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A Novel
by Kate Fagan
Book Reviewed by:The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo meets First Lie Wins in this electric, voice-driven debut novel about an elusive bestselling author who decides to finally confess her true identity after years of hiding from her past.
Cate Kay knows how to craft a story. As the creator of a bestselling book trilogy that struck box office gold as a film series, she's one of the most successful authors of her generation. The thing is, Cate Kay doesn't really exist. She's never attended author events or granted any interviews. Her real identity had been a closely guarded secret, until now.
As a young adult, she and her best friend Amanda dreamed of escaping their difficult homes and moving to California to become movie stars. But the day before their grand adventure, a tragedy shattered their dreams and Cate has been on the run ever since, taking on different names and charting a new future. But after a shocking revelation, Cate understands that returning home is the only way she'll be a whole person again.
Excerpt
The Three Lives of Cate Kay
February 27, 2014
Charleston, SC
About a year ago, a FedEx package landed on the porch of my home in Charleston, South Carolina. I don't get much personal mail, a consequence of multiple name changes, I guess.
A saga, actually—my name. I've had too many. I was born Anne Marie Callahan, but growing up, my best friend called me Annie. A few years later, I legally changed it to Cass Ford. Then, I published under the pseudonym Cate Kay. I wish it was simpler. Trust me, I do. Creating a new life (or lives) takes a devastating amount of energy, of imagination. And I've missed hearing my real name.
So, this FedEx box was an anomaly in my world. I glanced at the return address: Mason, Cowell & Collins, the law firm of Sidney Collins. Not only was Sidney the architect of my literary empire—manager of all things Cate Kay—she was also my ex-girlfriend.
I carefully opened the box. Inside was a stack of blue ...
Kate Fagan's stirring novel takes the form of a tell-all memoir that Cate writes to come clean about who she is. The largest focus is on the three different women who each knew and loved a different version of Cate... In this way, The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a love story, one in which Cate must find the strength to correct her mistakes and return to the people she left behind in order to accept that love, to feel that she deserves it, and to live honestly as herself...continued
Full Review
(924 words)
(Reviewed by Sara Fiore).
Emiko Jean, New York Times bestselling author of The Return of Ellie Black
An emotionally driven thriller that explores friendship, love, and the pitfalls of fame. I couldn't stop reading this twisty, big-hearted novel. The Three Lives of Cate Kay is simply unputdownable! Kate Fagan is a masterful storyteller. Emily Habeck, USA Today bestselling author of Shark Heart
The Three Lives of Cate Kay peels back the provocative pretense of superstardom to tell a tale about friendship, love, ambition, and the burden of selves we bury but carry with us through time. Readers who crave a thriller's pulse and a literary novel's perception will be rapt and delighted by Fagan's gripping and heartfelt debut. Laura Hankin, author of A Special Place for Women
The Three Lives of Cate Kay is a captivating novel of deep friendship and dark secrets. Come for the twisty turns and celebrity glamor, stay for Kate Fagan's bighearted writing and all-too-human characters. I can't stop thinking about it.I've joked on more than one occasion that, should I ever write a novel of my own, it will have to be under a pseudonym to save myself from the ire of all the real people I'll be turning into fiction. Many famous and acclaimed writers have used a pseudonym (also known as a pen name, nom de guerre, and nom de plume). The name Mark Twain is infinitely more well known than Samuel Clemens, his real-life counterpart. The French novelist George Sand used her male pseudonym to publish and to advocate for women's rights in 19th century France. Louisa May Alcott used multiple aliases—the most famous being "A.M. Barnard"—because they allowed her to write about more controversial subjects and in "lurid" genres, unlike the domestic fiction ...
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