This was such a good slow burn romance! I learned a lot about tennis, and the soulmate aspect of the world was fun and interesting. Luca and Juliette hating each other in the beginning set the story up for a really strong romance. Some bits of the book were a little slow to me, but they were definitely necessary to build the character arcs seen throughout the book. Thank you to Atria Books for an early copy!

In "Backhanded Compliments," Katie Chandler delivers a sharp and emotional sapphic romance about two young women navigating rivalry, pressure, and unexpected connection with a bit of magical realism included.

The story follows Juliette Ricci, a focused and ambitious professional tennis player determined to reach the top, and her longtime rival, Luca Kacic, a laid-back fan favorite dealing with her own struggles. When they finally compete against each other in a major match, tensions are high, but so is something neither of them expected - instant attraction. From there, the story moves along briskly, balancing banter, tension, and moments of vulnerability. Chandler adds a magical twist with the idea of soulmates being marked by fate, which deepens the emotional stakes for our two main characters. Their romantic relationship builds slowly and believably, as Juliette and Luca learn to see past their assumptions and find common ground beyond the tennis court.

Chandler's writing feels warm and honest, giving both MCs their own distinct voices and emotional depth. Their chemistry feels realistic, as do the challenges they face, making their journey satisfying to follow.

I couldn’t have asked for a better story to kick off my foray into tennis romance! The sports angle was so well done—expertly written, accessible, and genuinely exciting. As a total novice, I was surprised by how immersed I felt. I could follow the matches, feel the stakes rise, and get swept up in the adrenaline of it all.

Even more surprising (and delightful) was the addition of soulmate marks. I’ve read this troped in a few webcomics, but seeing it play out in a full-length sapphic novel was magical. Rising stars Juliette and Luca have each other’s names marked on their wrists—a clear sign they’re soulmates—but they keep it hidden from the media frenzy. Still, Juliette’s jealousy of Luca’s ranking and raw talent on the court creates distance between them… until a charity match in Naples brings them back into each other’s orbit.

This felt like the sapphic equivalent of BookTok favorites like Twisted Love or The Maddest Obsession (remember Gianna?)—it hits that same perfect mix of pacing, passion, and spice. While the tennis stakes are high, the personal drama stays relatively low-angst, and conflicts are resolved with a lighter hand. The third-person POV occasionally pulled me out of the story during quieter moments (I usually struggle with that) but overall, I was deeply invested.

Juliette’s bold, impulsive nature made her a standout for me—especially in contrast to Luca’s calmer, more introspective vibe. I also loved Juliette’s three sisters, each bringing their own flavor to the story with their differing takes on tennis and soulmate marks. If this turns into an interconnected series, I’ll absolutely be first in line.

2.5 stars

I’m going to try to keep this review from getting away from me, but I have a lot to say. Which is no surprise since this book took me a week to read and I usually would take 1 – 2 days to read a sports romance of this length. That doesn’t mean it was bad or I didn’t like it, but there were issues. So why didn’t I DNF this one? First, it seems to be this author’s publishing debut, and I wanted to give her a fair shake. I also wasn’t sure if it was a me thing or a problem with the book, so I was trying to figure that out.

Let’s start with the good. I’m glad there have been more sapphic sports romances popping up lately. The concept of this story was intriguing. As someone who only has a rudimentary idea of the rules of tennis, the author did a good job of getting the idea across. And if you’re someone who wants the sport in your sports romance to feature more than a page or two, this delivers on that. Although both Juliette and Luca aren’t very likable in the beginning, they grew on me once the author showed their true natures. I also enjoyed the camaraderie and friendship among the women’s tennis players.

All of those good things lead me to problems, though. I felt the particulars of the tennis matches and sets were sometimes too detailed. I found myself wanting to skim over that, but sometimes something important was happening so I couldn’t. There were often too many people on the page before the characters’ personalities were clear enough for that to happen. Which sister was which? Which players were currently on the circuit and which were the retirees? And why did it take eight chapters for Juliette and Luca to interact in any significant way? Even then, they were constantly pushing each other away. That made it very hard for me to believe their chemistry. It was a lot of telling (they are soulmates) and not nearly enough showing. It wasn’t until the last quarter of this book that I started feeling a true connection between the women.

