Though Heated Rivalry may have wrapped its buzzy first season last year, beloved characters Shane and Ilya will soon be back in fans’ lives.
On Monday, January 12, Rachel Reid — the author of the Game Changers book series, on which Heated Rivalry is based — revealed the details of Unrivaled, the final book in the series. According to a plot description shared on Reid’s Instagram, as well as that from publisher Harper360 UK, the book follows Shane and Ilya’s journey as they are no longer hiding their relationship.
“For the first time in their professional hockey careers, Ilya Rozanov and Shane Hollander have nothing to hide,” reads the description. “For more than a decade, they kept their love a secret, but now they're out, married, and even playing on the same team. The support is incredible.”
While many fans express support for the two hockey players on their journey, Shane and Ilya do face some backlash from fans on social media. “They've gotten a lot of love from fans who are thrilled for them. But some people in the hockey world are still reeling from their relationship reveal, and the backlash — led by popular hockey podcast Top Shelf and the #TakeBackHockey movement — is getting louder.”
The news comes following Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards broadcast, during which actors Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie — who respectively play Shane and Ilya on the television adaptation — were presenters. Reid, however, revealed that she spent the night in a hotel room, putting the final touches on Unrivaled.
“It feels really surreal sitting here,” said Reid in a video shared on her Instagram account, “writing the next Ilya and Shane book, whilst watching jokes about Ilya and Shane happen live from Hollywood at the Golden Globes.”
Unrivaled arrives on shelves on Wednesday, September 29. The first season of Heated Rivalry is currently available to stream on HBO Max in the United States and on Crave in Canada.