Tara Connelly is returning home after serving time in prison for a drug trafficking charge. She’s hoping to start her life again but it’s not as simple as it seems. Relationships are tense with her siblings Eddie and Geraldine, money is tight, and the cop who arrested her keeps showing up.

I loved the siblings in this story, and Geraldine in particular. She reminded me of Luisa from Encanto. I wanted more time on the siblings and less on the romance, which felt rushed and ethically questionable.

The secrets and reveals in this book were fairly predictable but I enjoyed the journey getting to them just the same.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for this ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Tara Connelly has been released from prison after serving an 18 month sentence for a drug trafficking charge. She’s returning home to quite the family situation living with her sister that likes to control everything, her brother who is a single dad with a traumatic brain injury and her baseball and video game loving nephew. Tara coming home, having no job, and trying to fix everyone’s problems puts stress on her sister causing tension in the home for everyone else. If only these siblings knew what secrets they were keeping for each other…

The Connellys of County Down was a really interesting family story. It just goes to show that you never really know what’s going on in someone’s life and that some people will do anything to protect the ones they love. And man, family dynamics are fun!

This was a good and quick read/listen. I really enjoyed it and thought the narrator was terrific.

Three stars for this one because I love the dysfunctional family dynamics but not the romance portion. I always enjoy reading about the complicated relationships in families. The characters all had a lot of depth. The romance was not for me. BIG SPOILER:



I still find the relationship between Tara and Brian to be inappropriate even though the crime wasn't necessarily her own. I mean she still did it for her brother, even though her actions could be claimed as noble. I feel like she makes herself too much of a martyr. Brian should not have acted on feelings he felt for someone he interrogated and put in prison. That would be like me as a nurse dating one of my patients, which is illegal. And it moved way too fast between them.

The Connellys of Country Down by Tracey Lange
Narrator, Barrie Kreinik
The book was so enjoyable that I couldn’t stop listening but I hated to see the end coming because I didn’t want it to be over.
It’s a very touching family drama with a romance thrown in which I loved. Connor’s joke were silly but hilarious. There was some tear-jerking at the end.
Barrie Kreinik is an excellent narrator and she put a lot of heart into this story.
I plan to go back and listen to We Are the Brennans because that was one I meant to read when it came out. So many books, so little time.

I thought the Connelly’s of County Down was a complex, intriguing and well written family story. It moved at a great pace, as we learned about all of the Connelly’s and the struggles they were facing, both together and as individuals.
This was my first novel by Tracey Lange and I thought she did an excellent job with character development and an engaging story. I will definitely pick up future books by thus author.
The narration was fantastic and brought this story to another level. It was very easy to listen to.
Thank you Macmillan Audio for the copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Another wonderful family drama from Lange. I really enjoyed her first novel; We Are the Brennans. Tara Connelly finds herself after being released from prison for an 18-month drug trafficking charge. As Tara works hard to put her life back together, she stumbles upon more problems and secrets. Will Tara, her brother Eddie and her sister, Geraldine learn to trust each other, or will they be turned against each other forever? I love the family drama genre and this one was no exception. Every character felt real and flawed. I connected with almost all of them. The story line was easy to follow, entertaining and kept me engaged. I loved taking a glimpse into their family life. This is a story about family, relationships, and loyalty. Pick this one up to read if you haven’t yet, you won’t be disappointed.

Thank you Celadon Books for the chance to listen to the audiobook of The Connellys of County Down on NetGalley.
I really loved the main character, Tara Connelly and hearing about her experiences. Tara was recently released from prison, having served an 18-month sentence on a drug charge.
If there's a type of character I tend to gravitate toward in my reading choices, it's vulnerable girls and women who, though everything is stacked against them, manage to rise above it all and make a name for themselves.
That's how I felt about Tara.
Upon her release, she manages to find a respectable job, and goes to live with her siblings - Geraldine, mom to Conor, and Eddie, her brother who deals with a traumatic brain injury from when he was young.
I did enjoy the dysfunctional dynamic between the family, but also enjoyed hearing of their unconditional love towards one another.
There were moments of the book that dragged for me. But the narrator did a fantastic job.

I recommend going into this one as blind as possible. The only thing I knew about it going in was that it was a family drama. I am happy I was able to listen to this one because after the initial beginning of learning about Tara I could see how it would come across on the slower side. The narrator brought these characters to life, along with all three siblings having secrets and the slow reveal of them kept me listening. I loved all the connections/relationships Tara had with the people around her. Her nephew Connor wanted to help in any way he could, and the way Tara included him in on situations melted my heart. Her employers brought some humor to the story as I loved their encounters with not only Tera but in other instances too. Even the complicated friendship Tera had with the cop who put her in jail was interesting to me. Everything seemed well developed and I loved how the family came together and the way they healed from their past.

Thank you @celadonbooks and @netgalley for the gifted audio

The audiobook was well-done. The narrator's voice reflected down-to-earth nature of the main character. She could credibly do male voices.

