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emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
honestly... no words will ever be able to describe what it was like to read this story. what we feel when we read it is something that can only be understood by living it.
the depth in their personalities and in their backstories just makes it easier for you to relate to each and every one of them. watching these characters fall in love, face their fears, protect each other... it does something to you.
you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll be happy, and you'll feel like screaming. you'll be torn apart only to be put back together. you'll hopefully find your new family in them, and you won't be able to let them go... because they are for keeps. ♡
the depth in their personalities and in their backstories just makes it easier for you to relate to each and every one of them. watching these characters fall in love, face their fears, protect each other... it does something to you.
you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll be happy, and you'll feel like screaming. you'll be torn apart only to be put back together. you'll hopefully find your new family in them, and you won't be able to let them go... because they are for keeps. ♡
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Abandonment
Moderate: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy
Minor: Homophobia, Infertility, Blood
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
i am not okay
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Okay, so just a couple of weeks ago I mentioned how New Adult is not my favourite genre and that college romances were my least favourite from that genre. While that is still true, it has to be said that school based NA is even less of a favourite! I didn't mention it at the time because I've not come across a lot of school based NA, it's usually Young Adult, so of course I found myself reading a school based NA! :D
I was finding myself in a little bit of a reading slump and the millions of books I had lined up to read just weren't appealing to me, and then a friend mentioned this series and I found myself intrigued and decided to give it a go. Boys of Tommen is about a group of kids ranging from 15 to 18 but this book really is for 18+ and that's explained clearly in the author's note at the beginning. These kids have lived a lot of life already!
“I once read somewhere that we mature with damage, not with age.”
So look, I'm actually unsure if this book was even that good, but I also couldn't put it down and there are a few reasons for that. First up, Binding 13 takes place in an Irish co-ed school in 2005. I graduated an Irish co-ed school in 2001, therefore reading this felt nostalgic as fuck to me. It actually felt like I was there or something, in my head this book took place in my school (even though my school was a GAA school and not a rugby school) so it was incredibly vivid. I thought about it a lot when I wasn't reading and I had a lot of school dreams while reading it. It was wild!
Another HUGE plus for this book was it was in no way Americanised, I would love to read more romance books based in Ireland but a lot of them are written by authors who aren't Irish and they often get things wrong to a degree that just makes me never want to read anything from them ever again so I tend to avoid them. Chloe Walsh is an Irish author and she writes her characters and Ireland just as we are. She uses terminology correctly and doesn't go into long winded explanations about that terminology, the reader either gets used to it and therefore starts to understand, or they Google. Everything felt very Irish and I think it made reading it more enjoyable!
Binding 13 is very character based and the length of the book gives us plenty of time to get to know the characters, Johnny and Shannon especially. They are both very likable and I enjoyed watching how their relationship developed. It was a slow build and there were a lot of ups and downs but it feels more believable for it starting as something that wasn't romantic. Well, there were romantic feelings but they both fought them pretty hard, both for different reasons. Shannon because of her heartbreaking home life situation and Johnny because he wants to focus all his energy on rugby and healing from injury. Poor Johnny was in a losing situation though, he fell pretty hard from the get go, and the harder he fought it the more he fell for Shannon. It was adorable to be honest.
“I wanted to fight all her battles. I wanted to give her all her smiles and make her laugh and snatch her away from the rest of the world and keep her all to myself. I just wanted her. For keeps.”
One of the things that was the least realistic thing about this book was Johnny. Having grown up in Ireland during this timeframe and having gone to a co-ed school where there were plenty of boys Johnny's age, I can assure you there were no Johnny's to be had. Plenty of Gibsies though! :D
Even though Johnny isn't a realistic 18 year old boy, he is an awesome one and one that Shannon deserves and needs. I love the 'touch her and die' trope and Johnny is INTENSE in his protection. Like 15/16 and 17/18 are far too young to fall in forever soulmate love but I can totally see these two making it.
“Boom, boom, fucking boom, Da. I'm done for...”
This book felt way too long though, like it's kind of ridiculous that it was over 800 pages and very little happens, what does happen is more or less the same thing over and over. Shannon literally runs into Johnny when she is having a crisis. Johnny rescues/reassures her. They spend time getting to know each other/making a strong connection. Johnny struggles with his feelings. Shannon struggles with her entire life. Johnny freaks out about his injury/rugby journey and 'lashes' out. Shannon suffers horrific abuse at home. Johnny sees marks of abuse on Shannon and it all starts again. For 800 pages! The last 10% of this book was absolutely top tier though and I feel like if it had been heavily edited and was closer to 500 pages this book would have been a 5 star read. As it is, I think it's a 3.25 star read and had I not felt a connection to the setting would probably be lower.
Johnny and Shannon's story is a duology and with the huge cliffhanger ending there is no way I wouldn't dive right into book two. I really hope things move along a little quicker in book two and I hope these two get a really fabulous HEA. I'd love a time jump epilogue. I'll have to wait and see!
I'll likely review book two here as it's so strongly linked and is probably best to think it all as one big
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Violence, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Eating disorder, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Absolutely loved this book and can’t wait for the rest of the series
Full of love, hope and emotions alongside the difficulties and trauma - 100% recommend but be prepared to fall in love with fictional characters ;)
Full of love, hope and emotions alongside the difficulties and trauma - 100% recommend but be prepared to fall in love with fictional characters ;)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence
Moderate: Body shaming, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Abandonment
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship
Moderate: Miscarriage, Rape
Minor: Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Omg, this was a journey and a half! I have loved getting to know Shannon and Johnny as characters in the first of the Boys of Tommen series.
