I love character study novels, and Tracey Lange is quickly becoming my favorite author of this genre. I really enjoyed We Are the Brennans so I was excited to get an ARC for her second novel. Both books are set in the same town, but it's not a series.

The Connellys feel like a real fully developed family albeit a dysfunctional one. There's Tara who just got released from prison, her older brother Eddie is a single dad dealing with a brain injury, and her older sister Geraldine is a bossy control freak. Some times siblings are hard to get along with, and these siblings definitely have a lot going on. Come here for the family drama, and stay for the cute kid jokes.

I did have some small complaints but they are spoilers:
- Geraldine is irritating, and her history didn't make up for that
- the side romance plotline moved a little too quickly and without discussion, which was a bit unrealistic given their shared history

I received an audiobook ARC for free from Netgalley but this did not impact my review or rating.

I’m not usually a family drama fan but this was a good story! A bit of a slow burn but great concept!

Thank you so much for the advance copy to read and listen too before the publish date. This is my introduction to this author, and I have already added a previous book to my to be read shelf. I like the ride this story took me on. Being incarcerated for any reason can be detrimental to someone and their family. I like how this family rode the waves so they could be there for each other. Is this book going to be part of a series?

Character-driven portrayal of a family and their struggles. Twists, turns, and complicated situations. I listened to this book in less than 48 hours. Barrie Kreinik is one of my favourite narrators. Thank you to MacMillan Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy.

After being released from prison, Tara Connelly returns to her childhood home, where she’s always lived with her siblings and her nephew. She wants everything to be how it used to be, but soon she’ll discover that they’re all keeping secrets and that they need to stay together in order to overcome their struggles and rebuild their relationship and their lives.

Tracey Lange does it again! She creates captivating family dramas with intricate plots and complex characters that leave me wanting to read even more about them. Her last book, We Are The Brennans, is one of my favorite books ever and now I loved this one too!

There are several social issues explored in this book. I found it particularly interesting to read about the challenges that a person faces when trying to reintegrate into society after being incarcerated. I liked all the storylines and the character development is very ell done!

Thank you Celadon Books for including me in the Read Together of this wonderful book and thank you Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for the gifted audiobook!

The Connelly's of County Down is a story about the special bond and unconditional love that families share. It will be available on August 1 in all formats.

The Connellys of County Down
By Tracey Lange

I loved Lange’s debut novel, We Are the Brennans, so when I heard she had a release coming in August I was excited to give it a go.

Another phenomenal family drama by Lange, this follows Tara Connelly and her siblings Eddie and Geraldine. Tara, just released from prison with little money or options has no choice but to return to the family home with her siblings and nephew.

Eddie is a single dad and struggles with the long-term effects of a traumatic brain injury. Geraldine works hard to maintain an image of having it all together but has struggles of her own.

Shifting between each of the siblings POV and that of the officer who put Tara in prison, we discover secrets each of the characters are holding. And I love how at the heart of it, we are reminded how despite the struggles we all encounter, no one can have your back like family.

Another excellent character-driven fiction by Lange. It was official before, but I’ll say it again, I will read anything she puts out. The narration was delivered by Barrie Kerinik, who also narrated We Are the Brennans, and I loved experiencing the audio for both books.

I absolutely LOVED this book. I'm so sad that it's over. The audiobook was fantastic to listen to. Great Narration, perfect voice changes for characters and pleasing sound/pitch. I rarely reread books, but I feel like this will be one I do just to revisit the characters. Tracey Lange writes the most vivid and brilliant character driven novels. I loved We Are The Brennans (p.s. thank you for the Easter egg 😉), and in a similar fashion, The Connellys of County Down is about a return to home and family and learning to accept the past while forging a path forward to a better future.

I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good character driven, family drama novel. You won't be disappointed. Definitely one of my top reads of 2023 so far.

Loveable characters ✔️ great plot ✔️ heartwarming and sensational ✔️ unputdownable ✔️✔️✔️

I'm a big fan of Tracey Lange and will pick up anything she lays down.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher celadonbooks for an opportunity to read and review honestly an advanced audio copy.

