I was riveted from the very first page of Carrie Soto is Back! It is a quick read and I would have probably finished it in a day or so if I wasn't that busy. Carrie Soto is a minor character in her last book Malibu Rising, but you do NOT have to read Malibu Rising to fully appreciate Carrie Soto is Back. I am a huge tennis fan and I love playing tennis and watching matches. There is a lot of "tennis talk" in this book, which I liked, but I'm not sure if a non tennis fan would be quite as interested. Tennis is a mental game and that is what I liked best about the way TJR approached this story. She focused on the mental game on the court and off the court, particularly Carrie Soto's relationship with her father, her mother, her significant others, her friends, other tennis players, etc. There is so much emotion on every page. I felt like I was sitting in the stands watching these tennis matches and practice sessions. It's a beautiful, yet vulnerable story and a true page turner, especially during the play by play of her epic matches. There is even a love story, of course, because this is what Taylor Jenkins Reid does best. The characters are so well developed, even the minor characters. The ending is perfectly executed. To nitpick, I found the Spanish phrases and sentences interspersed throughout a little distracting because usually it wasn't translated. 5 stars (or 5 tennis balls, haha). Many thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy. Publication date is August 30, 2022.

This book,, was sooo good!
This follows Carrie Soto (who we meet in malibu rising) and her quest to defend her title as the best tennis player in history. I did not think that I was going to enjoy this as much as I did because I have little to no interest in tennis, and don't know much about it. But I was so wrong. You don't need to know anything about tennis to fall in love with this book. This book dives into the unfair way in which women are treated in sports, and how the standard for women in sports in impossible and unachievable. But this book does so much more than that. It goes into dealing with the loss of a parent, the importance of failing, the importance of being willing to fail. This book broke my heart and made me sob, but also made me happy and proud. The romance aspect of this book is a small part but one of my favorite romances written by this author. Although I loved this author's other books, I think Carrie Soto is now my favorite!

This freaking book ohmygoddd. I would pay money to read Taylor Jenkins Reid's shopping list, but somehow she still blows me away every time she publishes something. Her latest, Carrie Soto Is Back, slated for release this August, is no different and is quite possibly my new favorite of hers (gasp).

As someone who works in publishing, I'm fairly used to hearing about "roller coaster" novels that "made me laugh, made me cry," etc. While these buzz phrases are par for the course in the industry, rarely do I find them to be true. So when I tell you that Carrie Soto made me laugh, cry, ache, gasp, need, and want, I AM NOT LYING. Please read on.

Like many of us, Carrie has a fraught emotional relationship with herself. She's played tennis since she was tiny and has focused herself so wholeheartedly on the game that she's barely had time to learn how to live like a normal human. She cares about tennis, she cares about her dad, and she doesn't care if the world knows she doesn't give two sh*ts about anything else.

Carrie should be easy to hate, but of course TJR writes her in such a way that you feel for her emotional turmoil and want others to see the committed, driven woman she and her dad see. The novel revolves around her decision to make a comeback to the sport she retired from five years prior in order to maintain her GOAT title, and the painful, mean, difficult journey to get herself back to the top.

In regards to antagonists, Carrie's dad, Javier, is a beautiful character all on his own and the up-and-down relationship he shares with his daughter made me cry like eight times. Then there's angry bad boy of tennis Bowe Huntley, arch nemesis Nicki Chan, and the interjections of scorching commentary from news outlets — from front to back, this book is a winner.

In case I haven't adequately communicated how much you need to read this, I will also inform you that I read this in basically one sitting on a plane and my fiancé looked at me with confused concern probably six times when I'd laugh out loud one minute and then be wiping away tears four pages later. I told him to shut up and watch his James Bond.

I’ve come to say, this is my new favorite book by TJR. This book was written for every girl and woman who dared to do something passionately and without forgiveness and was called cold and mean. I love Carrie Soto, her passion and strength was so compelling. The story following alongside a father and daughter striving for greatness was so raw and beautiful. I know this story will carry with me for a long time.

I don’t know how I got so lucky to get an ARC of this book, but thank you so much NetGalley and Ballantine Books!!

