I really enjoyed! I did not think i would enjoy a book about tennis as much as I did. Reid managed to balance enough technical information that we were fully immersed in the tennis world, while also adding enough character development and storyline that it was compelling. What will she write next ?!?!

Although I've only read one other book by Taylor Jenkins Reid, I had high expectations for this one, and it did not disappoint. Carrie Soto Is Back is a deeply immersive book that takes no time to get through, with a main character that feels impossibly real. I recommend this to everyone!

Loved this book! I mean really anything TJR you can't go wrong but Soto was such an interesting character to get to know. Her journey, her back story, her family, the ending 10/10.

I think this nearly topped Daisy Jones for me? I loved Carrie's take-no-shit attitude and her drive to be the best. This tore out my heart and made it beat so fast, I couldn't put it down.

Carrie Soto was magnetic. When I met this character in Malibu Rising, I hated her. She was mean and bitchy, and so when I saw this would come out, I thought it would hard to connect with her. But it was the easiest. Carrie Soto is just another person who wants to badly to succeed. She wants to win, to surpass herself, to be the best. Just like in Evelyn Hugo, you get gripped by her wants and her needs and you can't help but root for her. She's electric, magnetic, she hooks you.
I never thought I'd love a book about tennis, but here we are.

I did not like the first twenty five percent but I listened to the rest of it as an audiobook and enjoyed it!

As a big fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and a moderate fan of Daisy Jones and The Six (loved the tv show!!), I was really looking forward to reading Carrie Soto is Back. I have not read Malibu Rising, but from what I understand, it is relevant for TJR’s crossover world.

With a sporty spin on her storytelling, Reid’s book exists on and around the tennis court, surrounding an accomplished and multi-fasceted yet relatively formidable FMC. The multitudes and myriad of relationships in this book make you feel all the things.

I loved the bilingual diction and concept, however, there should have been some translations. While I wanted to like it more, there simply were some elements that fell flat for me. I feel like Carrie’s Latina identity could have been handled with more care in the 60s-80s/90 landscape for authenticity, especially as she was written by a white woman. It was evident that there were points to make about the racial/gender/sex/etc. world at that time (that in many ways still exist today, especially with the Williams sisters), it just didn’t really do it justice. This leads to a greater discussion of Reid’s writing peers and their staggared priviliges in the publishing world…

The pacing was also something that I struggled with. I probably would have enjoyed it more if I were a tennis player, too.

This book does provide commentary on the complex, intersectional history women have faced in sports, particularly in tennis and I did love Carrie’s ruthlessness in her firm footing. Her relationship with her father also provides great insight on the blurred lines between father and coach that can greatly affect a father-daughter relationship for better or for worse. Love, loss, determination, it’s all there.

Reid evidently is a brilliant book to screen writer so it’s always fun to read her books and I do look forward to future endeavors.

I unfortunately missed my download + read deadline, but managed to borrow a copy once published to read and review.

Thank you Penguin Random House Canada, Doubleday Canada and NetGalley for the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

3/5 stars

I love Taylor Jenkins Reid and Carrie Soto is Back was another page turner. It was emotional and filled with deep heart felt moments. Reid is so talented in creating stories and worlds that you feel you are apart of . So rich in description. Highly recommend if you like full and emotional stories filled with character development and different relationships.

I thought I wouldn’t enjoy this book because Malibu Rising wasn’t my favourite but I LOVED this book. The second I opened it I was obsessed. The writing, the tennis, Carrie Soto. This book is a gem

Taylor Jenkins Reid is back and this time her character is taking no prisoners on the Tennis Court:

When Carrie decides to retire from Tennis she is the best tennis player (man or woman), that the world of Tennis has seen. She has won the most slam out of anyone and has shattered every record and if you were to ask her she would tell you that she was Entitled to every single one. Carrie has always put her training and tennis before anything else in her life. So as she watches from the sidelines to a newer player, Nicki Chan, tying her Slam record, Carrie knows that she cannot have someone beating it. She decided to put herself to the test and come out of retirement for one last season, to prove that she is still the best Tennis player and at 37 years old that is a monumental task. Is the Tennis World ready for Carrie aka The Battle Axe ready to come back from retirement? Probably not but Carrie doesn't care, she has a record to defend.

