know it's like everybody wants to buy this book. It's definitely gonna be a bestseller.

[Host 3]

Excited for my heart.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. But yeah, and it's like I'm busy so it's hard to find time. But again, I'm busy because everything's so successful. Yeah, it's not bad. These aren't bad problems.

[Host 2]

What made you kind of talked about it? What made you want to continue on with the second book with the same couple? Because a lot of books I read or the series that we read, it's always a different couple. Did you just feel like there was more to their story to be told?

[Rachel Reid]

I just wanted to give them a happier ending and now I guess an even happier ending. But they just didn't leave my head. Like the other characters, usually when I finish the book, I don't really think about them that much anymore. But these guys just kind of kept talking to me really. The story had to be continued. And you know, I think my publisher at first was like, it's kind of weird to do like a sixth book that's like this sequel to the second book. But there was just so much demand for it. Like by that point people were really into those two characters.

[Host 1]

So I read Heated Rivalry. I have the text saying, so what happens? You know, that's exactly why you wrote it. Could you possibly set the stage for Unrivaled? For us?

[Host 3]

Yes.

[Host 2]

For the audience you can.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. Like if you've read the Long Game, you know that by the end of it they're on the same team. If you've seen the COVID for Unrivaled, you also know that.

[Host 3]

There you go.

[Rachel Reid]

So at the end of the long Game, they do get married and they are out. Everybody knows that they're a couple. Obviously they get married and they're on the same team in Ottawa. So that's where we leave them at the end of the long game. But you know, I just kept thinking about like, that's not really the end of their problems or the end of anything really. It's the start of everything. It's the beginning of them being in like a sort of normal relationship. At least not a secret one. It's the first time they're teammates. There's going to be Huge backlash. There's going to be all sorts of people feeling different things about them. Being this married couple who are teammates, like that is brand new in the league. And some people are going to really, really love that. And some people are going to really, really hate that. And some people are going to be weird and parasocial about it. And there's so much stuff. So I just wanted to examine it a bit.

[Host 2]

It's so funny. Cause in my realm, in rugby, that's very normal for us. In women's rugby, a good. We have somebody on the podcast, Portia Woodman started dating her teammate and now they're married with kids. I know so many who date people on different teams, women. So it's so interesting how that's. It's like real life for women's rugby, and there's probably some. Maybe some in the NHL, but women's hockey for sure. Yeah, women's hockey for sure. Interesting how that's kind of like, so norm for women, but men, it's just not the same at all. And I like that you aren't just gonna end it on and everything's good.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. Cause it.

[Host 2]

Don't worry, guys. Happily ever after, so accepted. We are fine.

[Rachel Reid]

Everyone's just celebrating it.

[Host 3]

It's Hannah Montana taking the wig off and everyone's gonna keep the secret. Okay. No, it's real life. I love that.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. So this is. Yeah, it's been fun kind of continuing it because. Yeah, I'm glad I'm doing it because I do think there's a little more to tell there.

[Host 1]

And I'm hoping and excited to see cameos from the other books come in, especially the ones that we've grown to love. On the Centaurs.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, it's nice writing like that team as a whole. It's kind of like. It's like its own character. So. Yeah.

[Host 1]

Larger than life.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. It's nice to meet them or reunite with all of them.

[Host 3]

And is there a character you're excited to write again or. I mean, you've been writing, but to write again. Like, is there someone that's the loudest in your brain who won't shut up?

[Rachel Reid]

Probably Shane. Shane's the one I like, think about the most.

[Host 3]

Why?

[Rachel Reid]

I don't know. I just really like him. I love writing from his point of view. I don't know. I think because he just. He has the hardest time sometimes with things, so I'm always worried about him. I'm always thinking about him. So, yeah, I'm like Ilya that way.

[Host 1]

I think you also left Shane in the long game with a lot of, like, internal struggles as well, especially regarding his eating. But then he has. Ilya has such support from Ottawa, and now we're gonna see. I was just telling them the line about, like, he was expecting to see the jerseys and the rafters.

[Rachel Reid]

Mm.

[Host 3]

Okay.

[Rachel Reid]

Ugh, sweet.

[Host 1]

It's one of those things where I'm like, and he never will, and he never will. But hopefully, maybe in Ottawa.

[Host 3]

Rafter, while you're writing with all this anticipation, are you avoiding fan theories? Are you?

[Rachel Reid]

Oh, yes. Oh, yes. Can you talk about that? I'm avoiding a lot of stuff online. Really? Yeah. I definitely don't want to hear any opinions about what should be in this book because that'll really mess me up. Yeah, I know there's a lot of fanfic out there. Can't see any of that.

[Host 1]

Right.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. I just generally stay out of fan spaces. The only place I really am is Instagram. I'm not on threads, just Instagram. And I kind of don't go looking for any heat revival stuff, which is

[Host 3]

crazy because it owns the Internet.

[Rachel Reid]

It's everywhere.

[Host 3]

Yeah. At least my Internet, the one I pay for.

[Host 2]

Every woman's Internet.

[Rachel Reid]

Everybody's.

