Books
‘Boys of Tommen’ Reading Order Explained: Your Guide to Chloe Walsh’s Books
So you’re ready to jump into The Boys of Tommen series? Perhaps you’ve already dived in, but you want to do a reread before Chloe Walsh announces the next book in the series. Either way, it’s time to buckle up. The Boys of Tommen has some of the most lovable characters in modern fiction, but the series will absolutely break your heart. The kids in this series go through it in the most intense ways, but their perseverance and love for each other are worth the journey through all of the trauma. You’re going to cry, but you’ll also laugh and fall in love along the way.
But how do you get started with the series? Each book centers on a different couple within the universe, but everyone is in the same group of friends. Shannon Lynch and Johnny Kavanagh were the first couple that Walsh introduced readers to in the series, followed by Shannon’s older brother, Joey, and his girlfriend, Aoife (pronounced Ee-fa). The fifth book in the series centers on Gerard Gibson, the comedic heart of the group, who carries a dark secret, and his childhood best friend/neighbor, Claire Gibbs. The most recent book in The Boys of Tommen universe pivots to Claire’s brother, Hughie, and his first love, Lizzie Young.
The publishing order tracks events by the couple, but that requires jumping around in the chronological timeline. Shannon and Johnny’s duology starts in January 2005 and goes through early September of the same year. Meanwhile, Joey and Aoife’s story starts in the late ’90s. Hughie and Lizzie’s epic first love starts even earlier than that, while Gibsie and Claire’s romance takes us to the winter of 2006. Thematically, it makes sense to read the books in publishing order, but chronological order allows you to see the events of the interweaving storylines more clearly.
However, neither order is the most effective way to read The Boys of Tommen. Below, Swooon goes over the release order, our recommended order, and the chronological order so you can decide how you want to go on this adventure.
Release Order
Binding 13 & Keeping 13 (Johnny & Shannon)
Shannon and Johnny’s books were the first books published in the series, so it makes sense to start here as Shannon introduces you to the major players during her first semester at Tommen College. It does a good job of slowly revealing the dangers of Shannon’s home life, which allows readers to get acclimated to the world before the drama truly kicks in. When you get to the other books, you’ll realize Walsh was taking it easy on you with these two (that feels insane to say considering what happens in these two books, but it’s true), so it’s a valid jumping-off point.
Saving 6 & Redeeming 6 (Joey & Aoife)
Joey Lynch and Aoife Malloy get the second couplet in the series. It does a deeper dive into what Joey was managing before and during Shannon’s first semester at Tommen. If you thought Shannon had it rough, you really need to find the strength to make it through Joey’s struggles in both of these books. While several chapters overlap with Shannon’s story in the first two books, there’s so much lore about Joey and Aoife on their own that makes this an even more intense ride than the first two books. Since Shannon and Joey’s stories overlap so much, it makes sense to read Joey’s books after Shannon’s.
Taming 7 (Gibsie & Claire)
Walsh did a poll on her official Facebook page after Redeeming 6 came out that asked which couple The Boys of Tommen fans wanted to read about next. An overwhelming majority voted for Gibsie and Claire’s story because Gibsie is such a beloved character. Fans wanted to have a good time! However, it was foolish to think that Chloe would deliver a purely lighthearted book for any of the characters in this world. Taming 7 is heartbreaking on a whole new level as it flips back in time from the aftermath of Gibsie losing his father and sister in a boating accident to the fall semester of 2006 at Tommen College when he and Claire are finally exploring a romantic relationship.
Releasing 10 (Hughie & Lizzie)
Walsh changed things up after Taming 7 by not releasing the second Gibsie and Claire book immediately. Instead, she pivoted to Releasing 10, which chronicles Hughie and Lizzie’s journey from childhood crushes to first love. Unfortunately, the book also reveals the tragic link between Lizzie and Gibsie’s past that explains why their present relationship is so fraught and tense. There is an argument to be made that there’s no way to be mentally strong enough to handle Lizzie’s backstory unless you’ve read the rest of the series. You have to train yourself to handle this amount of trauma.
Recommended Reading Order
Having read the series in release order, there are a few changes I would recommend to optimize your Boys of Tommen reading experience. Here’s the reading order that will give you the deepest appreciation and limit the amount of backtracking you need to do for dovetailing details in intersecting storylines.
Saving 6
It makes the most sense to begin your Boys of Tommen journey with the Lynch family and their romantic counterparts. Instead of kicking things off with Shannon, introduce yourself to the world through Joey. The first book starts in the late ’90s and takes you all the way up to Shannon’s first day at Tommen College, giving you important insight into the hell the Lynch children are going through. It helps you understand why Shannon is so meek and jumpy in the early days of her book. You also won’t scream that you have to jump so far back in time the same way you will if you went from Shannon’s books to Joey and Aoife.
Binding 13 and Keeping 13
It is going to be so hard to read Saving 6 and not go immediately to Redeeming 6, but you have to resist. There will be enough Joey and Aoife in Shannon and Johnny’s story to tide you over. It is crucial to read both Binding 13 and Keeping 13 before Redeeming 6 because there is a massive event in the Lynch family that is best seen through Shannon and Johnny’s perspective before you get Joey’s take on the situation. Shannon and Johnny are more directly involved in what happens, and the power of that reveal will be diluted if you read Redeeming 6 first.
Redeeming 6
And see, we’re right back to Joey and Aoife! Redeeming 6 covers the same timeline as both of Johnny’s and Shannon’s books and then a little bit further into the timeline. You’ll be so much more excited to start Redeeming 6 after the teasing end of Keeping 13 and not having to jump all the way back to the late ’90s and work your way back up to 2005. This gets you to what happens to Joey and Aoife after Shannon and Johnny’s story wraps up much faster. You’re welcome.
Releasing 10
Listen, I am not blaming anyone for voting for Gibsie’s story to come first. They didn’t know what we know now, but reading Taming 7 before Releasing 10is a lot like the, “Why? Why?! WHY?!” part of the Sheldon Cooper meme, and then finally reading Releasing 10 is the, “Oh, that’s why,” part. So much of what happens to Lizzie in Releasing 10 is directly related to Gibsie’s story in Taming 7, but with even more context. It also largely takes place before Taming 7. Releasing 10 is the most emotionally daunting book in the entire series, but having that background will give you a clearer understanding of what’s happening in Taming 7 that isn’t spelled out. You’ll know to clock Hughie’s reaction to specific events and piece together what Chloe is (likely) going to fully spell out in the next book. If you read Taming 7 first, you’ll spend a lot of time going back to verify or cross-check references that are better defined in Releasing 10.
Taming 7
Taming 7 is the most forward-looking book in the entire series. The “present day” timeline starts in the fall semester of 2005, after the events of both Johnny and Shannon and Joey and Aoife’s stories, which carries us through to the early winter of 2006. There’s still a big cliffhanger at the end, but that cliffhanger will not be answered by any of the other books already published, so ending with Taming 7 best prepares you for the next chapter in the saga that Walsh releases.
Chronological Reading Order
Releasing 10 (1990s to 2004)
If you want to read the books and cover the events in the order they happened in the characters’ lives, then chronological order is the way to go. That means starting with Releasing 10, which is a huge ask of anyone. It also means that we’ll jump around thematically within the story, which makes it more difficult to keep the details straight, but you won’t really jump back and forth in time (until you get to Taming 7). Lizzie’s book starts when she’s a toddler in the early ’90s and her family first moves to Ballylaggin. It carries you all the way through to the summer of 2004, roughly six months before Shannon arrives for her first semester at Tommen.
Saving 6 (1999 to 2005)
The first of the Joey duology comes after Lizzie’s book, but largely takes place on the opposite side of town. You’ll pivot from what’s going on between the Youngs and the Gibson families to what’s going on with the Lynches and the Malloys, which can be a bit jarring, but this bridges the gap between Lizzie’s and Hughie’s book and the start of Shannon and Johnny’s love story.
Binding 13 (January 20005 to Spring 2005)
You’re going to know so much about Tommen College and its students if you read in chronological order. But after the intensity of Releasing 10 and Saving 6, it might be nice to get Shannon and Johnny’s story, which is very sweet by comparison. Don’t get me wrong, there’s still some intense drama, and you need to be emotionally prepared, but there’s a lot more soft parts to help you get through the more intense chapters. It also features some of the best Gibsie scenes in the entire series. What a champ.
Keeping 13 (Spring 2005 to Fall 2005)
You’ll notice that Binding 13 and Keeping 13 aren’t separated in any of the orders listed here. They are a package deal and the correct one-two punch when you’re reading The Boys of Tommen, no matter when in the series you decide to read them. Just consider them glued together
Redeeming 6 (January 2025 to late Fall 2005)
Redeeming 6 essentially covers the same time period as Binding 13 and Keeping 13, but goes a bit beyond where Shannon and Johnny leave off, so it falls as the penultimate book in the chronological order. As previously mentioned in the recommended order, I am never going to recommend that you read this book before Keeping 13.
Taming 7 (Late 90s to January 2006)
Gibsie and Claire’s book mostly takes place after the events of Redeeming 6, with flashbacks to their childhood years. It’s not a linear read like the rest of the books, but it does end the furthest in the timeline, which is why it’s ideally to save it as your last book in the series before Walsh unveils where in the timeline her next Boys of Tommen book will fall.
What’s your favorite Boys of Tommen book? Let us know if you agree with our recommended reading order in the comments below.
