Kate Fagan’s The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a thought-provoking and emotionally resonant novel that delves into themes of identity, resilience, and self-discovery. Through the lens of Cate Kay’s multifaceted life, Fagan crafts a narrative that is both deeply personal and universally relatable.

The Three Lives of Cate Kay is the first book I've read by Kate Fagan and it did not disappoint! I was hooked from the beginning, eager to learn the mystery of Cate Kay, and appreciated how the hints unraveled throughout the story. Follow the tale of why an elusive, best-selling author felt the intense need to hide her true identity as the people and circumstances in her life led to her eventual desire to make her true self known. With strong, queer, female leads and a thrilling plot, this is a good one!

The format was a unique and successful way to blend different character POVs while switching between past and present; it was engaging without being difficult to follow. As someone who discovered Kate Fagan from her prior work with the Free Cookies podcast, I especially enjoyed nods to Fagan's personality (like the character's love of oatmeal raisin cookies).

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for my honest review!

The Three Lives of Cate Kay was a real page-turner. But, I gotta be honest, it did get a little confusing at points. There are a lot of characters and details to keep track of, and sometimes I felt like I was getting whiplash trying to follow along. And the ending, while satisfying in a way, left me wanting a bit more closure on certain things.

Overall, though, I'd definitely recommend The Three Lives of Cate Kay. It's a suspenseful, thought-provoking read that'll keep you hooked. Just be prepared for a bit of a mental workout!

I could hardly put this one down. The mystery unraveled with perfect timing and clues. Well developed characters kept me invested and a the romance was a perfect addition. 5/5

If you loved The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, this book is an absolute must-read. It offers the same heartfelt exploration of love, fame, and identity, with a captivating narrative structure that switches between past and present, giving you different perspectives on the main character’s life.

The protagonist is a complex, flawed, yet sympathetic character who navigates the highs and lows of her personal and public life. The multiple points of view—each revealing more about her inner world and the relationships that define her—add layers to the story that make it both intimate and grand in scope.

The book’s emotional depth and raw honesty, especially in the portrayal of love, sacrifice, and ambition, hit all the same notes as Evelyn Hugo. While it doesn’t shy away from the darker, more complicated sides of fame and human nature, it also captures moments of genuine vulnerability and connection.

If you’re looking for another novel that delivers on dramatic twists, complex characters, and a heartfelt narrative arc, this book will not disappoint. It’s a beautifully written, emotional journey that’s sure to leave a lasting impression.

First of all, thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Annie and Amanda are best friends and for as long as they can remember they have had a dream of going to Hollywood together and making it big. Then an accident happens that changes everything.

I started off loving this book. I was 3/4 of the way done and I was rating it a 5 star book. Then we get to the ending and to me it seemed rushed. Sydney had kept a big secret from Cat the whole book and she just shrugged it off in the end. I wanted to see more emotion and a bigger reunion between characters that had loved each other for years. The ending fell flat for me. Overall I think it is worth reading but was just hoping for more from it than we got.

Just going to start by saying I LOVED this book and predict BIG THINGS for it!!!

You'll like it if you like: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, small town & big city, character driven & plot driven, a little romance, a lot of friendship, and so much heart.

This was the perfect amount of character driven & plot driven. You really get to know and understand all of the characters and have a deep connection with them (also, partly due to the fact of Kate Fagan's beautifully simple, straight to the point, detailed writing!) while we're also following this very intriguing, interesting, high stakes plot.

I just thought the book was so fun and unique, I really had trouble putting it down. I miss these characters already and want to reread it when it comes out!

The Three Lives of Cate Kay is one of the most original books that I've read in a long time. Sometimes I feel like every book has a similar feel and plot, but this one stands out as completely different in terms of it's format. I loved that it was written like a memoir, but one that incorporated multiple POVs, and had the use of the endnotes. I highly recommend- I feel like this is going to be one a bunch of people are talking about.

I want to like this book. It has an intriguing storyline & plot. But I'm confused the way it's written. Too much jumping all over the places w lots of different characters. When I'm enjoying a book, all I want to do is read it. But I look for excuses not to pick up this book. I like the concept of fame being lonely & not as pleasurable and positive as the public would think. I felt Sydney was a male character (even the name could be male) for a few chapters until the "she" pronoun was used. I'm jumping all over the place trying to sum up the 36% I read which is very similar to how the book felt. I'm sure it all eventually comes together but since I read for pleasure, I'm going to DNF and start 1 of the many other books on my TBR list/pile.

The author knew exactly what they were doing!!! I love a good character study and this was honestly so personable to me.

This book was a crazy train wreck from the beginning. But I thoroughly enjoyed it! It's about a lady born Annie, now Cass, but writing under the name Cate. She had a best friend in high school, they were going to go to Hollywood together and make it big, but then there was an accident and things go majorly sideways. And things continue to be all kinds of sideways from there. The story is told by many people along the way, each part is first person from someone that is a part of the story or from Annie/Cass herself. Sometimes chapters from the others have little notations from Annie/Cass too, which was neat, getting to see her reaction to how others viewed events she was a part of. I liked the different viewpoints, that's always a thing I enjoy though.

The characters weren't very likeable, they made some horrible decisions, but they were telling things from their POV so it was mostly a case of unreliable narration. Except for Janie, she was absolutely the worst and I thought she'd get her comeuppance in the end, but she didn't. Ryan talked about how great she was and I screamed at the book. Aside from the characters themselves, there were a few off points in the book. Ryan being a big time actress and being told to watch her weight. That could've just been left out completely, disordered eating doesn't have a place unless it's integral to the story, and it really wasn't here. Also, to be a little spicy here, there's other ways to say someone is excited without just throwing "wet" out there. The one or two mildly spicy scenes felt horribly out of place, and honestly felt like they were written by a teenage boy.

Overall, it was definitely a page turner, little bit romance, but mostly just general fiction. It was average with a little bit extra something.

Unfortunately not for me - but I can see a lot of people enjoying this, so I imagine we will get a copy for the collection.

Thank you for sharing this with me. As a fan of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo I was excited by the comparison. I enjoyed the book but it just was ok and maybe I'm too old but it just did not grab me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria books for an early copy.

This book started off a little slow, but I ended up so engaged and loving it.
Usually multiple POVs can be confusing, but I actually loved all the characters and it didn’t distract from the story.
The story interconnects eventually and you understand everything. A little more detail about the tragedy would’ve been great, but I enjoyed it either way.
I’m looking forward to reading more of this author.

- Loved the different POVs throughout the book
- I wish that Annie did a better job of addressing what Sidney did to her regarding the tragedy at the beginning of the book, that was forgotten
- I think more insight into Amanda would have been a nice bonus
- I'm not sure I bought the "memoir" piece of the book, as parts of how it came together was entertaining
- Really enjoyed the story within the story
- Overall, really fun book and I could totally see it catching on!

This is hands down the most thrilling book I've had the pleasure of reading in the past year. I literally couldn't stop reading this and I crushed it in 4 sittings, which is incredible because I'm currently in a reading slump. The story follows Cate from her childhood to her adulthood, exploring how her relationships with others, her dreams, and her identity change as time passes. I have a vision and I kind of need this book to be a limited series!!!

I think the most impressive thing that Fagan accomplished is writing in so many characters and having them all make an impact. It's so easy to go wrong with multiple POVs where unnecessary characters are introduced but there was not a single chapter that wasn't meant to be there. Each character added more depth to the story to create a full circle. While you're not going to like all of them, I found it easy to sympathise or at least understand the ones I dislike which I consider a good marker for complex characters.

I discovered that Kate Fagan is a sports commentator and ex-professional basketball player so now I desperately need a basketball book from her. Thank you, NetGalley, Atria Books, and Fagan for the ARC!