[Host 1]

But I think that's very smart because if you saw something that maybe you liked, but then that's no longer. That's not, you know, something you thought of or created. So you're staying in a very safe zone.

[Host 2]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

I also. If I see something that's similar to what I'm writing, I'll start to spiral because I'll think, like, oh, it'll look like I took this idea or something. So. Yeah, I just generally just don't. Because I don't want to start spiraling and questioning everything I've written, and especially

[Host 1]

because the fandom is so massive and very passionate that it can be very sticky. And I can imagine there's so many opinions, and there's probably also a lot of hate out of there.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. And I can't please everyone. You know, all I can do is kind of pretend none of the fandom exists and I'm just writing for myself again, because that's what I did before for the first few books, and it was, you know, successful. So I'm gonna try to do that again.

[Host 3]

What is that process like for you? Do you have to be in a certain place, in a certain time, in a certain headspace?

[Rachel Reid]

A cottage?

[Host 1]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

I mean, I write like, I write in my windowless basement, for the most part, on a collapsible.

[Host 3]

Plastic table.

[Rachel Reid]

Like what? Basically it's pretty sad down there just surrounded by like boxes and junk. Really? Yeah. So that sort of grounds me. That helps. I don't know. I live in Nova Scotia so it's pretty separate from all of the hype, I guess. And it's a small place, so. Yeah. Just being there with my kids and stuff, it just reminds me of the way things were before all of this. Yeah.

[Host 3]

What's been your kids reception to all of this?

[Rachel Reid]

They think it's pretty cool. They also think it's pretty funny. I think when I get recognized in public they find that hilarious.

[Host 1]

How old are your kids?

[Rachel Reid]

16 and 12. So. And so they have friends that are fans too, which is also a weird experience for them.

[Host 3]

Interesting.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

See, I would think that's so cool. My mom wrote that. But the 16 year old probably be like oh my gosh mom, they're too cool for school, those 16 year olds.

[Host 3]

Yeah, right.

[Host 1]

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[Host 1]

were there any fandoms you were part of growing up?

[Rachel Reid]

Not like, really. Like, I was a hockey fan, but I wasn't really. Like, I don't know if I have that fan personality where you get like, super invested in a fandom. So, like, I have a. One of my best friends is. And it's always in a fandom. She's like, she's told me, like, no, you're not, you're not a fan girl. You're just. It's not who you are. But I do, you know, there have been different things I've been very into, but, like, I think hockey's the thing that's been the most consistent.

[Host 2]

Did you write fanfic?

[Rachel Reid]

Not much. I wrote like, when I was in my early 20s. I like wrote a bit of Smallville fanfic, which is like, embarrassing to even admit. It's embarrassing to admit I was watching

[Host 1]

that,

[Rachel Reid]

but I did a tiny bit. And then maybe like a million years later I wrote a little bit of like Marvel Cinematic Universe and there was like a bit of comic book based fanfic. But like, seriously, like, maybe over the course of 15 years, I might have written like five or six fanfics and they're all gone now. Like, I deleted them all.

[Host 3]

You got rid of that?

[Host 1]

I heard Game Changers was originally Steve Rogers and Bucky fanfic.

[Rachel Reid]

Game Changer was. It was originally original characters. It's much more confusing than. Let's hear it. So, like, I started writing it. Yeah. I want to say I started writing game changer, like 2015 or something like that, or maybe even earlier as original. And then I just like walked away from it for months. And then I went back to it and worked on it some more. And then I was like, I didn't know what to do with it because I. I just didn't want the idea of anybody reading what I'd written was Mortifying. So I decided to like, rework it as fanfic, which I'd never written. Like, I guess that would be what you call, like, au fanfic or like alternate universe, where you take characters and they have totally different lives than they do in canon. So it was like, yeah, so now Scott was Steve Rogers, which that kind of made sense. Cause he's very much a Captain America type, which was very popular in romance novels at that time. And then I didn't really change Kip at all. I just changed his name. There's no difference in the fanfic version. And added a bit of Marvel stuff to it. And I posted it a few chapters at a time and I got instant feedback. And I got people saying, this is good. I really like this. And it gave me the confidence I needed to fix up the original version, send it to publishers. So I'm really grateful to the people that gave me nice feedback on that fanfic version. I took it down very quickly, which I always felt guilty about. But the fanfic community helped me become a published author by giving me the courage to let other people read my fiction, which was very difficult for me. So that's amazing. I appreciate it. And I know that what I did was weird and I have a lot of regrets about it, but I can't.

[Host 1]

Look who you are.

[Host 3]

Oh, my God.

[Rachel Reid]

I may never have sent it.

[Host 1]

Yeah, you did a reverse uno.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

We can only thank that fanfic community.

[Rachel Reid]

Yep.

[Host 2]

I wonder now, with just this explosion of fame, what are you doing for you to stay good and to stay healthy? Cause even for me, as I get after Olympics and whatnot, such an explosion, you have to take time for yourself. What does that look like?

[Rachel Reid]

I don't know yet. Okay.

[Host 3]

We're figuring it out.