Alright, lets just jump right into this as I struggled with writing this review. I will admit that I requested this book as an ARC just based up Jenkins Reid's name and not realizing what the book was about / main character the book features as i have enjoyed two previous books by her. While I enjoyed the book and story that TJR has written I wonder if the book would have been different or that much different if TJR had written Carrie as white instead of Latina.

Why did TJR choose to write the main character Latina instead of white. By Carrie being white does not change the main plot of the book, it would probably shorten it a bit as the Spanish would not have to be translated each time for those of us that do not speak Spanish. And I’m not saying that Carrie could not have been a Latina athlete, I'm more saying that TJR should not be the one to write this story but someone who is Latina. Maybe then there would have been a more real feel to Carrie and probably the racism she would have faced in the 80s and 90s, but really there is not mention of this at all, (though I am unsure if the Battled Axe / Bitch is a reference to her Latina heritage or not, but I do not think so)

There are two times that race is even really mentioned; one is when sponsorship deals or modelling contracts come around and that all the white, blonde hair, blue eyes Tennis players get the modelling contracts and Carrie herself has never been offered one. And two when she points out at one time with her manager Gwen, who is black, that she Carrie would not want to be a black woman as for how hard it is to be a black women. Was she saying it was not hard to be a Latina woman in sport and that she never faced any type of racism? I do not know as it is never developed before or after that, or ever spoken about in the book at all, so it felt very whitewashed to me.

Now for the good part is that this book reads very much like a movie. I could vividly see what TJR was portraying in my head and I enjoyed every second of it. I could see the matches and how hard Carrie was working and her need to still be the best. TJR knows how to write and I will not deny her that.

I was also happy that the main relationship that this story about is with her father and the highs and lows that they have had as a daughter who is coached by her father. Does this stunt Carrie's character growth throughout her life, yes, she very much reads as a teenager, even when she is in her 30s but I think that this is true to the mark for many child athletes that only know sport and competition growing up especially at a young age., something socially becomes stunted. This also put the romance/relationship aspect on the fringe and latter part of the story as well, which I am okay with as I think that the father/daughter relationship was the more interesting/unexpected and overall better story to tell.

So will I pick up another TJR book? Yes of course I will, that woman can write and sucks me in each time I have read her books. Do I recommend this book? I honestly don't know, I enjoyed the book and the movie affect it had on my brain but I think that TJR doesn't do Carrie any favours but ignoring the fact that she is Latina throughout the book, other than having Spanish throughout and that Carrie would have been better written by an individual who was Latina.

Cheers!!!!!

Carrie Soto Is Back was one of my most anticipated books of the summer. I desperately wanted to love it…but I just didn’t. Let me try and break it down:

Carrie Soto is an unlikeable main character, but that in itself doesn’t bother me in a book. Carrie has come out of tennis retirement, and her personality both on and off the tennis courts is stone cold. Her nickname “The Battle-axe” does not come unfounded. What really didn’t work for me is I just found the first part of the book…(dare I say)…boring. It was very tennis-y, yes, and I’m not the biggest sports lover by any stretch, but that wasn’t even the problem. My real issue was the lack of secondary characters in the beginning (the first half of the book, really). There was her single dad, and a few opponents mentioned, but we didn’t REALLY get to know anyone else until about two-thirds in. Until that point, all we had was the ultimately determined Carrie and her dad as her coach. She cares about nothing else than to become the best tennis player out there. She plays some matches. Makes some enemies. Repeat, repeat, repeat. But when you have an unlikeable MC, you really need someone and/or something else in the mix to grab you and keep you invested. I just felt I needed more here.

I will say though, I did quite enjoy the last third of the book, and by this point was really invested in Carrie’s comeback and her high stakes tennis matches. I loved watching her relationship with Bowe unfold, and her rivalry with Nicki Chan was such an interesting dynamic. I just wish those storylines had developed a bit earlier on in the book, as I think it would have made me enjoy it more than I ultimately did.

So there you have it. My “what-will-likely-be-an-unpopular” opinion. I know this latest TJR will absolutely still be adored by many, but if I’m being completely frank, I’d be surprised if Carrie Soto becomes anyone’s new TJR favourite.