I loved this empathic, hopeful story of the kind of American family that may receive rougher treatment in other novels. The author does a very good job of slowly peeling back the onion of the sibling relationships and dysfunctions of the Connelly family. As they learn empathy for each other, we are forced to do the same. A lesson that things are not always what they seem, and we could all benefit from taking a breath before judging too quickly. This novel is also a morality tale of the consequences of dishonesty, even with the best intentions. Of course, the story is simple and neat and you know how it will.turn out, but the Connelly family is so lovable that you do not mind very much. Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ALC and I finished just in time for publication day! Tara Connelly is released from prison after an 18 month sentence for drug trafficking. She is reunited with her brother and sister who each have issues of their own. Family issues abound when Tara moves in with them and attempts to put her life back together. The characters all feel real and relatable and the author did a fantastic job of character building. Overall it was a great listen and a really touching story about family members who would do anything to protect their own. 4 🌟

Tracey Lange has done it again! I absolutely loved We Are the Brennans, so I was stoked when I got approved for the e-galley of this one! In this story, we meet Tara and her siblings, Eddie and Geraldine, after Tara is released from prison. All of the characters in this were real and flawed and so developed that I felt like I knew them -- even the secondary characters, which is no easy feat. I found myself rooting for the Connellys while simultaneously questioning so many of their decisions. They felt like a real family full of love and I found myself rooting for all three of them. I switched between the kindle book and the audiobook, and the narrator did a wonderful job on the audio as well! I definitely recommend this book and Tracey Lange has become an auto-buy author for me!

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copies to review. All opinions are my own.

The Connellys of County Down is reminiscence of the warm right hug a child gets from their parent after falling off their bike. It is comforting and reassuring and you have faith things will get better. The Connelly family is having hard times, the 3 siblings are floundering each in their own way. The story starts with Tara being released from prison and reconnecting with her brother, nephew, and her sister. The circumstances of the prison sentence are revealed along with all the coping mechanisms each sibling has learned. This story is a family saga with flawed people you have to root for. The Connellys of County Down is a story about love at is core.

Thanks for the advanced copy Netgalley in exchange for the honest review.

I enjoyed this one! The author's debut novel, We Are the Brennans, was just okay for me and this novel novel was an improvement with well-developed characters and a flowing narrative. The characters in this book are troubled yet relatable and I was keen to continue reading their stories. The romance plot was the only awkward thing I found in this book. It could have been fleshed out a bit more. I found this to be a well-written story that I would recommend to those who enjoy reading family dramas.

Thank you to Celadon Books, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the digital review copy.

Book review: the connellys of county down by @tracey_lange

Rating: 4.25/5

Review: thank you @celadonbooks for my review copy. This is my first book by Tracey Lange and it did not disappoint. It is more than just a story about starting over. It is an emotional and heart warming book about the relationships in a family and how far your willing to go for them. This book is perfect for people who like books about relatable, everyday relationships. I don’t read a lot of books like this, but I certainly will not for get the connellys anytime soon. Even if they are a bit crazy and mixed up. This is one book you don’t want to miss.

I absolutely LOVED Tracey Lange's debut novel, "We Are the Brennans", so I was eager to read her follow up book. The Connellys were a very relatable bunch, and more layers of their family dynamic were revealed the farther I read. Like peeling an onion, I really enjoyed getting to know each of the unique characters in this story.

From incarceration to mental health issues to physical recovery, each of the Connellys had their own realistic (and often skirted topics in modern fiction) load to bear as they maintained their lives together.

I was rooting for Tara all along, and adored that she was able to find something she truly loved to do for work without her past haunting her. As I got to about 90% in the story, I realized that the book wasn't going to end the way I was hoping. And I was a bit disappointed that it just sort of...cut off. I wanted to keep reading to see how things would end up but it just - stopped. Which is why it lost a star for me :( I appreciate the author wanting to leave the story up to our imaginations but ugh, give me the happy endings!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillian Audio for the opportunity to listen to the audio version of the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review!

Closer to three and a half stars.
I liked this story about three adult siblings trying to figure out how to live together again after one is released from a short stint in prison, but it was a bit predictable and treacly. The ending also seemed quite abrupt; I was listening to the audiobook, waiting for the next chapter to begin when the end credits began.
Thanks to #netgalley and #celadonbooks for this #arc of #theconnellysofcountydown in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you so much for the gifted #ARC! I read “We Are The Brennans” by the same author, and truly loved it. Contemporary drama with splashes of romance. Heartwarming, thoughtful, coming of age, sad, with characters you love and want to see move forward. I adored this. The characters and the plot, I found myself relating to some of the characters and feelings.

Truly a beautiful read. I will forever keep reading anything Connelly writes!

Copied from Goodreads:
I really enjoyed this audiobook. The combination of an excellent narrator and the author’s rich characterization brought the Connellys to life. I immediately guessed the hidden secrets, but that did not detract from the family’s complicated journey.

Many thanks to Macmillan Audio via NetGalley for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

The Connellys of County Down is a relatable story following the dysfunctional Connelly family navigating through incarceration, grief, and their complicated pasts.

Tara, Geraldine, and Eddie are three siblings who love each other, while not exactly understanding one another's decisions and personalities. They all have their own problems and do their best to get through the rocky roads as a family. I found this story to be incredibly relatable. Every family has its own battles behind closed doors. Our author, Tracey Lange does an amazing job developing each character and how they operate within the family. This book was perfectly crafted and a genuine good read.

3.5 rounded up. The Connellys of County Down is full of family drama between three siblings. The story was a little predictable and the characters were all a little annoying at times. Overall it wasn’t bad and was a good weekend read.