Cate Kay is an author and an enigma, hiding behind three different names and lives. While her true identity is a mystery, she’s asked by her publisher to write a memoir detailing her past. The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a true coming-of-age journey of self-discovery. It details a heart-wrenching queer love story that’s so intriguing and courageous, it was both complex and fascinating. It’s truly an impressive multi-faceted read! If you loved The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, this is a MUST READ!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this digital ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book very pleasantly surprised me, and a large part of that was due to the wonderful full casting on the audiobook narration. I’m a little torn on my rating for this one because as a whole I absolutely loved the book. The characters were some of the most developed ones I’ve read in a while and I just adored the relationship between Annie and Amanda (and Cass and Ryan). I loved the style of the book, written in a memoir style with chapters dedicated to people throughout her life. The part that pulls me back from a full five stars is the slight suspension of belief about Annie never checking back on her home town (or her hometown not trying to find her), but I was really able to look past this for the remarkable read this was!

REVIEW: The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan

The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a suspenseful, quick-read read about friendships, coming of age, queer love, and self-discovery. This book does a great job of trying to find yourself even through the darkest of times. I wanted to keep reading to find out more about Cate Kay.

I wasn’t a massive fan of a few things in this book. Many of the situations could have been easily fixed or resolved with communication. The miscommunication trope has been too much for me lately. The beginning of The Three Lives of Cate was also very slow. It was hard to get into at first. Lastly, it was hard to follow due to the many time jumps and narrator switches.

Overall,I enjoyed reading The Three Lives of Cate Kay; it wasn’t my favorite.

Thank you, Atria Books, for the free advanced copy for my honest review!

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an emotional sapphic second chance love story.
well-written debut by kate fagan that has a unique form. what we have here is a book-in-a-book, which I enjoy more and more. this book is full of female friendships, falling in and out of love and dealing with guilt, but also grief.

a must for fans of "The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo" and anything else written by Taylor Jenkins Reid!

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the complementary digital copy of The Three Lives of Cate Kay! It was excellent and I absolutely gobbled it up in nearly one sitting.
At first I was dubious, because when publishers try to compare books to other extraordinarily popular ones, I tend to be turned off. There’s no way something can be the next (in this case) The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. I will now begrudgingly concede that I did enjoy this book just as much, and it did indeed have many settings, themes and narrative similarities.
Cate Kay was so heartbreakingly easy to empathize with, and I was glued to the page with the crazy ups and downs of her life, and with the surprising twists the plot takes. I love multiple POVs and the ‘mock-umentary’ narrative device. The love story was achingly sweet and I furiously turned the pages hoping for her happy ending. The conclusion felt rushed, and I wanted more time with all the characters after things come together. (Yes, I am being vague because I don’t want to give any spoilers.) But, bottom line, I loved it and (like the novels it is being compared to) I hope it takes off in popularity.

Cate Kay is a best selling author of a dystopian trilogy called The Very Last. In fact she has taken the publishing world by storm, selling millions of her books but……no one knows who she is.
Cate is Cass, Cass is Annie. Annie was the teenager who was in love with her best friend Amanda. They were best friends that did everything together and had dreams of escaping their present lives and going to Los Angeles and becoming famous. That is until Amanda suffers a serious accident and Annie in a moment of panic leaves town. She reinvents her self as Cass and starts writing the book that would become The Very Last. The story is shaped by her teenage years with Amanda (whom she is told died in the accident). As her fame grows she finds herself more trapped. Only one person knows Cate is Cass and Cass wants to keep it that way.
The story is told in different voices at different times in their lives and the novel as a whole I think Is meant to be Cate Kay’s memoir.
I found it hard to follow at first and had to organise the characters in my head to sort out who was who and the parts they played. It could easily be a YA read even tho it is a lesbian (do we use that word anymore?)love story , as a lot of Ya novels have gay characters and some a lot more descriptive of the relationships than this.
Good read


#TheThreeLivesOfCateKay. #NetGalley

Anything sapphic has me intrigued, and this book was no exception. However, while I was initially captivated, the story ultimately fell a bit flat partly due to the sheer number of characters introduced, many of whom didn’t feel fully developed. Despite its relatively short length, the novel felt longer than it was, weighed down by passages that could have been trimmed or omitted entirely.

That said, I still believe this novel has significant potential and could resonate deeply with many readers. It absolutely deserves more than three stars, as I can understand why it could be a five-star read for others. Unfortunately, it just didn’t click for me. Nonetheless, I remain hopeful for the author’s future works and am excited to see what they create in the coming years.

Thank you to Kate Fagan, Atria Books, and NetGalley for providing the e-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Sadly, this just wasn't it for me. The concept was strong but the bar was set very high with comparisons to TJR- for a debut author those are very big shoes to fill and I don't think that set the book up for success.

