Thank you to Net Galley for providing me a early copy of Carrie Soto is back.
I love TJR so I was super excited to get the chance to read this one early. I am not a huge tennis fan so I wasn't sure how I was going to like this one but it turned out great. I will say there was a bit much of it and could of added more to the story besides just all TENNIS but its okay. Of course now I want go and play it for fun!
There was a lot of use of Spanish too which kinda had me thinking back to my high school days in Spanish and trying to remember what Javier (Carrie's dad) was all saying. So be ready for that!
Also I liked the relationship between Carrie and her father/coach. You could tell they were really close and that her dad was really rooting for her. The other characters that were in this book too with Carrie were great as well and did a good job being in the story which they also played a huge roll in the book. It was nice being able to read this one from start to finish with how it all started with Carrie's past and how she was today and how she wanted that comeback!

You may remember Carrie Soto as the other woman in Nina Riva's marriage in Malibu Rising. This is her own story, in her own words, and it blew me away. TJR has this way of making the most unlikeable characters (and trust me, Carrie Soto is nothing if not completely unlikeable) grow and change to the point where you start to root for them. I love sports but not tennis, and it wasn't TOO in-depth to be a turnoff. Does it help to like tennis? Sure, but it's definitely not a prerequisite.
In my opinion, this was her best yet. I really hope this trend continues of taking name-dropped characters in other novels and constructing a whole narrative for them, because I am for sure all in.
In short, I absolutely loved this book and would recommend it to anyone.

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

Taylor Jenkins Reid has done it again! This is an absolute delight of a novel. Carrie Soto was a minor character in Malibu Rising but here she is center stage and steals the show. I was a tennis player many years ago and loved reading all the tennis lingo and details about tournaments. I raced through this book and could not put it down. The book spans the length of Carrie's career, starting when she was a child and going through her "comeback" as one of the oldest players the sport has seen. I found myself rooting for Carrie even though at times she was a difficult person to love (as acknowledged by her). I was hopeful that the ending would be satisfying and it most definitely was without being too cheesy or out of line with the rest of the book. Overall this was a wonderful read and I can't wait for Reid's next book!

This author is an auto-buy from me.
This book is good, but it's very different from everything else she's written.
This is so focused on the sport of tennis. Not a criticism, just different.

This book is very well-written, and I loved it, though it was so different from all her others.

My one piece of feedback would be to include the english translation for Javier's dialogue.

This book is very good. This author can do no wrong.

Very much about tennis, but a huge fan of this author for life! There aren't a ton of characters, but those who are involved are developed well. Would like to see more romance, but overall really great read!

A TJR stan for life. I’ve read everything she’s published, and I’ve loved them all. I’m not going to rank this book, because I really think it’s vastly different from all her others. This book is very well-written, interesting, and great, but here’s what you should know going in:

It is VERY tennis-y. Like 100 percent of the time you’re reading about tennis. Plays. Strategy. Serves. Tournaments.

There are basically 2 characters. Carrie and her dad. There’s a love interest, and there’s someone in PR, but they’re not major characters.

There isn’t a ton of backstabbing, love affairs or extreme drama. There’s a racket, a dad, and a woman just trying her best at tennis.

I liked it a lot, but like I said – totally different than anything she’s published previously.

Fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid (myself included!) will definitely enjoy this new novel. I am not a tennis fan, or really a sports fan in general, but I still found myself gripped by the descriptions of matches. Carrie is prickly and will no doubt be described by some as “unlikable,” but I found her fascinating.

I don't really care for professional tennis but despite how much of the book is taken up by descriptions of matches, tennis isn't really the point. Carrie Soto demonstrates the price of greatness, what it's like to work for something, and how being vulnerable is both the hardest thing to do and the best. I couldn't stop reading.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Any fellow TJR fans are going to eat this book up like I did. I have never once watched tennis, but this book had me invested in the culture of professional tennis from the first chapter. Carrie Soto is a retired tennis player coming out of retirement to defend her record from Nicki Chan. What follows is an emotional story of growth, strength, integrity, love, family, & acceptance.

The only way I can think to describe Carrie Soto is that she is a badass. She is definitely a polarizing character that I can see rubbing people the wrong way, but she always redeems her self & her take no shit attitude had me adoring her.

Carrie’s relationship with her dad was written beautifully. Even when they didn’t see eye to eye, Javier never once lost his faith in Carrie. He was her biggest fan & the most encouraging coach anyone could dream of. His relationship with Bowe was another favorite of mine. I loved watching them accept one another & grow closer.

While this is a book about tennis, it is so much more. Sure, there were tons of tennis phrases & words I didn’t really understand never having watched the sport, but TJR did a great job of making it accessible for all readers. While Carrie’s journey is about tennis, what she discovers & realizes about herself is so much deeper than that. Carrie Soto & many other characters in this book show badass women succeeding in a period of time that wasn’t made for women like them. Carrie Soto is an icon.

This book releases on August 30, just in time for the US Open. I highly, highly recommend.

Thank you to Ballantine Books and Netgalley for an advanced readers copy of this book for my honest review.

I'm starting off this review by saying I love everything Taylor Jenkins Reid has written and I highly advise that you go check out her previous novels. I was very excited to receive "Carrie Soto is Back" months before publication.

That being said this ended up being only a 3 star read for me and if I'm being honest I think 1 of the stars is just for Reid being the author.

This book has a lot of tennis. A lot. I feel like a much of the character development and interpersonal relationship development was lacking in lieu of more tennis. Which is fine if you are really into tennis. This is the book for you. The tennis matches during the slams were written in a way that had me on the edge of my seat, especially at the end of the book. The practice sessions were a slog.