[Rachel Reid]

I think as long as I'm on this deadline, I won't know. But once the book is done and some of the other stuff I have to do right after that is done, basically next year, I think it's gonna be really good. But yeah, no, this year has been amazing. But it has been a lot. It's been pretty non stop. And having a deadline in the background is a lot too. It's like being in college again, where you should always. Any free time is really time you should be writing.

[Host 3]

And if you're not, you feel guilty about it. Yes, I'm an empath, so don't worry. I'll take some of that stress from you. Don't even worry. Relax a little bit. I'll get stressed. Don't Worry?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

Olivia and I joke about living as my manager. We joke about all the time. Like, you know what? Fall 2027, I'm taking a break.

[Host 3]

It's going to go crazy.

[Host 2]

And then it keeps going. Okay, you know What? Summer, spring 2028 is going to be a movie. I'm taking a vacation.

[Host 3]

Oh, it's going to be crazy.

[Host 2]

But it's like, it's just so exciting. I quoted it before, but, like, it's very tiring. But you just don't get tired of it, I imagine. Same for you. Like, how exciting.

[Rachel Reid]

I mean, everything's been, like, stuff I don't want to say no to because it's. It's all fun. It's great. But yeah, I'm like, okay, January is going to be really relaxing.

[Host 2]

January 2027.

[Rachel Reid]

But everything up until then is going to be pretty hectic, I think.

[Host 3]

Yeah. It's impressive, though, that you are just on Instagram and you manage to kind of quiet. Keep it quiet around there. Do people try telling you stuff? Like, do your friends or your group chat or.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, sometimes people send me stuff. I don't mind some of it, but yeah, sometimes I'm like, no, don't. Don't even show me this. I don't want to know. But yeah, I mean, I do. I mean, I do check in on some things. Like, I'm going to be checking, like, Connor and Hudson's Met Gala looks tonight. Oh, yeah, yeah, I'm going to check those out.

[Host 1]

Of course I'll be on Hudson Williams updates. My friend won't, but I will.

[Rachel Reid]

I'll bet it'll be on Instagram. I bet I won't have to look very hard.

[Host 2]

No, it'll be the first thing when

[Host 3]

you got to be the first freak thing. Is there something you're really looking forward to seeing on screen in season two?

[Rachel Reid]

Oh, yeah. I mean, definitely. There's, like. There's like a wedding that's not like the wedding.

[Host 1]

I was really hoping you were gonna say that. That's my favorite scene.

[Rachel Reid]

There's a really scene early on in the book that I'm very much looking forward to. And then, I don't know, Connor's gonna have so much work to do. Like, it's a really. Like, it's a really. Yeah, so he's gotta.

[Host 2]

He's gotta buckle up.

[Rachel Reid]

No. Yeah. Connor's gonna have, like, a ton of work to do as Ilya, because Ilya does a lot in the long game and has a kind of a rough ride. So I think I'm Looking forward to seeing that. I'm looking forward to kind of seeing them having, like, arguments and stuff. I want to see them fight a little.

[Host 3]

Yeah, Right. And when you were writing the Russian bits, did you have anyone consulting on that?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I definitely ran that by some. Some native Russian speakers. I had to take their word for it.

[Host 3]

Yeah, right.

[Rachel Reid]

You know, I hope they weren't punking me, but, like, they. Yeah, as far as I know, it's all good. It's all good so far.

[Host 1]

God. Have you seen the casting of the new characters for season two already?

[Rachel Reid]

Maybe.

[Host 2]

Keep your secret spirit or don't. Anything to share.

[Rachel Reid]

Nothing official yet, but I know probablys.

[Host 2]

I wonder when it was first coming out, when people were sending in their self tapes, was it just like a smaller pool when you were casting for this? Was it just. And Jake probably.

[Rachel Reid]

Was it just massive from what I understand? Yeah, I think it was a pretty small pool for season one. And then obviously this season, everyone on Earth is probably trying to get on the show.

[Host 2]

Right?

[Rachel Reid]

Or trying to get their music on the show.

[Host 3]

Yeah. Oh, God.

[Host 1]

Their music.

[Rachel Reid]

Music.

[Host 3]

The impact.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. Because the ripple effect this show's had for, like, people's careers has been crazy. Like. Like, so many people are doing great from this show that, you know, even are just, like, tangentially related to it, which has been really awesome to see.

[Host 1]

Is there any music you'd like to see in season two?

[Rachel Reid]

Jacob has such great taste in music. Again, I really trust him.

[Host 3]

Does he have one, like, music editor

[Rachel Reid]

he works with or he. Yeah, there's definitely a music editor. And then there's also, like, Peter. Peter did the score, so I assume he will be doing the score again. I don't know, but I hope so, probably. I hope so. Yeah.

[Host 1]

Let's keep this good thing going.

[Host 3]

We kind of talk about this a lot. That we're in a yearning renaissance or we also talk a lot about, like, we're gonna crush drought. And I think so many people found just, like, enjoyment in reading romance. Like, you write it. And I just. Where, like, how else do you try to inject that into your. Like, where do you take that inspiration from?

[Rachel Reid]

During the pandemic, people got really into romance. And, like, I think it was also just kind of like, it synced up with the ebook boom as well, so that people could kind of hide what they were reading.

