In the late 80s, tennis star Caroline "Carrie" Soto set a new record for most Grand Slam's won in women's tennis with a solid twenty. In 1995, this record is bested by new tennis star Nickie Chan.
Despite not having set foot in a tournament for five years, Carrie's sense of competition and ambition doesn't let her accept the new status quo. Unfortunately, her way back to the top has a number of set backs; at age thirty-seven, she has to work and train even harder than before and her reputation as the ruthless "Battle Axe" has left her with little allies. It's so bad that the only person she can get to train against is fellow former tennis star and one time fling Bowe Huntley.
While she knows that even she cannot play a whole season, Carrie's past success has helped her win a spot in four different tournaments. As she trains with Bowe underneath her father and coach, Javier, Carrie will have to come to terms with the two things she fears most: the potential for failure and opening her heart to romance.
Carrie Soto Is Back is a 2022 historical fiction novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid.
This novel provides examples of:
- Determinator: Nickie Chan doesn't let anything get in the way of besting Carrie's record, not even career shortening injuries.
- Dropped a Bridge on Him: Javier dies suddenly of a heart attack sometime during the night, right when the US Open is set to start. Carrie loses her father and coach in one fell swoop.
- The 'Verse: This book is set in the same, slightly altered universe as three of Reid's other novels.
- The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo: Mick Riva is mentioned by Javier, and the magazines Vivant and SubRosa are either name dropped or get excerpts from columns shown.
- Daisy Jones & The Six: During some downtime, Carrie is reading the unauthorized biography of Daisy Jones and The Six.
- Malibu Rising: Carrie's affair with Brandon Randall gets a very brief overview during the backstory portion of the novel.
