Katie Chandler’s Backhanded Compliments is a darling debut that reimagines the sports romance subgenre with a dash of magic. Rife with angst, tenderness, and queer joy, Chandler’s first novel kick-starts a promising literary career. If you’re in the market for a sweet and spicy sapphic love story, give this one a try!

This one wasn’t for me. The writing itself is descriptive and I can appreciate the style, but the story struggled to hold my attention. Magical realism was introduced without any clear explanation, and it left me confused more than intrigued. If it was explained earlier I think I would be more interested as I do enjoy magical realism as a plot device.

I also didn’t buy into the relationship between the two main characters—aside from being on the same tennis team, there didn’t seem to be much chemistry or development that made me care about them as a pair. Their interactions felt overly juvenile, and I found myself disengaging the further I got.

Unfortunately, I had to put it down at around 40%. Just didn’t connect.

*big deep sigh*

I don't want to go into a rant here, but every single "enemies to lovers" IS NEVER A TRUE ENEMY! Just because these are two very hard-working girls who are trying to be the 'best' in the sport, DOESN'T MAKE THEM ENEMIES!

If all it took was an oily massage to get them to go from 'enemies' to lovers, THEN THEY AREN'T ENEMIES. Also I almost DNF'd at the massage scene, felt like a cheap porno was about to be made.

[A cheap 3rd act breakup, over what? oh just one of them thinking they know what's best for the other but never actually discussing it with the other, just making the choice themselves. How was that solved btw? Oh it basically wasn't, they just went *oh well* and dated anyways. Lazy writing imo. (hide spoiler)]

They barely go into how the soul mate thing works. Just that some have 2 and most have 0, but how does it show up? Doesn't say, at all.

There are some very detailed tennis scenes, I zoned out during those but if you're really into tennis, you'd like it.

This book really surprised me! The setting, the heroines, and the scenes were very well developed. As a sports fan who LOVES Tennis, I really felt the author did a great research work. Then we have the soul mates thing, which was not very convincing for me, but the end was nice. If you want a Sapphic romance with tons of competitiveness and a nice HEA, this one's for you.

QUEER RIVALS IN A PROFESSIONAL SPORT WHO ARE ALSO FATED MATES??! I didn't even know I needed this until I had it in my hot little hands.

As a rabid fan of Cleat Cute, I had a pretty good idea that I was going to like this, even though the plot and the context of the sport are very different.

In this world, some people get a "soulmark" - the name of their soulmate on their wrist that darkens when they meet that person. So they spend their lives knowing the name of their soulmate. Our leads, Juliette and Luca, are elite professional tennis players who are pitted in a rivalry against each other. While Juliette is losing her love for the sport and the pressure she feels from her coach/dad, it causes her to make mistakes. Luca is shut down and alone, believing that all she has is tennis. Both of them are very aware that the other's name is on their wrist...

This has great family dynamics (Juliette comes from an Italian tennis dynasty) and the ebbs and flows of relationships between sisters, and Luca shows that found family can be just as supportive (and make the same kind of mistakes) as your blood family. Luca finds that people actually like her, and Juliette learns that life is better with a spine instead of just a b*tchy attitude.

It took me a minute to get going with this one because I don't know a ton about tennis, but once I got the rhythm of this I was SAT and could not put it down. I laughed, I shouted at them, I cheered for them, and I definitely happy cried at the end.

Thank you to Atria for the e-arc

I'm going to be honest I DNF'd this book pretty early. I tried getting into it twice but I really just could not like I would just start dozing off or daydreaming. I think the concept is cool and I'm even open to the whole soulmates trope aspect but I just think the writing (that I've seen so far) hasn't really left e wanting more or wanting to engage. It almost feels like im reading a textbook. There's definitely an audience for this just not me.

I started skimming this book EARLY. I’d missed the memo on the fated mates component, which didn’t feel justified in this contemporary setting. So often, this trope is used to justify skipping over actual character development, and this was one such case. So to go right from the characters thinking about their fated marks (??) to an excruciatingly long and unexciting description of a tennis match did not bode well for my overall enjoyment levels.

