Chloe Liese is an auto-read for me. Her romances feature complicated but deeply good characters, and the sprawling Bergman family has been a joy to revisit in each new book. This latest installment follows youngest sister Ziggy, professional soccer player with a squeaky clean image she'd like to age up a little. Her solution: Sebastian, older brother's best friend and bad boy hockey star. Seb has a reputation to clean up, and Ziggy proposes a fake friendship--not even fake dating--to help them both out. But they quickly discover there's very real chemistry just below the surface of their new friendship.

Any book where one main character takes the other to a bookstore after hours is automatically a win for me. I didn't like this quite as well as some of the others in the series, but it was still a great book.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for providing me this Digital Advanced Readers Copy of the book!

I had been looking forward to Ziggy's story, and it was even better than I could have expected! The youngest of the Bergmans, Ziggy is on the autism spectrum and is definitely babied by her sweet family. As good-natured as she is, she can see that Sebastian, her brother Ren's best friend, may not completely deserve his bad boy reputation. In true Chloe Liese form, Sebastian (and Ziggy) is for sure a green flag. Watching these two build each other up was pure fun. The only sad part was knowing this was near the end of the series!

Read this for a perfect spicy romance totally balanced with a sweet slow burn. The rep is excellent as usual, and I just want more with these two--they're that good!

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

I can’t get over the gorgeous cover, and loved Ziggy and Sebastian’s story!

WHAT TO EXPECT:
-opposites attract
-slowburn romance
-enemies to lovers
-autism rep
-bad boy

*many thanks to Berkley, PRH audio and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

I started reading this series randomly with the 5th book and keep meaning to go back to the first. However when I saw this I immediately grabbed it because I do love these characters. I loved the relationship in this book and the fact there was never a big 3rd act breakup. There were call backs to other characters but not too in depth to confuse anyone who hadn't read the others. I loved the growth of these characters and how they truly worked to be better people. I will definitely be recommending this whole series to people.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this arc!!!

5/5 stars

Miss Chloe just never ever disappoints. I'm not really a sports romance girlie, but Ziggy and Sebastian were so good I ended up enjoying it so much more than I thought I would - and am I surprised?! No lol Chloe is Queen. I love fake dating, I love the neurodiversity rep, I love their love together!! Bergman Sisters for the win!

I love anything by this author. I swear I could read anything she writes. Loved this book, the characters, the plot. Everything.

"I used to be terrified of that stare. Now I think I just
might crave it. Because it means she's trying to
understand me.“

This was my first Chloe Liese book and it definitely didn’t disappoint, Ziggy and Sebastian are each the complete opposite of the other and seeing their dynamic unfold was priceless. I usually prefer enemies to lovers, but i have to say that their friendship proved me wrong as it was the perfect basis for romance. Plus can we talk abour the angst!? My favourite element in romance books! I will definitely be reading the reat of the books in this series.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a free earc! All opinions are my own.

I love a good sports romance, add in one of my favorite tropes, fake dating, and I’m hooked!
This is a fun story about a girl on the women’s soccer team who’s not being taken seriously. She decides to change her image by dating a bad boy of hockey.
This is a fun, enjoyable story! 4 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley, I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I know I've outgrown the labels I used to wear, but I can't for the life of me figure out what I want to put on now, what will feel right. 

I absolutely adore authors like Chloe Liese who can create characters, storylines, and series that become familiar, safe spaces for readers. If Only You is the sixth book in the Bergman Brothers series but is the second of two stories centered around a Bergman sister and the bad boy brother’s best friend that can’t seem to keep out of the gossip pages for all the wrong reasons.

Sigrid, affectionately known as Ziggy, is our main character, and is ready to break out of the box in which her family as safely ensconced her since she was still in grade school.  She’s the youngest player on the Women’s National Soccer Team, and yet she still sits with her niece at the family dinner table. Determined to make her teammates, her family, and the general public take her more seriously, Ziggy decides the one person who can help her is the one who needs a little rebranding himself: Sebastian Gauthier.

"Everyone deserves to have someone in their corner who believes the best in them even when they're at their worst." 

