I just didn’t love this book and felt it was overhyped. However, if this becomes a movie or mini series, I think I’d like it even more. I hope it does!

Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC!

Thanks for the free book #prhinternational #ad #PRHInternationalPartner


Carrie Soto was trained from a very young age by her father to be the Achilles of tennis, and was the woman who broke records and set precedents in the sport. After seven years of retirement, he returns to defend his title by playing the four grand slams: Australia Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open. Will she be able to do it?

Only Taylor Jenkins Reid is able to make me read a tennis book and loved it. I'm not a big fan of the sport (I know the basics) but the way this story is told makes me think that Carrie Soto is one of the real life tennis stars. This formula that the author has of making her characters come out of the pages and we believe that they exist continues to amaze me.

I declare myself a Fan of Carrie: the claw, the push, the desire to be the best and the fears that this entails, make this a character so human that anyone can see himself reflected. Likewise, the secondary characters stole my heart: Javier reminds me so much of my dad that made me cry and Bowe is the perfect balance that this novel needed.

Weak points: It was a bit slow in the beginning for me, but then you see how this supernova rebuilds and you say wow.

This is the story of a second chance, an incredible comeback and I swear you are going to love it.

I liked this title better than some of TJR’s titles and less than others, but I would still rank it in the top half. Elite tennis is a glittery world and was well-suited for one of her characters. Something about Carrie didn’t feel as deeply built as some of the other titular characters but I wouldn’t say it detracted. Won’t let down any TJR fans.

Every time I read the newest TJR, I fall in love with the characters. She writes beautifully flawed mains and a well-developed supporting cast. And characters that are lightly woven into previous works.

But Carrie might be my favorite. This book is obviously about tennis. But not really. It’s also about winning. But not really. This book’s magic lies in the discovery and growth of love; romantic love, familial love, and self-love. And I LOVED it.

* I was honored to read an ARC of this book via
NetGalley and the author/publisher. All opinions are my own.*

Carrie Soto is a badass and she knows it. She owns it. The Bitch is Back! Taylor Jenkins Reid cranks out one masterpiece after another and Carrie Soto is Back is another five-star rating! TJR never ceases to amaze me how to adds details, like little easter eggs, to her books -- such as briefly introducing Carrie in Malibu Rising or mentioning the characters listening to Daisy Jones.

The relationship between Carrie and her dad, Javi, was so sweet, although she did make me angry at times. Her dad was always so understanding and the sweetest. I also loved Bowe Huntley. He was such a lovable character and was so good for Carrie.

This was amazing -- 5 million stars! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

WOW WOW WOW WOW. I am dead. I have passed away. I have said it 100000 times before but I'll say it again - TJR is literally not capable of writing anything other than a masterpiece. Longer and more coherent post to come on my instagram soon. LOL

I cannot explain how grateful I am to have received an advanced copy of a book by one of my all-time favorite authors. I am not kidding when I say that receiving this has been one of the best parts of my year. Thank you soooooo much to Random House for gifting this to me!!!

I have updated this review with a link to my instagram post! :)

I loved this one! Carrie Soto is the best tennis player of all time. She is coached by her father beginning in her childhood and this book follows her growing up and becoming a freaking legend. She retires and several years later her record of wins is about to be taken by Nicki Chan. Carrie decides she can't handle that and tries to make a come back to defend her record.

I love Carrie Soto! Most people find her cold, I actually find her relatable in a lot of ways. She has such determination and drive to win and we see a lot of growth as she ages. I love her relationship with her father, Javier, and how it changes over the years. TJR writes great characters and this is one of my favorites. I also love the subtle cross overs from her other books. Read this one!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an arc for an honest review!

I’m not a tennis fan. I’m really not into sports at all. But this book about tennis isn’t really about tennis. I fell in love with this story. I love Carrie, and her journey. I love her relationship with her father. This story is a great character study and so relatable.

I’ll be honest. Tennis is not my jam, so I was skeptical going in. Carrie is not the most likeable character but (like all of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s novels) I was shocked into the world she created and I realized (when I started tearing up at a certain part) that I had fallen in love with these characters. It’s definitely a slow burn but it’s so worth sticking around and reading it all the way through before making a full judgment.

For Carrie Soto, being the best tennis player I has always been all that matters. Her entire life, she has pushed herself and set incredible records in womens’ tennis. Several years after she has retired, a fresh and young new player beats the record set by Carrie. So Carrie wonders: can she do it one more time and take back the record that was hers?

