This is the third book I’ve read by Tracey Lange, I loved all of them but this was my favorite. I even cried at point in the story. Kyle and Casey were characters I rooted for. It was an emotional roller coaster of a book. I can’t wait to read what the author writes next!!

What Happened to the McCrays? by Tracey Lange offers a heartfelt exploration of love, loss, and the possibility of redemption. The narrative centers on Kyle McCray’s return to his hometown of Potsdam, New York, after his father’s debilitating stroke, and his subsequent reconnection with his ex-wife, Casey. While the novel delves into the complexities of a failed marriage and the challenges of forgiveness, I found the pacing to be somewhat slow, which affected my overall engagement. Additionally, I struggled to form a deep connection with the characters, as they occasionally felt underdeveloped. The middle school hockey subplot, which had the potential to add depth to the story, seemed somewhat superficial and could have been more fully explored. Despite these critiques, the book provides a poignant look at the resilience of family and the importance of community. Readers who appreciate character-driven narratives and themes of reconciliation may find this novel resonates with them.

Tracey Lange has done it again with a beautifully crafted, emotionally rich story. Told in dual timelines, this book hooked me early on with its layered storytelling and kept me turning the pages. Kyle’s return to his hometown after his father’s stroke forces him to confront unresolved feelings for his ex-wife, Casey. As secrets from the past unravel, the emotional tension builds, leaving my heart aching for both characters.

Tracey Lange’s gift for writing complex, relatable relationships truly shines in this novel. It’s heartfelt, raw, and one of my favorite reads of 2025 so far. Highly recommended!

Tracey Lange does it again! Her talent for crafting emotionally rich, character-driven stories shines in this book. Thank you, Celadon Books, for providing me with an ARC. Before I was approved, I couldn’t wait—I broke down and ordered a copy through BOTM because I loved her last book so much. This one did not disappoint and is already one of my favorite reads of 2025.

Kyle is forced to return to his hometown of Potsdam after his father suffers a stroke. The story unfolds over two timelines—past and present. From the start, we know Kyle left town under complicated circumstances. He used to be married to Casey, and though he’s tried to leave that life behind, it’s clear his feelings for her are far from resolved.

Tracey Lange’s writing is so compelling and layered that I was hooked from the very beginning. She has a gift for building tension and weaving emotional depth into every page. I found myself desperate to uncover why Kyle left and what caused the tension between him and Casey. As the story unfolded, my heart ached for both of them. By the end, I was completely gutted in the best way—feeling deeply connected to their journey.
Lange is a master at capturing the messy, beautiful complexity of human relationships, and this story is a perfect example of that talent. I can’t wait to see what she writes next!

This book caught me entirely by surprise. I've seen this author before on social media and I'm kicking myself for not reading her work sooner. I thought this book was fantastic. It was a beautiful character study with focus on family, grief and loss and a lot of introspection into difficult topics. I laughed and cried. When a book can bring on so many emotions, it's a hit for me!

"What Happened to the McCrays?" arrived in my life at the perfect moment. As I navigate my own grief over losing a loved one, this poignant story has helped me process my emotions and find solace.
This story is a masterful blend of heart-wrenching sadness, thought-provoking introspection, and uplifting themes of love, kindness, forgiveness, and gratitude.

Kyle and Casey's love story is beautifully tragic, yet authentic and relatable. The author tackles real-life tragedy, challenges, and hardships with sensitivity and realism. While the story is undoubtedly sad at times, it's also a powerful exploration of the human experience. I’m thankful for the HEA.

This book was a 5-star read for me, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a moving and emotional story that will linger long after the final page is turned.

Tracey Lange, author most recently of the enjoyable "We Are the Brennans" delivers another family saga with "What Happened to the McCrays?" which should more than satisfy fans of her previous books. A dual timeline "now and then" story told from the alternating perspectives of divorced spouses Kyle and Casey McCray, the novel starts in the present with a precipitating family crisis--Kyle's father's stroke, which necessitates his return to the hometown he abruptly left behind two and a half years ago--and gradually uses the "then" chapters to fill in the story of how this seemingly perfect couple came to be so estranged. It would do the book a disservice to reveal anything more, but suffice it to say that "What Happened to the McCrays" packs an emotional gut punch and kept me fully engaged with both the characters and their story. Thank you to NetGalley and to Celadon Books for providing me with an ARC of this title in return for my honest review. Recommended.

