Rachel Reid, whose romance novels became an overnight hit when they were adapted into the television series “Heated Rivalry,” told her fans on Tuesday that her symptoms from Parkinson’s disease were worsening.
As a result, Reid said she was delaying the publication of the next installment of the series, “Unrivaled,” which had been initially set for publication by HarperCollins in September. It is now delayed until June 2027.
Reid’s Parkinson’s diagnosis came in 2023.
“When good things happen, sometimes the universe hands you some worse stuff to balance it out and for me that’s been that my Parkinson’s symptoms have gotten a bit worse and it’s made it difficult physically to write,” she said in a video on social media. “I’m definitely a lot slower and that’s just something I need to learn how to navigate and kind of face instead of ignoring.”
However, she told her fans, she would still deliver the kind of story they are craving.
“I do think that this book will be worth the wait,” she continued. “Ultimately it’s going to be a much better book and that’s the most important thing to me. I think it’ll be better for the readers and it’ll be better for the characters.”
Reid — whose real name is Rachelle Goguen — published in 2018 the first novel in the series, “Game Changer,” about a closeted hockey player who fell in love with a barista. She followed it in 2019 with “Heated Rivalry,” which focuses on the secret romance of two rival players, Shane and Ilya. It was adapted and directed by Jacob Tierney for HBO Max in 2025 and rapidly ascended into mainstream popular culture.
Other books in the series include “Tough Guy,” “Common Goal,” “Role Model” and “The Long Game,” which continues the story of Shane and Ilya as they decide whether to take their relationship public. “Unrivaled” will explore how the couple, now out and married, navigate being together and in the spotlight.
Reid said she was overwhelmed with the response to “Heated Rivalry” as the HBO Max version of her book catapulted the author to new fame.
“It’s beyond a dream come true,” she said. “My life has gotten very different in the last couple months and although it’s all good it’s also taken away my ability to have quality time to write. There’s nothing more important to me than ‘Unrivaled’ being the best book it can possibly be.”
The television series has already been renewed for a second season, but Ms. Reid teased there could be more surprises later this week to tide over fans.
“There’s going to be some announcements made about some things that I think people have been hoping for so you can maybe wait for those and it might make you feel a little bit better,” she said.
Remy Tumin is a reporter for The Times covering breaking news and other topics.
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