A solid 4 star read for me. The setting, as well as the characters and their lives were very interesting. On top of reading the dialogue in Irish accents in my head, I guess I’m now a rugby fan. I liked that there was depth to the characters’ trials and tribulations (check TW for sure). It was also rewarding that Shannon didn’t just fall into Johnnys arms right away. What is the opposite of cheesy, because I feel like their friendship was that. They weren’t ~too~ frustrating in their slow burn, at least not to the point of having me yell at them through the pages.

THE CLIFFHANGER AT THE END THOUGH….Well played Chloe Walsh……Now I am legally required to read the next installment.

That being said, this book was unexpected in a couple of ways for me…For starters, the age of the characters was a surprise to me. I don’t love following 15/16/17 year olds through their romances. I feel like this book would have been much better (and less cringey/weird), if the characters were older like their audience is. Definitely an interesting choice by the author, especially for a romance novel.

Secondly, I didn’t expect it to be so long. Coupled with it being a (very) slow burn, it started to drag on a bit for me. There were definitely key parts to character development, but I feel like otherwise it didn’t need to be so long.

I received this book as an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Thank you Chloe Walsh and Sourcebooks (Bloom Books)!

cute romance even if it was a little predictable. i enjoyed the characters and the romance itself. Johnny is a character i really loved as well.

I had heard a lot of rave reviews about Binding 14 for years and was really excited to try it when Bloom republished it. Unfortunately I don’t think the writing style or plot worked for me, it felt very YA and I was never fully sucked into the storyline. 2 stars

Ok so there were parts of this that I loved but others that were repetitive and well just super cringe. I have to say that this book didn't need to be this long and that all the inner monologue could have been cut way down. Overall, I think it could have been trimmed and been much better.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My Selling Pitch:
Wattpad’s Normal People.

Pre-reading:
Booktok strikes again. Y’all said this is one of your best. A criminally ugly cover. But like I love an Irish boy so maybe I’ll love it too?

Thick of it:
Wow, thank you for that name pronunciation guide. I will never refer to it, and my brain will just garble letters together. (not a criticism just an advertisement that I’m an ignorant slut)

You’re joking. The TV prayer is a real thing? The more you know.

Oh no. Oh no. Have I signed up for Wattpad? I have, haven’t I.

I’m so sick of reading character appearance dumps from a mirror where all they do is shit on themselves because they’re so tiny and they’re so skinny. Like shut up.

How do you get to school that early and still manage to be late? That’s a little much, girlypop.

I'm too old to care about high school sports. (laughs in Beartown)

Take a shot every time they tell you she's small. (Instantly blackout. Like good luck getting through a single chapter.)

This is so painfully Wattpad.

She's not like other girls. Kill me

Immediately no to what type of female.

I'm too old for these books. Don’t tell me someone was interested in fucking a fourteen-year-old child.

There's no reason these people can’t just be in college. I can't take it seriously with them so little. Like they barely have facial hair 😂 (Firmly believe that she could’ve been a freshman 18-year-old in college and stuck living at home to save money to tell basically the same story.)

Okay but like he's not 18 either, so let’s not refer to him that way.

The broken dick shouldn't be funny. Samantha, he's a child. But also like lol.

We don’t call women females. Fuck off.

Your school secretary is a predator.

He’s not doing well in science, but he’s a business major, and she’s not doing well in business, but she’s a science major. How convenient.

This book could've been so much shorter if we took out all the repetitive musing.

It’s the way this book says all its cringe lines with its full chest.

I’m reading this at work. What a chapter title.

I'm too old for this shit.

Ireland’s still 18 for drinking so I dunno how they're going to pubs and shit.

I just can’t take her seriously when she’s like they’re primal males, and I’m like they’re fucking children.

This reads like the One Direction your name at a concert fanfiction shit. Like this is so dumb.

They literally don’t know anything about each other. They just like each other’s appearances. This is wild.

Where are the fucking adults?

You got a fast car 🎶

The dog’s gonna die. (Ask me again in book two.)

