I fully almost CRIED when I got the email notification that I was accepted to read an advanced copy of this book. This is easily TJR's best work. I didn't love Carrie in Malibu Rising, but I easily and quickly rooted for her. Carrie was flawed, tough, and just lovable as the main character. Reid does a phenomenal job of writing characters that you can see a bit of yourself in and stick with you for a long time. I didn't want the story to end, but I just had to know what happened. Even though my tennis knowledge is just the bare minimum, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time rooting for the characters. I loved the relationship between Javier and Carrie as father and daughter and as coach and student. I also loved the addition of transcripts of the News and commentators' perspectives of Carrie and her career to juxtapose who Carrie is and who the world thinks she is. I almost don't know what to do now that I've finished this book because all I want to do is pick it up and reread it.

Thank you so much to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I hate technical books. It’s a fault of mine. Unless it’s something I love, I do not want to know the ins and outs. But. Only Taylor Jenkins Reid can get me to care about tennis and all the technicalities. Only TJR could get me to happily read an entire book about a tennis player.

TJR is so incredibly skilled at creating these characters that you fall in love with, that will stay in your heart for a long time. I still think of Evelyn, Daisy Jones, Nina, and now Carrie. Sometimes I hold those books and leaf through them, just to peak back into this universe. I hope that TJR continues to build on it.

I truly loved this book. I can’t wait to buy a physical copy and hug it to my chest.

Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Rating (5/5) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Publishing date - August 30th 2022

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine! I was shocked when I received an arc copy of this one! Loved this book! So far this is my favorite book by this author! I found it fast paced , compelling, and realistic. So realistic, in fact, I felt like I was actually watching a real tennis match! Themes include commitment, training, the media, competition, and family! I love how this book while centered around tennis , didn’t actually feel like a sports books. It was more about Carrie’s connection to the game and her relationship with her father / coach! Highly recommend this one!!

Taylor Jenkins Reid has this unparalleled ability to tell a story and completely immerse her readers in whatever topic, character, time frame she’s writing about. Carrie Soto is Back is no different. Once the greatest women’s tennis player, Carrie Soto watches as her career record is broken by an up and coming player. She comes out of retirement to prove she is still the best and will not be beaten.

Reid writes a character no one likes and somehow makes you love her and root for her from the stands. You are with her at every practice, every match, every swing. You are 100% in the game with Carrie from beginning to end. For someone who has never watched tennis for fun, I closed this book with a great admiration for those who play the game.

The only reason this book isn’t a 5 star read to me is that I feel that Reid’s other notable historical fiction books enthralled me more in their storylines (I appreciated the nod to Daisy Jones and Malibu in this one). However one thing is sure, no one tells a story like TJR.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the advanced reading copy of this dynamic, unstoppable writer.

“Carrie Soto is Back” by by Taylor Jenkins Reid @tjenkinsreid; Expected Release Date: Aug. 30, 2022

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

**Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an early digital copy of this book in exchange for my review.

📖➡️ Swipe for the synopsis!

📣 Review: There is absolutely nothing I love more in a book than for it to cause me to cry my eyes out. I pretty much live for those cathartic tears rolling down my face while I lose myself turning page after page of a truly great book. This is a story of resiliency, of passion and drive (even if it’s sometimes misguided).. of tenacity. Of love.

Carrie is an anti-hero. If you’re anything like me, you will love to hate her for most of this book. She’s frustratingly stubborn. She’s downright rude a lot of the time. But goodness, if this isn’t a story of growth and grace.

💥 One of my favorite books so far this year. Add this one to your TBR list and pick it up this summer!

#lovejoleen_reads

Carrie Soto is one fierce female who doesn’t care what you think of her. Call her a bitch or the Battle axe she is going to fight for what she wants and play by her own rules. She doesn’t conform to social norms and that’s what I love about this book. It thrills me to see smart, strong diverse woman featured in this book. She says things that shock others and it makes me laugh. I loved that they had Spanish sprinkled into the book.

Taylor Jenkins Reid has done it again. There’s just something about the way she writes characters that you cannot convince me that they are not real. And Carrie Soto is no exception.

We first meet her briefly in Malibu Rising as the one who Nina’s husband cheated on her with, but this book proves that there is just so much more to her than that. Her absolute dedication to tennis is so incredible to read that even if you don’t know a thing about tennis, you’ll pick up a few things. This book captures her as she rises through the ranks and makes a great comeback.

This book also captures other themes that aren’t tennis-related such as an incredible father-daughter relationship which hasn’t been present in the other historical fiction works by Reid. There’s also a nice romantic subplot weaved in as well.

Thank you so much to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am a huge fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid's books, especially her most recent (Malibu Rising, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones and the Six). I was so excited to read her new book about Carrie Soto, the tennis star mentioned in Malibu Rising,

At 37, tennis great Carrie Soto decides to re-enter the circuit to defend her record. This book talks about tennis, A LOT. I usually like fiction books where I learn about new topics, but this just bored me.

This book gave me all the feels. I absolutely loved Carrie’s no-nonsense, go-getter attitude. I found myself glued to the pages every time she played a match hoping she’d come out on top. There was a lot of tennis talk in this book, which I appreciated, but even if I hadn’t played tennis before I think I’d still love this book just as much. TJR is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors and in my opinion this is her best book yet.

A grand slam title that should be in everyone’s beach bag this summer, CARRIE SOTO IS BACK doesn’t make me want to pick up a racket as much as it makes me want to hug my dad. The relationship between Carrie and her father, and the evolution of Carrie as a tennis player, were the highlights of this well-written and engrossing novel. And, as a bonus, I finally understand tennis scoring.

Ahhhh TJR is back for me. After a disappointing (for me, at least) Malibu Rising - we revisit an important character from that novel…and no, it’s not Mick Riva.

It’s tennis phenom Carrie Soto, who you might remember as the other woman in Nina Riva’s troubled marriage.

This book is fierce and daring, following Carrie’s comeback to tennis 🎾 greatness at the ripe age of 37 and after 5 years of retirement. Why? Because another player is on the verge of taking her title as the winningest woman in tennis history.

This is a story of comebacks. It’s a story of choosing happiness. It’s a story of being unapologetic as a woman and learning to see yourself through others eyes. And about loving yourself and letting others love you too.

Carrie Soto is a winner in my book.

taylor jenkins reid NEVER misses. i completely adored this book and i loved this conclusion to her historical fiction books. taylor jenkins reid remains to be my favorite author. this book was perfect and i loved every second of it, i never thought i'd get this invested in fictional tennis but i did for her. the story, the characters, their relationships, and everything else made this book perfect. i adore carrier soto and i bet other people will too.

First of all, a HUGE thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this early, I was actually shocked that I got approved!

I wasn't the biggest fan of Malibu Rising, So I was nervous starting Carrie Soto is Back and thankfully I thought this book was one of the best books i've read in 2022. Here's why:
- The detail in this book is spot on without sounding too technical. People who don’t play tennis will be comfortable reading this and not miss any points in the story.
- There is so much Life and energy in the description of each tournament.
-This in an incredibly powerful novel about female ambition, about resilience and determination, and clawing your way to the top.
- Great Father and Daughter story
- Great writing from Taylor Jenkins Reid. I will have to go back and read Malibu rising, because we were first introduced in that book.

