Chloe Liese writes a seriously whip smart book about neurodiversity, chronic pain and steam for days in Always Only You. This romcom novel is book two in the Bergman Brothers series, but can be read as a stand-alone. If you saw how frequently I tagged the pages in Always Only You, you would laugh and give me serious side-eye. Let’s dive in because I’m bursting at the seams!
Frankie
Francesca (Frankie) walks around with resting bitch face and drips with sarcasm. The pro hockey players dish it out, but Frankie serves it right back and twice as fast. She is the social media manager for the team so she goes where they go. Not one player has gotten under skin except one – Ren Bergman.
Frankie was diagnosed with autism and 13 and later diagnosed with rhuematoid arthritis. She has equally hard days of reading faces and reading in between the lines and managing the chronic pain she lives with. See, if she keeps her guard up at work and her almost nonexistent social life orderly, she doesn’t get too close to anyone. And she won’t feel like the hurdle so many others have made her feel.
Ren
Ren is the team’s golden guy. On time, shows up where he’s supposed to and always willing to support a charity if it involves kiddos. It doesn’t hurt that he’s an ace on the ice and he’s a delight to look at. Ren’s not in the sport for the hijinx. He truly loves the game and takes the job seriously. Which means the one woman who makes him turn to Jell-O is social media manager, Frankie.
What I Love
Ugh, what’s NOT to love about this book?
First, a neurodiverse character. Amen! As a mom to a neurodiverse kiddo, I want to see more of this across all genres. (Side note, my guess is that if we all got neuropsychological testing, very few of us would be considered typically learning. Which is why I strongly believe that we all have stuff that’s hard, stuff we need to work on and stuff that’s just inherently ‘us.’ Just the way God intended.)
What I love MORE than reading about a nuerodiverse character? She gives two shits. She doesn’t feel less than. She doesn’t feel embarassed. She doesn’t discount herself. It’s the power of ‘and.’ She is an intelligent, strong, capable female and she happens to have autism. Boom!
What I also love is that I really know nothing about rheumatoid arthritis, and this was a beautiful entry point to learn.
This is such a person-first novel and I find that so, so, SO inviting. Shouldn’t we aim to have friends and other people in our tribe who see each other as the person, not the label, the diagnosis, the marital status, the car brand and so on? Yes, please!
Fave Quotes
“Because I know that having arthritis, being autistic, does not make me less whole or human. It doesn’t make me wrong or broken. It makes some things in my life more challenging in ways, yes, and maybe I don’t represent the ‘norm,’ but I can be someone who surmounts obstacles without it meaning there’s something fundamentally lacking in my makeup.”
MIC DROP!
“Because as Ren looks at me, as I process his words, I can’t recall a single moment Ren’s ever acted or spoken like he thinks I can’t take care of myself. He’s never hovered behind me like I’m going to take a tumble. He doesn’t talk to me like I’m an invalid. Saying that Maddox could have hurt me isn’t a reflection of my weakness. It’s an indictment of Matt’s misuse of his strength.”
Get your mitts on this book and enjoy reading about neurodiversity and chronic pain and enjoy some steam!
Looking for more delightful hockey romance gems? Take a gander at You Had Me At Hockey and Must Love Dogs and Hockey!