Garrett Lin in The Favorites: Character Analysis

Overview: The Steady Counterweight to Chaos

Garrett Lin enters The Favorites as the polished, seemingly perfect twin of Isabella Lin, the son of two-time Olympic gold medalist Sheila Lin. He is introduced at the 2001 National Championships when he helps Katarina Shaw up after a fall, an act that immediately contrasts with his sister's hostility. Over the course of the novel, Garrett evolves from a distant rival into Katarina's most reliable partner, both on and off the ice. He is defined by his calm, empathetic nature, his secret homosexuality, and his quiet rebellion against the Lin family brand. While Heath Rocha represents passion and volatility, Garrett embodies steadiness and control—yet his own hidden life reveals the cost of that control. His arc is one of gradual self-revelation, from a man who hides his true self to protect his mother's legacy, to someone who eventually leaves skating and finds a life outside the spotlight.

Plot Role: From Rival to Partner to Witness

Garrett's role in the narrative is multifaceted. He first appears as part of the Lin family's elite skating dynasty, a rival to Katarina and Heath. After Heath's departure following the 2002 World Championships, Garrett becomes Katarina's new partner, a decision that reshapes her career and her personal life. He is also a confidant, offering Katarina a modeling job when she is financially desperate, and later serving as a beard to protect his own secret. In the later chapters, he reappears at Sheila's funeral with his boyfriend Andre, revealing that he has left skating after a car accident and now studies psychology. His presence bookends the novel: he is there at the beginning as a symbol of the Lin empire, and at the end as a survivor who has chosen a different path.

Motivations and Traits Shown Through Actions

Garrett's motivations are rooted in a desire for both success and authenticity, though he often prioritizes the former. He hides his homosexuality because, as he tells Katarina on the beach in Chapter 36, his mother's brand depends on packaging him as a handsome prince for female fans. He says, “Being gay wasn’t part of the business plan.” This reveals his primary motivation: to protect his family's legacy and his own position within it, even at the cost of his personal truth.

His actions consistently demonstrate empathy and loyalty. When Katarina is upset about her missing inheritance, Garrett offers to ask his mother for an extension and then proposes the modeling job, showing his willingness to help without expecting anything in return. He also demonstrates a rare ability to see beyond surface appearances. In the same beach scene, he tells Katarina that everyone is as self-conscious as she is, and he shares his mother's secret past—that Sheila grew up in Sugar Land, Texas, and changed her name from Lin Li-Mei—to make Katarina feel less alone. This act of vulnerability, though it does not reveal his own secret, shows his capacity for genuine connection.

On the ice, Garrett is described as “steady, calm” and “too calm sometimes” by Katarina, who notes that he holds himself back so as not to outshine Bella. This restraint is both a strength and a limitation. It makes him an ideal partner for Katarina, who needs someone to temper her fire, but it also reflects his habit of suppressing his own needs. His midnight practice sessions, where he skates with raw emotion to emo music, reveal a passion he rarely shows publicly.

Chronological Arc

Garrett's arc can be traced through several key phases.

Early Rivalry (Chapters 6–19): He is introduced as Bella's twin, part of the Lin family that dominates the skating world. He is polite but distant, and his sister's hostility toward Katarina is not shared by him. At the Fourth of July party, he greets the narrator warmly and later demonstrates the correct lift technique, showing his technical skill and his willingness to help even a rival.

The Turning Point (Chapters 20–26): After Heath leaves, Garrett becomes a potential partner. He offers Katarina the modeling job, and later, after the 2002 Worlds, he asks Bella to propose partnering with him. He admits to Katarina that he saw their compatibility during the photo shoot. This phase marks his transition from a background figure to a central player in Katarina's life.

Partnership and Success (Chapters 27–42): Garrett and Katarina win the World Championship in Moscow, though Katarina's falter when she spots Heath costs them points. Their partnership is successful but strained by Katarina's unresolved feelings for Heath. Garrett remains supportive, even as he becomes a beard for Katarina's public image.

The Outing and Aftermath (Chapters 62–66): At the Olympic Village party, a drunk Katarina outs Garrett to other partygoers. He is hurt and walks away, but later she sees him kissing Scott Stanton, confirming his secret. This event fractures their relationship, though they later reconcile at Sheila's funeral.

Post-Skating Life (Epilogue): Garrett has stopped skating after a car accident and studies psychology at Stanford. He participates in a documentary about the scandal, wanting to show the humanity behind it. He appears with his boyfriend Andre, indicating he has finally embraced his identity.

Relationships

With Bella: Garrett and Bella are twins who share a close bond, but they keep secrets from each other. Bella does not know about Garrett's sexuality, and Garrett does not know about Sheila's past until he tells Katarina. Their relationship is competitive yet loyal. Bella proposes the partner switch, and Garrett goes along with it, though he later admits he asked Bella to talk to Katarina. After the outing, Bella and Garrett's relationship is strained, but they remain family.