[Host 3]

Right, right.

[Rachel Reid]

And I think that's why we have things, like, a lot of, like, monster romance and like. Like things that weren't mainstream before, you know, are now all over. Like, they're at the front of Barnes and Noble now.

[Host 1]

There's a book talk table.

[Host 3]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

That's like just tentacle romance. Yes.

[Host 3]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

Whereas before you wouldn't see that.

[Host 2]

And maybe tentacle romance doesn't need to be seen as much.

[Rachel Reid]

But like, even like queer romance was not really in bookstores until very recently. So that's been great. So I guess, like, when I write, I think about. Because I've gotten so many letters from people over the years about, you know, how these books and other romance novels have helped get them through some dark times. You know, people have told me that this has gotten them through, like, cancer treatment or through the death of a loved one or something like that. Like something heavy. It's like romance is such a nice thing to retreat to.

[Host 3]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

And things like right now are so stressful and bad for so many people that I think, again, it's just romance is there and the show. I think the same thing. I think it's why the show is so popular.

[Host 3]

It's just.

[Rachel Reid]

It was kind of a life raft.

[Host 1]

So you are writing unrivaled. Do you have any plans to write another book out after that, or is that way too far ahead?

[Rachel Reid]

I will. Yeah. I want to take a bit of a break.

[Host 1]

I think you deserve that.

[Rachel Reid]

And I want to really think about the best idea for the next book and what it would be. I'd like to do something that's not hockey. Like, I'd like to try that.

[Host 1]

Would you stay in the sports world?

[Rachel Reid]

Maybe. Or maybe I'd like to do something very different. Like. I don't know, I have like a few ideas and they kind of all over the place. So I guess when the time comes, I'll see which one.

[Host 3]

It's all very forms of tentacle porn.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. Yeah. I'd like to do something different. I don't know. We'll see. But maybe it's smarter to stay a little closer to what I've been doing.

[Host 1]

Would you potentially write a lesbian romance?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I mean, that's something I would like to do for sure. And also, you know, I'd like to write something that's not a romance at all, maybe.

[Host 1]

Oh, yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

So there's, you know, all sorts of stuff.

[Host 1]

Flex those muscles.

[Host 3]

When do you think we will see an out NHL player?

[Rachel Reid]

I'd be pretty surprised if it was soon. Really?

[Host 3]

Even after all of this?

[Rachel Reid]

Sometimes I wonder if this would make it harder because people are so obsessed now. Like, they get too much attention.

[Host 3]

That's interesting. Yeah. And to be the first. After all of this too.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, it'd be like more attention. Like, it'd be global attention instead of just like North America attention.

[Host 1]

Wow. But then you get to write your name in the history books, right?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

And maybe a cameo on. Yeah. Do it now before they start filming.

[Rachel Reid]

There is an out NHL prospect, I should say. Like, yes. Luke Prokop has been out for years, so I don't want to take anything away from that. He exists and I really admire him. But nobody who's actively played an NHL game.

[Host 2]

There's nothing like the rush of completely zoning out and finding pure freedom in a great workout.

[Host 3]

That's why we're fired up about the Peloton Cross Training Tread Plus With Peloton iq, it's more than just a treadmill. It's designed to make every session feel tailored to you and locked into the present moment. Peloton IQ maps out a training path that's uniquely yours so you can stop overthinking and just move.

[Host 1]

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[Host 2]

Peloton IQ delivers intelligent strength coaching that keeps you in the zone. It tracks every rep and adjusts in real time. So no number crunching, no second guessing, no wondering if you're doing it right. Just the feel good release of letting go.

[Host 3]

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[Host 2]

Peloton IQ can also create workout plans and recommend weekly classes that match your mood and energy.

[Host 3]

The vibes are immaculate, so let yourself run, lift, fail.

[Host 1]

Try and go explore the new peloton cross training Tread [e-mail]. there's a moment every NFL fan lives for when the whole team is locked in. When the play unfolds exactly as it was drawn up.

[Host 2]

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[Host 3]

Visit usbank.com today to learn more. Official bank sponsor of the NFL Member FDIC 2026 US Bank. All right, you're rolling with an Olympian, so we're gonna play a little game we like to call Bronze, Silver, Gold. You'll have three options and you have to rank them in their Olympic order for you, you know, your opinion. Take your time and talk through your reasoning if you want. For each one, the category is queer romances. Surprise, surprise. Bronze, Silver or gold. Call Me by youy Name, Brokeback Mountain or Happiest Season.

[Rachel Reid]

I do like Call Me by youy Name a lot.

[Host 3]

Mm.

[Rachel Reid]

I think. I think that would be the goal for me. I. You know what? I really do like Brokeback Mountain, but it is a bummer. Not that.

[Host 2]

Yeah, true.

[Rachel Reid]

It's not something I want to watch. Right. A lot. Yeah. But it is a beautiful movie with like amazing acting and Heath Ledger. I'm still gonna put it a bronze though.

[Host 3]

Okay.

[Rachel Reid]

Happiest Season.

[Host 3]

Happy season.

