Binding 13

Binding 13 by Chloe Walsh, first published in 2018, is the first novel in The Boys of Tommen series. A new adult romance novel, it explores the relationship between Shannon Lynch and Johnny Kavanagh, two teenagers living in rural Ireland. Shannon deals with emotional and physical abuse from her father as well as bullying from her peers, while Johnny is the star of the school’s rugby team with dreams of playing for the Irish national team. Shannon and Johnny both deal with their internal problems while struggling with feelings for each other and the impact those feelings will have on their lives. Through their relationship, the text explores The Psychological Effects of Trauma, The Pressure of Athletic Excellence, and The Need for Family and Community Support.

The novel introduces readers to The Boys of Tommen, a series of books that explore the lives of the rugby players from Tommen and their relationships. There are currently two that follow Shannon and Johnny—Binding 13 and Keeping 13 (2018), as well as the forthcoming Adoring 13. The books became popular in 2023 largely due to BookTok, an online community of readers who post about and discuss literature, especially novels in the romance genre.

This guide uses the paperback edition self-published by Chloe Walsh in 2018.

Content Warnings: This guide discusses extreme emotional and physical abuse, teen bullying, alcoholism, and thoughts of suicide as depicted in the novel.

Plot Summary

Shannon is a 15-year-old secondary school student who is relentlessly bullied at each of the schools she attends. As a result, her parents decide to take her out of public school and send her to Tommen College, a private school that her friends Lizzie and Claire also attend. Although Shannon expects the bullying and abuse to continue at her new school, she is shocked to learn that she is largely ignored and fits in with Lizzie, Claire, and their friends.

At home, Shannon faces physical and emotional abuse from her father, who regularly beats her and accuses her of being a “slut.” Tommen College is a refuge for her, and for the first time in her life, Shannon feels as though she has a safe place to go, relieved at the invisibility and freedom she finds there.

On her first day, while rushing to class, Shannon is accidentally hit in the head by a rugby ball kicked by the team’s star center—number 13, Johnny Kavanagh. As he walks with her to the office and gets help for her, Johnny is intrigued by Shannon’s beauty and her troubled past, as it is clear from her anxiety and her bruises that she is being abused.

Over the next several weeks, Johnny does his best to avoid Shannon—especially since her mother assumes he injured her on purpose and demands he stay away from her. However, he is repeatedly faced with situations where he feels he needs to help her: First, when she vomits in the hallway, and then when she needs a ride home from school. Though he wants to stay focused on his rugby career and avoid the distractions of romance, Johnny constantly battles with his feelings for Shannon. Meanwhile, a groin injury threatens his career, especially since he will not tell anyone how severe it is.

Shannon also struggles to put aside her feelings for Johnny and avoid him. When she is pulled into a photo with him after one of his games and it makes the newspaper, Johnny becomes a focal point for the abuse from her father, who beats Shannon and accuses her of having sex with him. Though she tries to avoid him, Shannon runs into Johnny repeatedly, as he saves her from being cornered by another student and from missing her bus home.

One Saturday night, Johnny goes out drinking with his friends and ends up sitting alone at a diner. Shannon’s older brother Joey finds him there, gives him a ride home, and realizes the next morning that Johnny left his phone in the car. Joey offers to bring it to his home and forces Shannon to go with him.

At Johnny’s house, Johnny’s two large dogs playfully jump on Shannon and knock her to the ground. She enjoys playing with them but also becomes covered with mud. Johnny, his friend Gibsie, and Joey insist that she use Johnny’s shower. However, as Shannon showers, Joey receives news that their mother has had a miscarriage. He leaves Shannon with Johnny to deal with his parents, insisting that Shannon stay with Johnny.

Shannon and Johnny spend the rest of the day watching rugby, with Shannon napping on Johnny’s lap. He cares for her but worries about the danger she poses to his rugby career. He is frustrated by Shannon’s unwillingness to tell him who is abusing her and confused about why she is staying at his house instead of going home to her parents.

