Clara’s Verdict
Chloe Walsh’s Boys of Tommen series has established itself as one of the more emotionally demanding – and emotionally rewarding – series in contemporary new adult fiction. Redeeming 6, the fourth book and the finale for Joey Lynch and Aoife Molloy, arrives with considerable expectation from a devoted readership, and it meets that expectation fully. Walsh does not simplify her characters or their situations. Joey Lynch, at eighteen, is carrying the kind of weight that would break most people, and the novel does not pretend otherwise. This is not comfortable reading. It is, however, exceptional writing about the messy and fragile process of being a young person in an impossible situation.
At 31 hours and 55 minutes, this is a commitment – but the series’ readers will expect nothing less. Walsh writes at length because her stories require it.
About the Audiobook
Joey Lynch’s world is unravelling. The pressures at home – which those who have followed the series will understand in full – are intensifying, and his determination to prove himself worthy of Aoife Molloy’s faith in him is constantly undermined by circumstances that seem specifically designed to destroy him. The novel takes him through a period of genuine crisis, handled by Walsh with unflinching honesty about addiction, self-destruction, and the damage that unstable home environments inflict on young people who have no control over them.
Aoife, pregnant and watching the person she loves come apart, occupies a different kind of hell – the helplessness of someone who loves deeply but cannot fix. Her refusal to give up on Joey, even when the rational choice might be withdrawal, is the emotional spine of the novel. Walsh writes the complexity of this loyalty without romanticising it or condemning it, which is considerably harder than it looks.
The conclusion brings “irrevocable life-changing circumstances, unexpected additions, new schools, and healing hearts” together in a finale that the series has been building towards. The Ireland setting – the rugby and hurling culture of Ballylaggin – gives the story a specific social texture that grounds its emotional material in a recognisable world.
Content warning: the novel contains scenes that are seriously upsetting. Walsh is explicit about this and recommends the book for mature listeners only.
The Narration
Jacqueline Milne narrates, and her performance across 31 hours is remarkable. The emotional range demanded by this novel – from quiet domestic intimacy to crisis and despair and eventual hope – requires a narrator who can hold consistent characterisation across significant tonal variation, and Milne does this without apparent strain. Her rendering of Joey, in particular, captures the contradiction at his centre: the aggression that protects the vulnerability, the pride that masks the terror. For listeners who have followed the series, Milne’s voice has become the authoritative rendering of these characters.
What Readers Say
Rated 4.8 stars from 40 reviews. One reader wrote that it was “incredibly hard to read, but I couldn’t put it down – you feel right there with him.” Another simply stated “made me cry so hard, loved it tho,” which is perhaps the most honest review a book like this can receive. A third called it “possibly my fav book in the series,” noting that “Joey is a beautiful character with a very sad story.” One reviewer gave it four stars with the honest qualification that it was “very very emotional at times” – true, and intended. The consistent note is emotional depth, earned impact, and the feeling that these characters are genuinely loved.
Who Should Listen?
Readers of the Boys of Tommen series who have not yet reached the finale should read Books One through Three first – this is not an entry point, and the emotional impact depends entirely on the investment built across the series. New adult fiction readers who value emotional complexity over escapist comfort will find Walsh’s work among the best in its category. Not for those looking for light romance – this is heavy, carefully constructed, and demands something of its listener. If you can handle that, it rewards it fully.
Listen on Audible UK: Get Redeeming 6 (Boys of Tommen, Book 4) on Audible UK. Also available on Kobo, Scribd, and Storytel.