Tara Connelly was just released from prison for a drug charge. She wants nothing but to keep out of trouble and return to her family.
Her brother Eddie is a struggling single father, a brain injury leaves him with little options for work and struggles. Her sister Geraldine has worked for the same company for years and her anxiety over family troubles leave her with a hoarding problem. The siblings have been on their own since their teens as their mother died and their father left. They rely on each other and yet they are all drowning.

Upon realizing this fact, Tara reminisces on their Irish mother and the fairytales she used to tell the siblings where they were magical characters on an epic voyage. One that could only succeed with their individual powers and cooperation.
With detectives set on finally making the arrest of one of the areas biggest drug-dealers; Tara finds her new family dynamic putting her parole in danger.

I selected this title for the name, as my married name is "Connolly" I accepted it as kismet.

The characters are superbly developed and well written. I could feel Geraldine's choking anxiety and followed her flawed logic to her actions. I understood Tara wanting to protect everyone around her and Eddie's futile search for a place in a world that no he couldn't fit in.

The disconnect with the people that know your composite pieces, the building blocks of your psyche and actions is well explored within these pages was relatable. I am now a fan of this author and will pick up her work without a second thought.

This was great story and a very solid sophomore novel for Tracey Lange! I’m such a sucker for a good family drama and this definitely delivered!

I loved this character driven book filled with family drama and secrets! Even though I wanted to shake all of the characters at some point for their decisions, I could understand their motivations and it made it feel like I was reading about real people. I felt invested in the story from the start and by the end I had a hard time putting it down because I had to know how it was all going to come together. I really enjoyed the audiobook narration and it was easy to keep the characters straight even with the changing POVs

There’s just something about a book like this, all about a family, that invites you in like a guest. You stay for dinner but you’re never asked to leave and then, before you know it, you become a part of this family, all of its history and secrets and grief.

That family history here belongs to Tara, a tenacious young woman recently released from prison, and her two older siblings with layers upon layers of their own trauma. We follow Tara as she settles into her life after more than a year in prison and as the novel moved forward, the truth of her incarceration slowly unravels. As is so often the case, those secrets are more rooted in what happened years ago than they are about the present.

Tracey Lange creates a startlingly real family in the Connelly who are somehow endlessly likable while making choices that are almost infuriating. I was very fond of Tara and her brother in particular but felt connected to each of the characters. Lance’s gift is in creating full characters, even the ones who exist in the sidelines of the plot, without giving us very much detail. Her characters encourage empathy in the reader.

Bonus points for a little bit of an unconventional romance amidst it all.

The audiobook was beautifully done, with narration that felt authentic to the characters, and pacing that met the plot’s pace.

4.5 stars, only because I’m not sure the book needed to wrap up so neatly at the end. Maybe it didn’t? I don’t know. Maybe I just didn’t want to say goodbye!

Review: So I’m not going to lie, I was hesitant about reading this book. I did not care for Lance’s last book, but when @celadonbooks gave me access to a free audiobook, I decided to give it a chance. And I am SO happy I did!! This book gave me all the feels! I found myself talking out loud during some parts and I even listened to the book longer than I was planning on because I couldn’t stop listening and wanted to know what happened next. Lange did such a great job with these characters that you could really feel the struggles they had and wanted all of them to succeed! The ending was wonderful! Thanks so much Celadon Books and Tracey Lange for my advanced copy of your book! I definitely recommend giving this one a listen or a read when it comes out!!

Not my usual read at all! But I liked it.
It had romance, good bosses, and family drama. The narration was wonderful.

This was a very engaging family story that explored the lengths to which family members will go to protect one another. I was luck to get this ARC through NetGalley, and listened to the audiobook every free minute until I finished it. The novel opens with Tara's release from Taconic Correctional facility, where she's just served 18 months on a drug charge. Reunited with her family -- brother Eddie, nephew Connor, sister Geraldine -- she struggles to restart her life and to live within the restrictions that her parole status imposes. There are many secrets to be revealed, and past sins to be atoned for, before the family members can move toward their futures in peace and safety. The audiobook narrator was excellent, the story flowed smoothly, the characters seemed very realistic, and there was just enough suspense to keep my interest throughout. Definitely one I'd recommend.