With Sheila: Sheila is the controlling matriarch who shapes Garrett's public image. He is her “prized, perfect son,” but she is unaware of his private life. Garrett's decision to hide his sexuality is directly tied to Sheila's brand. At the funeral, he gives a speech, but it is Bella who breaks down, suggesting that Garrett has found a way to honor his mother while also moving beyond her influence.

With Katarina: Garrett is Katarina's partner, friend, and beard. He offers her stability and support, and she in turn becomes his confidante. Their relationship is platonic but intimate, as seen in the beach scene where they share champagne and secrets. Katarina's outing of Garrett is a betrayal, but he forgives her, and they maintain a connection into the epilogue.

With Heath: Garrett is a source of jealousy for Heath, who suspects a romantic relationship between Garrett and Katarina. Garrett is aware of this and tries to empathize with Heath, even when Heath is hostile. Their rivalry is never overt, but it underscores the contrast between the two men.

With Ellis and Andre: Garrett's secret relationships with men are revealed through Ellis Dean, whom Katarina catches him kissing, and later Andre, his boyfriend at the funeral. These relationships are hidden from the public, but they represent Garrett's true self.

Key Decisions and Consequences

• Hiding his sexuality: This decision protects his career and his mother's brand but causes him years of internal conflict. It also leads to the painful outing at the party, which damages his trust in Katarina.

• Partnering with Katarina: This decision elevates Katarina's career and gives Garrett a chance to shine as a skater in his own right. However, it also places him in the middle of Katarina and Heath's drama, and it ultimately ties him to the scandal that ends their Olympic dreams.

• Leaving skating after the car accident: This decision, made after his competitive career ends, allows him to pursue a normal life and study psychology. It is a deliberate break from the Lin legacy, suggesting a desire for authenticity over fame.

• Participating in the documentary: By agreeing to appear in the documentary, Garrett chooses to share his story and humanize the scandal, showing that he has moved past the need for secrecy.

Themes and Symbol Connections

Garrett's character is central to the themes of performance vs. authenticity. He is the ultimate performer, hiding his true self to maintain a public image. His secret sexuality is a symbol of the cost of that performance. He also embodies manipulation and control, as Sheila controls his image and his choices, even after he becomes an adult. His eventual departure from skating and his study of psychology represent a rejection of that control and a search for identity and self-reinvention.

Garrett's steadiness contrasts with Heath's volatility, making him a symbol of the sacrifice and cost of success. He sacrifices his personal life for his career, and only after leaving skating does he find fulfillment. His relationship with Katarina also touches on ambition vs. love, as he supports her ambition while suppressing his own desires.

Questions and Answers

1. Why did Garrett hide his homosexuality?

Garrett hid his sexuality because his mother's brand depended on presenting him as a desirable, heterosexual figure for fans. He tells Katarina that being gay “wasn’t part of the business plan,” and he feared that revealing his truth would damage his career and his family's legacy.

1. What was Garrett's role in Katarina's career?

Garrett became Katarina's skating partner after Heath left, helping her win a World Championship. He also offered her a modeling job that provided financial support. He was a steadying influence, balancing her fiery nature, and he helped her achieve success she could not have reached with Heath.

1. How did Garrett's relationship with Bella change over time?

Initially, Garrett and Bella were close twins, but they kept secrets from each other. Bella did not know about Garrett's sexuality, and Garrett did not know about Sheila's past. After Katarina outed Garrett, their relationship became strained, but they remained family. At the funeral, Bella's emotional breakdown suggests a deep bond, though Garrett had already moved on to a different life.

1. What happened to Garrett after the Olympics?

After the Olympics, Garrett stopped skating following a car accident in which he fell asleep at the wheel and flipped his car. He then studied psychology at Stanford. He later appeared at Sheila's funeral with his boyfriend Andre and participated in a documentary about the scandal, showing his willingness to share his story.

1. How does Garrett contrast with Heath Rocha?

Garrett is steady, calm, and controlled, while Heath is passionate, volatile, and impulsive. Garrett hides his true self to protect his career, while Heath is openly emotional and often self-destructive. Garrett supports Katarina's ambition, while Heath's love for her is intertwined with his own insecurities. Their contrast highlights the different ways people navigate the pressures of elite sport.

Garrett Lin is a character defined by restraint and revelation. His journey from a hidden, controlled performer to a man who embraces his identity and leaves the ice behind is one of the novel's most poignant arcs. He is not the protagonist, but he is the steady counterweight to the chaos of Katarina and Heath, and his quiet strength ultimately allows him to find a life beyond the spotlight.

For more on the novel's themes, see ambition vs. love, performance vs. authenticity, and manipulation and control. To revisit the ending, check the ending explained page.