[Rachel Reid]

Well, that would be Silver.

[Host 2]

Silver.

[Host 3]

Call Me by your Name.

[Rachel Reid]

Gold. Yep, that feels right. Yep, that feels right.

[Host 3]

Did you guys watch Happiest Season?

[Host 1]

I did.

[Host 2]

I first didn't know what it was and then I realized, oh, it's that movie.

[Rachel Reid]

Christmas titles.

[Host 3]

They were all that. They were the same.

[Host 1]

Also hurt that it was a Christmas Christmas movie because people think they can only watch it at Christmas.

[Host 3]

Right, Right.

[Host 2]

But it is.

[Host 1]

There's so not that many. You know, that's a really good point. Lesbian or women loving women movies. And it's.

[Host 2]

Did you see it? I think it was Jake Gillen.

[Host 1]

Gyllenhaal. Gyllenhaal.

[Host 2]

He was talking about how it broke Back Mountain even kind of like what was once perceived that people did not like this gay romance and they were just hated in the media. Were obscuring them back at that time and now like to see how even though it's evolved with hedo rivalry, you know, in some ways they've gone through that to get to this point where it's. So it was loved and accepted in the media.

[Rachel Reid]

I remember when Brokeback Mountain came out, it wasn't in many theaters at first. It was actually quite, quite difficult to see it. And one of like the smaller theaters in my city had it and I went to see it like four times at least.

[Host 2]

Really.

[Rachel Reid]

But just cause it was. There weren't a lot of queer movies. And even though it was very sad, I went to see it four times. But yeah, no, I mean, things are changing.

[Host 1]

Anyway, this is the part of the show where we discussed what's happening on Booktok in our Goodreads adaptation news. And this week's Book Nook is sponsored by jbl. Made to be heard.

[Host 3]

JBL live headphones are amazing when you want to get lost in a great audio book, as I know because I be locked into my audiobooks. I myself like to cue up the heated rivalry cottage ambiance videos on YouTube while I read Gild.

[Host 2]

She does. She's a lo Fi girl. Is that what it's called?

[Host 3]

Yeah, those type of things. Yeah, ambiance videos.

[Host 1]

And I can think of a few audiobooks I can immerse myself in.

[Host 2]

I love it.

[Host 3]

So we want to talk about the process of making the game changer audiobooks. What was that like from your perspective?

[Rachel Reid]

It was. I mean, it's going to be boring because it's largely hands off for me. Really? Yeah. Starting from the fourth book, I was able to choose the audiobook narrator from a list. So I chose Cooper north, who I really liked from some other books. So books four through six are all Cooper north, and he also did Time to Shine as well. And he has kind of a young tone to his voice, so I like that. But then when I wrote the shots you take, which is about retired players who are in their 40s, I went with another narrator that I really liked, Greg Boudreau, because I knew he had a bit of an older tone. So I'm a big fan of audiobooks and of narrators. I think, like, what they do is really amazing. It's like, I mean, sort of like with animated movies, there's like a trend towards getting, like, Hollywood actors to do them. But I think, you know, it's like a professional voice actor. Professional book narrator is like such a skill. So I. I still really champion the audiobook narrator.

[Host 3]

They are celebrities to me.

[Host 1]

I'll tell you what. And that's a profession. That's their field. You want to make sure that there's roles out there. You're doing a small part or a big part to ensure that that is maintained.

[Host 3]

Did you listen to any audiobooks?

[Rachel Reid]

Oh, yeah, A lot.

[Host 3]

Would you have a favorite?

[Rachel Reid]

I think the ones I re listen to the most would be like. I mean, I say a lot that I really like Cat Sebastian's books. She's an author I love, and she has a lot of really good audiobooks. But why do you love hers? She's a really great writer. She writes mostly male. Male romance. It was pretty much all historical, but she recently wrote her first contemporary, and, yeah, she gets really good audiobook narrators, and I re. Listen to them a lot, so.

[Host 3]

And my thing is to do just like a. Like a basic narrated audiobook or those dramatized, like, sound effect, full production.

[Rachel Reid]

I prefer not those.

[Host 1]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

Because I think that's something else. Yeah, that's like a radio play. It's. It's a different experience, and I. I

[Host 1]

almost want to read it how it was meant to be, how the author, you know, I mean, the other things

[Rachel Reid]

can be fun, but I think if I'm reading a book for the first time, I want it to just be straight up.

[Host 3]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 3]

And what kind of books do you listen or read?

[Rachel Reid]

Listen to read all sorts of stuff. I do. I mean, I do listen to a lot of romance, but not entirely that. Like, right now I'm listening to Babel by RF Kuang.

[Host 1]

I've been listening to that as well.

[Rachel Reid]

It's really good. It's very long.

[Host 1]

Yeah, I got stuck.

[Rachel Reid]

I got to get back in. It's been a very long time.

[Host 2]

Yeah.

[Host 3]

What is it, like, 38 hours or something like that?

[Host 1]

I don't know.

[Rachel Reid]

It has a lot of footnotes, so. Oh, yeah. And they're all red as well, so.

[Host 2]

It has a lot of what?