First - Taylor Jenkins Reid clearly can do no wrong. We first heard of Carrie Soto in her last book, Malibu Rising, but now we finally get to meet Carrie and she is incredible. She is fierce, she is strong, she is independent. She does NOT just smile and look pretty - she says what she thinks, even if it ruffles feathers. She has no problem owning her talent and dedication to her sport and will go back at anyone who tries to take it from her. For Carrie, tennis is as natural as breathing so it’s not hard to follow along side her. Told mostly from Carrie’s perspective, there are a few commentator chats from the tennis matches and it’s entertaining to get their perspective. I loved seeing how Carrie grew and truly came into her own, not just in tennis but in her life. She was able to see what’s most important and allow herself to be happy.
Even if you don’t know much about tennis, this book is still such a great story!

“Carrie Soto is Back” releases August 30th! This review will be posted to my Instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly 🙂

Another win for Taylor Jenkins Reid. The writing is raw and real and so very authentic. Unfortunately, I am not too much of a fan of tennis, but nevertheless, the story is fantastic. A solid amazing book for those who love Reid and tennis!

ARC REVIEW OF CARRIE SOTO IS BACK

5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, Ballantine Books - Random House, and most importantly, Taylor Jenkins Reid for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

"because you are not yet who you will one day be"

Evelyn Hugo. Daisy Jones. Nina Riva. Carrie Soto. - The TJR Mount Rushmore if you will.

Daisy Jones started my obsession with TJR's writing. That was actually my first book by her, and from there I flew through Evelyn Hugo. When I got the ARC of Malibu Rising I was honestly underwhelmed, so I wasn't sure what to expect with Carrie Soto.

Whatever I expected flew right out the window from the first chapter. WHAT AN ADRENALINE RUSH.

As all of her stories, TJR's writing style knocks it out of the park. You can feel the absolute emotion coming through her writing. I laughed out loud, I cried, I was nervous, I was angry. I felt all the things she wanted you to feel and more. And it felt GOOD.

Carrie is a BOSS A** B**CH. PERIOD. She was so simple in her want and need for one thing- winning- but the layers that formed her hardened exterior is what made the story great. She doesn't care that people call her the "Battle Axe" or that people think she's cold- she's not here to make friends. The societal expectations that women must always be friendly is annoying, and I loved how this theme was handled throughout the book.

I loved the historical references- Pam and Tommy, Princess Diana - that kept the story rooted in the early 90's. The transcripts of the media in between the chapters really helped show the public opinion of Carrie and how it shifted through time, but also how it remained consistent- that a woman should be grateful for the opportunities that come their way. It's unfortunate that thinking hasn't evolved much since then either.

All four of these characters are intertwined without being intertwined. They run in the same, if not similar circles, and it's always cool to see the references that pop up within the stories.

Do yourself a huge favor- go pre-order Carrie Soto is Back from your favorite indie bookstore now. It hits shelves 8/30 and if you've loved the previous women's stories, you'll love this one too.

I received an ARC of this novel from Ballantine Books via Netgalley in exchange for my review. I am a huge Taylor Jenkins Reid fan and I’m always excited to read her stories because she is a great writer, but also because her books are so very different, especially this one! Carrie Soto is Back is about Carrie Soto, a phenomenal tennis player from the 80’s who, later in her career, decides to mount a comeback against all the odds. A great writer can draw you into stories you may not have a big desire to read, for example a story about tennis and make characters that aren’t always “nice”, like Carrie Soto and somehow the story is compelling and you end up cheering for the characters! That is what TJR had done in this story for me. It certainly made me think about the Williams sisters and the movie King Richard, but this story is Carrie Soto’s and it is a must read!

I really enjoyed this book, it pulled me in very quickly. There was a lot of things about Carrie that I thought made her kind of unlikeable, but I did think it was interesting to see things from her perspective. I liked that we go back in time and watch her grow up and can see where a lot of this comes from, it made me think of what it might be like to grow up as an elite athlete. You do not have to be into tennis to enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for a chance to read an early copy.

This is a character-driven story of a woman making peace with her past and growing in the process. It's not about tennis, but it has a LOT of tennis in it. So if sports aren't your thing, maybe give it a pass. But it's classic TJR and as such is well-written and a lot of fun.

TJR is back with Carrie Soto, and I am worn out. Carrie Soto is a record-setting, high-achieving tennis player in the 80s. When a younger tennis player comes up and beats her title record, Carrie feels threatened and decides to un-retire so she can get her record back. Only problem is, it's been quite a few years since she's played tennis, and she's now 37.