Sebastian’s problems are not all centered around Ziggy Bergman, but her quiet determination really challenges him in all the right ways. Not only is she the little sister of teammate and best friend, Ren Bergman, she’s been the figment of all his wildest dreams. Rehabbing his image is key to keeping his job, but spending time with Ziggy becomes a lesson in self-reflection that he wasn’t ready for until she lost her underwear at a wedding reception.

If Only You is the slowburn romance that doesn’t exactly read like one. There’s so much romance that unfurls with each interaction between Seb and Ziggy. The kindness and earnestness of both characters  in regard to the other made me swoon. Did I realize that a bad boy hockey player reciting Shakespeare would be a turn on? No, I did not, but I’m here for it! These characters are neurodiverse, they struggle with mental health, with chronic illness, with self-esteem, with trust in relationships, and with the burden of growing up with childhood trauma and then learning to accept love without conditions. All of these reasons are why Chloe Liese writes such phenomenal stories. Anyone can find themselves in one of her characters, and then see the commonality between us all. A true gift in romance today. 

I've never been this close to something this unspeakably good. I have never wanted more to be worthy of it. 

Ziggy and Seb stole my heart, and I guarantee that if you give If Only You a chance, they will steal yours as well.

I've been anxiously awaiting Ziggy's book, and this was super cute -- fake dating, (sort of) enemies-to-lovers and endlessly endearing.

I will sing the praises of this series until the day I die. Every book is perfection and Chloe Liese never misses. This book is no exception.

Seeing a grownup Ziggy was such a delight and I loved seeing her take charge of her life and go after what she wanted. I had never read a fake friendship book before but now I firmly believe we need more of them because this was perfect. Usually the romance is the only slow burn part of Chloe Liese's books but a slow burn friendship? Consider me sold.

The humor and heart in this book is unmatched and I am only sad that this book wasn't longer. I wish I could live in the Bergman world just a little longer because my heart is going to break after I close the page on the last book when it comes out next year.

I really enjoyed Ziggy's appearances in some of the other books in the series and was definitely looking forward to her getting her own book. I liked the premise of the characters entering an arranged friendship to help alter their images. Ziggy's friendship will help soften Sebastian's bad boy image and in turn the relationship will help Ziggy appear more grown up and mature. The pair quickly discover that they enjoy each others company but soon find the lines blurring as their ability to deny their attraction becomes harder and harder.

I loved everything about this book. This is the first I read in the series and it worked great as a stand-alone, and got me so hooked I needed to read the rest!

Thanks @prhinternational for this ARC!

Ziggy Bergman é a caçula e está cansada de ser tratada assim. Afinal, ela é uma adulta de vinte e dois anos e quer ser tratada como tal. Por isso ela tem a ideia de "manchar" um pouco sua reputação e escolhe ninguém menos como seu parceiro Sebastian Gauthier.

O plano era apenas uma amizade falsa, que também iria ajudar Sebastian e sua imagem não muito boa. Mas logo os dois se tornam amigos de verdade, trocando confidências e se apoiando, entre outros grandes sentimentos que afloram.

Juro que não entendo como nenhuma editora br ainda se propôs a publicar essa série. A cada livro, Chloe se supera tanto na escrita quanto na história, em seus personagens, nos assuntos tocados, que fica difícil escolher qual o melhor/favorito.

Ziggy é uma jovem jogadora de futebol de personalidade doce, leal, um pouco teimosa mas de coração gigante. Ela está determinada a mostrar pra família que não é mais aquela adolescente um tanto desajustada que ainda estava lidando com seu diagnóstico de autismo e ao longo do livro ela vai mostrar isso.

Sebastian não tem uma boa fama e o seu maior medo é arrastar a irmã do seu melhor amigo para isso e acabar machucando-a. Mas, em atitudes vemos o quanto o jogador de hóquei é carinhoso, atencioso, com muito amor pra dar, mas por conta da relação com a família, ele não se deixa criar laços.

As interações entre eles são maravilhosas de fofas, de realmente deixar um sorriso besta no rosto. Chloe arrasou no desenvolvimento dos dois, tanto como casal quanto de forma individual. É o mais slow burn da série até agora, e vale cada momento.

