A review by withlivjones
Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid

emotional inspiring reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book is essentially the plot of Cars 3 but with tennis, and I am so here for it. I love that Carrie is an unapologetic bitch (affectionate) but I also love that she mellows out somewhat throughout the book - something I wasn’t a huge fan of in Evelyn Hugo was that Evelyn was pretty much the same character from adolescence all the way into old age, with not much growth throughout her life. The supporting characters are great too - Nicki Chan especially is a fantastic foil, and her and Carrie’s Achilles-Hector dynamic is great to read. 

The romance is very sweet and isn’t a distraction from the story, rather it adds good emotional depth to the characters, and I’d go so far to say that it’s my favourite pairing out of all of TJR’s books I’ve read so far (second to Evelyn and Celia, of course!) The tennis scenes are surprisingly gripping and not as repetitive as I’d feared they’d be, and the integration of news columns and interviews perfectly illustrate the double standards for ambitious women in sport - particularly women of colour. I’m in no position to judge the accuracy of the representation in this book, but it is definitely important that these kinds of stories are told. More please! 
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