The Connellys of County Down

I had heard wonderful things about the author's last book, but never got a chance to read it, so I was thrilled to get the opportunity to read this one. I remember reading somewhere that she writes family drama fabulously, and man were they right!? Tara Connelly is being released from prison after 18 months inside on a drug trafficking charge and she'll be staying with her sister, Geraldine, brother, Eddie, and Eddie's son, whom she has pretty much raised as her own. I was sucked into this book immediately, with its interesting characters and well-woven, complicated backstories. Family secrets and drama at its finest. I also had my own personal moments of recognition, which always makes me love a book, more, when there were many mentions of towns I've lived in or nearby, having grown up in the Hudson Valley myself. So it made it that much more fun to hear so many local mentions! I was touched by this book and found it a tough one to put down!

I just finished The Connellys of County down by Tracey Lange and here is my review.

Tara Connelly is both excited and apprehensive about returning home. A home she hasn't seen in 18 months. A home she exchanged for a prison sentence. She will be back living with her strict sister and her brother who suffered a brain injury years ago. The most dysfunctional home but her nephew is the silver lining.

Trying to rebuild her life after the drug charges, Tara has to find her place in the world again but she can't shake the cop that helped put her in jail and can't help wondering what he wants.

Can Tara hold the family together as the Connelly secrets all start to unravel?

I squealed with delight when @celadonbooks sent me a copy of this book. I heard epic things about it and as usual, the hype lived up.

Tara gets free of jail to walk into a house she doesn't recognize. Nothing has been easy for the family but watching how their family dynamic changed and adapted as each sibling opened up and allowed their family to see their pain, it was utterly heartbreaking and beautiful. The writing was like a gentle whisper over the ocean. So serene and painted such a beautiful picture. I love books that fully immerse you into the world and this one did an excellent job of bringing the characters to life for me.

I felt so sorry for Geraldine. She gave up so much and what it did to her made me want to cry. Tara is the sibling who tries to fix everything. Eddie is walking through life in a blind panic. The whole book was emotional and I wanted all of the heartbreak and the healing.

I am not a huge fan of family dynamic reads but this one was so much more than that. The loss was tangible and raw, and in my opinion, would make a really good book club read.

5 stars, thank you celadon books for my gifted copy!