O que mais gosto dos livros da Chloe é que ela traz representatividades diversas. Além do autismo, mais uma vez ela nos dá um casal queer (Ziggy é bi e Sebastian é pan), temos a questão de ansiedade, doença celíaca; gosto como ela sempre inova na representatividade.

Estamos próximo do fim dessa série e não estou preparada para me despedir dessa família maravilhosa. O sétimo e último livro, Only and Forever, está com lançamento pra abril estrelando Viggo, leitor assíduo de romances e fã nº 1 da Lisa Kleypas.

This series does not disappoint. I absolutely love both Ziggy and Seb with all of my heart!! The cameos from all of the other Bergmans and their partners was also so fun! Cant believe there’s only one book left in the series. Liese has been able to provide so many different views and representations in her stories while writing the sweetest romances and it just warms my heart every time. She will definitely be an author I continue to recommend!

Sebastian Gautier, a professional hockey player, needs to shed his bad boy reputation since he’s on thin ice with his team, and rapidly losing sponsors. Ziggy Bergman is the youngest on the National Soccer team, and is tired of being seen as the naïve, squeaky-clean girl. She wants to be recognized as the smart, capable woman she is. A recent run in with Seb, Ziggy’s brother’s best friend, has her thinking that they could help each other out by faking a friendship. By association Ziggy could polish Zeb’s reputation make it seem like he’s cleaning up his act a bit, and Ziggy might be taken more seriously and treated less like a little girl when seen with an edgy male.

Ziggy and Seb were very opposite: where one was weak, the other helped with a fresh, different perspective, assisting each other to grow in positive ways. Of course, being so close the fake friendship soon turns into a real one. Each feels the pull of attraction sparking between them as they get closer.

If Only You was a fun fake-friends-to-more romance! I enjoyed the clever banter and bits of humor that made me giggle more than a few times. I really appreciated that there was no third act drama and I enjoyed the neurodivergent and chronic illness representation that Ms. Liese included here, as she does with many of her romances, portraying characters with real-life problems, making them more relatable. I absolutely love the new covers Berkley has released for the whole series, but I especially love the one for If Only You with its vibrant, spring vibes!

I alternately read an e-copy and listened to an audio of If Only You and I recommend either version. CJ Bloom and Nelson Hobbs bring Ziggy and Sebastian to life with their wonderful performances. They definitely enhanced my enjoyment of the story. I listened at my usual 1.5x normal speed.

Read if you like:
🧠 Autism Rep
🍞 Celiac Rep
📚 Standalone in a Series
🔥 Slow Burn
🔀 Opposites Attract
🏒 Bad Boys

I absolutely love the representation that Chloe puts into her stories especially as someone that works in the disability advocacy space and I myself have some trauma that has manifested in anxiety, it truly makes me feel seen the way she writes her characters to be so real about their struggles.

If you love fake dating- I absolutely would recommend this one as it gives a bit of those vibes with the fake friendship for PR that Ziggy and Seb initiate. And the slow burn was sooo well done especially with Ziggy being autistic the taking time to grow their relationship felt so well written.

Thank you so much Berkley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review!

My very first Chloe Liese book and i will absolutely continue this interconnected standalone series. Chloe Liese's writing is so fun, easy, beautiful and at times emotional. She has an amazing way of writing stories that feel not only real but encapsulate so much of the human experience. Chloe Liese does such an amazing job at representing communities, cultures and groups who are often forgotten or misunderstood, we are so lucky to live in a world where this woman sheds light to the problems humans face on a daily basis, while simultaneously creating the most beautiful unique love stories.

If Only You, is such a fun, emotional read and Ziggy and Seb immediately captured my heart. Their dynamic, chemistry and character development was so well done. Their struggles and insecurities felt so real, and the progression of their relationship from fake friends to real friends to lovers was perfect. Their romance was completely swoon-worthy and i found myself giggling and smiling throughout most of their journey. Their chemistry and yearn for each other was so palpable. Their slow burn was one of my favorite parts of this book and getting to see the found family felt so nostalgic.

Such an amazing piece from Chloe Liese that has truly sparked my love for this series. Excited to continue my Bergman Brother journey and read more of her work.