THE CONNELLYS OF COUNTY DOWN will be included in my top reads of the year, easily. I loved this book so much I couldn’t put it down. It’s the quickest I’ve read a book in a really long time. It look me less than 24 hours!

If you loved WE ARE THE BRENNANS, I bet you’ll also love this book. Between you and me, I really enjoyed The Connelly’s more.

Lange has a talent for writing dysfunctional characters and families, all while having the reader root for them until the very last page. Despite their flaws, you can’t help but relate to the complex and messy lifestyle the Connellys have. No, I don’t relate to them exactly as to why they are so dysfunctional, but I understand them from a familial level.

There are quite a few characters, but not too many you’ll feel overwhelmed. Lange eases readers into relationships, making it very easy to understand where each character stands with one another. The love this family has is undeniable, even if their conversations don’t mirror that. Because of this, it tugged at my heartstrings for the Connelly’s.

THE CONNELLYS OF COUNTY DOWN has a little bit of romance, family trauma, secrets, and much more. I highly recommend picking this one up.

Big thank you to Celadon and Netgalley for the ARC! You can get your copy on August 1.

Content warnings: drug trafficking, death, cancer, mental illness

The Connelly family consists of three siblings: Tara, Geraldine, and Eddie. One is an ex-con, the other suffers from a TBI, one has a hoarding problem, and they each carry their own blend of trauma. What unfolds is a story of pain and healing, with an optimistic redemption arch filled with plenty of audible “I can’t believe she did that” reader moments along the way. A truly beautiful look into a deeply flawed family, trying the best they can to survive in lower-middle class America.

Tracey Lange can deliver a compelling family drama! It is definitely character driven, which isn’t typically my favorite. But I will say I enjoyed this one! I think I related to this book a lot as my family has always been big on family first, and we always have each others back with unconditional love. I just really enjoyed reading about this family and how no matter what, they were there for one another!

I really, really enjoyed this book! The Connellys of County Down details the lives of three siblings: Tara, Eddie, and Geraldine.
Upon her release from prison, Tara must reacclimate both into society and into life amongst her family. In doing so, Tara discovers multiple family secrets and an opportunity for an unlikely romance. The three siblings must work together to overcome their individual fears and anxieties.

The author, Tracey Lange, gracefully tackles life after incarceration, mental illness, addiction, and traumatic brain injury. I am eager to read other books that she has written.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Macmillan Audio for an ALC of this title in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely loved Tracey Lange’s debut We are the Brennans last year. It was one of my favorite reads, as I enjoyed the way all the POVs flowed together. When Celadon sent me an ARC of her newest release The Connellys of County Down, I immediately dropped everything to read it.

Tara Connelly has just spent 18months in prison for drug trafficking. With no money or job, Tara is back in her family home with her siblings and her nephew. While her brother Eddie and nephew are happy to have her back, Tara’s sister Geraldine isn’t happy to have her ex-con sister back in the house. For Geraldine, order is paramount, and Tara’s brand of disorder is anxiety enduring for Geraldine. In order to weave herself back into the family all three siblings, not just Tara, will need to face secrets they’ve long been hiding.

While I didn’t love the Connelly’s as much as I did The Brennans, Lange did a fantastic job of creating another complex and flawed family dynamic. Alternating between the three siblings and Tara’s arresting officer Brain, I loved the way Lange slowly told the stories of each character and felt that all of them were equally developed. Even though Geraldine gave me so much anxiety, I felt connected too each character in different ways and really rooted for them. Even our secondary characters (Tara’s employers) and Connor were nicely developed and really enhanced the story. Tara’s employers in particular I loved.

There is a slight romance aspect to the story, which I felt was well done and didn’t overshadow the larger story about family.

Tracey Lange is quickly becoming one of my auto buy authors. She’s a master at weaving both inspiring and real stories of families together. I that she focuses on themes of family loyalty, forgiveness, and sibling bonds. I can’t wait to be a part of the next family she writes about!


The Connellys of County Down comes out August 1. Huge thank you to s for Celadon Books my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof.books.

4.5 stars.

This was a captivating family drama with multiple points of view and richly layered characters you can’t help but root for. I loved the authentic portrayal of a broken family of broken people working hard to co-exist. The themes of familial and romantic love, family secrets, mental illness, second chances and redemption were captivating and kept me engaged throughout. What we learn from these pages is that things are not always as they seem.

