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emilywemily6's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I really enjoy TJR’s historical novels and this one is no exception. I really loved learning more about tennis and seeing multiple timelines tell the story of Carrie Soto. The dynamic audio was also really immersive to listen to! Carrie was unlikeable (on purpose) but occasionally she did/said things that were so egregious that I would have set boundaries and cut her out of my life, and yet her closest friends stuck around for her. She did have character growth towards the end of the book, but it felt like such a stretch compared to where she was at just prior to that turning point since she had little to no growth for the majority of the book. The romance was pretty subtle, which was nice that it didn’t overpower the rest of the story. Overall, not my favorite by this author, but I still really enjoyed it. I think the high emotions from the game play-by-plays bumped this book up in rating just a little bit for me, I definitely felt emotional a couple times throughout this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Cursing
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer, Death, Misogyny, Sexual content, Medical content, and Alcohol
norebax's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexism, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
reneerianne's review against another edition
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I’ve loved TJR’s previous books that I’ve read (Evelyn Hugo, Daisy Jones) but with this one it started to feel a bit like a fixed formula. In the first half I found Carrie so unlikable that I did not really care what happened to her, and I found the relationship between her and her father quite unhealthy and toxic as he kept pushing her to do better (think: I’m Glad my Mom Died). Mental health issues could have been dealt with more sensitively. I did like Bo and the storyline with him, and was happy to still see character development in the second half!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Toxic relationship
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