The Winners by Fredrik Backman is an outstanding, excellent and obviously very highly recommended third novel in the Beartown series. To date, The Winners is the best book I have read this year. Be sure to read Beartown (2017) and Us Against You (2018) the first two Beartown novels.

In the Swedish forest towns of Beartown and Hed, a storm blows through the area that downs many trees, wrecks havoc, and destroys the roof of the ice hockey rink in Hed. During the same storm a beloved citizen dies, which is the impetus for Maya Andersson and Benji Ovich to come home and a reunite with their friends. The storm also means that the Hed hockey players must train and play in the Beartown rink, which ignites another kind of storm as the tension between the two towns grow.

It has been two years since what happened to Maya, but repercussions still remain. Beartown and Hed are still bitter rivals on the ice, but there is also an undercurrent of interconnectedness to the residents of both communities, after all, they live in forest towns and it takes a certain kind of resilient person to live there.

Backman brings back his beloved characters (Peter, Kira, Maya, Benji, Ana, Ramona, Bobo, Amat, Sune and others) and introduces new ones. All of the characters are fully realized individuals who are portrayed as real people. This ability to develop a rich cast of realistic characters that readers will become totally devoted to and care about is a gift that few writers have. You will become invested in the characters and the plot.

The writing is phenomenal, absolutely perfect. Just as real life can be complicated, the plot is also complex. There are many story lines in the narrative, but with characters as believable as these it seems so effortless to follow all of them. Backman excels at foreshadowing events that are to come, which will further invest readers in the story, if it is even possible to become more invested in such an engrossing novel.

I love everything about Backman's writing and have highlighted more passages in this one book than I have in any other for years. There are so many truisms in the narrative which had me pausing and rereading passages simply because they were so well written and filled with such truth and insight. Admittedly, I was also a sobbing mess for part of The Winners. It is both a celebration of life and a tragedy, of friendship and loss. I love this novel perhaps even more than all of Backman's previous novels, which I also loved. There are not enough stars available for The Winners.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Atria Books via NetGalley.
The review will be published on Barnes & Noble, Edelweiss, Google Books, and Amazon.

Thanks to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Fredrik Backman for allowing me to read The Winners in return for an honest review.

The Beartown trilogy has been an introspective look into people in small towns who compete against each other for business and sports, and letting nothing stand in their way. Small towns seem to have their own rules for handling people who don’t live up to their expectations, so innocent people are sometimes ignored to protect the powerful and rich people who ran the town. But, can it always be that way? Not when a hurt young man takes revenge for his sisters abuse and abuse of power. Nothing will ever be the same, but will life improve after the tragic events?

“You have to make the most of the happy endings whenever you get the chance.”

Unless you followed me literally yesterday you know I have a deeeep love for this series and it’s characters. I first read BEARTOWN and US AGAINST YOU last year and reread them both in August in preparation for THE WINNERS. If you’ve ever asked me for a book recommendation before there’s a good chance I’ve said these books.

With all the being said obviously my hopes were high for this and it was my most anticipated book of the entire year (seriously thank you @simonandschuster and @atriabooks for this ARC!!!). Did it deliver??

Of course.

Though I’m not going to lie it’s nearly 700 pages and it could’ve been shorter. The pacing was at times off and right from page 1 Backman heavily foreshadows to a big culmination between Beartown and Hed so I felt like I was just waiting and waiting. AND I was confused at the legalities of the club (which will make sense when you read it).

With that aside, I loved it. My heart was bursting at the seems getting to be back with these beloved characters. Backman continues to deliver with timely social commentary, life lessons, beautiful writing, and of course hockey.

THE WINNERS was a tale of parenthood, the weight of expectations, friendship, enduring love, grief, and society. 4.5⭐️s from me but an overall 5⭐️ series!

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC! I loved the ending of the Beartown trilogy. The corruption portion felt a bit too long, but otherwise, it’s great.

TW: suicide, gun violence, sexual assault.

