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4.25 AVERAGE
4.25 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Fun little book. A perfect listen for a long summer car ride.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
hands down the best and most exciting book i’ve read all year. there’s a reason tjr is one of my favorite authors! i relate to carrie soto more than id like to admit and i adore her. the relationships in this book were perfect and my heart started racing every time i picked it up. just perfect. (also there goes tjr making me want something that doesn’t exist! what i’d give for carrie’s break points to be real and to watch the soto v chan final)
Carrie Soto is the world’s best tennis player. She has the most Grand Slam titles out of any player. At the beginning of this book, she is 37 and retired. However, she decides to come out of retirement to defend her title of world champion against the new, up and coming Nicki Chan. Carrie has been retired for over 5 years, so she has a lot of work ahead of her to even compete in these games. However, her father agrees to coach her. He is an amazing teacher, and they have a very close relationship. It took me awhile to get invested in this story. I think it’s because Carrie is not a very likable character. She doesn’t have any friends, other than her manager and her dad. She’s a very strong character, but abrasive in her interactions with people. There is a reason that she’s called the Battle Ax. However, she does develop some new relationships as the book goes on, which made the story more enjoyable. Still a solid 4 star read.
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Best supporting cast of characters in a book, maybe ever! Carrie is flawed, but the people in her life understand her so well and give her exactly what she needs to grow. TJR orchestrates this while also maintaining each side character’s distinct personality and opinions. The result is an array of beautiful and deeply human relationships. I cried and I laughed. This will be one of those books that I’ll wish I could reread for the first time.
“We live in a world where exceptional women have to sit around waiting for mediocre men.”
After Evelyn Hugo, I wasn’t expecting a lot. I liked EH well enough, but felt it was lacking in areas. This was so much better. I could picture every scene and every character so easily, and it felt more like watching a movie than listening to an audiobook (which was so well done, by the way). TJR is a wonderful storyteller and excellent researcher. I would have thought she played professional tennis based on this book. Though I typically enjoy a book with more flowery descriptions, metaphors, poetic language, etc., this was a really nice change of pace and a great lesson for ambitious, ruthless perfectionists who need help remembering the joy in their sport (or hobby or art or whatever else).