Always Only You is probably my least favorite of the Bergman books. My main complaint is the constant Harry Potter references. JKR is a TERF and it’s obnoxious in the book. If I had to hear about her HP panties one more time…

Otherwise the book is just as good as the others.

Hockey player Ren is an outlier in his family of soccer players, but he's great at what he does on the ice--and off, always up for whatever social media scheme the team's PR prickly person, Frankie, has cooked up. Loosely following the themes of Sense and Sensibility, with love at first sight and a romance that is a blend of practicality and passion, with characters who demonstrate sensitivity, goodness, honor, and duty. Following the plot of Ren is a self-proclaimed nerd who is the nicest, most modest, unruffled hockey player ever, hosting a Shakespeare Club on the side. Frankie is on the spectrum and the details of the effort it takes for her to understand the world are unflinching and real. An additional layer is the rheumatoid arthritis that inhibits her from time to time.

The writing is top-notch, and I loved the twist with the woman as the grouch and the man as the sunshine in the relationship. The subplot of a pack of puppies that grow through the novel and have a special likin of Ren is adorable. Harry Potter allusions abound (Frankie uses a smoked glass cane that he refers to as her wand, and some of the best scenes are her uttering a curse and bystanders playing along) and are tempered with a note from the author regarding she-who-must-not-be-named's terrible stance on trans rights. Ren is a virgin at 25, and the progress of Ren and Frankie's relationship is sweet, sexy, consensual, and gave me all the feels.

This series of romances focuses on a sprawling, imperfect, loving family and the friends and lovers they take into their fold. Most are loosely structured on classic romances and comedies, from Austen to Shakespeare... to Ted Lasso. The seven Bergman siblings live/work/play in SoCal (but spend time in the Pacific Northwest in their expanded A-frame family vacation home) and are of Swedish descent; geographical and cultural details beautifully round out the love stories. Each tale, edited and re-released by Berkley with a bright, attractive cover, includes a preface from the author about her commitment to writing neurodivergent and chronically ill characters.

All of Liese's characters are portrayed with authenticity and sensitivity, and a recognition that no two people's lived experiences are alike. Gentle trigger warnings may be helpful for some readers. New bonus epilogues further the story, and sometimes help segue to the next; afterwards include more information, and often, each concludes with a sample chapter the next book in the series. Each chapter is told in alternating points of view, and each chapter in each book is prefaced with a song title/artist evocative of the mood, tone or subject of the chapter. All of the titles are cleverly pulled from a snip of dialogue spoken from one protagonist to the other at a pivotal moment.

I received a free, advance reader's review copy of #AlwaysOnlyYou from #NetGalley.

flying through the bergman brothers books and swooning so hard at how cute and fun and refreshing they are! loved that this one featured a hockey player 🔥 and a lead female with both autism and a chronic illness 🙌🏼

Always Only You is a fantastic addition to the Bergman Brothers series by Chloe Liese. Always Only You follows Frankie, the PR manager for a hockey team, as she falls in love with hockey player Ren Bergman (brother of Ryder from Only When It’s Us). Family hi-jinx, cameos from Willa and Ryder, and pop culture references will abound!
Readers will instantly fall in love with Frankie’s grouchy demeanor that protects her thoughtful heart. Ren is featured a little bit in Only When It’s Us, but he shines through in his own novel-- I challenge any reader not to fall in love with the quirky, secret softie that is Ren Bergman. He is absolutely nothing like what you would expect from a professional hockey player: bashful, modest, and family-oriented. This beautifully written love story will have readers invested from the first chapter and crying shortly thereafter. There is no experience like the emotional roller coaster Liese takes her readers on. I highly recommend this story to anyone who likes passionate and thoughtful love stories!!

The first book in the Bergman Brothers series was cute, but "Always Only You" was in a league of its own.

I loved Søren and Francesca beyond words. Ren was so soft and Frankie such a fake grouch and together they were adorable. I have a weakness for gingers and Ren was the softest of gingers and I loved every single thing about him. Frankie was so independent, stubborn and determined to not allow people to see any of her weaknesses and still she was the sweetest nerd alive; how could I not love her?

