Did Rachel Reid intend on Shane being autistic? "Yeah, I did. When I wrote the first book, it was more about his overall personality...in the time between Heated Rivalry and The Long Game, my own child was getting assessed for things like ADHD and autism. I learned a lot over

Rachel Reid on Jacob Tierney and Hudson Williams understanding Shane's autism: "Jacob knew right away. Jacob told me I think in the very first Zoom call, he was like, ‘Well, Shane’s autistic’...He’s definitely approached the character that way. And when I talked to Hudson about

Rachel Reid on Shane's autism: "I think because of that, which unfortunately is also common of people with autism, the things that Shane does and says get misunderstood, sometimes by characters in the book and sometimes by readers who are like, ‘Well, that was a terrible thing

Rachel Reid on her group chat with Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams: "We switched over to text because we’re all getting buried in our Instagram messages. One day Connor changed the group chat name to “Shilya and the creator”, which I thought was really cute. I can’t even find

Rachel Reid says she's "grateful" that Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams got the roles as Ilya and Shane: "They’re funny together. They tease me sometimes and I kind of tease them too, but I just really like them. I’m really grateful that they auditioned. I’m grateful that they

Rachel Reid on queer literature becoming more mainstream: "I feel like definitely the big turning point was 'Red, White & Royal Blue' because 'Heated Rivalry' came out in March of 2019. I believe Red, White & Royal Blue came out in May or April...I think a lot of us who were

News about the physical release of the ‘HEATED RIVALRY’ soundtrack is being released tomorrow. Make sure to sign up. 👀

‘HEATED RIVALRY’ has been nominated for Best English-Language Drama Series at the 2026 Rockie Awards. 🔗: deadline.com/2026/03/banff-…

A new interview with 'HEATED RIVALRY' executive producer Brendan Brady has been released. 🔗: youtube.com/watch?v=6eGOS1…

‘HEATED RIVALRY’ tops the Canadian fiction bestsellers list for the 11th week in a row. Four other ‘Game Changers’ titles are in the Top 10. 🔗: cbc.ca/books/bestsell…

Jacob Tierney on Shane’s autism in ‘HEATED RIVALRY’: “I just wrote Shane, and that’s part of who Shane is. I don’t think we ever really labeled it that way. I mean, look, he’s autistic, there’s no doubt about it, but I think it was more about, this is the way Shane reacts to

Jacob Tierney on what he’s excited to adapt in ‘HEATED RIVALRY’ Season 2: “When Shane and Ilya get married, like by Hayden’s kids, it’s like the cutest thing I’ve ever seen where of course I’m going to do that. So there’s a thing I can commit to. I just don’t want to commit to…

Jacob Tierney says it isn’t “complicated” why ‘HEATED RIVALRY’ resonated with a wide audience: “I don’t think it’s that complicated. I think it’s about joy and about love. We took the relationship seriously, we gave it time to develop, and we didn’t rush it into a single film.

Pre-orders for the ‘HEATED RIVALRY’ soundtrack on vinyl and CD start this Thursday, March 26. More info: heatedrivalry.lnk.to/pre-order-faqEC

Rachel Reid via IG: “I know there have been a LOT of images/videos/ interviews etc of, y'know, all of us, and this one is very old now, but listen: I wish I could coherently explain how I feel when I look at this image. I want that for every author. Like, it STILL doesn't feel

'Heated Rivalry' was published seven years ago today.