Fredrik Backman is a master storyteller. Book 3 of the Beartown series brings us back to The Alaskan town, Beartown. After a storm takes out the ice rink of Beatown’s ultimate rivals, the two neighboring towns must try to come together for the sake of the youth. Not everyone is happy about the situation and conflict is high.
Backman introduces us to some new characters, as well as reconnecting readers with many of the recurring characters from the series. As always, Backman does a stellar job of developing characters.
This is a beautiful, heartbreaking and disturbing story. I loved it.
*** huge thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Here is the thing: I will not be able to review this in any normal, concise way. How could I? I didn't think Backman would be able to wrap this up in a real and satisfying way, but he pulled it off. He wrote book that made me feel every possible emotion. There's a sweet romance that made me giggle and kick my feet, there's crimes that fill me with rage, there's friendships that filled me such joy. Of course, there were moments that filled me with a deep sadness. He fills pages with hope and dread at the same time. And I loved all of it.

Backman writes a lot of characters, but he writes them so well. Everyone we meet in these books, no matter how much page time they have, is deeply layered. Sure, I have my favorites (Maya, Ana, and Benji), and my least favorites (TAILS), but I care about them. That is what Backman does best; makes readers care and connect.

This book has some of the heaviest content I've ever read, so be warned. Its about the cyclical nature of violence and what we do for love. As readers, we know what is coming. We know we are building up to something awful, and yet, we can not look away. We stay in the sadness. Backman makes it worth it. Its worth it for the friendships, for Maya and Ana and Benji and Amat and Bobo and their campouts. For the new family we meet, Hannah and her idiot husband. Always for Peter and Kira and Maya and Ana. For the bear that's inside of all of us.

Happy Publication Day to Fredrik Backman on the release of his novel The Winners. The Winners is the third novel in the Beartown series. Unfortunately I have not read the previous two books in the series. As a result I feel like I was missing a lot of information that ultimately impacted my views on The Winners. Don’t get me wrong. I did enjoy the book and I love Fredrik Backman. In fact Anxious People is one of my all time favourite books. And like Anxious People, The Winners was well written, full of heart and soul and human connections. But for me it’s just that I feel like The Winners would have been more impactful if I’d known the backstories.

The Winners takes place in Beartown, a small Forest town where hockey is a way of life. On the surface it appears to be a peaceful community, but let me tell you, this is the farthest from the truth. Beartown is a community that struggles with drama, corruption and a long standing rivalry with a neighbouring town called Hed. After a late summer storm and a tragic event Beartown is never the same again.

Backman is a masterful storyteller, who’s strength is beautifully written character driven stories. I will definitely be reading the first two books in the Beartown Trilogy. Thank you to Simon & Schuster, Fredrik Backman and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an arc of The Winners.

This is the third and final book in the Beartown trilogy. Yes, trilogy and you know that means you really do need to read the first two books for this one to make complete sense. Although there is a lot (and I mean a LOT) of catch-up contained herein, I really do think you should.
So... Hockey and politics and rivalry and community are all front and centre once again. Old characters who have moved on and moved away for various reasons all come back when one of their own dies. But, as with most things Beartown, this is a catalyst. One that sparks many things - some good, others bad. But know that every one will be emotive and emotional. Cos we are the Bears, the Bears from Beartown...
I am not saying anything more abut the plot - there's enough in the blurb to whet your appetite and keep you wondering who will fit with what "someone". As I did whilst reading. With my heart in my mouth, and if I could have read hiding behind a cushion (like how I watched scary TV when I was a kid) I would have. As I started to get towards the end, I wanted, no needed, to know what would happen. But, at the same time, I really didn't as I could see that we were heading for a crescendo. And that nothing would ever be the same again.
That said, it was lovely to reconnect with some of the best characters that I have met in time. And also to meet a few new ones. And see how some who have been there before, bubbling under, now come into the limelight and we get to know them better.
I've said before that although there's a lot about Hockey in the book, you don't have to like or care about either that or sport in general. The sport is what binds the community. Could be a whole host of other things, but here it's sport at the centre. It's sport which makes people fight, makes them proud, makes them corrupt, but mostly, makes them a community. But you know all that, cos you've read the previous two books!
I do admit I cried. But I laughed too. And giggled and, pretty much all the rest of the emotions too. And, when I got to the end, how it ended, I though... yes... totally job well done.
Now all that's left is for me to start again but listening this time. I already have book one locked and loaded on my MP3 player in anticipation...
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

There are stories that make you feel everything. And then there are stories that leave you empty.