Watching Ren and Frankie fall in love was delightful and the bonus epilogues are killing me with their sweetness.

If I just had to say one word for Always Only You it would be SWOON! Holy cow, this story was absolute perfection!

I'm a big advocate for #ownvoices romances, and THIS is a perfect example of why they're so important. This is Chloe's first published #ownvoices novel and it's clear she excelled at the task. I can't stop gushing about how good this story was. The way Frankie was portrayed and how others responded to her Autism was just perfect. As someone who has a few loved ones on the spectrum, this is how I want to see Autism written in romances. I especially loved that Frankie isn't the only character on the spectrum! It was such a good addition to have another character for her to interact with and discuss how she handles life. I also loved that Frankie has rheumatoid arthritis, I really thought her having a chronic invisible illness added so much to her character. Chloe consistently nails writing characters with chronic illness and it's one of my favorite things about her books.

Ren is giant delightful cinnamon roll and I loved him so much. His Shakespeare club loving self was a complete delight! I mean, who can say no to a hero that only curses with old phrases?? His character was totally swoon-worthy, especially how he had a crush on Frankie for so long. I loved seeing these characters go from friends to lovers! I thought having Frankie be the grump and Ren be the sunshine character was a fantastic gender twist. It made so much sense having Frankie be the grumpy and skeptical one, especially with how she had to learn to cope with her arthritis and autism diagnosis.

Chloe can write some steamy steam *fans self* I totally appreciated (and was surprised) that Ren was a virgin. I didn't see that coming as I was reading, but I loooove a virgin hero! I love how much Ren and Frankie communicated throughout the whole book, but it was especially great during the steamy scenes.

Always Only You was hands down a five star read and it immediately made my 2020 Favorites list.

This is one of my favorites by this author. The main characters and the plot just really worked well for me.

I really enjoyed the book when I read it last year. The bonus epilogue was a fun addition. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

This was my first book that I've read by Chloe Liese and I am HOOKED. I want to read all of her books now and I am determined to do so. This book was all sorts of incredible and I can see my patrons at the library LOVING it.

LOVE LOVE LOVE! I cannot express how much I love Chloe Liese! Her writing is fabulous and it shows so much representation and how the world should be when it comes to loving someone. Plus the cover is FABULOUS!

trigger warning: mild ableism, sexual harassment and misogyny, sexual content, alcohol, weed, hospitalization, religious trauma, sports injury and violence, anxiety and depression, home invasion and robbery

BRO THIS BOOK HAS ME IN A CHOKEHOLDDDDDDDDDD. Writing this review a month or so post reading, I will say that I think about this one the most even though I think the third one is my favourite of the entire series.

Frankie and Ren's little friends to lovers buildup was so stinking precious especially with how perceptive they both are of each other's needs despite not knowing every nittygritty detail of their backstories. Frankie's entire characterization is just beyond amazing. Her persona, the cane, the bigass dog who is obsessed with Ren, the HP spells she casts with the cane. Fucking spectacular. I want to BE her. Ren, my sunshine boy. I love him and I cannot believe he is simply fictional because I want to meet someone who acts like this IRL.

God tier smut as always.

Truly an incredible sophomore book in this series.

December 2021 reread: CRYING AT THE CLUB I LOVE THEM

Ugh, this was fantastic! I love me a hockey romance, especially with an autistic heroine and a lovely big family. This series has been popular and I understand why. Can't wait to read more!

Somehow, this book was even better than the first one...I have no idea how, since the first one rocked my world and is currently my favorite book.

Frankie is unique and wonderfully well-written. It's nice to have an insight into the autistic mind, even if it is a work of fiction. I have also never been a huge fan of hockey, but Ren makes me want to go watch a hockey game! Liese mixes emotions wonderfully and has a way of making me want to read it all in one sitting!