[Host 1]

Footnotes.

[Host 2]

Oh, and okay, how does that happen?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, basically, as soon as a footnote appears, the. It cuts to the footnote narrator, who's a different narrator.

[Host 3]

Oh, that's a bit jarring.

[Rachel Reid]

But they're kind of funny, though. Like, it's not. It doesn't take away from the story. Like, they're kind of fun side things.

[Host 2]

I actually like it when it is a one narrator. Like, I like when I think it's such as you're talking about. It's a skill when they add this slight accent and you're like, oh, that's. I know that's who they're talking about there. Or because of the way they've changed their voice.

[Host 3]

That's her boy voice.

[Host 2]

It's a skill. They're good at this.

[Rachel Reid]

It's a skill for a male narrator to not have a woman voice. That makes me want to die.

[Host 1]

Yes.

[Rachel Reid]

Which is one thing I like about Cooper North. I also really liked his Ilya accent, because that's another thing that, you know, can make or break something. So. Yeah, accents are important.

[Host 1]

You said that you got a list of names. Could pick one out. Did you hear, like, an audition or was it just kind of blindfolds?

[Rachel Reid]

I was pretty much just familiar with them already because I was such an audiobook fan, so, you know, and I was just thinking about my book specifically because some of the narrators I liked, but I didn't think they had the right tone for these characters. But I didn't know about any of their ability to do a Russian accent. So I was kind of like, unsure, but. But yeah, I thought Cooper north did a pretty good job.

[Host 3]

That's been recommended a bunch on this. We need Brittany Broski. She recommended.

[Host 1]

That's why I started it, because she

[Host 3]

recommended it on the show. Lona, we gotta lock in, babe.

[Rachel Reid]

It's good. It's really good.

[Host 1]

It's really good. But it's very long.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 3]

And are you reading, like, that's one that's very much so talked about right now. Are you often reading, like, what's being talked about on bestseller list or just sort of when somebody recommends it to you?

[Rachel Reid]

I'm usually behind lately. I'm so far behind. Really. I've been very slowly reading books lately, so I'm usually not up on the bestsellers, but usually I get to them eventually.

[Host 1]

Like, because you read or listen to so many audiobooks, do you sometimes get scared of the ones that are too long?

[Host 3]

Yes, because I want to be able to say I finished a book very quick, much quicker.

[Rachel Reid]

So, yeah, I definitely don't. What's your audiobook listening speed? Like, she's fast, but like, do you make it fast? Do you set it to a faster?

[Host 1]

Yes.

[Host 2]

She's like two point. What are you.

[Rachel Reid]

Oh, whoa.

[Host 2]

No, she's very fast.

[Rachel Reid]

Okay.

[Host 2]

I know it's probably not good, but

[Host 3]

I will say when I start a book, I keep it at a normal. Like a 1.3, 1.5 to. Because I will say, like, when you start a book. Maybe it's just because I've been listening to so many now. I feel like the. The narrators are slowing it way down. Like they are going worry.

[Rachel Reid]

I usually start at 1.2. Because it's definitely going to be too slow at 1.

[Host 3]

Yes, absolutely. And that seems like a normal.

[Rachel Reid]

I usually leave it there, but sometimes they're still too slow. I think the highest I go is 1.5 though. Because then you start to lose the performance.

[Host 1]

Right?

[Host 3]

Right. Not for me.

[Host 1]

I'll tell you what, that's like hurting your attention.

[Host 2]

Do you ever do not finish a book dnf.

[Rachel Reid]

Will you do that? I will do it on first page. I don't care. Really. I will do it on the last chapter. I don't care. I'll just. If it's like, life is too short.

[Host 2]

I will do that too. But you don't do it.

[Rachel Reid]

No.

[Host 2]

She will finish a book, whether it's time, where it's like, I've gone 80% of the way, and I'm like, all

[Rachel Reid]

right, I stopped books at 80% all the time. Because I'm like, you know what? I get it. I've read enough to say I've read it.

[Host 1]

I read a lot of romance too. And especially sometimes when the romance is just. It happens so fast, and then you still have so much of the book left, but they haven't properly built it out that I'm like, well, the first half is so heavy. And then I'm just kind of. What am I reading at the end?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. Pacing is extremely important with romance. You have to know when that moment is. To have them kiss for the first time or whatever it is that you're doing. It's like. Because if it's too soon, you got a lot of book left and you. Maybe nobody's interested anymore, but if it's too late, they've lost interest before it happens. Yeah.

[Host 2]

Olivia was just talking about it in her book. She's like, barely in. They've already done P and V. She was like, what are we gonna do?

[Rachel Reid]

I'm like, what's left? What are we doing?

[Host 3]

How do you know when the right moment is? You're just kind of like. You're kind of like, fine, I'll give it to him like. Or.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I think you have to just feel it. Like, I've definite thought I had the right moment, and then I changed it later because I was like, nope, this is not. I mean, I think a famous example from heated rivalry would be the tuna melt scene, which people were very frustrated about on the show and in the book because Shane leaves at the end of it. Originally. Originally. In the very first draft, he didn't leave, but I was like, no, he needs to leave. It's not time yet. He needs to leave. So I know it's frustrating, but I think it was worth it in the end.