I still gave it a shot, and I know that these tropes CAN work for me. ‘The Prospects’ made me care about sports in a way I never have IRL, and I’ve read a variety of other sports romances. While they aren’t my automatic go-to, if I care about the characters, I can care about sports matches. Unfortunately, this didn’t work for me, because the character development was a bumpy ride.

I prefer not to leave negative reviews of LGBTQIA+ books wide, so I elected to DNF and confine my review to NetGalley’s platform.

What a fun idea! I haven’t read any soulmate romance yet but it truly was a delight. The tennis stuff was also very good and interesting and kept me engaged even if I am not a big tennis girl. I did like the romance a lot and even though the plot slowed down for me in the middle, it picked up by the end and had me in tears (the good kind). I do wish certain elements were more fleshed out (like the soulmate stuff, Luca’s family and anxiety stuff, etc) but otherwise a fun sapphic read! I will recommend to my followers.

I was so excited for this one, rivals to lovers, and tennis? I thought it would be so good, and I didn’t even truly realize the magical realism part and I really would have liked this one cause the story was set up so well, but I couldn’t connect with the writing. Being in 3rd person, which I don’t mind, but also switching POV many times with a chapter and from chapter to chapter it didn’t feel seamless. The POV flip felt clunky and would often pull me out of the story so I struggled to really get hooked into this one. The other thing I didn’t like was the amount of tennis and time apart the characters spent in the first half of the book, it’s like we were teased with their little moments, but then went back to full chapters of friendship, tennis, family and individual time, but didn’t feel like the world was truly set up to do that well. For the first half of the book, I really wanted what the second half gave which is the time between the two of them.

One thing I really did like was the chemistry between Jules and Luca once they acknowledged their feelings to themselves (not each other haha) and really started to enjoy spending time in each other’s company, it was so sweet and fun, you could easily see their friendship building alongside the relationship. I had a love hate relationship with the naming conventions of these characters, they would often call each other by their first and last name exclusively but flip depending on the situation or the topic of the conversation in the narrative which I think was on purpose to see the characters mindset change but it also made it harder to connect when Luca was being exclusively called by her last name even in the inner thoughts and then it’s flip to her first name.

Mostly I just don’t think this writing style is for me, which is sad, because I really hoped to like this story, but I’d still recommend to anyone looking for a good rivals to lovers romance!

Tennis + soulmates = LOVE! (And I don’t mean zero…)

Ah! Tennis girly here and proud of it. Growing up, my life revolved around the sport and I even completed a summer internship with the USTA, which culminated with two full weeks live at the US Open. So this book speaks directly to that die-hard fan girl!

The tennis commentary is so well written, you’ll feel as if you’re watching the match rather than reading about it. The tension is so taut that I felt my head spinning and swiveling as if watching the action— it’s not just the conversation of the rally, but the fiery dialogue and vivid description of body language that’ll have you at the edge of your seat to see who comes out victorious at every interaction.

I will admit I was thrown off by the soul marks — it was an unexpected twist of magical realism that hadn’t fully clicked for me when I read the synopsis. But it was a nice conduit for tension between Juliette and Luca, and a hot topic for a media storm.

Game, set… it’s a love match.

This is my 3rd soulmate book in the past 2 months. Not quite sure how this soulmate mark would really work, but Luca and Juliette have each other's names scarrified on their wrists.
They are pro tennis rivals, each very good players who meet up at tournaments.
Juliette is Italian with 2 sisters also on the circuit and her father is her demanding coach.
Luca I believe is Croation, a very lonely woman with only Vladimir her coach, and Nicky, a male tennis player who is her best friend and has his own soulmate, Magnus.
There is a lot of tennis in this book, a lot of gay sex, a lot of jealousy surrounding players.
I am worried about who is going to buy this book in today's climate, what with all the book banning and library defending, but I hope it gets read for just these reasons.
I am not the target for this book, being older, straight and not a sports follower.
However, I believe people should read whatever they want, and I think younger people, gay, straight or whatever, can empathize with a lot of this book.
It comes down to, what is important in life, being an unhappy winner, or a supportive partner even if you are rivals.
I often wonder if tennis rivals can be friends off the court, for who else will support each other. That is what I particularly liked about this book, how the woman, who played against each other all over the world, ate together, partied together and even though at times catty and jealous, knew that they had to be their for each other.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the EARC. This is my honest review.

