Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for an egalley in exchange for an honest review.
One of my favorite authors is back, this time with the comeback tale of former American tennis star Carrie Soto, first introduced to readers in Malibu Rising

I know it's not out until the end of August but how in the world was I supposed to let it linger on my ARC shelf? I paced myself, I tried not to gobble it all down but it was SO DIFFICULT to not just gobble it down in sitting. I don't even like the sport of tennis but I wasn't even 1/3 way into the book and I came to care so very much about it. Oh and Carrie as a character became as dear to me as Daisy Jones and Evelyn Hugo. Yeah, she's as abrasive as an SOS pad, but my goodness I couldn't help but become a part of her fan club. I think the relationship between Carrie and her father, Javier, just might be one of my favorite fictional father-daughter relationships.

I came away from this novel with a deeper appreciation and understanding on what it takes to become an elite athlete and how it becomes even more difficult when you decide that you are going to give the sport you love one more go, especially when many around you believe you to be yesterday's news.

Don't forget to make Carrie Soto part of your summer plans!

Expected publication 30/08/22
Goodreads review published 13/05/22

Taylor Jenkins Reid made me care about tennis! Loved this book (love all her books) and I couldn't put this one down. I love an 'unlikeable' character. Reid is a master storyteller.

Taylor Jenkins Reid could give me a grocery list and I'd still read it faster than anything else.
Carrie Soto, I was mad at your existence in Malibu Rising, But you have redeemed yourself in every way imaginable.

taylor jenkins reid has a certain magic to her writing, but carrie soto is back just climbed its way to becoming one of my favourite books of all time. carrie is written as such a complex and beautiful character, she's rude and mean and talented and her story had me flipping pages and watching tennis balls fly back and forth through my head. this book made me want to hug my dad and cry and go watch tennis even though i think it's boring. this book just knocked it out of the park (or out of the tennis court teehee)

The latest book from Taylor Jenkins Reid is a great addition to her fictional world.

Carrie Soto was a tennis phenom but now all her records are being threatened by the latest up-and-coming star. So Carrie decides to come out of retirement and defend her records. It is a great look at tennis in the 1990's . Her dad is her coach, so it is also a great father-daughter story. While Carrie is not always likable, I did find myself rooting for her. And her dad is just the best. I also really enjoyed the Easter eggs from her backlist that Jenkins Reid planted throughout the book. That is so fun!

“Every match you play, you are one match closer to becoming the greatest tennis player the world has ever seen. You were not born that person. You were born to become that person. And that is why you must best yourself every time you get on the court. Not so that you beat the other person –”

“But so that I become more myself.”

I may not have had a tennis racket in my hand since I was nine years old, but Taylor Jenkins Reid put one there, coached me, fostered my inner drive and determination, allowed me to hear the roar of the crowd at Wimbledon, feel the butterflies in my stomach and then gave me the skills to tame my anxiety so I could mentally and physically be in the game. This book is phenomenal because TJR allowed me inside the mind of a professional tennis player.

You don’t know a single thing about tennis? Me, neither. Don’t worry. TJR has the ability to coach you along and slide in coaching advice and ‘tennis for dummies’ information without you knowing she’s done it. Promise. You’ll be feeling like a pro when you step on center court.

TJR proficiently explores the idea that being the best at something is antithetical to being happy.

Two things to do before cracking the spine on this latest masterpiece: 1) read Rudyard Kipling’s ‘If’ poem and 2) queue up Elton John’s ‘Caribou’ album, put “The Bitch Is Back’ on repeat and mentally prepare yourself for greatness.

Who is Carrie Soto once she’s no longer sure she’s the best?

At 37 years old, Carolina ‘Carrie’ Soto is the oldest player on the circuit. She has just come out of a five-year retirement for the 1995 season to play all four Grand Slam events to reclaim the world record for the most Grand Slam titles.

You won’t be reading for too long before you realize that this book isn’t so much about Soto reclaiming her title as it is about her reclaiming her relationship with her dad, and reclaiming love and respect. TJR reminds us that “an athlete’s job is not just to win - it’s also to be someone we can cheer for.” Soto works to achieve this every day of her comeback.

Soto originated in TJR’s last novel and the author knew that she needed to explore her character more because she was “rough and exacting and intense but also very vulnerable and raw.” TJR revisits Soto and instead of seeing her when she’s at the top of her game as she was in Malibu Rising, we see her when she’s trying to forge a comeback. I’m glad I got to meet Carrie Soto because she taught me more than I’d ever learn on the court. This book kept hold of me long after I’d closed the cover. It kept my mind engaged, I loved all the characters, it was filled with a passion for something and I was hooked by the characters' intense emotions. This is a rare and precious book.


It was good to be reminded that sometimes achievement is ephemeral, that we can be perfect in our imperfections, that there’s honour in choosing to stay in the fight, that sometimes we have to make peace with our limitations, and that although we may doubt it, our ‘muscles’ have a long and generous memory and have the ability to carry us until we achieve the lesson we’re meant to learn.

This was my first TJR novel and I’m awestruck. Sixty-one days until Wimbledon. Are you ready?

I was generously gifted this advance copy by Taylor Jenkins Reid, Penguin Random House Canada, Doubleday Canada, and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

At thirty-seven, Carrie is enjoying her retirement after garnering a record-breaking 20 Grand Slam titles. Six years after withdrawing following a sports injury, Carrie is untouchable, a household name and an icon in the world of tennis. But then, seemingly out of nowhere, British tennis player Nicki Chan, nicknamed “the Beast” by the sports media, rises through the ranks to match Carrie’s Slam record. The problem is, she isn’t ready to relinquish her title. Chan’s skill may be undeniable, but there’s only one Carrie Soto – and she’s coming out of retirement for one last season.

I absolutely adored this book. There was just so much joy in the story – the joy of the sport, the joy of success, of perseverance and winning against all odds, of a father’s pride in his daughter – that I found myself grinning constantly while reading it. There was not a single idle moment for me throughout, especially whenever Carrie faced off with her competitors on the court.

Carrie Soto is Back was a phenomenal read that reinvigorated my love for the author when my opinion of her writing was already so high. In her latest, Jenkins Reid hones the craft of character writing, presenting you with a character like Carrie, so often described as “not charming”, “a bitch”, a “battle axe”, while, at the same time, being extremely likeable, someone you’re rooting for enthusiastically to win.

The funny thing about the author’s books is that, based on the subjects of her novels alone, I don’t think that I would have ever read any of her stories if I didn’t give one a shot. It’s definitely not a genre I would typically find myself interested in; you could not have told me a couple months ago that I would ever read a book about fictional tennis players that details the sport with any level of technical precision while keeping my interest, and yet this book did just that. I was HOOKED. But maybe that’s just the power of a Taylor Jenkins Reid novel.

Thanks to Penguin Random House Canada and NetGalley for this breathtakingly stunning read!

TJR has written yet another engaging, character-driven book. You don’t need to care about tennis in the slightest, though you will care a bit more while reading. Carrie Soto is a fantastically flawed, riveting character. Another win for TJR!

Taylor Jenkins Reid has yet to write a book I have not LOVED! I am so excited to sell this. The nods to both Malibu Rising and Daisy Jones were excellent.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for an advance digital arc in exchange for my honest review.

This little book about tennis had no business making me cry.

Carrie Soto is Back is a story about a hard bitch. We are introduced to her as a cold, heartless, man-stealing woman in Malibu Rising, and personally, I didn’t expect to feel her and love her so much. But then, Taylor Jenkins Reid could make me love or hate anyone.

After years of retirement, keeping herself busy filming Gatorade and deodorant commercials, tennis champion, Carrie Soto, returns to the court to break her world record one last time. The world of tennis is changed since her departure, the women are fiercer, the sportscasters are vicious, and the fans demand blood. Now, the oldest player on the circuit, Carrie fights for domination in four Grand Slams. Four chances to break her record, unless someone else can take it from her.

Trained by her father, who was a tennis champion in his own right, Carrie becomes a formidable opponent, and trash talker, once again.

This is a story about determination and perseverance. It’s a story that defies all odds. It’s also a story about grace and imposters. Success and failure are two sides of the same coin, and Carrie strives to never fall on the losing side. She must come to terms with settling for “being great” rather than “the greatest” because how do you define greatness? Is it speed, or world records, or the fastest serve? With the guidance of those who mean the most, Carrie begins to embrace herself as she is, warts and all. Though, she never does stop being the “Battle Axe” aka “the Bitch.”

I have to admit. I had never seen tennis played, or thought about it at all previous to Carrie Soto. In fact, I remember feeling even a little disappointment that Carrie would be the next protagonist in this universe. I will also admit. I woke up at 5am to watch the Madrid Open this morning and bought a tennis racket to mess around with this summer. When this is inevitably adapted for television, like it’s forefathers Evelyn and Daisy, I am the first one in line for it.

Carrie Soto is a force and she has rocked me. Pre-order your copy for August 30, 2022.

I love a good sports story and Taylor Jenkins Reid has written an incredible one. Carrie Soto is Back is an amazing portrayal of the joy and heartbreak of sports, the blood, sweat, and tears, the sacrifices, and the cost. Carrie Soto, who you might remember from her appearance in Malibu Rising, is an all-star tennis player who decides to come out of retirement to make a comeback.

What I liked: I like sports but I know next to nothing about tennis. Jenkins Reid made the sport of tennis accessible to all readers and made you want to root for Carrie. The book also demonstrates how often women are held to a different standard than men - what is considered fierce competitiveness in men, is often seen as standoffishness or cockiness in women. I really liked Carrie’s relationship with her father, with the sport of tennis, and with the pressure to be great.

What could be better: I can’t think of anything I would change.

This is a five-star read for me. I thought that Daisy Jones and the Six was magic and I might even like Carrie Soto is Back better. I felt so many feelings and I was on the edge of my seat as I was reading the various tennis matches. I would definitely recommend this book to any sports fans, especially those who follow women’s sports, but anyone who understands what it is like to chase a dream will like this book.

SOSSOOSOSOS GOODFFF
I NEVER THOUGHT ID GET THIS ARC BUT HERE I AM
I LOVE CARRIE SOTO LOVE HER
HER DEDICATION TO EVERYTHING IS AMAZING
we got her backstory AND HER POINT OF VIEW IN MALIBU RISING WHICH I LOVED
ANS I LOVED BOWE🫶🫶


THANK YOU NET GALLERY

Carrie Soto is amazing, I went into this not liking her because of previous books but she proved me wrong. She’s cold hearted and strong. I loved her.

I SCREAMED at the references to the other books but wish their were more since TJR is leaving this universe for good.

All in all it was a great book I really enjoyed it!

Thanks Netgalley