If you’re anything like me, you’ve been dying for something to fill the hole that Heated Rivalry has left in your heart. Since the final episode aired on Dec. 26, I’ve been missing the feeling I got watching the show for the first time. For a show that started as an original series from Canadian streaming platform Crave, I’ve been excited about this show since I first heard about it, months before it came out. The reason? Because I read the Heated Rivalry books almost three years before the show was released.
I have been obsessed with Rachel Reid’s Game Changers series for years, so when I heard that a TV show adaptation was in the works, I was sat. I loved the books, so my hopes were high going into the TV series. Safe to say, I wasn’t disappointed. However, I knew going into it that the show wouldn’t be the same as the books. Switching between media, it’s impossible for the story not to change. But, despite some of the show being different from the books, there were tons of little details and Easter eggs that snuck their way into the show that made it as perfect as it is. Here are five Easter eggs from the books that made it into the show.
- The Cross Necklace
Crave/HBO Max In the books, Shane often notices Ilya wearing a cross chain necklace. I loved that this small detail made it into the show, and without any spoilers, the significance of the necklace will likely be revealed in the second season.
- The friendship with Hayden
Hayden is a small side character in the show, but is Shane’s best friend in the books. Their friendship is an important part of Shane’s life in the books, and Hayden is actually the first person to find out about his relationship with Ilya — apart from Shane’s parents.
- The Coach’s Son
In the book, Ilya tells Shane that he’s hooked up with one guy before Shane, who was his hockey coach’s son in Russia. In the show, the man Ilya has a scene with in Russia, Sasha, is that same guy from the books.
- The Canadian Wolf-Bird
One of my favorite scenes in the book is when Shane and Ilya are at Shane’s cottage and they hear a loon call. Ilya’s reaction is exactly the same in the show, a detail they recreated perfectly. “Stupid Canadian wolf bird.” Be still, my beating heart!
- The “We Didn’t Even Kiss” Scene
In a now-iconic moment in the second episode, Shane types out the words “we didn’t even kiss” in his text chain with Ilya. This isn’t how the scene goes in the book, as originally, it’s only a thought Shane has as he leaves the hotel. But including it in the show in this way was the perfect little Easter egg for book readers who love the moment, and a great way to show viewers who’d never seen the show a little hint at what Shane feels for Ilya early on.