I loved the narration from Barrie Kreinik @barriebarriepix and thought it was so well done.

Toward the end, the intensity really skyrocketed, and I was all kinds of worked up. This was a really good read, and I highly recommend it.

My thanks to @macmillan.audio, @celadonbooks and @netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book before its publication date.

I loved We Are the Brennans, so I was thrilled to jump into a new family drama and it did not disappoint! I immediately was drawn to Tara’s character, especially the more we found out about her motivations throughout the book. The themes of love and sacrifice amongst family were powerful and well done. The audio narration was also wonderfully enjoyable!

A family drama with a big heart, this novel by the author of the popular “We Are the Brennans” reminded me of why I love this genre so much. Tara Connelley and her brother and sister grew up among challenging circumstances and they’re barely holding on when Tara does time in prison for a crime she isn’t truly responsible for. The novel begins when she returns to her family after 18 months, and the disfunction picks up right where she left it. With multi layered complications and unquestioning love for a young nephew who lives with them, the siblings’ circles of misguided decisions overlap to create seemingly insurmountable chaos. The cop who put Tara in prison circles back to become involved with the family in complex ways, looking for his own redemption.

The well paced plot unfurls with just enough back story, and kept me company on a 11 hour solo drive. Excellent audio narration by Barrie Kreinik!

For those who read and loved Mary Beth Keane’s Ask Again, Yes.

Thanks to Net Galley, Macmillan Audio and Celadon Books for the early copy in exchange for my honest review.

This will be a next great read novel. The best way I can describe this story is smooth. The narrator is easy to listen to, the story flows nicely, solid and consistent character development and at no point did I think when will this end. As a reader I was rooting for the main character and her dysfunctional situation. I’m fact I may have a bit of a book hangover now.

This has been posted to Goodreads.

I don’t typically read family dramas, but I have to say, I really enjoyed this story! The story follows Tara, her two siblings, and nephew, and does an excellent job about portraying the family bond. Their lives are messy, but I was intrigued to keep reading and see how thing played out. Overall it was a great feel-good read.

Thank you to NetGalley, and MacMillan Audio for the ARC of this book!

My Thoughts:
I binged this story in one sitting! It was so good I couldn't put it down/press pause. Lange draws you into this family immediately from the start and you just feel a personal connection to them. I didn't care much for Geralidine because she seemed so judgy and I loved Eddie and his funny son. (His jokes made me smile!) I was rooting for Tara from the start of the story and I couldn't wait to see how her life would end by the end of the book.

I would say that this family drama was handled so well. It is an easy read and perfect for a day where you have tons of laundry or house chores to handle while you listen to the audiobook-- I thought the narrator did a great job!

If you enjoy family dramas and stories about what family will do to protect you no matter what, this is for you!

I'm sorry, I just couldn't get into this one.
I think it was the narrator. When I have to rewind and listen again many times it's time to throw in the towel.

Thank you so much to Net Galley, the publisher, and author for providing this audiobook for my honest review. First of all, I loved the narration. It was absolutely excellent. I got swept away listening to it. I also enjoyed this story. It’s just a beautiful family drama that is so well written. I couldn’t stop listening. What a powerful story about family and family connections. I highly recommend this audiobook. Thank you again.

Tracey Lange follows up We Are the Brennans with another character rich novel, The Connellys of County Down. Both are fabulous books and I will gladly read anything that Lange writes.
The Connellys are three siblings - oldest sister Geraldine, who is drowning in anxiety from the secrets she’s keeping; Eddie, a single father dealing with a traumatic brain and injury; and baby, Tara, who’s just gotten out of prison having served an 18 month sentence on a drug trafficking charge. Each has made mistakes but I was rooting for each of them to forge ahead. Because underneath their faults and weaknesses, there is love, sacrifice and loyalty. Shame also figured prominently as the reason so many of those faulty decisions were made. “Well congratulations Connellys, you are a normal, healthy screwed up family.”
Kudos to Lange. Not just the main characters were fully fleshed out and believable, so were the secondary and even tertiary characters.
Lange keeps up the tension as each sibling deals with their secrets. Chapters alternate between the three siblings and Brian, allowing us to see the secrets they’re hiding from their loved ones. I thought it was pretty obvious why Tara had remained silent and gone to prison. But still, I tore through this book, desperate to see how it would play out.
I listened to this. Barrie Kreinik did a great job.
My thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an advance copy of this audiobook.

