The Short Answer
You finished the show, you opened a bookstore app, and now there’s a row of hockey covers staring back at you with numbers on them.
So here’s the short answer. Heated Rivalry is book two in Rachel Reid’s Game Changers series, and the show’s first season is built from it. As of November twenty twenty-six, the series has six published novels and a seventh on the way.
The Full List in Order
Here is the publication order, as the major book trackers and Wikipedia list it. Book one, Game Changer, twenty eighteen. Book two, Heated Rivalry, twenty nineteen. Book three, Tough Guy, twenty twenty. Book four, Common Goal, also twenty twenty.
Book five, Role Model, twenty twenty-one. Book six, The Long Game, twenty twenty-two. And book seven, Unrivaled, which hasn’t come out yet. Its date has moved, and the latest reports say June twenty twenty-seven, after an earlier target in twenty twenty-six.
Book One Is Game Changer
Game Changer came first in twenty eighteen. It is the story of Scott Hunter and Kip Grady, and I’m confident about that because the show draws on it, and because Scott turns up in Heated Rivalry.
I haven’t read it, so I won’t describe the plot. What I can tell you is what Heated Rivalry shows of Scott: he captains Team USA in Sochi, and at the end of the playoffs he kisses a man on live television. So you can read book two first and not be lost.
Book Two Is Heated Rivalry
Heated Rivalry came out in March twenty nineteen from Carina Press. It follows Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov from a junior tournament in December two thousand eight to a lake cottage in twenty seventeen, with an epilogue sixteen months later.
My edition says it was first published in twenty nineteen, with a revised text edition in twenty twenty-three. It also has a bonus story, set in November twenty eighteen, where Shane and Ilya host a dinner party.
Books Three to Five
Tough Guy, Common Goal and Role Model are the middle of the series. As far as the reports I could find go, they follow other couples in the same hockey world, not Shane and Ilya.
I haven’t read them, so I won’t guess about the plots. One thing I can confirm: Ryan Price, the big Boston enforcer in Heated Rivalry, is a real character in this book. One tracker says Tough Guy centers on him. In this book he reads Anne of Green Gables on a plane and says he is a nervous flier.
Book Six Is The Long Game
The Long Game came out on April twenty-sixth, twenty twenty-two. It is the direct sequel to Heated Rivalry, and it picks up a few months after the epilogue.
This one matters for the show. Reports say season two will adapt The Long Game. If you want to read ahead of the screen, this is the book to get after Heated Rivalry.
Book Seven Is Unrivaled
Unrivaled is the one you can’t buy yet. Reports describe it as the third Shane and Ilya novel, and one source says the release moved from September twenty twenty-six to June first, twenty twenty-seven.
Release dates for unpublished books move, so check the publisher’s site before you pre-order.
The Shane and Ilya Path
If you only want Shane and Ilya, the reading order is short. Heated Rivalry, then The Long Game, then Unrivaled once it exists. That is the path several guides recommend.
My own opinion: don’t skip the others because of that. The series shares one hockey world, and characters like Scott cross over. But you will not be lost if you go straight through the Shane and Ilya books.
Does Order Matter
Does the order matter? From what I read, Heated Rivalry works without book one. Scott Hunter is a side character here, and his big moment makes sense on its own.
That said, the series is written to be read in publication order, and the sequel picks up with Shane and Ilya’s careers still in play. So start with book two if you want the story from the show, and go back to book one when you’re curious.
Where the Show Fits
Here’s how the show maps onto the list. Season one adapts Heated Rivalry, and reports say it also borrows from Game Changer. Season two is reported to adapt The Long Game.
Crave renewed the show in December twenty twenty-five, and the season two target is spring twenty twenty-seven. So the books are already ahead of the screen by at least one volume.
Three Reading Plans
Plan one is for show fans in a hurry. Read Heated Rivalry, then The Long Game. That’s the same couple, and the second book is what season two is reported to use.
Plan two is for completionists. Read all six in publication order, then Unrivaled when it arrives. Plan three is for the curious. Start with Heated Rivalry, and if you like the hockey world around Shane and Ilya, go back to Game Changer and then forward through the middle books.
How This Book Is Built
Since you’re about to start it, here’s how Heated Rivalry is built. It has a prologue, twenty-seven numbered chapters and an epilogue, plus the bonus story. Each chapter starts with a month, a year and a city, so you always know where you are.
The first third is spaced years apart, because the early meetings are brief. From Chapter Twelve, in October twenty sixteen, it slows down and covers about nine months, up to a July at the cottage. That structure is why some readers find the start fast and the middle immersive. It’s my observation, not a rule.
If you read it on a phone or e-reader, the dates are also a handy way to find your place after a break.
Extras
Some trackers list short extras around this book. I couldn’t verify them in two places, so I’ll leave titles out. What I can verify is the dinner party bonus story that is bundled in my edition of Heated Rivalry.
Content Note
One content note before you buy. These are mature romances. Heated Rivalry has frequent on the page sex scenes, heavy swearing, a few slurs, and a parent’s death by suicide. My parents guide gives chapter numbers.
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