He's the sunshine hockey player whose been secretly in love with his grumpy PR manager but when he finds out that she's leaving soon it might finally be the time to woo her because they are no longer strictly coworkers, that is, if he can convince her to let him have a chance! Ren Bergman is the sunshiney, sweet, and gorgeous hockey player who has a secret, he's been in love with Franke Zeferino since she came to work with the team but has held off because she's the team's social media manager and that makes her off limits. Yet when he discovers that she's leaving the team to pursue a new career, Ren knows it's time to finally woo the woman he's been head over heals for, the only question is where to start and if she'll even give him a chance. Frankie Zeferino is a self admittedly blunt and grumpy person, she doesn't really do relationships ever since shes been burned too many times by people who learn about her autism and arthritis. Yet she isn't immune to the gorgeous and sweet viking hockey player that is Ren. When Frankie's home is broken into and Ren offers her a place to stay, both of them get to spend more time together, and the chemistry is off the charts. Can these two make it work after all this time? This was such a sweet and charming story, and REN OH MY GOSH, WHAT A SWEETHEART. I adored this book so much and the love story between Ren and Frankie was everything!!

*Thanks Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group, Berkley for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

The Bergman Brothers series is one of my go-to recommendations and the bonus epilogue in "Always Only You" only makes it more fantastic. Chloe Liese gave her fans something to look forward to- and it will hit the sweet spot with BB fans and new readers alike.

10/10
2 very enthusiastic thumbs up
Personal note: already own, will be buying an additional copy. It's worth it!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

Another heartwarming and swoon-worthy romance, the second book in the Bergman Brothers' series had me smiling, giggling, and laughing uncontrollably! At one point, my laughter even alarmed my husband, who mistook it for choking and performed the Heimlich maneuver (although I do wish he had been a bit more cautious, as he ended up injuring his back and now walks around like Quasimodo, playing pranks on our neighbors' doorbells!).

But let's dive into the review and discuss just how delightful it was to finally read this sequel. Ever since I devoured Willa and Ryder's story, I've been eagerly anticipating Ren's journey, and I'm overjoyed to see that he now has his own book.

Whenever Ren's character graces the pages, it's as if Justin Timberlake's "Can't Stop the Feeling" starts playing in my head. He's like my personal cinnamon dolce latte—a burst of warmth and sweetness that instantly lifts my spirits. He's the magical rainbow that appears in the sky as the rain stops, the marshmallow floating on top of my hot cocoa, and the sunshine that brightens even the gloomiest of days. Right from the beginning, Ren captured my heart with his adorably charming personality.

However, I must admit that at times, I found myself utterly enamored with our grumpy yet lovable heroine, Frankie. The author has skillfully crafted her character to be realistic, genuine, and incredibly relatable. Frankie feels like a friend I've known for years, someone who's navigating life's challenges with resilience and a dash of sass.

What truly impressed me was the author's portrayal of Frankie's journey with autism. The depiction of her challenges in adjusting to daily life, navigating social interactions, and balancing her professional responsibilities was remarkable. The way the author tackled the reactions and attitudes of others toward Frankie's condition was sensitively and authentically portrayed, shedding light on the real-life experiences of individuals with autism.

Frankie also battles with rheumatoid arthritis, an invisible chronic illness that further adds to the layers of her character. Both Ren and Frankie are beautifully developed, each with their own struggles and vulnerabilities, and their slow-burn, forbidden love story is nothing short of captivating. Their chemistry is palpable, and as a reader, you can't help but feel the electricity between them. It's like being transported back to the days of first loves and heart-fluttering moments.

As I read about their blossoming romance, I found myself swept up in the emotions, excitement, and anticipation. My heart raced with theirs, and I couldn't help but join in their dance of newfound love. The author has expertly woven a tale that tugs at your heartstrings, making you cheer for Ren and Frankie every step of the way.

Without a doubt, this book deserves a resounding five stars for its lovely, swoon-worthy, and sunshiny charm. It's a testament to the author's talent for crafting heartfelt and captivating stories that leave a lasting impact.

Before I conclude, I want to extend my special thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for granting me the opportunity to read this incredible ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

And a heartfelt thank you to Chloe Liese for creating this extraordinary series, filled with characters who have become cherished companions on my reading journey. I eagerly await the next installment, as I can't wait to dive into Aiden and Freya's story, which I'm sure will be just as delightful and enchanting as the ones that came before.