What came first the book or the TV show? In my world, book is always first. That doesn’t mean the TV show is second best. (But we all know the book is better, right?) If you would like to compare and contrast, then check out these recent additions to the book to TV cannon.

I first mentioned this one as part of my Fiction that’s Not Romance post back in November. This was just a book that I found out about online and proceeded to listen to while walking and trying (successfully thank goodness) to not punch my neighbors lawn care team as they blew the freshly mowed grass onto my sidewalk. The book was frustrating in places, but I digress. I had no idea at the time that it was going to be made into a TV show. AppleTV just recently released the first season of this delightful family drama. It stars Elle Fanning as Margo, Michelle Pfeiffer as her lackadaisical mother and Nick Offerman (!!!) as her professional wrestler dad. Ok, I’ll admit, I’ll watch ANYTHING with Nick Offerman in it. I went back and forth with the book a little, but I have to say, I’m two episodes into the show and am loving it. The show is the brandest of new, so NPL doesn’t quite have it to check out or stream yet, but that should give you plenty of time to read this one and get caught up. And if you already have AppleTV, check out the book first, then check out this show.
 

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably heard about the juggernaut that was/is Heated Rivalry. I’ll be honest, I had not heard of it until it blew up on HBOMax this past fall. I watched the first episode before reading the books. (What? I know. I know. Book first.) I have to say, I was disappointed. It felt like the writers of the show just focused on all the times the two main characters met at hockey matches and hooked up. So I took a break and thought, “the books have to be better, right?” First improvement - Heated Rivalry is actually the second book in the series. Weird, I know. The first book is called Game Changer. And it is so good. After reading that, I was back in, so I put a copy of the Heated Rivalry on hold. Turns out the book is pretty much just like the show, which made me feel a little better. Then in episode 3, the show writers brought back my characters from the first book and I was in. For this one, I definitely recommend reading first, then watching. Also, I had read Reid’s previous book, Time to Shine, and found it sweet and lovable before I ever knew about Heated Rivalry, so be sure to read that one as well. You won’t be disappointed.

This was one of my favorite books of the year when it came out in 2022. Then in 2023, AppleTV made an eight episode mini series out of it starring Brie Larson as main character Elizabeth Zott. I think I loved the TV show just about as much as I loved the book. Be warned, it’s really sad in parts, but the whole is so worth it. I wish that the author would give us another installment into Elizabeth’s world so we could get a season two. Who says I only need to keep my AppleTV subscription because of Ted Lasso? This was a great read and a great watch. I wish I could be friends with Elizabeth Zott.
 

I have been reading Elle Kennedy for a long time. Like a long time. But somehow I managed to miss her Off Campus series. This one is a five book series that discusses the love lives of the Briar University hockey team. One day when I was recording my latest Kennedy read on Goodreads, a banner across the top let me know that Amazon was turning this into a series. So of course I had to start reading. As of this writing, I’m through the first four books and I have a feeling the fifth will fall soon. And friends, we have a release date for the show: May 13, 2026! That’s yesterday, so you better get to reading. IMDB says the cast stars Ella Bright, Belmont Camelli and Steve Howey. I’m old so I have no idea who these folks are, but I’m excited to see this series come to life. In the meantime, you have five books to finish so you better get on it. Your titles are (in order): The Deal, The Mistake, The Score, The Goal, and The Legacy.

Alright friends. These are some of my current faves. If you don’t subscribe to all these services to watch, that’s ok. At least you get to read the books, and like I mentioned, the book is always better. And check out some other titles below that you can get both the book and the DVD from NPL.

Happy reading/watching…
:) Amanda