This story is both.

And it's all because of Benji.

If you have read the previous two books in the Beartown series, your heart will already belong to him. You will know the boy with the sad eyes and the wild heart. You will know the kind of person he is.

I really wish this book had kept its original title ‘Those Who Run Towards Fire,’ because that's Benji. He's the sort of person who runs toward a fire. No hesitation, no questions, he just runs. People like that are rare, but you know who they are when you see them. And those of you who know Benji probably knew deep down that he was never the sort of person who would get a happy ending.

Obviously we still hoped. Oh, how we hoped.

This final book, this ending, Benji's ending, hurts too much to touch with words.

But thank you Fredrik Backman for giving it to us all the same.

This is the third in Backman’s Beartown trilogy. The characters are there and tragedy is more than hinted at. At almost 700 pages this book wrung me out. In a Sweden two small rival towns are exist in the forest. There are families, community spirit and always there is hockey. There is also shady politics and financial happenings, investigative reporting, loss of trust and innocence. And still there is hockey. Backman’s narrative is hypnotic and beautifully written as it heads to a surprising climax that is expected only because the author breaks the fourth wall and drops large clues. There isn’t justice for everyone and my heart aches for some of the characters who can only try to continue forward. For others they get all they deserve. There is heartfelt and emotional. The story is too complex with too many characters to try and summarize. If you’ve read the first two books this is a must read even though some parts are repetitive. There is enough recapping of people and connections, that this can stand on its own for a new reader. Trigger warnings include: rape, gun violence, fighting, death, alcohol abuse, revenge porn and blackmail and more. Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books and the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fredrick Backman captures the breadth of human emotion and connection through character vignettes, each with its own scenic view of this small, cold forest town. The plot would be irrelevant if it weren't the vehicle for Backman to get to the core of community, family, and friendship. Once again, readers are given a chance to judge, empathize with, and love the people of Beartown as the town is shaken by tragedy.

I didn't read the first two books in the trilogy so I'm not sure why I decided to read this really long book. Having no background, I actually ended up liking it more than I thought I would. There are a lot of characters to keep straight but I felt like Backman introduced them to me in a way that I got enough of their back stories to understand who they were. I'm sure fans of the first two books will devour this book.

I’ll be honest, I’ve started out every book in this series wondering ‘Why am I supposed to care about this tiny, snowy village in the middle of nowhere? I really don’t care about hockey, why am I reading this?’ And then I end each book sobbing my eyes out, hugging the book and telling everyone it’s the best book I’ve ever read.

The Winners was no exception.

You need to be prepared to read a book like this because it’s violent, heart-wrenching, full of hate, corruption, rage, secrets, grief, mental health struggles, and bad decisions. But ultimately there is always a moment when the town comes together as a community to support each other.

Fredrik Backman has an astounding talent for writing people, but also for creating perfectly-paced storylines that converge in the most catastrophic but incredible way. I’m truly in awe.

If you read the second book in the series you might think that the storylines for your favorite characters had wrapped up, but you’d be mistaken…there is more, much more, still to unfold. Plus, there are new characters to meet and old and new challenges to be faced.

I won’t give anything more than that away, you’ll definitely want to read this one for yourself.

"Finally: to you who have read the whole of this saga, I'd just like to say that I hope it gave you something, because I gave it absolutely everything I had. Thank you for coming along for the ride."

-Fredrik Backman

I must confess that I finished this book last week and have still been kind of in a daze with the aftermath of this book-a friend called it a "book hangover" and that's the perfect description-trying to put into succinct words a review. It's hard to convey how amazing and special this book-and this entire trilogy-has been to myself and countless other people because of the universality of the characters' experiences and the tough but oh so necessary topics that it does not flinch from confronting within its pages.

The Winners is the culmination of the Beartown trilogy that centers around a small community of people who live in the forest and the hockey team that drives the heart and the spirit of the town. The story opens with an epic storm and a tragedy that brings everyone together for one final act. Characters we have known and loved from Beartown including Amat, Benji, Maya, Ana, Bobo, Peter, and Kira get some resolution for their story arcs even as new characters are introduced that seamlessly thread into the existing storylines.