I loved TJR's newest release, Carrie Soto is Back. Re-immersing myself into the world with Carrie (and Nina, Evelyn, Daisy) was a joy. I can't say I knew much about tennis before reading this book, but I think I have some idea of how the game works now - but not so much that I was annoyed, and felt like I was reading a sports NF.

Overall, I loved this one, and can only hope there will be more stories in the future that fit into these characters lives.

Thank you @doubledayca for an early copy of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s newest Carrie Soto Is Back, publishing next Tuesday August 30th.

Before I get to any review however I have to mention that this book has a Latina main character, written by a white author. For many reasons, that is problematic but please seek out @tomesandtextiles for her brilliant Reel about the subject. I have also heard some Black reviewers wonder if it’s too close to the story of the Williams sisters as well, so that is also something to consider.

Long story short, I read this before hearing any of these issues and was still not a big fan. There is way too much tennis in it for me. Not shocking as I picked it up knowing sport fiction is more often a miss than a hit but Taylor Jenkins Reid is one of my favourite authors so I gave it a try anyway.

I'm a big fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid and this one did not disappoint.

Carrie Soto Is Back's eponymous protagonist first made a cameo in TJR's earlier book Malibu Rising, and it was not in a favourable way. She was first introduced as a woman who has an affair with the husband of Malibu Rising's main character, Nina Riva.

But Carrie turns out to be a great character ... fierce, determined, vulnerable, conflicted. I generally love sports themed books and this was no exception. Sports is a great arena for demonstrating a character's strengths and flaws, and giving us an opportunity to see a character respond to difficult, demanding stressful situations with aplomb ... or not. Of course, other real world issues play out in the sports world as well, racism and sexism, and Reid deals with this issues astutely.

I loved the interplay between Carrie and her rival Nicki Chan, the relationship between Carrie and her father and the nuanced, complicated relationship between Carrie and Bowe.

This was a great story and a book I couldn't put down; it could have been cheesy so many times but instead from both an athletic/family/romance perspective it was very well done. You can't help but root for Carrie Soto! And it doesnt matter the subject matter, TJR gets it done!

Everything Taylor Jenkins Reid writes is perfect and Carrie Soto is Back is no different. It had all of the aspect of TJR’s writing that I love. I’ve already gifted this book twice. It’s a must read.

So so good! The tension that builds, the social commentary on female sport and character development is fantastic. I couldn’t stop listening. Carrie isn’t always likeable but you can’t help routing for her. And in the end you love her for all her flaws.

Taylor Jenkins Reid has quickly become one of my favourite authors and she certainly didn't disappoint with Carrie Soto Is Back. I'm convinced she can write about anything!
This novel is a character study on what it takes to be at the top of your sport in the world of tennis.
Yet this story is about so much more than tennis and the author's powerful storytelling had me completely absorbed.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada Doubleday Canada for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

This book was a match in point! Diving into the world of Carrie Soto was such an interesting read. Carrie Soto is a world-renowned tennis player, and this is the story of her journey to the big game. I myself have never played tennis before, so reading how much practice and training went into Carrie’s tennis career was eye-opening for me. I really enjoyed seeing the different layers of the book and characters, especially seeing the relationship with her dad change over the years from father to supporter to coach. I love reading books with a strong female lead and this book was all about feminine power!

Taylor Jenkins Reid is a talented writer, and even though I don’t particularly care about tennis, I kept flipping the pages because she made it so easy to digest.
Carrie Soto is a tennis machine. This book is basically about nothing else. I know that’s kind of the point, this character lives and breathes tennis. Her whole life, every relationship, every decision, revolves around tennis. Considering we spend the whole book in Carrie’s perspective, and all consumed by tennis, I did find it wore me down at times. I kind of feel that this book could have benefited from the POVs of other characters, such as Javier, Bowe or Nicki Chan, to help break it up and give us other perspectives and views of Carrie.
I did enjoy the father - daughter relationship and the sports casting segments to give a bit of outside/media perspective.
Thank you Penguin Random House Canada, Doubleday Canada, for the digital copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

LOVED, loved this! This is probably the quickest I've read a book in a long, long time. It was excellent from the start, the pace is lovely, but it's also got some killer character development and intense Tennis scenes that will be perfect when this book is adapted for TV (which it will be).