I’m in awe. I’m speechless. This beautiful story had my heart racing, had me on the edge of my seat, biting my nails. It had me happy, tearful, disappointed, empowered.

I’m not into tennis as a sport, nor is it my favorite to watch, but man I was obsessed. TJR creates such amazing, life-like characters, I kept forgetting this was fiction.

I don’t want to give too much away because this is a story you HAVE to read to understand how magical it is. 5 millions star read all the way!!

FIVE STARS all around. What an incredible book. When I found out this book would be centered around one of the least likable characters of Malibu Rising, I wasn't very excited. But, I was so wrong. Taylor Jenkins Reid breathed so much life into this character and was able to paint a picture of her motivations and struggles. Carrie is one of the most conflicted MCs I've met and I love her so much.
Also, I'm not a huge tennis person but the way TJR was able to pour the scenery into her writing made every match so vivid for the reader. Also, the flow of her words read like dribbling of the tennis ball. This is easily one of her favorite works of mine.

Taylor Jenkins Reid has done it again. Reid always hits the ball out of the park and Carrie Soto is no exception. The book has been highly reviewed by every major reviewer and I am following suit.

Carrie is a tennis star who was the very best in her field for years. She retires but comes out of retirement when a new tennis player bests Reid's record. Carrie is 37 years old and her body is not the same one it was before. She trains, incredibly hard, to make a comeback and regain her title.

The book flows smoothly and will take you into Carrie's world and you will be sorry when it ends.

I highly recommend this

Thanks to netgally and Ballantine books for the arc

Tennis player extraordinaire Carrie Soto blasts back onto the sports stage six years after retirement in an effort to reclaim one of her historic titles. At age thirty-seven, Carrie has to work twice as hard to get into shape coached again by her father, Javier Soto, who is also a former tennis title-holder. Tennis has always been Carrie’s be all and end all so that laser focus which has served her so well in the past comes in handy as she fights her way back to the top.

Carrie’s reputation for being so intensely focused on the game that nothing else matters has led to her being called the “Battle-Axe.” The Valkyries have nothing on Carrie as she has no time to engage other players in any way except in her combat style of tennis. Wining is everything to Carrie so that this comeback is essential to her own mental well being despite the odds of her playing against opponents who are half of her age.

3.5 STARS

In an effort to be her best, Carrie agrees to train with Bowe Huntley, another older player who is in his final year of the pro tennis circuit. Bowe has his own rep as a hot-headed emotional player. They had a brief relationship years before since that is the only kind Carrie has allowed herself to have. It is clear Bowe has strong feelings for his training mate, but she allows him very little latitude in that aspect; it is a good thing pro sports players are tenacious and not quitters. This time around Carrie has a lot to learn about her motivations and an opportunity to reevaluate what is truly important in this life.

The most interesting part of this tale is what it must be like for a player such as Carrie whose single-minded focus pushes out all other aspects of her life. Almost nothing is said about the six years of her retirement other than Carrie funneled her winnings and advertisement income into a youth sports foundation. Carrie’s life and attitude in those intervening years would have put more interest and perhaps add some balance to the story. While I realize Ms. Reid talents as a writer are very clear this story dragged for me. The centered focus on the tennis matches played including the strokes of each player became a bit tedious and drawn out. For non-Spanish speakers, it is helpful to read this book on an e-reader as Carrie communicates with her Argentinian father, Javier, quite a bit in Spanish with little to no translation to English.

5 bajillion million stars!

I don't know what I did to get this ARC but thank you to Netgalley and Random House/Ballantine Books for fulfilling my best dreams. Carrie Soto follows a (familiar if you've read Malibu Rising) tennis star as she decides to come out of retirement in order to defend her Grand Slams record.

Carrie is unlikeable, frustrating, and stubborn at times, but in my opinion that's what makes her such a great main character. I found myself simultaneously rooting for her, while also wanting to smack some sense into her. In addition, I thought this book had a really great supporting cast, and even when I thought I knew where it was going I really didn't. This is my fourth TJR book (funnily enough I think I read all of her historical fiction novels in publication order?) and with a fourth five star, she has solidified herself as one of my favorite authors. I don't watch tennis, but I was so invested in Carrie and her journey as both a player and a person that I devoured this book in 3 hours. The matches felt so real and my anxiety was at a "Your team is in the finals of March Madness" level because I had to know what was going to happen.