What results is simply a beautiful and masterful narrative about love, forgiveness, grief, redemption, growth, and change.

There is not a book or a series that I would recommend more highly. ALL THE STARS

Beartown and Hed are at it again, with hockey at its center, but so much more underneath the surface. The Winners has an element of criminal activity where a local reporter is digging into the Beartown hockey club's finances. I thought this was an interesting deviation in the storyline and one that I was personally invested in, being that I work in financial fraud. Along with this storyline, we have Maya and Benji returning from being gone for two years, a new player being recruited to the team, Amat struggling emotionally after losing out on his chance for the NHL, Peter having a mid-life crisis now that he no longer works with Beartown hockey, a kid named Matteo wandering around in a snowstorm and sneaking into people's houses. There's A LOT going on. It is hard to keep it all straight at times, but Backman ends up tying all the loose ends together in a final, dramatic crescendo.

What holds me back from giving this book five stars is the length. We are talking over 600 pages, much of which could be cut out because it was repetitive from the first and second books. Personally, I prefer standalone books to series and that may play into my thoughts on this, but it could have easily been 200-300 pages shorter. I also could have done without the series in general. Beartown is an amazing standalone story. I enjoyed Us Against You and The Winners, but I did not feel like they were necessary to keep the story of these towns going.

Which book in the Beartown series is better? My vote is still, and always will be, the first book, Beartown. Nothing tops that initial story of heart and hockey. The book where I fell in love with Benji and Amat and this little town hidden away in the forest.

This is the third in the Beartown trilogy about the lives of residents in two rival communities where hockey rules. Although I hadn’t read the first two, I did not feel at a disadvantage reading The Winners.

Beautifully written, it explores the connections among people within a community, traversing the full range of human emotions and behaviors.

A long book, the writing style and thought provoking prose do not allow for a fast read. That is not a negative. The reader will want to ponder many of the ideas expressed in this deeply affecting tome. It is a story that will stay with me for quite a while.

A five star read.

He didn’t want to write this book but readers begged for more. He wanted to leave things where they stood. Hadn’t enough happened? Hadn’t there been enough pain and heartbreak? But Backman gives readers what they’ve asked for. And once he started, it was obvious Backman was as reticent to leave Beartown as us readers. It can be seen in the length of the book, the lingering attention to detail, and an overall feeling of melancholy. Instead of being written, it is as though the words are being pulled from him against his will. Backman is a reluctant story teller. He doesn’t want to tell us what has happened because some of it’s not good. Instead, Backman steels himself and the readers through a long lead up, getting us reacquainted with the characters, and some heavy foreshadowing. I am normally not a fan of this approach but I felt it added to the overall mood of the story and the book is crowded. There are so many characters and so many plots that a good foundation is a comfort.

As is always the case with Backman, the writing is exquisite, almost poetic at times. Chapter 104 reads like the scene in the Hamilton musical where the bullet slowly travels across the stage from the gun to kill Hamilton (that’s not a spoiler - it’s history). Slow and exquisitely torturous. It’s hard to read while crying. Before I started reading, I posted on social media “send tissues and hot chocolate.” I stand by that statement. Stock up, cuddle up, and dig in! You’re going to need it to get through this heart wringer of a book. Sure, it is too long, but it is hard to say goodbye to good friends, and Backman wants to do right by the characters and the readers.

I have loved everything I have read by this author, he has such a magical way with words. I enjoyed the town rivalries over hockey. I enjoyed how the sport became such an integral part of the town and the way of life.

The final book in the Beartown series is just what you expect it to be - it is nuanced and incredibly emotional and I loved the time I spent with it. The final 10% of the book is emotionally devastating, and I loved it. I think Backman writes incredibly human stories, and that's what I most appreciate about this series. The only thing that does not fully work here is the pacing (the book is really long and drags in certain parts), but I still really enjoyed it, given how attached I am to the story and the characters. I also really loved all the new characters in here. Could not recommend this series enough, and I think this is a worthy conclusion.

The end of an Era! Beartown is one of my favorite series of all time and I've been excited for this but also didn't want it to end. What can I say except for that Backman always hits it out of the park and I always enjoy reading his stories. Beartown will always hold a special place in my reading heart and I will always always recommend this series!!