Now that Challengers is out, anyone else excited for tennis recs? Then I have the perfect book – The Misdirection of Fault Lines. It delivers drama, tennis, and ambition all wrapped into one. Keep reading this book review of The Misdirection of Fault Lines for my full thoughts.
Summary
Three teen girls compete at an elite tennis tournament for a shot at their dreams—if only they knew what their dreams were.
Alice doesn’t belong at the Bastille Invitational Tennis Tournament. She needed a sponsorship to attend. She only has a few wins on the junior circuit. And now, she has no coach. Tennis was a dream she shared with Ba. After his death, her family insisted she compete anyway. But does tennis even fit into her life without him?
Violetta is Bastille’s darling. Social media influencer, coach’s pet, and daughter of a former tennis star who fell from grace. Bastille is her chance to reclaim the future her mother gave up to raise her. But is that the future she wants for herself?
Leylah has to win. After a forced two-year hiatus, Bastille is her last chance to prove professional tennis isn’t just a viable career, it’s what she was built for. She can’t afford distractions. Not in the form of her ex-best friend and especially not by getting DQ-ed for her “attitude” before she even sets foot on the court. If she doesn’t win, what future does she have left?
One week at the Bastille Invitational Tennis Tournament will decide their fates. If only the competition between them stayed on the court.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Featuring multiple POV, The Misdirection of Fault Lines is a story about drive and ambition. It’s also about friendship, family, and love. About the forces in our lives that keep us awake at night, get us up in the mornings. There’s grief and loss, and trying to honor a memory in name, but not spirit. There’s friends we find ourselves leaning on even if we don’t want to. And competitive tennis which turns us into products, machines, and lean bodies.
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The Misdirection of Fault Lines examines abuses of authority, of wanting to keep everything floating along the status quo, and how we see ourselves in relation to our family. If our identity is eclipsed by our hobby, by what we do, by our family, by our dreams. People who aren’t afraid to confront our mistakes, our bad decisions in the making, even and especially when we don’t want to hear it.
Find The Misdirection of Fault Lines on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.