** I interviewed Ms. Lange for a podcast, which will air in March, and will sound similar to what you read below. This is currently posted on my website, but will be posted on instagram the same day the podcast episode releases (I will email Ms. Lange the podcast info). Ms. Lange was incredibly gracious to speak to me and I deeply appreciate it **

Processing Emotions Rather Than Externalizing Aggression and What Happened to the McCrays by Tracey Lange

Kyle McCray had a rocky adolescence. His parents’ story began with an unlikely romance: his mom, a college student, met his dad, a local firefighter. She had never imagined staying in a small college town, but after discovering she was pregnant, she sacrificed her dreams and gave the family a chance. It didn’t stick. When Kyle was eleven, his mom left, and their relationship diminished to occasional visits.

Kyle’s dad didn’t handle the divorce well. To the community, he was a hero fireman. But, at home, he was moody and emotionally unavailable. Kyle, in exceptional pain, had no one to talk to about his feelings and lacked healthy examples for working through complex emotions.

To externalize his pain, Kyle got in fights. Luckily, a perceptive coach noticed this trend and drafted Kyle into the local Hockey team, figuring he could express his aggression on the ice. Playing hockey, Kyle found a healthy physical outlet for his anger and learned about teamwork, trust, and adaptive ways to manage emotions.

Big feelings can seem overwhelming and explosive if they aren’t addressed constructively. Lacking a safe space and method to process emotions and healthy coping skills, people sometimes resort to harmful ways of externalizing their pain.

Here are tools to find healthy outlets for healthily processing emotions and avoiding the unhealthy path of externalizing pain through aggression.

Face the Underlying Feeling: Try conversation, traditional journaling, or journaling in apps like How We Feel. Also, connect with people who make you feel safe about your feelings, their causes, and how and where you experience emotions in your body.

Give Yourself a Healthy Emotional Release: Go for a run, play hockey, punch a heavy bag or a pillow, dance it out, or have a big cry. Try layering these emotional releases together if one isn’t enough.

Parents Can Model Desired Behaviors: Parents who notice these externalizing behaviors in their kids can teach by example by verbalizing when they are feeling emotionally flooded, what is causing these feelings, and the healthy emotional release(s) they choose to try.

I found this to be heavier and slightly slower than the author's two previous novels. The writing was still strong, and the characters and their struggles were relatable and heart tugging.

I have read all of Tracey's books and this is by far my favorite. This was my last 5 star book of 2024 and had me sobbing at different parts. This is a story about love, loss, grief, second chances, and hope. This is a heavier story but it's done so well and will make you feel such a range of emotions.

Kyle and Casey are navigating an enormous loss and are now back in each other's lives. They have the opportunity to work with a small town youth hockey team (similar vibes to Beartown) and I loved this dynamic and the relationships formed from here. 
Highly recommend if you enjoy complicated family dramas.

I had to sit with this book for a while to fully process it—these characters were just that intricate. Tracey Lange has a gift for writing character-driven stories, and while I’ve enjoyed all of her novels, this one truly hit it out of the park.

The love story and history of Kyle and Casey—their heartbreak, their downfall, their selfish yet selfless love—felt so real. The characters were so well written. Not just the McCrays, but their families, their colleagues, the students and hockey team, the community of Potsdam as a whole. The layers of love written into each of these characters was so well written and evoked such strong sense of empathy and connection. I rooted for each and every one of them, even with or especially because of their flaws.

I recommend What Happened to the McCrays? to anyone who loves an insightful and empathetic novel with complex characters and their relationships. Several massive triggers are written into this book, which can be found in other reviews or content warnings.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

This was a heartbreaking and emotional story. You could really feel for MCs Casey and Kyle as you read through what happened to them and the breakdown of their relationship. I do think it was slow going at times, and I wasn’t crazy about explanation of Kyle’s departure, it just felt a little too simple to have happened that rashly, but it was still a great book overall..