[Host 1]

It keeps you hooked in.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, if he stayed, it would have been not as interesting.

[Host 3]

Yeah, the payoff is better. So I try to tell these two. They get really bad secondhand embarrassment, like when reading or watching something. They'll close their eyes, they'll fast forward, which I think is. No, the author did it on purpose. You need to experience it as they wanted it.

[Host 1]

That's what Dragon books are different.

[Host 2]

You gotta drag em through hell.

[Host 1]

Books are different. For me, it's like, when I'm watching it on a screen, because it's, you know, like, when I'm reading something that's in my mind, it's whatever. Like, I can make it to how I want it to be, but it's also. It's less literal, almost of, like, seeing the expression and seeing. I have such a problem. And the 10 second button has only made it worse.

[Host 3]

No, it's bad. The payoff. Come on.

[Host 1]

Okay, missed 2.2 over here.

[Host 3]

I'm experiencing everything, though.

[Rachel Reid]

Well, definitely the first time I watched, like, any footage of heated rivalry. That was. I had to really psych myself up play because I was like. I was like, I know it's probably really good, but I think it's gonna be so weird to watch. And it was. But it was also just so satisfying and such a delight.

[Host 3]

Did you do it alone, or did you go into.

[Rachel Reid]

My husband was with me, and we decided to watch. We had all six episodes, but we watched one per night so we could really think about it and talk about it.

[Host 3]

Wow. Talk about a slow burn.

[Rachel Reid]

I know. We just really wanted to savor it.

[Host 3]

In episode one, was there a point where you went, okay?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I think almost right away.

[Host 3]

Right.

[Rachel Reid]

Okay, good. Yeah.

[Host 3]

And, Dre, you listen to music while you read?

[Host 2]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

I think it's just because our house isn't maybe the quietest. And I grew up such a bookworm that I was reading whenever I could that, like, I was used to loud environments and almost putting on music and putting in headphones was less distracting than voices.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

So I still love it to this day. All thrown Spotify all the time.

[Rachel Reid]

I usually have to play a little mindless game on my phone while I'm listening to an audiobook or something. Or be driving. I have to be doing something else or chores.

[Host 1]

Same chores.

[Rachel Reid]

I can't just sit and listen to an audiobook. My mind starts to wander, so I need that second thing to keep me hooked in.

[Host 3]

That's me as well. I'm like, my house. Whole house gets clean. And then I finish cleaning everything, and I'm like, what now? I still want to keep listening, but

[Rachel Reid]

I've got nothing else to do.

[Host 2]

You guys should go on a walk. It's a walk.

[Host 3]

A walk. I've even gotten to the point where I'll hold the physical book, be listening,

[Rachel Reid]

and, like, follow along. Oh, yeah. Yeah. That helps, too. That's helped.

[Host 1]

I will say I have had some times where I just. It was when I was reading the Throne of Glass series or I was listening to it Again, that I was. I wanted to keep going so much, and I needed to focus. I just, like, lay down in my bed, turn the lights off, and I was just listening.

[Host 2]

Really?

[Host 3]

Yeah. It was kind of nice.

[Host 1]

It was like an immersive experience, like a sensory deprivation tank, and you're just

[Rachel Reid]

totally lose whole chapters.

[Host 3]

Do you have one book that you'd recommend to our audience? We love asking people.

[Rachel Reid]

Any book.

[Host 3]

Yeah.

[Rachel Reid]

Wow. That's huge.

[Host 3]

I know.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah, I'll recommend. Yeah, I want to recommend My friend's series because I don't think it's getting enough attention. The third book in the trilogy is. It just came out. I want to say it just came out or it's just about to come out. I got it early, so I'm a little confused. But, yeah, Ali Theron's the author. The series is called Sugar and Vice, and it's like an urban fantasy slow burn male male romance. The romance is spread over the three books. It's like a world of where there's empaths who are like a kind of a problem that the government kind of has to deal with, and then there's like, a guy who has no emotions, who's been, like, altered to have no emotions so that he can hunt down rogue empaths.

[Host 1]

That's the way in love with it.

[Rachel Reid]

Yes. It's so good. So, yeah. And I think it's really cinematic. Like, I would love to see it as a TV series. So that's my recommendation because I think it's one that most people don't know about. And you can buy the physical books, too. Like it is in print. It is an audiobook and has a great audiobook, narrator, and ebook as well.

[Host 3]

So Jacob is adapting Song of Achilles.

[Rachel Reid]

He's adapting a book called. I'm gonna blank on the name of the book, but I've read it and it's really good. But the show is gonna be like. It's called Alexander. It's about Alexander the Great, but when he's really young and being tutored by Aristotle. So actually mainly, well, the books from Aristotle's point of view. I'm not sure if the show will be that way or not, but I have read some of the scripts, and they are amazing. I feel like it was more Alexander focused, but I can't remember. Okay. But yeah, it was. Yeah. So I'm really excited about that. But I know people have been saying they want to see Jacob adapt.

[Host 2]

Okay.

