My Rating: 5 stars
A couple days ago, I received a surprise in my email box that made me squeal with delight. An advance copy of a book that I've been dying to read since January but didn't think I would get the chance to until October, landed unexpectedly in my inbox and my first reaction was to pinch myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming (I wasn't). My second reaction (after I stopped screaming of course, lol), was trying to decide whether to forego all upcoming reads that I had lined up (including anything I was currently reading) so I could jump on this one right away — which is exactly what I ended up doing. The book I'm referring to is Fredrik Backman's The Winners, which is the third (and final) book in the Beartown series. I read Beartown and its sequel Us Against You for the first time back in January and fell absolutely head over heels in love with the story as well as the characters. I loved both books and when I heard that the last book in the series would come out in the fall of this year, I was agonizingly counting down the days until I could get my hands on a copy (given this context, it probably makes sense now why I was so delighted to have received an ARC so many months in advance of publication)! As is usually the case when I pick up one of Backman's novels (not to mention this one being Beartown-related), I knew I would be so absorbed in the story that I wouldn't be able to tear myself away, so I decided to start this on a Saturday, which would give me the entire weekend to read non-stop if it came down to that (a sensible decision, especially when I saw that this book clocks in at nearly 700 pages!). In the end, I finished this one in a matter of hours, which is nothing short of a miracle for me (though worth every single minute I spent on it).
The story opens 2 years after the last events in Us Against You where, in addition to being reunited with all the beloved characters from the first 2 books, we are also introduced to a few new ones who, by the end of the book, still managed to find a place in my heart despite their relatively brief appearances. Going into this third book, I was already expecting it to be an emotionally charged read for me, just like the previous 2 books were, but what I wasn't expecting was the extent of the emotional impact — perhaps because, not long after the story opens, it hits me that this will actually be my last opportunity to spend time with these characters that I had grown to love so much, or perhaps because I already had an idea of the tragedy that would occur at the conclusion of the story (even though the previous 2 books had already dropped hints as to what the fates would be of certain characters and so I had time to brace for impact, it didn't make the moment, when it occurred, any less heart wrenching). Perhaps it was also my mindset going into this, knowing it was going to be the final chapter to a beloved series, it made each moment — whether happy, sad, sweet, upsetting — feel much more pronounced and poignant. I was actually quite conflicted while reading this because on the one hand, I didn't want to let these characters go, so part of me wanted to read slowly and prolong my time with them, but then on the other hand, I was eager to find out what was going to happen and whether they would be okay in the end.
I am going to keep this review deliberately short, as it is incredibly difficult to talk about any of the plot points that occur without giving away too much of the story (especially if you haven't yet read the previous 2 books in the series). To be honest, I feel that the blurb describing the book already reveals too much — if you decide to pick this one up, especially if you've already read the first 2 books and are as big a fan of the series as I am, I would recommend not even reading the blurb and going straight into the book itself (I know for me, the mere fact of this being "Beartown #3" was enough for me to dive right in, lol). And if it so happens that you haven't read the first 2 books yet (I only just read them earlier this year myself, even though both books have been out for quite some time already), definitely read those 2 first before attempting his one, as being able to see all the characters grow and evolve throughout all 3 books makes the reading experience so much more special. Also, if you do decide to pick this one up, just make sure you have some tissues handy because while the events that happened in this one were a fitting conclusion to the entire series (I loved how Backman brilliantly and masterfully brought the story arc full circle), it was also sad and bittersweet.
It's not often that I rate all the books in a series 5 stars, but this one absolutely deserves it! I'm not much of a re-reader nowadays, as I already don't have a whole lot of time to read in general due to work and family priorities, so I prefer to spend that time chipping away at my ridiculously huge TBR of first time reads, but this is a series that I can totally see myself re-reading at some point, which says a lot about how much I loved the entire series.
Received ARC from Atria Books via NetGalley.
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