I felt all of the emotions with this one. I teared up 3 different times reading this book. I also swooned and laughed.This book broke my heart and put it back together. It is such a beautiful but tragic story.The story had romance, heartache, resiliency, family drama, community, and so much love. I fell for all of these characters. I loved how Tracey Lange wrote Kyle's character. I lost myself in this book.Tracey Lange's writing is perfect for me, and she is now an auto-buy author for me. This is my favorite by her, even though I gave her other two titles, both 5 stars.This is a raw and powerful story.A story about forgiving yourself and the power of love after a life changing tragedy.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "What Happened to the McCrays?" and all opinions expressed are my own. I did like reading this book and really could not put it down. Love, loss, family, heartbreak, hope, forgiveness, regrets, very emotional story! I definitely cried during the trophy exchange. I'll check out the authors other books.

No one does emotional family drama quite like Tracey Lange! She has a way of making you care deeply about her characters and their stories - What Happened to the McCrays? does just that.

I loved the back and forth timeline as this really gave me the whole picture of who Kyle and Casey are, and an understanding of their complex relationship rooted in an overwhelming amount of love. I felt for them as they handled grief and regret - watching Kyle and Casey grow individually and together through acceptance and forgiveness made this story raw and real.

I also loved the small town and community aspect of this novel! Potsdam felt like a real place and was the perfect setting to give that close knit feel.

This is my opinion and may contain spoilers. Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advance copy.

This book will tear at your heart and, at the same time, open it up to hope. Set in a small hockey town, everyone knows the story of Kyle and Caey McCray—their high school love, their beautiful wedding, and the gut-wrenching heartbreak that followed. But what you don’t know are the deep, painful struggles that took place behind closed doors—the loss of parents, the grief of losing a child, and the profound loss of their identities.

The narrative moves between the past and present, allowing us to unravel the journey that led them to where they are today. The emotional depth of this story will stay with you long after you turn the last page.
You quickly learn that Kyle didn’t want to leave their small town, but Casey needed him to. She struggled deeply after the heartbreaking loss of their beloved child. When Kyle returns to care for his ailing father, he’s met with mixed feelings but eventually welcomed back by his community.

This book explores themes of loss, love, and how to cope with both. It will have you crying one moment and smiling the next. You'll find yourself cheering on the characters through their emotional journeys.

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing an advance copy of this book. Cheers to great reading!

I was lucky enough to snag this one off of @netgalley as an ARC, but it was also in BOTM for January… and for good reason! This is the 3rd book I’ve read by her and it’s by far her best one yet! I absolutely loved Kyle and Casey’s love story and definitely shed a tear or two during the hockey tournament scene. (IYKYK)
This story was told in a dual timeline, and kept me engaged the entire time. I enjoyed seeing how these two met and fell in love, and couldn’t wait to find out why they separated after 16 years of marriage. The character development was great; both Casey and Kyle had to learn to forgive themselves for past events in order to move forward with their lives. This one was an easy ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me!

Tracey’s books are so addicting! I have read all of them and all of them suck me in. She’s such a phenomenal storyteller. I sobbed reading this book, which never happens. Absolutely shredded my heart but put it back together, too. Amazing as always!

This is one of the most heart-wrenching and emotional stories I've read in a long time! Spanning two decades with a dual timeline, we follow the story of high school sweethearts Casey and Kyle.

In the present day, Kyle is living in PNW when he is suddenly called home to upstate NY to care for his ailing father. We learn that he left his hometown abruptly two years prior and he must face the consequences of his sudden departure upon his return. He is forced to confront Casey, whom he is now estranged from, his father, his brother-in-law Wyatt, and countless others in the community who relied on him before he up and left across the country.

When an opportunity arises to coach the local middle school hockey team, Kyle sees it as a way back into acceptance in his hometown, and possibly a way to regain closeness with Casey. But Kyle and Casey share a haunting, heartbreaking past that they will need to face before they have any chance to move forward on the other side.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.75 stars

This was a great literary fiction where you spend the whole time wondering what happened to the high school sweethearts, Kyle and Casey McCray. This was such a raw depiction of two people trying to deal with the worst tragedy anyone could go through. It was a little cheesy at times which took away from how serious the topic it's trying to explore is but that still didn't fully take away from my overall enjoyment.