Honestly this was an absolutely beautiful and layered story that I think I would have loved more if I related more strongly to the main character. Carrie Soto is an internationally renowned athlete with a string of records from her career in women’s tennis. When her record for most Slams is threatened by a younger tennis phenom she decides to come out of retirement to defend it.
At it’s heart this the story of a woman who is so incredibly driven to be the best that she doesn’t know herself when she isn’t winning. The conflict is brilliantly rendered and Carrie’s personal development is compelling but something was just missing for me to really give this 4 or 5 stars. I didn’t quite understand the MC’s single-mindedness and how stubborn she was about so many things that didn’t seem to really matter that much.
I did absolutely love the relationship between her and her father who is also her coach. His dedication to her is so touching because he cares about her dreams but he also just wants her to be happy.
I also liked the romance aspect as her reluctance to open her heart is something I could identify with and I appreciated her love interest’s persistence to win her over.
I did feel like there was a side character with her own family drama that felt a little shoehorned in and wished that more time had been given to develop that part of the story.
Overall I think this was a wonderful addition to the Evelyn Hugo universe of books by TJR and will eagerly await the next one!

Let me preface this review by saying I don't know anything about tennis and have never watched. But wow, Reid wrote a book deep in the middle of the tennis world and made me obsessed!

I honestly wasn't looking too forward to a book about Carrie Soto after the glimpses of her I saw in Malibu Rising. But I very easily can say Carrie is my new favorite protagonist of Reid's. I absolutely loved this book, start to finish!

Reid wrote this story in such a way that the tennis was very approachable, and I was super invested in every aspect of the book. However, the novel is about so much more than just tennis. I love Carrie the entire book, even when I didn't like her. And I really enjoyed seeing her relationships with other characters grow and evolve. I was routing for Carrie the entire time! I will 100% be purchasing this book to read again!

Another ace for Taylor Jenkins Reid! This was an incredible book about the power of self and the fact that you are never too old to reach for your dreams. First of all, I do have to say that I love tennis. I played in high school and college. Unfortunately I have not played in years. After reading this book I just want to get back on the court and hit some balls. This book made it all so real that I actually felt like I was on the court with Carrie.

Carrie Soto used to hold the world record for the most Grand Slam titles. She decides to come out of retirement when her record is broken. She is 37 and she agrees to have her father coach her. However Carrie has a reputation as the battle axe which is a euphemism for something else. She also has a losing record with love. An old flame agrees to help hit with her so that he can get better with tennis as well. Carrie has to dig deep to see if she has what it takes to reclaim her record.

One of the things about this book that drew me to it besides tennis was that Carrie Soto was not a typical main character. She honestly, was not very likeable at first. I did need a little warm up with this book but once I was drawn in and couldn't stop reading. Definitely a winning read!!

Thank you for this advanced arc from NetGalley and Ballantine Books in return for an honest review.

The sign of a great book is when you are completely lost in the book and feel like you are in their universe. I lived in Carrie Soto’s universe and didn’t want to leave. What an amazing ride and one of Taylor Jenkin Reid’s best books. 5 stars and I highly recommend everyone read this book. Thank you to #netgalley for the opportunity to review this book.

I feel very sad that this is now the second book that I have not finished written by Reid. I really adored all of her earlier works, but this one and Malibu Rising just didn't captivate me. I did not find the characters to be likeable or compelling. Furthermore, I am not a fan of tennis, so much of the tennis jargon was lost on me. Perhaps if you love and understand tennis or sports, then this would be the book for you. It was not for me.

“You are perfect even in your imperfection.”
Wow what a journey with this book….I know nothing about tennis and was a little skeptical but honestly I could not put this one down and when I had to, I could not stop thinking about it. This author has a way of sucking you into these characters lives and rooting for them. Great journey of self love and reflection, being enough of oneself, realizing accomplishments, being ok just being, finding real love as well as the love of family and unlikely friends who have are backs and push us to be better. “Nothing will ever diminish what you did and have done.” Don’t miss out on this journey with these characters…it will be worth your while.

Thank you so much to Random House for sending me an advanced copy of this in exchange for an honest review.


wow, this book left me speechless. I have read everything from the Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo to Malibu Rising but Carrie Soto is Back is the only book to make me cry. I related to Carrie on such a personal level that I had to walk away from this at times and come back to it but it was extremely worth it. This story is so beautiful, and the perfect come back story. i can’t reccomend this enough and I’m super grateful to have been given the chance to read it early.