I laughed, I cried, and I really can NOT wait for everyone else to read this in August. I'm now going to devour all of her romance/contemporary fiction books because I need more TJR in my life.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine Books for providing me with an early copy of this book to read and give an honest review.
If you have not read Taylor Jenkins Reid, may I suggest you start with this book? Really, truly, I'm not kidding. Go read this book! Of all the books I have read by her, this one is by far my favorite! Wow, just, wow! Her writing only gets better with time! I'm not even a tennis fan, I really don't understand the scoring or why they play so many matches? sets? games? But it didn't even matter because it wasn't about the tennis It was about what the character learned over her tennis career. I could not put it down and read it in one day.
My thought is this book is somewhat reminiscent of Serena Williams. Though I do not know tennis well, I do know she is a force with which to be reckoned as the most decorated and influential woman's tennis player. So I imagine Reid had her in mind when she created the character of Carolina Soto.
I loved how Reid gave us the background of this world famous women's tennis player. Showed us how she grew up, how she crawled her way to the top, how she influenced others in her field.
Soto is tough as nails, closed hearted, and ruthless. She earned her title of The Battle Axe.
But her journey from retirement back to trying to place herself on top changed her. Showed her things in life she needed to learn, we all need to learn.
I loved every character in this book. Javiar, her father, who wanted what was best for her while also wanting her to read her full potential, Bowe, who you don't want to like but then he somehow crawls into your heart. Gail!!!! The mother/sister Soto never got to have. And Chen, Soto's rival who doesn't care how cocky she is because she knows she deserves to be. There's not one character in this book who doesn't help shape Soto, who doesn't help show Soto parts of life she has missed somewhere along the way.
One of my favorite parts in the book is when Reid actually references one of her very own books, Daisy Jones and the Six (also phenomenal and highly recommended). I actually took a picture and posted it on my IG because I just could not resist sharing that with the world!
I cannot say enough about how this book: made my heart race, had me laughing, had me crying. I was a mess, but a good mess.
If you read only one book in 2022, let it be this one. Let yourself into the world of Reid's writing because I promise you you will not regret it! I cannot wait to see what Reid comes up with next.

I'm not exactly sure how to feel about this book. On the one hand, it was extremely well written and well researched. The character development of Carrie Soto ended up being great, and the most of the side characters were loveable and complex.
On the other hand, it felt like it was only about tennis. I got really tired of reading about strokes and sets and aces and matches; I wanted more side story or back story or something. It was all well written and was interesting, but overall kind of boring because it felt was about the same thing the whole way through. Carrie Soto's entire life was dedicated to tennis though, so I suppose it was fitting to her story.
I also felt that Carrie Soto was not a likeable protagonist for 80% the book; when I had about 20% left, I finally started to warm up to her.
Overall, this is a great book, I just don't think it was for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the free eARC!

Reid writes another beautiful story that has you invested from the very beginning. She knows how to write a fierce woman like no other and Carrie is fierce then some. There were times i wasn’t sure to love or hate Carrie and her attitude, but I couldn’t help but admire her. The character development, complex relationships and the heart in this one was so well done. This is another win for me in the TJR category and I’m so grateful to have been able to read this one early.

Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review!


So I was worried I wasn’t going to enjoy this as much as TJR other books, but she really delivered. As a tennis player it is so nice to read about tennis. And yes I would have a basic knowledge of tennis before going into this because it’s tennis centered.
If you’re looking for a romance, be aware that is a side plot and this book focuses more on the other relationships Carrie has with her father, her rival and her coach. This was page turning and a nice palette cleanser for an avid romance reader

I was worried I was going to dislike Carrie based on her previous appearance in MR , while she’s not my favorite I do have a soft spot for her.
The ending also didn’t disappoint!

Wow. I can't believe I am giving 5 stars to a book about tennis, a sport, keep in mind, I know very little about, but here we are. 😅

I devoured this book. I couldn't get enough of it. I was already going in on a high after finally watching the movie, King Richard, this weekend (which was also amazing and if you haven't watched yet you should!). That definitely helped give me a good foundation for the sport. But in true TJR fashion, she hooked and reeled me in as well and describes the terminology, point system, etc. well enough to where you don't have difficulty following along either.

