By Jack Burden

In Jen Craven’s new novel The Skiers, the high-octane world of professional slalom skiing gets the kind of glossy, tabloid-ready treatment usually reserved for tennis aces or Formula 1 stars. It’s a book where champions dodge paparazzi, grace People magazine covers, and, yes, where 10-year-olds compete for cash prizes. If that last part makes you cringe, you’re not alone — especially if you’re someone who’s spent more than a weekend dockside.

The Skiers follows Willa and Sadie, two fierce, lifelong competitors whose rivalry spans not just the slalom course but also a long-standing love triangle. As they chase the crown at the sport’s biggest event, tragedy strikes in the form of an explosion that fractures the competition and sends suspicion rippling through their tight-knit community. Part thriller, part romance, Craven’s novel trades in intrigue as much as in buoy counts.

For those inside the sport, references to slalom “races” and stopwatch-wielding coaches may induce a wince, and the skiing sequences themselves lean more Hollywood than hard-edge technical. But Craven’s research deserves credit. A self-confessed casual TWBC viewer, she made the pilgrimage to the Swiss Pro Slalom after pouring over years of footage and interviews while writing the novel. “Such a cool day getting to experience the Swiss Pro Slalom IRL,” she shared on Instagram, recounting how she mingled with top athletes like Whitney McClintock-Rini, Regina Jaquess, and Jon Travers — the latter memorably lending a shoelace mid-event to fix a competitor’s broken binding.

Chapter 10 of The Skiers takes place at the same event, blurring the line between Craven’s fiction and reality. And while the real Swiss Pro didn’t feature the drama or scandal her characters face, the blend of fierce competition and genuine camaraderie made a clear impression on the author.

The world Craven builds is one of heightened reality, where skiers are household names and professional winnings are enough to pay more than just boat gas. For those of us grounded in the less glamorous truth — where most elite skiers juggle full time jobs to fund their seasons — the alternate universe wears thin at times. Still, it’s hard not to be charmed by the fantasy.

At its core, The Skiers is a page-turner — packed with drama, secrets, and just enough romance to keep it propulsive. “Friends want to see you succeed, just never more than them,” the tagline warns. Craven delivers on that promise with an engaging story of ambition, betrayal, and the fine line between friends and frenemies.

For readers looking for a light summer read — and for anyone excited to see slalom skiing sneak into mainstream fiction — The Skiers is worth a spot in your beach bag. Accuracy aside, seeing our niche sport woven into a thriller is, frankly, just plain fun.