This was a wonderful family drama! We are following Tara who just got released from prison and is trying to get her life back on track. She goes to live with her siblings and the cop who put her in jail, comes back around wanting to apologize.
Each character had something complicated going on with them which kept me wondering what was going to happen. I found the main character to be somewhat frustrating but also loyal and noble to her family. But AT WHAT COST?!
This is a great story of family and redemption which was super enjoyable.

This is a heartfelt and honest portrayal of a family consisting of three siblings who each struggle with a plethora of issues but ultimately rely on each other to survive. The main character, Tara, is released from prison after serving a drug charge and she must reacclimatize to life outside and a whole host of unresolved, familial issues. The result is a family drama with some suspense and mystery, making it both well-written and entertaining. The audiobook was excellent and the narration easy to follow.

The Conelly's of County Down is a beautiful story of family and love. The main character Tara Connelly is being released from prison after 18 months. The story follows her release and return to life with her family. She returns to her childhood home that she shares with her sister, brother and young nephew. She navigates finding a job while being on parole and also figuring out her place back inside their family unit. It's a simple story but one I think many people will connect with because it's about the things we do for the people we love. It was a really enjoyable and quick read, nothing too exciting happened but I kept picking it up to see what would happen next. I could have continued to read about this characters for a lot longer!

Lange's first book We Are the Brennans was similar in the way it explored family dynamics. However I enjoyed this book about the Connelly's much more.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Celadon books for an advanced copy of this book to read and review, all opinions are my own.

Thank you to author Tracey Lange, NetGalley, Celadon Books, and MacMillan audio for my advanced listeners copy of The Connellys of County Down. When I got pre-approved for this one, I nearly fell out of my chair. I even texted a friend RIGHT AWAY to see if she got it, too.

What can I say about this book, The Connelly family, and Tracey Lange without gushing on and on…and on? To try and keep it concise: read. this. book. If you’re a fan of We Are The Brennans, you won’t want to miss The Connellys of County Down.

📖 When Tara Connelly is released from prison, she is forced to navigate life with all of the challenges you’d expect—and then some. Not only does Tara have to find a job, build trust with her PO, and navigate her new family dynamic now that’s she’s back home from literal prison, she’s also noticing that the police just won’t leave her alone. Even though she’s focused on rebuilding her life, she feels a strong sense of responsibility to protect her family, as well as figure out what the heck is going on with her and this man who makes her feel alive again. Oh, and then there’s that urge to, you know, do everything she can to not go back to prison.

💭 I really loved this one. It didn’t come as a shock because I loved We Are The Brennans. Tara is strong, capable, and kind but is also flawed and complex and I found myself really ~feeling~ for her. I understand why Brian had the job he did for the sake of storytelling, but I *really* wish that Lange didn’t make the cop the hero. My personal beliefs aside, it would’ve been really nice for Tara to be her own hero, or at least accept the help of her family in their heroism.

4.5/5 stars rounded up to 5

This is a story of family, of love, of personal struggles and growth. Lange is a master of creating believable characters, who you are happy to root for.

The narration is well done. The story is enjoyable, although somewhat predictable, easy listening.

5 ⭐ Read
5 ⭐ Narration

Narration Review:
I thought Barrie Kreinik did a fantastic job narrating this novel. Her dictation and inflection added a sense of realism to the story which helped bring it to life. I would definitely checkout another book she's narrated.

Book Review:
This book tugged at my heartstrings, the Connelly siblings have been through more than their fair share of trouble and trauma.
I appreciated how skillfully the author addressed sensitive topics such as rehabilitation after incarceration, living with a traumatic injury and addiction with compassion and understanding. The character development throughout this storyline may have been my favorite part! I was rooting for this family.

If you loved the Brennans, I would say you'll enjoy the Connelly family just much.


Thank you Tracey Lange, Net Galley , Celadon , Macmillan Audio for providing the ALC of this book!