A few days later, when Shannon is caught in the rain after school and loses her shoe, Johnny insists that his mother give her a ride home. His mother manipulates the situation, bringing Shannon back to their house and forcing Johnny and her to spend time together. Although the two play video games and forget about their problems, they are brought back to reality when Johnny spots bruises on Shannon’s neck from her father. Shannon again refuses to tell Johnny where they came from, and instead breaks down, sobbing in Johnny’s lap. Eventually, she kisses him, but he reacts coldly, trying his best to ignore how he feels for her and stay focused on his rugby training.

After their kiss, the two again do their best to ignore each other. Shannon’s abuse continues at home, with her father taking out his anger on Shannon and blaming her for her mother’s miscarriage. Meanwhile, Johnny struggles with his injury and his focus, distracted by Shannon, and is eventually told he must stop training with the academy until he heals.

When Shannon has her period at school, she rushes into the bathroom and is confronted by Bella—a girl with whom Johnny had been having sex before his injury. She threatens Shannon, and Shannon flees the bathroom, running directly into Johnny. Johnny angrily yells at Bella, takes Shannon into the locker room to give her ibuprofen for her pain, then drives her home.

Johnny and Shannon spend the evening doing schoolwork together. When Johnny catches himself looking at Shannon, he decides that he needs to separate himself from her before he gets too close, and again leaves her confused and annoyed at his brusque behavior.

When Shannon’s father comes home that night, he confronts her about Johnny bringing her home from school. He chokes her and beats her, causing Shannon to stay home from school the following day.

When she returns on Friday, she learns that the school is taking a day trip to Dublin for the school’s rugby match. She is forced to sit next to Johnny on the bus. After their initial interactions, during which Johnny becomes defensive over his injury, the two finally break down and confess their secrets to each other. Johnny tells Shannon about how severe his injury is, while Shannon tells him about her past bullying. They arrive at the rugby game feeling emotionally closer than ever, and Johnny promises to talk to her more afterward.

During the game, Johnny is severely injured. He is taken from the field and told that he will have to have emergency surgery. Shannon waits outside the locker room for news, and Gibsie takes her in to see Johnny. As she distracts him from his injury by asking about his scars, she ends up kissing him again. While Johnny at first resists, he ends up kissing her back, and the two are interrupted by the arrival of the doctors and Johnny’s coach.

Shannon and the other students are taken to a hotel, where Shannon stays up all night worrying about Johnny. Early the next morning, Gibsie comes and gets her, and the two take a taxi to the hospital where, under the influence of his pain medication, Johnny confesses his love to Shannon and insists that she stay with him in his bed.

The following morning, Johnny wakes up in extreme pain and asks Shannon to leave so he can hear the news about his injury. His dad informs him that he will be out for six weeks recovering, meaning that he will miss tryouts for the national team. Johnny’s father comforts him, insisting that he will recover and that even if he never plays rugby again, he will have the support of his parents.

When Shannon gets home—having been gone for the last two days without telling her father—her father corners her about her relationship with Johnny. The school has called and told him about Shannon and Johnny being caught in the locker room kissing, leading her father to believe he was right that Shannon was having sex with Johnny. He beats her relentlessly, knocking her to the ground and kicking her. When Shannon’s brothers come in to try to stop him, she puts herself between her father and her younger brother, thinking of Johnny for strength as she feels her body failing her.

At the moment when Shannon is unsure whether she will recover, Joey comes in and tackles their father, then relentlessly punches him. Shannon uses all of her strength to get Joey to stop, insisting that he cannot go to prison and leave her behind. He finally stops, and their mother runs to their father’s side, ignoring Shannon, Joey, and their injured little brother. Joey sends his brothers upstairs to pack.

Joey confronts his mother and gives her an ultimatum. He tells her that she can stay in the house with their father and their children will leave, or he can kick their father out permanently. She tries to argue, but he insists that she choose as the text ends.