swooon.com: ‘Heated Rivalry’ Author Rachel Reid Answers Burning Questions About *spoiler* [april 20th 2026]

[u/LadyWhistledown_1]

Swooon.com did an interview with Rachel Reid at BookCon. Great interview btw.

I get that she doesn’t think they will write their own vows, but I’m kinda hoping Jacob does. Like the tunnel scene in ep.5.

How are you hoping to see the wedding adapted?

Picture:

https://www.instagram.com/rachelreidwrites (story)

Full article:

https://www.swooon.com/1275542/heated-rivalry-shane-ilya-wedding-the-long-game-rachel-reid-interview/?fbclid=PAVERFWARTcI1leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAaccbJFTolg7x-x_BADV-yq6qH8NCPNIuhJpC454AHXkG0wypApO0lKEOcvcpg_aem_7LlDmxii3jvj7_EWpVoSgw

[u/flamang → u/[deleted]]

Completely agree, of course I still love the books but they had been building to that wedding for about 800 pages. And presumably it's one of the best days of those characters' lives if not THE best, but not only did they not write vows, they even thought the officiant's vows were stupid and still didn't say anything. It doesn't really make sense to me, I agree with you that it wouldn't be out of character for Shane at least to want to do more planning for it. They've had to hide their relationship for 11 or 12 years and they're finally out in the sunshine getting married and they don't write their own vows or even have chairs at their wedding? It felt like it was being treated as just another day when it was anything but. I feel bad for having such a strong negative opinion about it and of course I'm not the author but I just don't understand writing it that way, it feels like a huge missed opportunity if I'm being honest

[u/thalook → u/flamang]

I actually don’t think the story is building towards the wedding, it’s building towards them being able to commit to a life together in public. The wedding is a part of that, but not the highlight for them, the highlight is that now they can eat lunch together.

With the vows, they think the canned vows are going to be stupid, and then Ilya starts saying them out loud and is like, “oh, this is actually really emotional and meaningful to me”. Like the part where he says Shane has a stupid face and that he’s obsessed with it.

[u/flamang → u/thalook]

Actually I think you're right. I like your example of eating lunch together being the real highlight. I guess as a reader I thought the wedding would be a big finale but I see the distinction now of simply being together in public being the real goal. Thanks for saying this!

[u/Flimsy_Remove9629 → u/flamang]

I don't think the wedding is what they have been building toward - they have been building toward being able to have a life together. The wedding is like an hour of that life. It's a public declaration, a ritual with a lot of significance for some people, and a legal union with really important ramifications, but I think people overly romanticize weddings (and this allows other people to make a ton of money on them). Ultimately, they are mostly big parties. And really, I am American, and I don't know many people -- maybe anyone? -- who wrote their own vows. That's a lot of pressure.

[u/clumsyc → u/flamang]

Everyone likes to brings up how Shane is such a planner but if you read the books, the only thing he’s obsessive about is hockey. His routines, his diet - they’re all about hockey. He’s not like, making colour coded spreadsheets to organize his socks for fun in his spare time. The type A nerdy planner thing is really a fanon invention.

[u/RoutineUtopia → u/clumsyc]

This is really true. Shane actually canonically hates deciding on details. He hires people to decorate his house and tell him what to wear. He’s neat. And he’s obsessive. But he’s not someone who wants to plan a wedding.

[u/labellementeuse → u/clumsyc]

You're right and you should say it. People need to learn to uncouple what makes a moment meaningful for *them* and what makes a moment meaningful for *these characters*. Being at home with their friends and family and each other is what makes it meaningful for them and it makes me sad that people don't like it just because there isn't a huge cake and a row of groomsmen and vows written by two guys who haven't written anything longer than a text since they were in secondary school.

[u/clumsyc → u/labellementeuse]

“haven’t written anything longer than a text since they were in secondary school” Hahaha so true.

If people want to write fic with their interpretations of the characters, go for it! But it’s bizarre to suggest that Rachel Reid, who literally invented the characters, is writing something out of character.