By Taylor Jenkins Reid
A Book Full of Tension and Drama That Will Have You Delightfully Captivated
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SUMMARY
Carrie Soto retired from tennis six years ago with a record twenty grand slams. She was one of the best tennis players ever. But that was then. Now she is sitting in the stands of the 1994 U S Open with her dad, Javier discussing a possible comeback. Her decision is made for her when the young and dynamic player Nicki Chan matches her twenty-grand slam record at the U. S. Open.
Carrie is thirty-seven years old, and coming out of retirement will be a challenging feat. Her dad has agreed to coach her once again, and her hitting partner will be Bowe Huntley, a 39-year-old player that she had a fling with back in her glory days. This attempted comeback will be life-changing in ways Carrie can’t possibly imagine.
“One of the great injustices of this rigged world we live in is that women are considered to be depleting with age and men or somehow deepening.”
REVIEW
Carrie Soto is Back is a fabulous come-back story about drive, perseverance, and naked ambition. The book is full of tension and drama and will have you captivated from the beginning.
The story is bound with exquisite details. You can practically hear the ping as the tennis ball hits the racket. You can even smell the felt on the balls and can listen to the rowdy crowds yelling insults at Carrie Soto.
Carrie Soto is unlikable and unpopular, but she is a tennis legend. Not many people like Carrie; not the fans, not the players, and certainly not the press. Carrie says exactly what she thinks. She plays brutally, and she is brutally honest in all she says. Nothing is sugar-coated. Nothing.
But you know who does like Carrie, readers do! She is an intriguing character, and while you may not like how she acts, you will appreciate her uniqueness, ambition, and strength. She is insensitive, prickly, and overly confident, and sometimes you want to reach through the pages and shake the meanness out of her, but you also can't help but root for her. Her determination, despite the odds, is fascinating.
The storyline starts in the middle with Carrie’s decision to defend her grand slam record. The story first goes back in time and explores Carrie’s youth and her rise to tennis greatness. And then the story moves forward with a come-back battle for the ages, starting with the 1995 Australian Open.
Author Taylor Jenkins Reid’s writing is sublime. It’s captivating and delightfully entertaining. My favorite part is the portrayal of a strong, courageous, and competent woman who must learn when enough is enough.
Carrie Soto is Back is the fourth book of Reid’s “famous women quartet,” These are her four books about women and fame. The book quartet features a movie star, a rock star, a supermodel, and our tennis player. They each share a similar theme but are standalone novels. Two already have television options. Other books in the quartet are Daisy Jones and the Six (2019), Malibu Rising (2021), and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (2017). Read them all!
This audiobook increases the power of the story. An assortment of personalities are brought to life by a multiple cast of narrators, including Stacy Gonzalez, Patrick McEnroe, and Mary Carillo. The voices, pacing, and characterizations will sweep you into this convincing story.
“My older self knows that you must stop – in the middle of chaos – to take in the world around you. To breathe in deep, smell the sunscreen and the rubber of the ball, let the breeze blow across your neck, feel the warmth of the sun on your skin. In this respect I love the way the world has aged me.”
Publisher Random House Audio
Published August 30, 2022
Narrated Stacy Gonzalez, Patrick McEnroe, Mary Carillo and others
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com