Carrie Soto is another strong, independent, hard woman, but my goodness. For the first 75% of the book I was seriously hoping she would fail. Thankfully, the last bit of the book had me slightly more in her corner. Some people may love this character, or identify with her, and if you do, that's great. For me, it felt like her only personality trait was playing tennis and wanting to win tennis. That was it. She was a constantly a jerk to people who cared about her, and it was rebranded as "honesty," and then she couldn't take the same type of honesty back. Is this a realistic portrayal of a human? Yes. Does that mean I enjoyed it? Nope. The character growth at the end was so minimal and quick that it wasn't satisfying.

The best characters were the side characters-including Gloria Jones, a sportscaster featured in a few vignettes that had to deal with sexist male colleagues while trying to stand up for Carrie Soto. Now that woman, I could identify with!

So, in my own conclusion, this is another extremely well-written book by TJR, but it was a story I just didn't really want to read. 3.5 stars rounded up.

Thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for the e-ARC.

Wow! Carrie Soto Is Back is one of the most visceral reading experiences I've had. Taylor Jenkins Reid makes you feel as if you are sitting court side at every nail biter of a tennis match as Carrie Soto, possibly the greatest tennis player ever, comes out of retirement to reclaim her record for most Grand Slam matches ever won. Carrie is not "likeable"... she is described by the media as the battle axe and worse for not tampering her competitive nature and being more ladylike on and off the court.
This is a great sports story, about the sacrifices the very best athletes must make to get to that level...and then, the eventual examination of whether it was all worth it after all.
Carrie Soto is Back is also a love story, and while there is a conventional romance between Carrie and a former bad boy pro, the heart of this novel is Carrie's relationship with Javier, her father and coach. Javier had moderate success as an Argentinian pro player, before being sidelined by an injury and lowered to working as a country club instructor. . He recognizes in his young daughter a rare talent, and he raises Carrie almost exclusively on tennis with a good bit of his life philosophy thrown in.
There is inevitable conflict between the headstrong Carrie and her father. But there is such love and connection there as well. It really gives the novel another layer of depth and soul.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

This might be my favorite TJR book yet. This was an ode to female athletes and father daughter relationships. Going in I thought this would be a book about Carrie’s love life type thing and it by war exceeded all my expectations. Carrie and her fathers relationship broke me. By the end of the book I was in tears. The way TJR wrote their relationship as he coaches her through tennis and life was everything for me. So many times I wondered would my dad have been like Javier? Their relationship was beautiful. Their interactions and anecdotes throughout Carries life were written just so beautifully.

Carrie could be an unlikeable character but I loved her. Her perseverance, her attitude, her growth are all part of this journey and it’s exactly what makes this book so special.

I loved the way TJR highlighted how if she was a male athlete they wouldn’t be calling her a bitch but would be praising her. How often society lets male athletes do whatever they want but when a woman has the audacity, they’re cold hearted, they’re a bitch, they don’t have class etc.

Carrie and Nicky’s relationship and interactions was probably one of my favorite parts of this story. The epilogue wrapped this story perfectly.

Honestly a must read and might be one of my favorite books of 2022!

I know so many people have loved this book. Seven Husbands is still my TJR favorite and maybe Malibu Rising after it. I have loved each moment when her books have come out and I have heard great things about this one.

So much of this book reminded me of King Richard, the recent Will Smith movie. The first third of the book describes Carrie Siri’s history growing up, then the rest of the book is her comeback (after she retired). It pretty much describes every important game to her, as well as her training lessons with her dad and other coaches. I don’t know if I know enough tennis to really understand it all. And it was ok, but I didn’t particularly care what happened to her - If she won or lost - or if she and her self-serving snotty meanness stayed the best of all time. The last couple of chapters made me smile and redeemed it a little for me, but there was so much of it that I just wanted to get through (it took me almost a month to read this).

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. TJR can do NO wrong.

First off, I literally screamed when I got approved for this one. Like never in a million years did I think I would get to read it early and I feel so honored and lucky! So thanks to Ballentine Books and @NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Okay now the fun stuff. If you’ve read any of TJR’s previous books, you know Carrie Soto had been mentioned before, but no one really knew her story. Carrie is the type of athlete so many strive to be. She believes in herself when no one else does. She knows her abilities and pushes herself farther. She has just the right amount of arrogance to drive everyone else insane.

I love a good comeback queen story, and honestly this is it, but you have to also deal with heavy emotions like heartbreak and loss within it too.

Bowe, oh Bowe. Idk why Carrie doesn’t love you immediately, but I did, even with your crazy ways.

Also bonus points for dirty old Mick Riva only being mentioned once!

I feel like this is the end of an era, unless we find out there’s more interconnected books coming (please be more), and I have so many emotions about it.

If you were a fan of Malibu Rising or Daisy Jones & the Six, this one is for you!