We first meet Shannon, a fifteen year old girl who transfers to Tommen after going through years and years of bullying and torment at her previous schools. Only on her first day there, she tries to take a shortcut to class and cuts through the field where the boys play Rugby… and this is where Johnny is introduced to us, as he angrily kicks the rugby ball across the field which then knocks Shannon out. He soon helps her up and takes her to the schools doctor who rings her Mam to tell her what has happened and upon arrival, she loses her temper with Johnny and tells him he is to stay away from Shannon - but he doesn’t know why when this was just an accident, and not a malicious attack.
However, he soon comes to realise why Shannon’s Mam was like this due to his bestfriend Gibsie managing to make a deal where he gained access to Shannon’s file to give to Johnny after Johnny’s attempt was unsuccessful.
Johnny and Shannon really go through it with their relationship - both admitting to themselves their love for one another but not thinking the other will reciprocate. Particularly Johnny holding back on his feelings due to leaving in a few months for Rugby. However, the more the book progresses we soon discover that both Shannon and Johnny are falling deeper and deeper in love, which made me feel so happy for Shannon as she is finally getting that love and sense of belonging and safety that she has been deserving of for so long after everything she went through at the hands of her father at home.
Shannon is portrayed as a shy girl, and is very wary upon arrival to Tommen because of her past and is worried that anyone she walks passed knows who she is and will turn on her. Except, Tommen is actually a private school so bullying isn’t a common thing, that is until we are introduced to Bella who is very threatening towards Shannon as it appears that she is jealous of the relationship that Shannon and Johnny have, trying her hardest to stop the two from having any sort of relationship at all.
Johnny is a centre in Rugby, who wears a jersey with the number 13 (hence the title being Binding 13), and he at first comes across as a bit arrogant and cocky due to being the team captain - but as the book develops we learn that this is just who he is as the captain of his team and that outside of the team he can actually be a sweetheart!
100% recommend🩷
We first meet Shannon, a fifteen year old girl who transfers to Tommen after going through years and years of bullying and torment at her previous schools. Only on her first day there, she tries to take a shortcut to class and cuts through the field where the boys play Rugby… and this is where Johnny is introduced to us, as he angrily kicks the rugby ball across the field which then knocks Shannon out. He soon helps her up and takes her to the schools doctor who rings her Mam to tell her what has happened and upon arrival, she loses her temper with Johnny and tells him he is to stay away from Shannon - but he doesn’t know why when this was just an accident, and not a malicious attack.
However, he soon comes to realise why Shannon’s Mam was like this due to his bestfriend Gibsie managing to make a deal where he gained access to Shannon’s file to give to Johnny after Johnny’s attempt was unsuccessful.
Johnny and Shannon really go through it with their relationship - both admitting to themselves their love for one another but not thinking the other will reciprocate. Particularly Johnny holding back on his feelings due to leaving in a few months for Rugby. However, the more the book progresses we soon discover that both Shannon and Johnny are falling deeper and deeper in love, which made me feel so happy for Shannon as she is finally getting that love and sense of belonging and safety that she has been deserving of for so long after everything she went through at the hands of her father at home.
Shannon is portrayed as a shy girl, and is very wary upon arrival to Tommen because of her past and is worried that anyone she walks passed knows who she is and will turn on her. Except, Tommen is actually a private school so bullying isn’t a common thing, that is until we are introduced to Bella who is very threatening towards Shannon as it appears that she is jealous of the relationship that Shannon and Johnny have, trying her hardest to stop the two from having any sort of relationship at all.
Johnny is a centre in Rugby, who wears a jersey with the number 13 (hence the title being Binding 13), and he at first comes across as a bit arrogant and cocky due to being the team captain - but as the book develops we learn that this is just who he is as the captain of his team and that outside of the team he can actually be a sweetheart!
100% recommend🩷
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
dark
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Writing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️
Tropes, etc: Friends to Lovers, Rugby, Found Family, Slow Burn
POV: Dual, 1st person
3rd Act Breakup?: No
Cliffhanger?: Yes
Song Association: Call It What You Want by Taylor Swift
Writing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️
Tropes, etc: Friends to Lovers, Rugby, Found Family, Slow Burn
POV: Dual, 1st person
3rd Act Breakup?: No
Cliffhanger?: Yes
Song Association: Call It What You Want by Taylor Swift
Notable Quote: “This girl is different, my stupid fucking brain chanted. This one is for keeps. [...] You could love this girl your whole life, the crazy thought persisted inside my brain over and over, if you just let yourself.”
Brief Summary: After years of bullying at her public school, Shannon Lynch transfers to Tommen College. On her first day, she meets rugby star Johnny Kavanagh and they’re both smitten despite the many obstacles in their way.
The Praise: I have seen folks rave about this series for years but I was too intimidated by how long the books are and I assumed there was no way it lived up to the hype… I was so wrong! I loved Johnny and Shannon so much, and the side characters are great as well. The found family element was so wonderful and exactly what Shannon deserved after all she’s been through. I flew through this book and was thrilled to dive into the next one.
The Critique: If you had asked me at the beginning, I would’ve said the length, but now I’m thrilled that I got so much of Johnny and Shannon, so I truly can’t think of a single thing I disliked!
Final Thoughts: I laughed, I sobbed, I swooned. This series has officially joined the ranks of my favorite books of all time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship