IF ONLY YOU BY CHLOE LIESE // spoiler-free book review: finally reviewing one of my fave reads of the year aka friends to lovers sports romance perfection

A lot has been happening this year and by a lot I mean I’ve been working on my thesis for like 3 months straight. Hence this post has not happened until now *cries*

I’m sorry, but I swear the wait will be worth it!!!! Because this book!!! Imma just get right into it because I need to yell!!!!

Oh wait, you can check out my interview with Chloe Liese right over here:

Title: If Only You
Series: Bergman Brothers book #5
Author: Chloe Liese
Page count: 376
Date published: 11 April 2023
Genre: Adult contemporary romance

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Synopsis:

Ziggy

I’m the youngest player on the National Soccer team, the baby of my family, and thoroughly sick of being underestimated, so I’ve decided to take matters into my own hands. Which is where my brother’s best friend and teammate, the infamous Sebastian Marchand, comes in. 

Seb needs to rehab his reputation. I want to give mine an edge. So I propose a fake friendship with real benefits: spending time in the public eye, my good-girl image and his bad-boy notoriety rubbing off on each other. He’s my devious, dark-haired fantasy come to life, but his destructive ways make it easy to keep him in the (fake) friend zone. Or so I thought, until I start to see the heart of gold he’s been hiding beneath that sinister surface…

Sebastian

Like any self-respecting reprobate, I’ve been spiraling downward, and finally I’ve hit rock bottom. My hockey career and sponsorships are in jeopardy, and while I’m not ready to actually reform my ways, I’m happy to pretend that I have, to secure the life I’m on the brink of losing. 

So when my best friend’s sister, Ziggy Bergman, proposes a public “friendship” to revamp our reputations, it’s an offer I can’t refuse. Up till now, I’ve stayed away from Ren’s sweet, shy little sister to avoid any risk of ruining my one good friendship. But I reassure myself there’s no risk in our scheme. I’ll fake a friendship with Ziggy, fix my reputation, and get back to hockey, the one and only thing I love. At least, it was, until what began as a transactional arrangement became the most loving relationship I’ve ever known.

If Only You is a brother’s best friend, (fake) friends with benefits to friends to lovers romance about a bighearted, quietly fierce soccer star on the autism spectrum, and a thoroughly unprincipled, almost irredeemable hockey player who has celiac disease. Complete with an absurd level of mutual pining, meddling family and friends, and a spicy slow burn, this standalone is the sixth in a series of novels about a Swedish-American family of five brothers, two sisters, and their wild adventures as they each find happily ever after.

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Big thanks to both Chloe Liese AND Berkley for eARCs via Netgalley! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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STAR RATING: (5 out of 5 stars)

Shoutout to Chloe Liese for hooking me up with this book before it even came out and then waiting a long ass time for this review. Literally love her!!!!!

I hereby declare to eternally bow down before Chloe Liese and jump in front of a train for her wonderful characters!!!

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This book ripped open my chest, put it back together, caressed my cheek, sang me to sleep and I am a mushy pile on the floor. Somehow her autistic women do it for me EVERY SINGLE TIME and I’m not ashamed to admit that.

Ugh, I just had a feeling I would adore this one and adore it I did. I would truly give my life for Sigrid Bergman and Sebastian Gauthier aka the new loves of my life!!!! Too precious *cries into oblivion*

I’ve said this again but I’ll say it again: Ms Liese is a writing whizz and I’m forever in awe. This book was no exception. Oh so beautifully written, the characters were tender, their emotions raw and so vulnerable. I fell for both of them hard and ah I loved it. Just always warms my heart and I need you all to read these books so we can gush about her amazing writing together.

I seriously adore Ms Liese bringing back her sports romances and it was so great to get not only one but two in this book: soccer and hockey all in one. I am sporty through romance books only and this is where I get my small dose of sports education. Honestly, Ziggy and Sebastian made me think I could join them in their games even though I would absolutely get knocked out. They give me strength lol. Anyways, enough nonsense, but I loved the sport in this book and their love of the game was such a wonderful addition to their character development.

As always, the diversity in Chloe Liese’s books always gets me and this was CHEFS KISS. Not only is their autism rep (which I love), own-voices celiac disease rep (my heart) but also queer bi and pan rep and I could cry forever. SO much love is always poured into these characters and it’s too much for my pathetic hopeless romantic heart to handle.

Okay okay. I get it. You want to know about the romance. I’m truly saving the best till last folks because these two BROKE ME INTO PIECES. I was smiling so hard my jaw ached and that is the best kind of pain. Maybe one of the slowest of her slow burns ever? I’m pretty sure I can say that. But she was so slow and it was worth every minute. The angst in this freaking book!!!! Watching these two idiots literally fall head over heels and pretend to be friends for like 70% of this book I was almost screeching. It was a lot to emotionally process but ugh I loved it so much,,,,

I absolutely adore Ziggy to pieces, she is maybe my favourite Bergman? Except Ren. Sidenote: loved seeing him and Frankie in this one too, my children. I have a thing for these redheads man. Anyways, I adore her. And Sebastian was something else. This man!!! OMG. They all need hugs but also slaps across their heads I LOVE THEM. The pining was CHEFS KISS. Spoiler but not really: you are not ready for the bookstore scene. Or the other shortly after. IT’S TOO GOOD I WANT TO CRY!!!!!

Sigrid and Sebastian are my everything, I’m so excited for you all to read this book and weep with me!!!!

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If you’re looking for a wonderful slow-burn adult romance filled with wonderful representation, tender characters and the sweetest of love stories with a side of hockey and soccer, you’ve come to the right place. Chloe Liese is here to steal your heart once more <3<3<3

“Because I believe we all deserve the chance to be seen for who we are in our present, not for who we’ve been in our past. Because I believe that while you can’t rewrite life’s previous chapters, you have every present moment to do something new, something better, and I hold on to hope that anyone who wants to can shape their life into a story they’re proud of.”

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“I’m too selfish to ask you to stop missing me, Ziggy,” I tell her quietly. “So…please don’t stop. Please hang tight. Just hang in there for me. I promise, I’m trying. Okay?” She sighs, a soft smile lifting her mouth. “Kay.”

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“Then you need to find yourself some new people, Sebastian Gauthier. Everyone deserves to have someone in their corner who believes the best in them even when they’re at their worst.”

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“You’ve given me shit when I deserved it, grace when I didn’t. You’ve seen parts of me that no one else ever has, and not only did you stick with me anyway, you saw possibility in me—you believed in me when you had no reason to.”

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“For the hard hearts that bravely learn to soften, and the brave soft hearts that love them as they do.”

HAVE YOU READ THIS BOOK? HAVE YOU READ ANY OF THE BERGMAN BOOKS BEFORE? OR ANOTHER CHLOE LIESE? WHICH IS YOUR FAVOURITE? ARE YOU EXCITED TO READ IF YOU HAVEN’T YET? I’D LOVE TO KNOW!