Toronto Star bestsellers: 'Heated Rivalry' author Rachel Reid now has two books on the lists

It had already hopped onto the Canadian list in late November — the week the TV drama debuted — and stayed there intermittently through December.

“It’s wild, because this show is based on a book that never had wide distribution to bookstores,” Reid told Sue Carter in the Star.

And “Heated Rivalry” isn’t the only one of Reid’s books on the bestseller lists. Reid’s 2022 novel “The Long Game” is now No. 7 on the Canadian fiction list. It’s part of Reid’s “Game Changer” series of queer romances, and continues the story of Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, the Canadian and Russian hockey stars who began to fall in love in “Heated Rivalry.”

The hockey-loving Reid told Carter that writing her “Game Changer” books helped address her conflicted feelings about her favourite sport.

“I need hockey, but I hate the culture, especially around professional men’s leagues,” she said.

So far, there has been mostly love for “Heated Rivalry” the series, which streams its Season 1 finale Friday on Crave (yes, a second season has already been greenlit).

And if you haven’t sampled the show yet, I suggest you catch up. There’s a reason it made my list of top 10 TV shows of 2025.

CANADIAN FICTION

1. The Black Wolf, Louise Penny, Minotaur

2. Final Orbit, Chris Hadfield, Random House Canada

3. Heated Rivalry, Rachel Reid, Carina

4. Pick a Colour, Souvankham Thammavongsa, Knopf Canada

5. Loves of Our Lives, Josie Balka, Simon & Schuster

6. Finding Flora, Elinor Florence, Simon & Schuster

7. The Long Game, Rachel Reid, Carina

8. The Spirit of Scatarie, Lesley Crewe, Vagrant

9. Queen Esther, John Irving, Knopf Canada

10. Flesh, David Szalay, McClelland & Stewart

CANADIAN NON-FICTION

1. The Wealthy Barber, David Chilton, Financial Awareness

2. Book of Lives, Margaret Atwood, McClelland & Stewart

3. Certified Beauties, James Duthie, Collins

4. Sorry, Not Sorry, Mark Critch, Viking (4)

6. The Smiling Land, Alan Doyle, Doubleday Canada

7. John Candy, Paul Myers, House of Anansi

8. Vanished Beyond the Map, Adam Shoalts, Allen Lane

9. Values, Mark Carney, Signal

10. We Breed Lions, Rick Westhead, Random House Canada

ORIGINAL FICTION

1. The Secret of Secrets, Dan Brown, Doubleday (15)*

2. The Black Wolf, Louise Penny, Minotaur (9)

3. Always Remember, Charlie Mackesy, Penguin (10)

4. The Widow, John Grisham, Doubleday (9)

5. Wild Dark Shore, Charlotte McConaghy, Flatiron (6)

6. My Friends, Fredrik Backman, Simon & Schuster (24)

7. Broken Country, Clare Leslie Hall, Simon & Schuster (27)

8. Final Orbit, Chris Hadfield, Random House Canada (9)

9. Heated Rivalry, Rachel Reid, Carina (1)

10. Pick a Colour, Souvankham Thammavongsa, Knopf Canada (3)

ORIGINAL NON-FICTION

1. The Wealthy Barber, David Chilton, Financial Awareness (5)

2. Book of Lives, Margaret Atwood, McClelland & Stewart (7)

3. Certified Beauties, James Duthie, Collins (9)

4. 1929, Andrew Ross Sorkin, Viking (8)

5. Sorry, Not Sorry, Mark Critch, Viking (4)

6. The Smiling Land, Alan Doyle, Doubleday Canada (7)

7. Nobody’s Girl, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, Knopf (9)

8. John Candy, Paul Myers, House of Anansi (3)

9. Vanished Beyond the Map, Adam Shoalts, Allen Lane (10)

10. Notes on Being a Man, Scott Galloway, Simon & Schuster (3)

CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULT

1. Big Jim Believes (Dog Man #14), Dav Pilkey, Graphix

2. Partypooper (Diary of a Wimpy Kid #20), Jeff Kinney, Amulet

3. Sunrise on the Reaping, Suzanne Collins, Scholastic

4. Little Blue Truck’s Christmas, Alice Schertle, Jill McElmurry, Clarion

5. Darkstalker (Wings of Fire: Legends), Tui T. Sutherland, Jake Parker, Graphix

6. Love You Forever, Robert Munsch, Sheila McGraw, Firefly

7. The Humble Pie, Jory John, Pete Oswald, HarperCollins

8. Sounds Like Christmas, Robert Munsch, Michael Martchenko, Scholastic Canada

9. Talons of Power (Wings of Fire #9), Tui T. Sutherland, Mike Holmes, Graphix

10. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (full colour edition), Dr. Seuss, Random House Books for Young Readers

HEALTH AND FITNESS

1. Age Like a Girl, Mindy Pelz, Hay House

2. The Body Keeps the Score, Bessel van der Kolk, Penguin

3. Outlive, Peter Attia, Bill Gifford, Harmony

4. When the Body Says No, Gabor Mate, Vintage Canada

5. The Myth of Normal, Gabor Maté, Daniel Maté, Vintage Canada

6. Super Body, William Davis, Collins

7. What to Expect When You’re Expecting, Heidi Murkoff, Workman

8. The New Menopause, Mary Claire Haver, Rodale

9. Smartphone Nation, Kaitlyn Regehr, Knopf Canada

10. Come As You Are (updated), Emily Nagoski, Simon & Schuster

*Weeks on list

The bestseller lists are compiled by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited from information provided by BookNet Canada’s national sales tracking service, BNC SalesData.