This book was adrenaline pumping, heart racing, edge of your seat intense. And the theme reminded me of Daisy Jones. I loved the crossovers with Malibu Rising and Daisy. You don't have to read either to read this book, but they are fun little Easter eggs thrown in there for the people who have.

There's some tearjerker moments and a slow romance, but this book never once felt like a chore to pick up. It flows and reads so quickly and easily I flew through it and now I wish it wasn't over. TJR is always a fabulous writer. Even when her books are a miss for me (Malibu, Evelyn), I still can respect the art of her writing and always get excited every time I pick one of her books up. She can make you picture what you are reading so easily with her wonderful descriptions and makes you feel the emotions of the characters so deeply.
I loved Carrie Soto. I hope we can go back to her world again soon!


**Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me an advanced copy of this book and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion. I am posting this review to my Goodreads account immediately and will post it to my Amazon & Instagram accounts upon publication.

I've loved every Taylor Jenkins Reid book I've read and Carrie Soto is Back is right up there with the rest. Carrie is a retired tennis player, quite possibly the goat (greatest of all time). When current champion, Nicki Chan, ties her record, Carrie comes out of retirement. With her beloved dad as her coach, Carrie is going to play one more challenging season. Full of great tennis action (and you do'n't have to love tennis) and complicated deep characters, this book will pull you right in and have you reading late into the night.

I know very little about tennis so I was a bit dubious about if I'd enjoy this book but to my surprise I really enjoyed Carrie Soto is Back, much more so than it's somewhat prequel Malibu Rising.

This book follows Carrie through her attempt to reclaim her position as The Best tennis player and it's such a lovely book and journey. Highly recommend for anyone looking to get lost in a world for a bit!

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine for the eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Not my favorite book by Reid, but definitely one that fans of hers will be putting on hold at the library and buying when it hits the sale date. I would love to check out the audio version of this in the future to see if it hits differently as her past books I did by ear.

Please TJR we need more!!! I feel very lucky to have been chosen to receive an arc to this novel. It was on my wishlist and I can’t wait to get a physical copy when it comes out

Goodness to gracious, TJR! I truly thought nothing could captivate me like like Evelyn, and then Daisy and then the Rivas - but here we are with another smash-hit (tennis pun intended) based off of a singular line from Malibu Rising!

I could not take my eyes off of this book - Carrie’s voice felt so similar and strong to all of TJR’s leading protagonists, and the news clippings and press interviews sprinkled throughout were iconic TJR world-building!

I know nothing about tennis beyond the GameBoy Color Mario Tennis, and I legitimately felt myself powering through the match scenes like a battle scene in a fantasy novel - I truly was on the edge of my seat!

Well done, TJR! Well done, indeed!

Carrie Soto Is Back
Taylor Jenkins Reid

This novel is set to release on August 30, 2022.

Carrie Soto is not a new character for those who have read Reid’s previous work. And while she wouldn’t of been my top choice for leading lady staring in her own novel I am overtaken with her tenacity and drive. The bits we previously know about her is just the tip of the iceberg.

Reid created a sports packed journey of revival. I enjoyed the father- daughter dynamics, the low key romance and the artful play by plays. But let me warn you if don’t know anything beyond tennis ball, racquet and net then you are about to take a head first nose down into tennis. And I did not realize how much training even those who didn’t push as hard as Soto did, time and life revolved around the sport.

As always Reid left tears in my eyes pain in my heart. She displayed the process of failing, of working to hard and success in a way that play of each other so well.

Was this Reid’s greatest novel to date, that’s a hard no. When I said sports packed I meant it. I do think it’s a bit over beating and the Carrie almost comes of as one dimensional. It was difficult to get past all the tennis talk, especially for someone who knows little to nothing about it.

I did however enjoy TJR masterful skill of incorporating multi media. The sport casters commentaries and news article worked well to giving us an outside view of those viewing Soto’s rise, fall, rise and so on.

This is by far my least favorite of Reid’s work. But that is because it didn’t feel character or plot driven. It felt sports driven.