WHERE TO EVEN BEGIN!! I LOVED LOVED LOVED THIS BOOK!

This is my first time reading something by Katie Chandler, and honestly, I hope is not the last time! I absolutely fell in love with the way she wrote her characters and the story!

I wish I could be less biased, but I truly fell in love with this story!

I loved the development between Juls and Luca! They were so incredibly complex and layered! It was so interesting to see Juls deal with the dilemma of whether having a soulmate is more romantic or better than normal, regular love! It was so curious because my own wife and I have had this discussion before!

It was so fascinating to see Juls fall for Luca and have the courage to be with her, and most importantly, be happy!

I love reading happy gay stories! I love that the fact they are queer is not the main struggle in the story! Happy Pride month, everyone!

This one was tough for me to get into. The setup—rivals-to-lovers on the international tennis circuit—had a lot of promise, but it took a while for the story to find its rhythm. Juliette’s intensity and Luca’s aloofness made it hard to connect with them at first, though their chemistry eventually started to shine through.

Once the emotional layers and vulnerabilities surfaced—especially around Luca’s anxiety and the tension between ambition and connection—the story picked up. I appreciated the unique setting, the focus on women in sports, and the twist on the soulmate trope, but it didn’t fully land for me the way I hoped.

If you love slow-burn sapphic romances with a competitive edge and don’t mind a slower start, this could be your match.

Didn't realize this had the soulmates fanfic trope. Would've looked past it because I was in the mood to read a proper sapphic sports romance, but the writing itself is SO wooden and infodumpy with zero character charisma development. Like we're supposed to fill in all the personalities of closest resembling tennis celebrity. I'm sure there's an audience for this, I am not it.

Thank you Atria Books for the E-Arc!

Fated Sapphics with a Tennis Rivalry is what we needed and we got exactly that.

I do have to point out that this book is written in third person, which I know a lot of other readers may not enjoy. Personally, I don't really mind it as long as the story is good.

I really do love my sapphic community and therefore I will stand by them through and through. I feel like Mean Girl sapphics get hated on a lot but personally I love them!

There are so many great scenes, one of my favorites involves a sexy message to heal a back burn!

One of the big things about this book is the anxiety that both characters experience but both present it completely different. It was really sweet to watch them open up to one another about it.

The third-act break-up wasn't my favorite, especially when it's something that can easily be communicated and shouldn't be rushed into a break up but it didn't bother me too much.

I don't play tennis nor will I ever have an interest in it but this book has a lot of tennis content, such as the moves tennis players use and the tournaments they play in. I found this super cool and hope that others feel the same about it.

If you're looking into reading a sapphic romance with some tennis and spice, this could be the one for you!

First, thank you so much to Atria for the ARC of this book!

I will be completely honest and say that I DNF’d this book around 20%. While the plot had promise, the writing itself fell a bit flat for me.

I found it quite repetitive and the characters lacked depth for me. It felt as if Juliette was mean just for the sake of being mean and Luca was meant to be more of a doormat who allowed Juliette to treat her that way.

I loved the tennis element, but even this was off for me. As someone who played tennis and still loves the sport, I knew going in that some aspects would be changed for the sake of the book and the plot, but I couldn’t help but be confused whenever the game was played on page.