OMG I loved this book from the multiple POVs to the sapphic nature of the book. This had everything and I get why fans of The Seven Husbands would love this book because I loved both of these books. I also dont give a lot of books 5 stars and this got it I loved how Cate and Annies story is weaved. Its beautiful and I truly hope that this is picked up for a movie or a tv series I think it would be wonderful.

3.5 rounded up to a 4. The Three Lives of Cate Kay is contemporary fiction and I would say the pacing is fairly slow and meandering until the last quarter to third of the book. Once I hit that point, I thoroughly enjoyed it but maybe that says more about my reading preferences than the book itself. I prefer a faster paced book.

If I edited this book, I think I'd start in the middle and go backwards with flashbacks. Some of it is written as a fictional memoir of Cate Kay and other parts are written as the fictional novel that Cate writes in the book. I actually really enjoyed the novel. The characters are all a little vague but their relationships and love for each other is somehow clear.

Perhaps this would be good for readers of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo like the blurb says. It certainly tells a long, meandering and interconnected story that takes place over an extended period of time with a vast collection of characters. If you enjoy contemporary fiction and don't mind a bit of a slower paced, literary novel, you will enjoy this one.

The relationships and descriptions are really clear and I can still picture a lot of the scenes. Thank you to netgalley for an ARC to enjoy.

I really, really, reallyyyyyyy enjoyed this! From page one I felt like I was in such good hands - a twisty page turner, but the writing is also so crisp and smart (which doesn’t seem to be a given in the thriller genre). I think this one is going to be a hit.

I requested and received an eARC of The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan via NetGalley. Cate Kay knows how to craft much more than a story. She has crafted an entirely new life and identity for herself. Born Anne Marie Callahan, but called Annie by her childhood best friend, she has become the successful Cass Ford, better known by her pseudonym Cate Kay. As a young adult she and Amanda dream of escaping their lives and becoming the next big thing in Hollywood. Their dream is shattered by a tragedy and Cate has been on the run from her past ever since. As an adult her successful trilogy of novels and the subsequent film adaptations have skyrocketed her to fame, but the truth is no one knows who Cate Kay is. Cate has never publicly disclosed her identity, but finally she is ready to step forward and reveal to the world exactly who Cate Kay is.

This book is presented as Cate Kay’s memoir with chapters written by those who can offer their perspective interspersed throughout the book. I loved this structure and what it added to the novel as a whole. It offers Cate a certain duality and allows the reader to more certainly see her blindspots and become more familiar with the important people in her life. These added layers really rounded out the book and made for an interesting read. The protagonist was well written and believable, not always likable, but completely unforgettable. I wish some of the complexity used in the writing of Cate had been extended to more of the secondary cast. I left the book with lingering questions about Amanda and Sidney in particular. I personally didn’t really care about the excerpts from Cate’s novel that were included throughout, although I think their inclusion really drove home how deeply affected Cate was by the *big* moment that changes the book. They also didn’t detract from the overall story, which was hard to pull away from! Love, deception, mystery, laughter, tears? Who could ask for more?

I truly enjoyed reading this book. Cate felt so real to me, particularly her response in the moments after the tragedy. So many little moments in the early chapters really resonated with me, particular experiences that come with growing up as a queer kid. These things all made me super endeared to Cate early on. The element of mystery in the plot also really drove me to read this book. I couldn’t help but wonder what circumstances had led the protagonist to her top secret life as an adult, and perhaps more importantly I cared. It also gave me the vibes of a late 90’s/early 00’s Winona Ryder/Natalie Portman/Christina Ricci film but with a Sapphic spin, giving the story this sort of magic that I couldn’t resist. Fagan tackles so many things (parental issues, friendship, queerness, trauma and avoidance) in this book in a moving and convincing way. The solid foundations of this book seemed to somewhat erode for me in the final few chapters. I was pleased with how everything came together, but I was also left craving bigger emotions and firmer resolutions within several relationships between the various characters, which felt deserved in light of everything that unfolds within this story.