Take a photo of a barcode or cover
inesdalmeida 's review for:
Backhanded Compliments
by Katie Chandler
Thank you Atria Books, Katie Chandler and Netgalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
This is a rivals-to-lovers romance focusing on two tennis players, who are destined for one another (yes, by fate). I though the descriptions surrounding tennis were spot on, and every time the author detailed how games were going, I felt like I was in the audience, which was entertaining. The nerves surrounding matches, the media tricks, all of that was extremely fun to read.
One of our main characters, Juliette, comes from a family of tennis superstars and hers is a familiar arc of "you have to let me go my own way." If you're confused, let me fill you in. Whenever you have watched the (usually teenage) movie with that character who is trying hard to please their parents (think, The Ice Princess), what do they end up doing? That's right, they end up telling their parents to stick it because the pressure they're putting on them is too much. In this case, since dad is also the coach, Juliette had to figure out if she liked tennis for herself and what to do about her father. I think her arc is familiar but was well developed and I rooted for Juliette throughout.
Our other main character, Luca, is somewhat of a loner. She deals with anxiety constantly, and just wants to achieve her goals bad enough to play on an injured ankle. Her arc was less satisfying because to be completely honest, I didn't really see much of a change there. Apart from accepting and trusting the romantic love of Juliette--and that was unsatisfying for me.
The romantic pacing was fine. I don't think there was as much yearning as the author was banking on, and that could be because we know from chapter 1 or 2 that these two are meant to be together. In this world, you get your soulmate's name engraved on your wrist and everything you do with them is magical. I think if this had be staggered out, then maybe the romance would felt earned but it made it less exciting overall for me.
Overall, it was a fast-paced, fun read and would be perfect for lovers of tennis and sapphic romance who so happen to also enjoy the fated mates trope that is often present in romantasy/fantasy novels.
This is a rivals-to-lovers romance focusing on two tennis players, who are destined for one another (yes, by fate). I though the descriptions surrounding tennis were spot on, and every time the author detailed how games were going, I felt like I was in the audience, which was entertaining. The nerves surrounding matches, the media tricks, all of that was extremely fun to read.
One of our main characters, Juliette, comes from a family of tennis superstars and hers is a familiar arc of "you have to let me go my own way." If you're confused, let me fill you in. Whenever you have watched the (usually teenage) movie with that character who is trying hard to please their parents (think, The Ice Princess), what do they end up doing? That's right, they end up telling their parents to stick it because the pressure they're putting on them is too much. In this case, since dad is also the coach, Juliette had to figure out if she liked tennis for herself and what to do about her father. I think her arc is familiar but was well developed and I rooted for Juliette throughout.
Our other main character, Luca, is somewhat of a loner. She deals with anxiety constantly, and just wants to achieve her goals bad enough to play on an injured ankle. Her arc was less satisfying because to be completely honest, I didn't really see much of a change there. Apart from accepting and trusting the romantic love of Juliette--and that was unsatisfying for me.
The romantic pacing was fine. I don't think there was as much yearning as the author was banking on, and that could be because we know from chapter 1 or 2 that these two are meant to be together. In this world, you get your soulmate's name engraved on your wrist and everything you do with them is magical. I think if this had be staggered out, then maybe the romance would felt earned but it made it less exciting overall for me.
Overall, it was a fast-paced, fun read and would be perfect for lovers of tennis and sapphic romance who so happen to also enjoy the fated mates trope that is often present in romantasy/fantasy novels.