This is just Wattpad Normal People.

She’s not like most girls and obsessed with her weight. She’s just naturally skinny. Fuck off.

I’m like why is she so dumb, and then I’m like she’s 15. That checks out.

It feels like author insert revenge wish fulfillment.

I am suffering.

How has she been his girlfriend for this long and not known the extent?

‘I’ve been in this game a long fucking time.’ You’re 17. You’re 17.

He’s a Gemini? Ew.

This is like satire of tiny girl at this point. She can’t get into a stool? Come on.

Y’all this man is 17.

And title drop.

How does she not know what Bella looks like?

Why does girlypop always make herself gag when she brushes her teeth?

Take a shot every time it’s Shannon like the river and not just fucking Shannon.

OK, Cinderella.

dikes

Literally how would the school not contact her?

She’s not like other girls. She’s a gamer.

She’s so small, but she’s still a four?

Imagine thinking it was okay to speak to your mother this way.

She’s not like other moms. She’s a cool mom. Can I get you an alcohol, a condom? I hate it here. I hate it here so much.

Because the ass is a muscle? What do you mean how does he have muscles on his ass? I hate it here. I hate this book.

I hate this complete fetishization of she’s so small and young, and he’s this big, manly man. Like they’re both children. I hate it.

I mean, it takes like a half hour for ibuprofen to kick in. You're telling me they sat around in a locker room for a half hour and there were no teachers who came looking for them or other students? I don’t believe you.

This is just middle school as hell, and if you’re like that makes sense, Samantha. They’re so young, I don’t want to read about middle schoolers fucking. (And I mean middle school vibes obviously, not literally.)

I’ve just assumed he’s the equivalent of a quarterback this whole book, and I will not be changed on that. And if you’re like Samantha, you don’t know what a quarterback does either, you’ve literally never watched football in your life, you’d be correct.

This is some serious 2000s music.

What sort of anime shit line was that?

See, the romance feels slow burn because it’s so goddamn long of a book, but it’s only been like a couple months and they’re literal children.

Literally where are the adults?

I cuss a little.

Literally where are the adults.

God, how much longer? I have a whole other book to still fucking read because I got both of them like an idiot after booktok told me they were amazing.

I didn’t realize this was an Easter book. I’m so timely.

See, here’s what’s upsetting. The only redeemable part of this book is that it’s pretty good domestic violence rep. It’s like very surface-level. There is no nuance. But like it makes me understand why the girlies like this. I don’t like it, but at least I can latch onto like oh, this is a rescue fantasy for them.

Oh wow, that’s like not an ending at all. Now I’m glad I have the second book.

Post-reading:
Y’all looked me in my eyes and told me this was a good book.
It’s a Wattpad novel that you’ve read 100 times before.

Things I will always hate: sexualizing children. And if you’re like Samantha, it's a high school romance. Of course, it does. No. No. There’s a difference between writing about a first love and writing about wanting to fuck a 15-year-old girl. There’s a difference between writing in a rapist secretary and being like tehee the boys are just manipulating her to get information on their crush. Why are you not shocked and appalled? Because he’s a boy? Because he had an orgasm? Let’s gender-swap this. Are we cool with some 15-year-old girl letting her teacher munch her box to get a file? Absolutely not. And it’s treated like a joke instead of the abject horror that it is. And let’s be clear. I don’t have a problem with this book’s age gap, I think a romance between a 16-year-old and a 17-year-old is totally chill. Even a 15-year-old and a 17-year-old, I’m like a little hinky because there’s such a big difference in maturity there, but still like a two-year age gap, that’s fine. They’re both in high school, whatever. People do that all the time. I have a problem with how it’s written. It is almost entirely sexual from his perspective from the get-go. And that’s gross. And you know I’m not a man. I will never understand the hellscape of a teenage boy’s brain, and thank god for that, but this is written by a woman, so she’s projecting this attitude onto her idealized romantic love interest. Let’s do better, girlypops. Let’s want more for ourselves.