The Connellys of County Down as an audiobook sucked me in from the first chapter. GREAT narrator! Tara Connelly is released from prison and starts the process of putting her life back together. She moves in with her sister, brother, and nephew and immediately begins trying to solve all of her problems and her family's problems....while creating more complications for everyone with her choices. This family drama is about a complicated group of siblings and learning to trust and love again. It's about how far people will go to take care of and protect the ones they love. It's about second and third and fourth chances. It's about how people change and grow and learn. About how families can grow apart and come back together.

So many thanks to NetGalley for early access!

I liked this book more than I thought I would after the disappointment that it didn't take place in Ireland. Once I got over that, I really enjoyed the storyline and the character development. I only wish that there was a second book because I want to know more of what happens to the supporting characters. I listened to this audiobook through Net Galley for free for an honest review.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5651822374

Tracey Lange follows up We Are the Brennans with another book dealing with family love and loyalty. The Connellys have an especially fraught dynamic. They lost their mother at a young age, and after their brother was in a debilitating car accident, their father disappeared, leaving oldest sister Geraldine to take care of her younger siblings.

The story opens with youngest Connelly, Tara, getting released from prison after 18 months away from a drug trafficking charge. The person there to greet her when she gets out is none other than Brian Nolan - one of the detectives who led the investigation that put her away.

Brian doesn't know what draws him to Tara Connelly, he just knows that there's more to her than her arrest record would have you believe. Also, since the investigation against the dealer she was convicted of selling for is still ongoing, Brian knows that Tara has more information than she's willing to share.

I found this story very similar to that of Lange's debut. A lot of family dynamics and dealing with regular people who find themselves in these almost extraordinary circumstances.

The story features these characters having worked themselves into some tough corners. Often this was difficult to read for this reason because you can both see the way out for them, but you also understand how they remain in the loop of questionable decisions. It's all working itself to a clear boiling-point as it's no longer sustainable.

I like how Tracey Lange builds up the background. We start out with the rudimentary information about each Connelly. And slowly, chapter by chapter, the pieces are filled in and we see the source of where everything began that has informed where they find themselves in the present.

But for all that said, I feel like it was a bit anti-climactic. It's a very character driven story, and this is like a snapshot of their lives on a precipice. I felt like we, along with the characters, worked so hard throughout. The ending just left me a bit unsatisfied. I understand decision to leave things the way they are, and I completely see the direction we're supposed to be going into, but personally I just wanted a bit more closure and finality. Just a smidgeon.

Regardless, Tracey Lange has a way with weaving together a story that fully engrosses me. I also believe that the narrator was perfect at adding the emotion and personality behind each character and moment. I don't know if this would be a story I could read as much as I really enjoyed listening to it precisely because of that emotional connection provided by the narrator.

A great second novel for Tracey Lange. Love the little reference to Brennan's in this book. She does family dynamics really well

Thank you so much, MacMillan for a copy of this to listen to.

The narrator is fantastic, well done.

Unfortunately, I was unable to finish this. I simply could not stay interested.

Title: The Connellys of County Down
By: Tracey Lange

Genre:
Women’s Fiction

Red Flags:
Situational Trauma, Light profanity and Adult situations

Summary:
Geraldine, is the oldest sibling who carefully navigates the family drama while hiding her own secrets which in turn create great anxiety. Eddie, is the brother who experienced a Traumatic Brain Injury and is still suffering the side effects which affects his life on a daily basis. He struggles to cope while this side effects while also trying to single parent his son. Tara, is spontaneous sister who was recently released from prison on drug trafficking charges. She loves her nephew and is trying to reacquaint herself with living back in the real world. The siblings grow together through all the ups and downs of life, filled with love, hate, and healing.

Review:
Tracey Lange is quickly becoming a go to author for me, and plan to read everything she writes. I loved We Are the Brennans, and The Connellys of County Down does not disappoint! This novel is filled with deeply flawed, rich and relatable characters. Characters who are easy to fall in love with. The Connellys of County Down is a fast paced, unforgettable read about real family dynamics, love, sacrifice, forgiveness, and healing. I definitely recommend this read!

**The Audiobook is narrated by Barrie Kreinik and is excellent!

Thank you to Tracey Lange, Barrie Kreinik, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

#reluctantreaderreads
#Traceylange
#BerrieKreinik
#Macmillanaudio
#netgalley
#advancedreadereditions