Carrie and her father speak at length in Spanish with no attempt at translation. Do I wish I were bi-lingual? Sure. But I'm not. And before you come at me that I could google translate a) I shouldn't have to do that and b) I read a chunk of this book on a flight in airplane mode so... All that to say, if I can't understand the conversation then I am missing out on part of the relationship. The relationship that is the driving force of this book.

I will continue to devour anything TJR publishes. This one was a miss for me though.

The beginning started out a bit tennis-heavy for me as I’m not a fan, but the story that emerged was so much more and I’m glad I stuck with it. Loved the themes of perseverance, age-defying, and creating your own rules. Would definitely recommend this book!

Has there ever been a better writer than Taylor Jenkins Reid? I mean honestly she’s such an amazing storyteller that you actually feel like you’re apart of a band, or the worlds best tennis player. I actually felt like I was a spectator at these matches with my head volleying back and forth between players, and I was dying to know how it would turn out. Would Carrie make her tennis comeback?! And it just comes so perfectly full circle at the end- it was perfect.

Did I love this book!! I have read everything Taylor Jenkins Reid has written and loved them all. I was unsure about starting this one, because I don't follow much tennis. Wow, what a surprise!! I loved it! It gave me an appreciation of the sport that I now want to pay more attention to!! Thank you!!

Daisy Jones and the Six has by far been my favorite of her books. I thought this one was also good but not great. I am not sure if it was too much tennis talk for me or what but I skimmed some of the match recap. I loved the relationships and romance and thought the last 50 pages were very good. I love how characters in her books overlap. I would still recommend.

Taylor Jenkins Reid came back and she came back better and even stronger than before. Carrie Soto was everything I wanted and so much more. Carrie Soto as a character? Amazing! I loved following her journey, watching her growth, going back to tennis, her resilience was admirable and her relationship with her parents was nothing short of emotional. Carrie Soto is back is probably now in my top 3 favourite TJR books. The wait was so worth it!

Can I say anything about a Taylor Jenkins Reid novel that hasn’t already been said? No. She is beloved and with good reason. But I’m going to try.

For those who have read Malibu Rising, you already know who Carrie is. Now having read Carrie Soto Is Back, I look at the scene in which she arrives at Nina’s party in a different light. Carrie Soto is a fierce and determined tennis player that has become a legend during her career. She is retired, but when her record for most titles is threatened by a new tennis star, she decides to come out of retirement to defend it. And while she is 37, and no longer the player she once was, she is as determined as ever. Carrie is not well liked in the tennis world. She’s brutal, honest, and relentless. She plays with no heart, and is dubbed “The Battle Axe” by her peers. But she is a complex character that is unapologetically herself. And I have no doubt you will soften towards her and root for her as she claws her way back.

I read this as fast as one of Carrie’s serves; at blistering speed. It is broken down not by chapters but by dates and matches spanning her whole career. I absolutely loved her relationship with her father/coach, Javier “The Jaguar” Soto. It was a departure from TJR’s previous characters and their destructive relationships, both romantic and familial. There is a lot of tennis language in this book, which is to be expected. It is after all a comeback story about a tennis player. I know nothing more than the fact that tennis involves a court, a racket, and a ball. Yet I still enjoyed it. And so will everyone because like Carrie Soto, TJR is back. This will be the most anticipated book of the summer, and it will live up to the hype.

A huge thank you to Random House Ballantine and NetGalley for the approval. I was thrilled to have this on my NetGalley shelf. My honest review will be posted on my blog as well as retailers on its publish date.

Thank you, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books, Netgalley and TJR for the gift! I am a self-confessed TJR fan since Seven husbands so it will be a hard task to give an impartial review. Let's give it a shot.

Carrie Soto is TJR creating her universe- The universe she created with Nina Riva in Malibu Rising. If you were wondering regarding all the characters which kept coming in and out in her previous outing, well here's the satisfying reveal. Carrie Soto isn't a typical TJR female lead though- it did take some time for her to grow on me. She is brash, in your face and the slow transformation with the introduction of Bowe and subsequent loss of her mentor, father, coach is a treat.

The story- it's a fairly straightforward underdog sports fiction with the underdog being Carrie, a 20 times Grand Slam winning 37 years old retired tennis star making a comeback to defend her record against the enigmatic, Nicki Chan (definitely deserves a story of her own). If I have to crib about something, this was one TJR book where I was rooting for Nicki. Does Carrie Soto defend her crown in a grueling calendar year against the younger, faster and tougher opponents is what forms the crux of the tale.

The research that went into the book is mind boggling- each game comes to life across the 4 grand slams- the ending is absolutely worth the wait- the rivalry between Nicki and Soto, the love hate relationship between Soto and Bowe and of course, the heartbreaking moments between the father daughter duo is what makes this one stand out. An absolute treat for TJR fans!

#CarrieSotoIsBack #NetGalley

I was really excited to read a book with Carrie Soto from Malibu Rising as the main character. If you like tennis (a lot), you’ll love this book. If you’re like me and know nothing about tennis and don’t care to ever know anything about tennis, you’ll DNF this one at 30% as I did. I wanted to like it, I really did. I just don’t care about tennis. To be fair, the small bits unrelated to tennis such as her family life and relationships were interesting. I also found the writing very good. I just need more than tennis as the main story.

Without a doubt my favorite Taylor Jenkins Reid book. Every page had me hooked and I read it slowly because I didn’t want it to end. Might even be my favorite read of 2022 so far. The whole book is like watching the most exciting sports event. Learned a lot about tennis too. Felt like a historical fiction, even though Carrie Soto was not real. And not only will you learn about tennis, but you’ll learn great life lessons. This is a book that will definitely stick with me.

Thank you Net Galley for the advanced copy.