I had such high hopes for this book since it had everything I love (sports, romance, sapphic, slow burn, rivals to lovers) but this wasn’t it. The “fated mates” and “soulmark” bit also didn’t make a ton of sense to me since there was no backstory on it. Where did that come from? When did it start happening? How did people figure out that’s what it was? I know that I didn’t finish the book, but that information should have been in the beginning to better set up the reader. Since it’s a MAJOR part of the plot.

Thank you again to Atria for this arc!

I am really conflicted about this book. On the one hand, it’s a really strong sports romance, with interesting characters and a good plot. I can’t vouch for the accuracy of the tennis plot in this book, but I will say that I have no interest in or knowledge of the sport and I found this book both interesting and easy to follow. All of the characters are well-developed and feel like real people. On the other hand, this book uses a soulmate/soulmate plot. Which, while it is interesting, cheapened the development of the romance plot. I don’t know that these two characters would be together without the soulmate plot.

Katie Chandler’s debut Backhanded Compliments serves up a sapphic rivals-to-lovers romance with a twist of fate. Set in the high-stakes world of professional tennis, this is a slow-burn, will-they/won’t-they story that simmers with tension.

Luca and Juliette are fierce competitors, volleying jabs on and off the court. Their rivalry and forced proximity builds toward a satisfying romance storyline. Still, Juliette’s hot-and-cold demeanor was difficult to connect with at times. While clearly intended to be guarded and complex, her treatment of Luca often came off as cruel rather than layered. On the other hand, Luca’s quiet strength and emotional restraint felt more naturally portrayed—even if her past remained frustratingly underdeveloped.

Hints about Luca’s history surface throughout the novel but are never fully explored. Instead, much of the emotional heavy lifting is reserved for Juliette’s relationship with her sisters and father, as well as the Juliette and Luca’s competitors. These aspects seem to lay groundwork for future interconnected standalones, but it left this novel feeling a bit uneven.

That said, Chandler’s writing is nothing short of gorgeous. She clearly paints each tour stop, immersing readers in detailed cities and emotionally charged moments. Certain scenes pulse with feeling, and Chandler’s ability to capture the emotion behind a glance or conversation was breathtaking.

Even as a tennis fan, though, I found the extended match play, strategy talk, and lengthy description of each player’s style, a bit much. While the sport enhances the stakes and deepens the characters’ connection, the technical descriptions often bog down the pacing and will quickly lose the interest of readers unfamiliar with tennis or primarily reading for the romance.

Overall, Backhanded Compliments is a promising debut. Despite some pacing issues and heavy focus on secondary characters, the romantic tension and stunning prose are strong. I’m interested to see how the character building in this novel leads to future installments.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I was so excited for this one, and it just didn’t live up to expectations.
From the beginning, I thought the rivalry was manufactured in a very unoriginal way, and Juliette was immediately petulant and unlikable. I actually liked Luca, but her part of the relationship was just as uninteresting to me. As a player, I did like her more. I was also frustrated by the amount of time spent on the visual physical description, especially within the progression of the first meeting. It could have been so much deeper, getting to know each others styles and grow a rivalry from there but it felt weirdly like they never studied each others play before, like they hadn’t seen each other yet and it just made things feel like they were amateurs, not playing something as big as they were.
The soulmate trope has always been one I enjoyed but I really didn’t like it here. Pushing them together through it felt forced, and it was wholly unsatisfying.
I also think there were too many characters going on to be able to keep track of them, much less remember who plays tennis how.
All in all I think having a single pov could actually have served this book better—especially if told from Juliette’s perspective. There would have been much more room for her family and she might have even sounded justified in hating Luca.
Not for me, in the end, which was really a shame because I was highly anticipating this one.

In an adjacent universe, your soulmate is quite literally written on your skin.

I really, really wanted to love this title, but it honestly felt like the author had an Interesting Idea, but also realized sports romances are big now and just sort of mashed them together. This could have been two completely separate books: sapphic sports romance and alternate magical reality about soulmates.

I would have read either book, but this just didn't hit the mark for me as-is.