This book has a unique storytelling structure and really unforgettable characters. Different timelines of the main character's life, Cate, use different points of view and although that would seem confusing, it works really well here. Cate's life is intriguing but also filled with heartache and I was rooting for her the whole time. I really enjoyed this book and although the ending didn't quite satisfy me, I would ultimately recommend it to other readers. I am excited to read Kate Fagan's next because I think she has a really interesting perspective as a writer. Thanks to Kate Fagan, Atria Books, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Cate Kay is the best-selling author of the world's biggest trilogy but no one knows anything about her because there is no Cate Kay, just a woman trying her hardest to run away from her pain. Until the day she decides that facing the past is the only way to face the future, which she does with the help of those who were there to help her become who she is today.

Okay, I'll admit it, this one's worth all the hype and book club picks. There is so much to process from so many different angles that I felt an immediate need to discuss it as soon as I finished. Even with the impressive way that Fagan ties all the threads she laid down, I want to know more. There is so much pain and healing and growth that you walk away wanting to spend more time with the characters. I found myself berating characters and talking to the book whenever some of the biggest bombshells dropped, that's how invested you become in the story.

It's a story of rising despite the pain, and that's always a welcomed message.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the engrossing read!

I thought I would enjoy this book more than I did but unfortunately it fell flat for me.

The main character was not likable for me and the storyline drug a lot.

Wow this book was a great ride through the three lives I loved reading about Annie and Amanda their friendship was so amazing yet a little sad. Ryan was a great addition to the book. How life goes full circle sometimes is a sentiment so awesome to witness.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were great and the settings were so well thought out. I highly recommend this book.

I want to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for this advanced reader copy. This is my honest opinion.

This book was great; deep friendships, dark secrets. I couldn't stop reading this one; I fell in love with the rollercoaster!

This was a fascinating book with a fascinating premise. I love a good con (although this wasn't exactly a con) story.

This was indeed about the three lives of Cate Kay and for most of the book I was on board.

The last quarter of the book became too confusing with the introduction of side, side, SIDE characters who did not really add much to the story.

It was hard to keep the timelines straight, but it was an interesting way to tell Cass' story.

I also didn't mesh well with Cass and her decisions (even excluding the big one) just seemed odd.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for an e-copy of THE THREE LIVES OF CATE KAY to review.

I rate THE THREE LIVES OF CATE KAY three out of five stars.

The world wants to know: who is Cate Kay?

For years, the elusive author of a bestselling trilogy turned successful movie series has never been seen in person—not by her editor, not by her publisher. That’s because Cate Kay is a pseudonym, carefully curated to conceal the true identity of the creative mind behind The Very Last trilogy.

Cass Ford was content with her simple life as a barista in New York until one day she overheard something she wasn’t meant to hear: her girlfriend hid a letter meant for Cass. One impulsive decision and cross country flight later, Cass unknowingly set off a chain of events that would ultimately lead to Cate Kay’s true identity being revealed.

Friends! Pick! This! One! Up! On! AUDIO!!! The story is written as a fictional memoir slash celebrity tell-all, and equal parts mystery, coming of age, and romance novel. The frequent shift in POVs (also narrators) and short-ish chapters lend to a propulsive read. With every chapter, a little more is revealed about the person behind Cate Kay, and the suspense made me eager to read more. The ending did not build to as big of a crescendo as I hoped, but ultimately I was satisfied with the conclusion. Bottom line: if you are fans of books with self discovery and strong female friendships, this one is for you!

Thank you Atria for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Oh, Kate Fagan. Why did you do this to me? The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a story now near and dear to my heart, joining favorites such as, yes, Evelyn Hugo, in my personal hall of fame.

I tried to get into this but it just did not grab my attention, I thought it would be more of a thriller/action packed.

This was such a fun book to read. At first it was hard to get into because of the way the story was told, but I ended up loving how it was written. The plot is kind of far fetched, but that made it fun. I ended up crying at the end. This book is worth the read.

Thank you to the publisher for the free review copy!

Rating: 3/5 stars

Cate Kay is a world famous author, but no one knows her true identity…until now.

I think this book might be the perfect example of “right book, wrong time.” I struggled to get into it, and ultimately did not really connect with the plot or any of the characters. That said, I think the concept was great (kind of EVELYN HUGO-esque), and the full-cast audio was EXCELLENT, so I loved the listening experience even if I wasn’t overly in love with the book itself.

In terms of the plot, I sometimes felt like this was trying to do too much, and it felt like it was building to a big reveal/payoff that never quite happened. But I have seen some fantastic reviews and I know this was a BOTM pick, so if it sounds interesting to you I still recommend checking it out! You may love it way more than I did.

CW: Severe (life-changing) injury; mentions of child abuse/neglect; homophobia; toxic relationship

The three lives of cate Kay was a really interesting novel. I love the character study, and the writing was propulsive and kept me engaged.