[Host 3]

That's what it is.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. That was definitely going around the Internet pretty hard.

[Host 3]

And you're down for that.

[Rachel Reid]

I would be down for that. I'm down for somebody adapting it because I love that book. I love Circe, the other book. Yeah, that series is great. But yeah, Jacob's Alexander series is gonna be amazing. I'm so excited it's getting made.

[Host 1]

Anything he does is brilliant. I'm a huge letterkenny fan.

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

And so when I first heard the news of heated rivalry, and then I didn't know that Jacob, like, was the director of it as well, and I go, the gay pastor. Which then led me to. From the letter, Kenny, which led me down a rabbit hole of like, oh, he's brilliant. He's brilliant. I trust him to do this. And now just knowing that, what a hand he had in letter cunning too. I was like, what can't this man do?

[Rachel Reid]

Yeah. And he's made some incredible films as well. He's been around for a while in Canada for sure, making brilliant stuff. So it was a huge honor to even hear from him. And then, yeah, obviously he made a pretty good show. Here we are.

[Host 3]

Here we freaking are. You are now part of the family. So you've got to help out around the house. Choose some chores, and you'll be given a corresponding challenge. We've got laundry, dishes, vacuuming, and sweeping. Which one?

[Rachel Reid]

I'll take dishes.

[Host 3]

Dishes. Read the last note in your notes app.

[Rachel Reid]

Oh, okay. You know, it's probably a list of books to recommend.

[Host 3]

Perfect.

[Rachel Reid]

That I made for this.

[Host 2]

Perfect.

[Host 1]

Oh, gosh.

[Rachel Reid]

So yeah, I could just tell you those.

[Host 2]

Absolutely.

[Rachel Reid]

Besides what I already recommended. Really great. I was gonna recommend a book called the Long Run by James Acker, which is a YA Male. Male romance. One of the characters is a track and field star in high school. That's why it's called the Long Run. It's just really good. Like, I just think. I remember when I was reading it thinking, like, people who like my books would probably also like this book. It's like, I'm not even, like, the biggest YA fan. Like, usually I don't really want to read about people in high school, but this is really good.

[Host 3]

We just did a YA for our book club, our tall tales book club, because we were like, we should throw a YA in there.

[Host 1]

And I will say I enjoy that. The ya. It was, like, refreshing to have a YA and just focus purely on, like, plot. And there was a little romance, but it was kind of like a nice switch up.

[Host 3]

It was. It was a palate cleanser.

[Host 1]

Exactly.

[Host 3]

I did check in mate the Ali Hazelwood YA about chess. And I Loved that.

[Rachel Reid]

It's kind of nice to revisit those years and those feelings.

[Host 3]

What else you got for us?

[Rachel Reid]

This is a nonfiction book about hockey. We Breed Lions by Rick Westhead is this amazing and really harrowing book about how messed up hockey culture is, really. Especially in Canada. Especially with junior hockey. It's like a history. He's an incredible journalist in Canada, and I really recommend it if you want to understand all of the things that are broken about hockey culture. And the other one I was going to recommend is Cat Sebastian's newest book, Starship, which is about two television stars on a show that the fans really, really ship the actors as a real couple, and then they really do get together. But I read it recently and I was like, well, this is very topical at the moment.

[Host 2]

Absolutely.

[Host 3]

And then I guess we also just want to know, since you're such a major hockey fan, will you just predict for us who's going to win the Stanley Cup?

[Rachel Reid]

Oh, yeah. Montreal.

[Host 2]

Okay, perfect.

[Rachel Reid]

There we go.

[Host 3]

There we go.

[Host 1]

Go Canadians.

[Host 3]

Go Canadians.

[Rachel Reid]

Well, what?

[Host 3]

Sar.

[Host 2]

Crazy. You said that. American rugby in the room.

[Rachel Reid]

That's insane.

[Host 1]

Talking hockey. Sorry, Talking hockey.

[Host 3]

She's talking men's hockey. Whatever.

[Rachel Reid]

A lot of the players on the team are American. Some of them really go Canadians then.

[Host 3]

Go Canadians.

[Host 1]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

Oh, we're by it. We're used to.

[Rachel Reid]

We're. Yeah.

[Host 1]

Probably actually our closest team alone.

[Host 3]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

You know what? Hey, hey.

[Host 3]

Go Canadians.

[Rachel Reid]

I love it.

[Host 3]

Well, thank you so much for coming over.

[Rachel Reid]

Oh, no problem. Thank you.

[Host 3]

This was so exciting to have you here. Everyone. Follow Rachel on ig Rachel Reid writes. We will see you next week.

[Host 1]

Thank you so much for coming over to the House of Mar Wave Original.

[Host 2]

Be sure to watch, subscribe on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

[Host 3]

Plus, follow the show on social media ousofmar for clips and behind the scenes content.

[Host 2]

Bye, guys. Go, go.

[Rachel Reid]

Right.

[Host 2]

And then take a break. Yeah, take a break.

[Host 3]

Take a break and write and do

[Host 2]

whatever you need to do.

[Rachel Reid]

We'll do.

[Host 3]

Thank you.