Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid is a historical fiction novel about tennis, love, winning, losing, and family. There’s a metaphor that runs through the novel about love, in tennis, love means 0 or better yet nothing. Carrie Soto throughout the book evolves into what love is in terms of winning and losing. This is a great book that hooks you in so fast and you instantly care about the character of Carrie Soto and what she wants to accomplish in the book. The father and daughter relationship works well and evolves through the years. The opening starts in the present of 1994, then goes into the past to show how Carrie got there. The majority of the novel takes place in 1994-1995. Carrie Soto Is Back is classified as historical fiction but there’s not much history in the story since most of the time is spent at a tennis court of some time, not a lot of detail is spent on how tennis clothes have changed throughout the years, the most details in time are on how tennis rackets have changed from wood to metal. Carrie Soto Is Back won the Goodreads Choice Award for Historical Fiction, I don’t know if I would have voted for it last year. The end of the story was a perfect ending for the journey of Carrie Soto. Carrie Soto’s character was briefly introduced in the novel Malibu Rising, and we get her perspective on what happened in that story when it takes us into Carrie’s past. This character is way different and more mature from her introduction in that book. Taylor Jenkins Reid did throw in a cute but brief throwback to Daisy Jones and the Six in the story. This is my fourth Taylor Jenkins Reid novel starting with The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Daisy Jones & the Six, and Malibu Rising I’m blown away every time by how easily I’m hooked, she has such a talent for that. Carrie Soto Is Back was published on August 30, 2022, by Ballantine Books.

Plot Summary: Carrie Soto has been retired for 7 years to do bad knees that have since healed. She’s been happily retired with a legendary record that no one thought could ever break, until now as she watches in the stands with her father and former coach a woman tying her record. She decides that she is back and destined to reclaim her glory at 37. She doesn’t play the tour just all the majors The Australian Open, Wimbledon, The US Open, and The French Open. We get taken through her career and show how she got there and what she is really up against with her body and emotions. It is unheard of for a woman her age to compete but Carrie Soto is out to prove them wrong and most importantly herself.

What I Liked: The psychology of winning is the main point of the book and it works well, I loved the deep dives Carrie had to do into her psyche and what legacy and mortality mean. The love story in the 1990s works well and was fun watching it blossom. I loved the way the tennis matches are described and how I could follow the action easily. I liked the use of Spanish not explaining what the words meant after. I had 2 years of Spanish in college and only had two words that I could not get the meaning of. The father and daughter relationship was my favorite and how it evolved over the years.

What I Disliked: I feel the novel glossed over too many of Carrie’s relationships in the past I wanted more. The flashbacks just go to retirement, I felt they should have gone up to the 1990s and the rise of her new rival.

Recommendation and Rating: Carrie Soto Is Back is a fantastic book about winning, losing, and the toll it takes. This book is more than just about tennis, it has real heart as it goes over family and relationships. I recommend my followers to check out this well-crafted story that will hook you instantly. I rated Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid 5 out of 5 stars. I have given all of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s books 5 stars so far here’s my ranking of them from best to worst: 1) The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, 2) Daisy Jones & the Six, 3) Carrie Soto Is Back, and 4) Malibu Rising