And if somehow you bypassed that, let’s discuss the writing of this book. I should not have to read about how tiny the FMC is what feels like every other sentence. The word small is used 154 times. Tiny, 38. Little, 211. Big 183. That’s obscene. The size difference fetish is so present, always. The preoccupation with their ages is so present, always. And the author even tries to age them up when she talks about them to make it appear better. Half the book Johnny’s “18.” He’s not 18 this whole book. But somehow it’s just totally chill and manly that he’s drinking and watching porn and is left home alone and has no medical supervision. He’s a goddamn minor.

There is maybe, maybe 150 pages of content in this book. It’s just been bloated into this 800-page monster with endless repetitive action and rumination. It’s predictable as hell. It’s cliche.

The book’s only redeeming quality is that it writes an example of domestic violence that’s recognizable and familiar to the point that it feels like the author probably lived that life and very sorry to that girlie if that happened. No one deserves that. However, there’s no depth to the abuse. There’s no nuance. It has no commentary to make. Which is a disservice because that’s probably the part that an audience is latching onto. I highly doubt they’re identifying with the FMC being so small and so skinny but so beautiful anyway. She’s not like other girls, guys!

And then that leads to the romance feeling like author insert wish fulfillment. Your romantic partner cannot be solely responsible for rescuing you from and healing you from your trauma.

I understand why the girlies ate this up. It’s easy reading. But I’m too old for this shit, and I will not be recommending a book that has such a cavalier attitude about rape. My gut reaction on finishing this book was two stars because it is a nothing read and I did plow through it, but then I sat down to write this review. And I was like no, this was actively bad, and it has unforgivable messaging surrounding male rape. It’s going on my do not read list.

Who should read this:
Wattpad girlies
Highschoolers

Do I want to reread this:
No.

Similar books:
* The Deal by Elle Kennedy-college hockey romance, traumatic backstories
* Icebreaker by Hannah Grace-college hockey romance, traumatic backstories
* Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros-Mary Sue and her fantasy boyfriend, traumatic backstories, Wattpad fantasy
* It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover-Wattpad abusive relationship sold as a romance
* Beardown by Fredrik Backman-if you want to actually read small-town sports romance trauma, this is your book

This book was so good!! It had me addicted to it!! It is a new adult college age sports romance that is addictive and so good!!! I needed this bookbin my life!!! 5 star read!
I just reviewed Binding 13 by Chloe Walsh. #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

my god. My stomach was in knots reading this book, my heart aches for these characters. I love Johnny and Shannon so much, seeing their friendship grow as they fought their feelings for each other and slowly let each other in. they both had secrets they tried to keep to protect themselves, but over time they broke down each others walls and became the one person the other could trust.

the found family in this books is everything, I can’t wait to get the rest of their stories. Even in the most serious moments you can count on gibsie or tadhg to provide some comedic relief.

this series will stick with me forever, I can’t stop thinking about these characters.

Unfortunately, this book felt too slow and drawn out for me. There was too much repetition constantly stating their age difference, her bruises, etc,

This book was so good! I am obsessed with Shannon and Johnny a total must read. I get why the hype is so real!

This book is beautiful. The story of Johnny, who chooses to fight his battles alone and tries to fix everything for those he loves, and Shannon, who is terrified and is finally getting a glimpse of hope, is utterly heartbreaking. I could not put this down the entire time. The balance between the heartache and the happiness of small victories was perfect.

The slow burn and tension between Johnny and Shannon and Gibsie and Claire was worth every moment. Chloe didn't shy away from throwing in all the Irish cultural references, rugby, and, abuse. I couldn't stop squealing at all of the rugby references. It was PERFECT. Seeing abuse on page and the extent of it was hard to read but necessary. I can't wait to continue this series.

Read if you love
- Rugby
- He falls first
- school romance
- resilient characters

6 stars - I understand why there is so much hype around this book. Although it is supposed to be long, it did not feel that way. I binged the entire book. Every interaction between Shannon and Johnny had me squealing with excitement. Additionally, many heavy topics are addressed in the book.