Speaking of telling…it is alluded to that both Luca and Juliette have had partners in the past who hurt them. Their upbringing is also meant to be something that is prominent in how they think of soulmates. Yet there is no follow-through. I have no idea if Juliette’s mom is even alive, yet her dad is her tennis coach. She isn’t mentioned other than for the fact that her mom and dad aren’t soulmates, yet have a “great love.” What happened to Luca’s parents, and how did they hurt her so badly? It’s clear they did, but how? When? Quite honestly, for this being a newly published author, I blame her editor for these holes and dangling plotlines.

There is a lot done with Juliette’s sisters that makes me feel this will be a series. Especially her younger sister, who said she was going to introduce her beau to them all, and that never happened on the page. I did end up loving all of the women in this book. I would love to see their stories. But unless I know things are tightened up in the next book, I may have to pass.

I enjoy sports romances and I like tennis. I thought this would be an easy story to love. Juliette Ricci and Luca Kacic are tennis rivals. Both are top ten stars playing at the highest level of the sport. Juliette feels a lot of pressure to rise to be number one. Her father is a demanding and strict coach which adds to her anxiety. Luca is just as driven. Now in her mid twenties she is wondering if love could fit into her world.

All of that was working for me but the story involves soulmates. Not just I feel like we were meant to be, but that a your soulmate’s name will appear on your arm like a tattoo. They don’t have to choose their soulmates but there are benefits to being with your fated person. Because of their initial hostility it was hard to see them being a couple. And I usually love busy body sister’s but they didn’t click for me. And the last act break up and fix felt very rushed. I did like the tennis and the tension in the games.

Thanks to Atria for the advanced copy of Backhanded Compliments by Katie Chandler!

I really enjoyed the intense rivalry between Juliette and Luca in the beginning of this book and the drama throughout, but I felt like many of the emotions between the two were only surface-level and could have been explored deeper. I admit the most fun I had towards the end of the book was Livia's secret and I'm not sure that was even revealed by the end.

(4.5 rounded up) This is an absolutely perfect summer romance! If you’ve been looking for a tense, sapphic, sports romance— look no further!! I really loved the aspect of “soul marks” (your soulmates name on your wrist which magically changes color when you find them 🥰). There was *a lot* of sports BUT I do think that the scenes were necessary, especially the ones directly involving the MCs, so you could understand the rivalry.

I think “Backhanded Compliments” was wonderfully done and a great debut for Katie Chandler. It makes me think of “Cleat Cute” but tennis instead of soccer. I laughed, I cried, and I simply fell in love with an amazing story. The banter was top notch and a loved the little fantasy element of soulmates. You have a tattoo-like mark (they call it a “soulmark”) on your inner wrist with the name of you soulmate! It was something that makes this book feel so different from other sports romances I’ve read before. I liked the slow burn, rivals to lovers dynamic and liked how they slowly became friends first and then became more. You also get a lot of tennis without it being overly technical and you also get a lot of travel as a result of them being on their tennis competition tour. I also liked the side characters and their dynamic with the main characters. I loved the spicy scenes but the sweeter more poignant scenes made me melt. I enjoyed watching them bounce off of each other and the dual POV aspect. I liked being able to get both FMCs thoughts and feelings. I made it so much easier to see why they were falling for each other. I also really appreciated how the complications in the relationship are resolved through clear communication. This novel has a great representation of anxiety that really made me happy to read, and felt refreshing to read, one of the many reasons to love it. Thanks to Katie Chandler, Atria Books and Netgalley for an e-arc in exchange for my thoughts. I can’t wait to see what Katie publishes next!

was so excited about this one but unfortunately it fell a little flat. the idea of the soulmate marks was interesting but underdeveloped and ultimately didn’t seem that impactful to their relationship. the pacing felt off as well. great chemistry between Luca and Juliette though!

thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

This had a lot of potential but the execution didn't really work well for me. 

Juliette and Luca are tennis rivals who also happen to be soulmates. Luca accepts it immediately, while Juliette does not. I should note that I'm not a huge tennis person, so a lot of the vernacular was a bit much at times and hard to follow. I was really intrigued by the idea of having your soulmate's name tattooed on your wrist, and it becomes black once you make physical contact with them, but it wasn't really explained properly and didn't seem like it really served the story in the best way. 

The two also didn't have the best of chemistry- I love a good rivals/enemies to lovers story but Juliette in particular was downright mean at times (she even references it later), and it really took me out of the story. All in all, a promising premise but not a great follow through.

This is a great debut novel! It’s fun, the characters are well thought out and have depth to them, and overall memorable. I especially loved reading the tennis matches- with the POV being from our FMCs Luca and Juliette, you are inside their minds as they battle it out on the courts and it gives the reader a better understanding of the characters, what drives them, and their approach to the game…and each other.

