Review: The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan
Cate Kay is a best-selling author, her dystopian books taking the world by storm. But Cate Kay is a pseudonym, and no-one knows who the author really is. It’s no publishing house stunt to garner publicity though: this writer fully intends to stay absolutely anonymous.
Everyone loves the chase and the puzzle to solve, but no-one has got close to finding out who Cate Kay really is. And in all of her lives, behind all of her names, there are secrets and betrayals. But now her anonymity is getting more precarious and she needs to decide what matters most.
Cate has a lot to lose.
The story is told initially primarily from Cate’s perspective, in parallel current-day narratives alongside throwbacks to her younger days. Then later we do get to jump into the perspective of some of the other key characters, and occasionally we get short-chapter glimpses into other characters and their relationships with Cate. There’s also a clever matryoshka-doll construction of books within books, and the annotations and footnotes build a 360° experience that’s immersive rather than dizzying.
There’s no denying that there’s a strong Taylor Jenkins Reid vibe about the book, in tone and topic, but it stands strong on its own merits: “yes, and” rather than imitative. The tension builds well and there are some brilliant gasp-out-loud dramatic scenes.
Cate / Cass (“what a life I wasn’t living”) as the central character is compelling. She’s complex and sometimes frustrating and unlikeable and almost always relatable and I loved her.
Amanda (“nothing seemed right”) is where it all began and I loved her.
Ryan (“my sweet spot was a full redemption arc in about two hours”) hit every Hollywood cliché but also she’s so much more and I loved her.
Sidney (“morality is a delicate ecosystem”) is a flint-faced lawyer, always sussing the angles, and I loved her.
The book deconstructs many types of female relationships - friends, family, colleagues, lovers - and does so with both clear-eyed pragmatism and a tenderness that cracked my heart. Where male characters are included in the book they are (though still interesting characters) mainly bridges in the plot, and a satisfying subversion of tired writing tropes.
The Three Lives of Cate Kay is entertaining and readable, but it’s much more than that. I found a set of characters that were nuanced and engrossing, and a plot that drew me in and kept me guessing. As a debut novel this is a strong start, and I believe there’s great things to come from Kate Fagan.
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This title will be released on Jan 7, 2025. Thank you Bloomsbury for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