Love this story and can’t wait to continue on and find out what happens with Shannon and Johnny!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and Chloe Walsh for the ARC.

this book is all about falling in love with your soulmate, and it was incredible! it gave a loooot of slow burn, but in a good way that made it worth it when they finally connected. Johnny to Shannon was EVERYTHING! you could just see those heart eyes he had for her!

I heard all the hype over this book but it’s so long that it intimated me and wow do I regret that… this book deserves all the hype and more. I loved it so much and loved both characters.. every interaction had me squealing I can’t wait to read the second.

i genuinely do not even know how to write this review. when i first started this book, i was not understanding the hype at allll and almost dnf'd it but i am very glad i didn't. johnny & shan's story has SUBSTANCE but it is such a perfect story and very different from a lot of other YA high school romances. the book is pretty lengthy but with the tension of the slow burn, it is *chef's kiss*

nothing in the world prepared me for the heartbreak of shan's life and the kindness of johnny's soul. nothing prepared me for the emotions of this story, especially the ending???

the book is very well written and it is raw and real in the saddest way. the depth of their story is very unique compared to other YA romances and i loved it.

damn what the fuck have i just signed myself up for…

i could NOT put this down. it’s angsty and dark and cringy and, at times, VERY hard to read (how’d i go this long without finding out it’s chock full of abuse??? emotional and physical- fair warning ‼️) these struggles are so fucking real and one mr johnny and miss shannon deserve the entire world and more 🥹❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

am i positively petrified to start the next book now? oh, for sure but c’est la vie, et cetera

I would like to express my gratitude to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this electronic advance reading copy (e-ARC). I truly appreciate it! I must say that the new cover of this book is stunningly beautiful and eye-catching, which made me even more excited to dive into the story. After finishing it, I can confidently say that it was an excellent reread, and I would definitely give it a rating of 4 stars. Once again, thank you very much, NetGalley!

Shout out to mama Kavanagh for this one. Setting those realistic expectations:
“It’s important to know that a woman has needs. In real life, girls don’t all scream and carry on like porn stars ."

I heard alot of good things about this one and honestly I didn't love it. It's extremely slow in the beginning. It was kinda weird reading about a 15 year old and 17 year old at the age of 28. I started to like it around 70%. That ending tho....absolutely hated it. Now I'm mad I'm gonna have to buy the second book to see what happens.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Binding 13 has been on my radar forever and I'm so sad to say I'm only NOW reading it. This book was wild in the best way. Taking place in 2005 Ireland, this book has so many throwbacks to my own teen years I felt transported back to high school right alongside Johnny and Shannon. Chloe is a saint and provides a really detailed glossary in the front of the book with a lot of helpful Irish terms. As someone from Canada, I don't have a lot of knowledge about the school system or rugby or the Irish slang in general, so this really came in handy for me when I was reading.

Walsh was a master story-teller with this one. While marketed as young adult, I enjoyed it as a 32 year old woman and didn't necessarily feel squeamish reading it. There's sexual talk, but no actual sex on page, which helped. And even though this was mega slow burn, which I normally don't like, the absolute PINING and FEELS that I got from Johnny and Shannon were enough to keep me intrigued.

There is some HEAVY content warnings here though, friends. Please make sure to check them out before reading, and have Keeping 13 handy because you're going to need it after that cliffhanger.

Binding 13 by Chloe Walsh is the first book in the Boys of Tommen series. This book is a romance that is set in Ireland and follows Johnny and Shannon. Keep in mind that there are some trigger warnings for this book with a big one being mental and physical abuse from a character's parents. I found this book so addicting to read because I was attached to the characters from page 1. You cannot help but feel like Johnny and Shannon are real characters who have stolen your entire heart. I am also attached to all side characters. I would say that if you love a character-driven novel then you will love this. Binding 13 ends on a major cliffhanger and you will not be able to do anything besides pick it up immediately!
Thanks to NetGalley and Bloom Books for the ARC in exchange for a review!