I am becoming a big fan of tennis romance novels, and this one is great, with the exception that I think it taught me I'm not a big fan of soulmate romances. I love the tennis aspects, and the fake that it is queer, but the soulmate parts were hard for me to grasp. I like even without that added thing, Luca and Juliette could have come to each other naturally, where the soulmate part makes it feel a little more pushes. I do believe the tennis was represented and written well, with some disclaimers at the beginning about having 'moved' the schedule to make it work better in the story. Juliette has a large family, including her father being her coach, and I think her family dynamics were written really well. Luca really only has a few people in her life, and seeing her gain people from Juliette was really nice to. There are spicy scenes in the novel, and I think they are well written as well.

Thank you so much to Katie Chandler and Atria Books for this E-ARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own! 🥰

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Find more on my IG @kayreads_romance

⚠️ !! Please be sure to check any TWs before diving in !! ⚠️

What to expect:
* Sapphic romance
* Rivals to lovers
* Tennis!
* Forced proximity
* Soulmate!AU
* Important sunburn care ☀️


Spicy chapters:
27
28
29
34
45

Thoughts: OKAY TENNIS!!!! These tennis romances and that movie with Zendaya may make me give tennis a chance!
I love rivals to lovers!!

This was fun and a great read for pride month (the month it was released) or any month!

I would definitely read more from Katie!

Rating: 4.5⭐️/5

Two tennis stars who are fated to be soulmates, but they are bitter rivals. A lovely enemies-to-lovers FF romance with magical realism. I thought it was a very refreshing sports romance and I haven’t read a lot of tennis romances but this one was great!

It portrays the pressure of being a professional athlete especially with emotionally harmful coaches. I really enjoyed this one.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In this book’s defense, I didn’t realize it was a soul mark story. Otherwise, I don’t think I would have picked it up, as that’s not my taste. I didn’t end up finishing the book due to a series of things, one of which being I couldn’t really get into the plot or the characters. Another was how immature the characters felt. This book is probably better suited to someone else. 2.5 stars

This was a fun, steamy sapphic romance with a speculative twist that I loved. I really enjoy romances that have some minor, added magical element and this was a great one. The premise felt reminiscent of fanfic which made it fun and nostalgic, especially as the story didn’t take itself too seriously. Sports romances can be hit or miss for me but I really liked this one, even knowing little about tennis. The way the matches were written was so engrossing and tense!

4.5 stars! tennis is so stressful even just reading about matches was nerve-wracking… sapphic sports romance you will always be famous and this one with the soulmate magical realism twist was so fun

thank you netgalley for the arc!!

Backhanded Compliments by Katie Chandler is a sapphic sports enemies-to-lovers, with the added soulmates trope. I liked Chandler’s writing, however, I think the pacing was very push and pull. I feel like it’s worth mentioning, I know nothing about tennis, and I was able to understand what was happening. As a former athlete, I think the author did a good job portraying what it’s like to have that kind of relationship with your father who is also your coach. It’s not always fun!

[spoiler warning ahead (?)]
I found the third act breakup to be completely unnecessary. Following that, Luca was so quick to forgive Juliette. I would’ve loved to see Luca push back against Juliette for breaking things off so abruptly.

Other than that I loved the connection between Luca and Juliette. I liked the progression from opponents/enemies to friends to lovers.

Thank you to Atria Books and Net Galley for this ARC, and happy pride month!

Sapphic romance, tennis, magical realism, what else could you need?

This book follows two tennis pros who are rivals but also soulmates.

This book is definitely heavy on the tennis at times which did not bother me. I really enjoyed how normalized the sapphic romance was, the conflict is centered around the rivalry instead.
I didn’t love the beginning of the book, rather than tension the characters just felt immature to me. There is a lot of growth but I struggled to be as invested with how the romance started. The ending was definitely my favorite part. I also think some of the side characters were interesting and would make a good spinoff.

Thank you to @netgalley and @atriabooks for my eARC.

DNF at 28%

Unfortunately I could not get into this story. I couldn't understand why Juliette hated Luca as much as she did, it felt unfounded and unjustified and just a reason to have the enemies to lovers bit. And the soulmate mark was odd but I found it to be interesting in an otherwise non-fantastical world. But then some of the other soulmate magic I couldn't get behind. I am trying to be better about not forcing myself to finish a book I'm not loving so this one didn't make the cut.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC.