After nearly ten years of marriage, Freya and Aiden’s relationship is in trouble. The discussion of having a baby throws Aiden’s anxiety into a catastrophizing tailspin. Meanwhile Freya struggles with the sense her husband is pulling away from her and cannot understand why. Between his long work hours and lack of communication, she cannot take the loneliness anymore and begins to suspect the worst. When Aiden misses an important family function and refuses to tell Freya why, it just might be the last straw.

I don’t usually love the marriage in crisis trope, but goshdarnit Chloe Liese proved me wrong with this one. I was invested by page one I basically didn’t move from my couch until I finished. My favorite part about this book (and the two before it) is that Liese writes with such vivid sensory language. I can always see and feel and hear what’s going on in a scene in a cinematic way. It makes me incredibly engaged with the story. The book was structured well with good pacing without slow spots. These characters had to work hard for their HEA, and their problems were complex and challenging. Overall, it was emotionally heart-wrenching all the way to the very end

I love that this book started with Aiden’s perspective. His voice is so different than the other Bergman protagonists, and the opening was absolutely fantastic. His is the best opening of the series so far in my opinion. You can feel Aiden’s anxiety in such a tangible and believable way in his POV sections.

Freya is a fascinating character too. I love seeing her perspective on how a partner’s anxiety impacts a marriage and her empathy makes it hard to know how to cope with it at times. Her struggles are raw and real. It’s all compounded by her role as the oldest sibling who’s trying to keep it all together despite the fact her life is crumbling. It’s very relatable.

I adored how we could see how much the two characters loved each other and wanted to protect each other even as they were so angry! I was so invested I could not stop reading! There was a potential medical terminology error that took me out of the story a bit, but that probably won’t bother most people.

One of my favorite parts about this book is that the secondary characters feel real to me. We spend so much more time with the family in this book, and I loved it. With the other romances, it’s more focused on just the couple at the beginning of a relationship. But, when a long-standing marriage in trouble, the whole family is involved for better or for worst—especially when it’s a tight-knit family like Bergmans. Seeing Aiden and Freya with their parents helped me understand so much about their histories and what insecurities and fears they were struggling with. The dynamic between the Bergman siblings/significant others was sweet and genuine. All of them make mistakes, but you understand each character’s motivation and how their intentions are good. I’m rooting for all of them.

As I said, I couldn’t put this book down. I’ll definitely be re-reading it and getting the audiobook version as well, I cannot wait for the next one about Axel!!!

I’ll be posting my review to my goodreads account now. I’ll be posting to my instagram @andiewritesandreads on 1/12/21 and amazon on that date as well. Thank you so much to netgalley and Chloe Liese for providing me with this gifted arc in exchange for an honest review.

Ever After Always, the third book in the Bergman Brothers series, features a marriage in crisis, and it realistically and successfully charts the highs and lows inherent in “fixing” a marriage within the confines of a 250+ page romance novel. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the principal couple are both invested in making the marriage work, and neither one suggests they make the split permanent by uttering the word “divorce,” in any of their respective PoVs.

She’s (Freya) miserable because she misses her husband - who’s there, but emotionally and physically distant from her; he’s (Aiden) miserable - because of everything else happening in his life but not because of her - and he’s trying to hide his stress and anxiety and worries, which in turn has made her miserable. Communication, or the lack thereof, is the major impediment to this pair overcoming the troubles and problems in their marriage, and fortunately, they seem to know this. They just aren’t sure how to remedy their lack of communication or inability to understand what their partner needs - that might be different from what they need - and they turn to a helpful therapist to show them the way. The therapist makes several realistic, helpful appearances, but after that first session they’re already on their way to happily ever after.

Unfortunately for these two, the Bergman family notices things like marital strife and they also want to help. Of course they do. AND there’s an anniversary vacation/celebration that falls smack dab in the middle of their attempts to make the marriage work. It's an excellently used plot device. I'm here for it. I liked the forced proximity and how this convenient vacation keeps the marriage from foundering any further; I also liked the necessarily compressed, slow burn pace of this couple falling in love with each other all over again.

Freya, the eldest Bergman sibling, is a voluptuous free spirit. Professionally successful, comfortable in her body, and self-confident in general, she found her soulmate in Aiden after a competitive game of co-ed club soccer. Aiden was wowed by Freya the moment he saw her, and fell head over heels for her shortly after she nailed him with a soccer ball straight to the face. To each his own. Freya doesn’t really come to the union with much baggage, aside from her busy-body family (although in this series, the big ole Bergman family is heavily marketed as a plus). They love her, they support her, they show her what a happy family life looks life. Aiden isn’t quite so lucky. His alcoholic father bailed shortly after he was born, and his mother worked long hours to pay the bills. Theirs was often a hand-to-mouth existence, and the legacy of that childhood manifests itself as generalized anxiety about “having enough” and providing for his family.

Aiden’s anxiety sometimes overwhelms him and has started to affect his health, and when this story begins, he’s lost control of his control. The couple talked about trying to get pregnant, and the stress of providing and caring for his family - ensuring his childhood can never be repeated - triggers Aiden into sabotaging behaviors. Overworked, secretive, and overwhelmed, he begins to unravel. And he doesn’t share his stresses with Freya; he shuts her out. Freya is well aware Aiden is “somewhere else.” Their union takes a backseat to something - she doesn't know or understand because he won't let her, and his absence and silence magnify the cracks in their relationship. So she kicks him out.

Ever After Always charts the one step forward, two steps back progress of this marriage in trouble. The pacing is good, and the slow burn between our madly in love principal characters is well executed. I believed this pair belonged together, and the author painstakingly shows us why. It’s a rocky road, but they’re both committed to working through their problems. I thought Aiden got a bit too much of the blame, but since it was his anxiety that seems to have triggered their initial communication problems, I guess he deserves a bigger share? I don’t know; the author seems content to make Freya the “better” one, but she has her own come to Jesus moments related to the breakdown...so, I think it was a fairly balanced portrayal overall. I liked their chemistry, their affection, and their deep love and respect for each other; I’m glad they work it out.

But.

I’m on the fence with the grade - much like I was with the Bergman Brothers book that preceded it, Always Only You . I liked it, but I didn’t love it. I think this author does a terrific job pulling on my heart strings, lovingly crafting principal characters and couples I can’t help but root for, and presenting a realistic journey for these couples to work through on their way to happily ever after. It’s all the bonus material that gets in the way of the higher grade.

Lots of things come to mind when I refer to “bonus,” but the premise of the series itself, the Bergman family - 7 kids (5 boys bookended by 2 girls) with parents who are madly in love with each other, too - is the biggest that comes to mind. The Bergman’s (and their respective spouses/girlfriends) are a little too perfect and oh so twee, and because the extended family seemingly includes (it’s inclusive!!!!) every character type you might possibly expect to meet in a full length novel, the whole thing is slightly ridiculous vs. wonderful. Younger male siblings tbicker and tease and get up to all sorts of hijinks but not-so-secretly love the shit out of each other; older and wiser sibling who the others look up to for advice and life lessons are always ready and willing to provide said lessons (unless it's marriage advice and theirs is currently in the shitter); and the youngest is wise, but still young and grossed out by all the loved upness of her family. They're attractive! They're funny! They're comfortably well off! They're great athletes! And don’t get me started on the loved up parents - I mean, come one. Happy anniversary! - I’m stoked for them and their seven kids, but long married couples don’t also have to be madly in love, omniscient, and adored by their children to reflect what a happy marriage looks like. The author simply can’t help gilding the lily every single time she possibly can. People can be odd. Annoying. And bicker. And still be in a happy marriage.

I thought Freya's relationship with her best friend Mai was great until Mai squeezed her tits in a restaurant because they do that as a form of greeting. WTF. And the secret identity plot line was obvious from A MILE AWAY. Was it supposed to be?

So. If not for the uber perfect extended Bergman clan and the titty grab, this couple gets 4.5 stars. With them? 4.

I was drawn to this book because of how much I enjoyed its prequel, Always Only You, and the "marriage in crisis" trope in The Bromance Book Club. There's something about that kind of happily ever after that is especially heart-warming to read.

Freya and Aiden are married, but falling apart. Their love runs deep, but stress and insecurity has put distance between them. A Bergman Family vacation takes them to Hawaii, where they must figure out if their “ever after always” is worth fighting for.

Chloe Liese writes with an honestly that’s both touching and uplifting. Even though the characters are on the brink of collapse, there’s a warm and hopeful tone to the narrative that I really appreciated. It encourages you, as a reader, to route for Freya and Aiden’s marriage.

The characters are diversely complex. Aiden's anxiety was a really interesting layer to his character and I love the way Liese portrayed his mindset. Like many people who were raised by struggling single parents, he has a constant fear of financial uncertainty. His mental state wasn't wrapped in an extensive paragraph of psychology jargon, but represented in a realistic and relatable manner. The same goes for Freya’s insecurities around her image. And alongside that, the author breaks down toxic masculinity and its effect on men today. But every depth is explored with sensitivity that makes it enjoyable to read.

Marriage and commitment is a major theme in this novel, and it's broken down really well. Imperfect people will always clash at some point, but the author does a great job at balancing the voices in this novel. Both Freya and Aiden have strengths and flaws, and I could see both sides without leaning one way or the other.

While I did find the pace to be a little slow in the beginning, the trip to Hawaii and the charm of the characters ended up making Ever After Always an endearing and engaging read.

It's official, I'm obsessed with this series. While this wasn't my favorite of the three, it is still a very solid ⭐⭐⭐⭐ read. I love this family so much and how they pull together for each other. I liked getting to see more of Aiden and Freya and while this storyline didn't resonate with me quite as much, it was a nice different take on romance with this family. I can't wait to see what's next!

I honestly don’t know how Chloe Liese does it, but I only made it about 20% into this novel before I started tearing up. I basically had to read near tissues this entire book.

Reading the chapters from Aiden’s point of view really hit something in me. To the point that whenever I saw his name written at the start of a chapter, I made sure to have my tissues ready. Now, did I ever think I would relate so hard to a 36 year old man in a book? No, but that speaks to how knowledgeable Chloe is about the subject matter that she was able to write about his anxiety and struggles in a way that he could be relatable.

Now all that’s left is to recommend this book series to everyone and for me to wait for the next installment! I cannot wait for Axel and Rooney’s story that Chloe’s been teasing us with since book 2!

This book comes out January 12, 2021. Thank you the author and NetGalley for the ARC.

I read the first two books in the Bergman Brothers' series in preparation to read this one about Freya Bergman, one of the two Bergman Sisters. I instantly fell in love with the Bergman family. While I loved the first two books in the series, Ever After Always was my favorite of the three. This one felt the most *real* to me. Ever After Always really resonated with me as it was like taking a glimpse into my own life - the societal pressures of succeeding, the worries of being financially independent, the sometimes crippling anxiety disorder, and the challenges of keeping the romance alive in a long-time marriage. Freya and her husband, Aiden, are close to me and my husband's age (late 30s), and my husband (like Aiden) is also one of five boys in his family.

I loved reading about the Bergmans' family dynamics, the hijinks they get into, and their unconditional love and unwavering support of one another. It's truly admirable and remarkable how close knit they are given that they are such a big family. The book is a bit of a slow burn, and while I don't usually prefer that, I actually enjoyed that aspect in this novel. Ever After Always primarily focuses on the intricacies of Freya and Aiden's marriage and was like taking a look at their marriage under a microscope. I loved seeing their marriage through their lens and seeing how much hard work they putting into making the marriage work. You can actually feel all the emotions that they go through. The book is a lesson on acceptance, patience, finding ways to support each other the best way possible (and not letting ego get in the way), and how communication is the key to a successful marriage. This is the second-chance marriage story that every married couple needs to read!

There is a bit of a Bromance Book Club vibe to this book, but it's not so much to the point where it's cringeworthy or that it seems like the author was trying to copy that series. I actually like the Bergman Brothers series more than the Bromance series! The Bergman Brothers series is more realistic to me and I like the family dynamics aspect of it.

I can't wait to read the upcoming fourth book in the series about Alex and Rooney.

4.5 stars out of 5 (rounded up to 5).

Many thanks to NetGalley, Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op and Chloe Liese for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Chloe Liese has easily become my favorite indie author this year. I devoured and relish her first two books in the Bergman brothers series and this one was just as good as the first two. I loved that it focused on a long term relationship of twelve years and the intricacies, struggles, as well as the beauty in that. I, myself am in a long term relationship with my partner so I was completely able to relate to Freya and Aiden in several aspects. This was a complex story among two individuals with both personal and combined relationship issues and strains. I felt that Chloe wrote this book and these characters' story with such care and insight. It felt personal, raw, real, and beautifully complex. I rooted for Freya and Aiden the entire time for the betterment of themselves and for the success of their marriage.

There were so many important topics discussed in this book such as: Childhood trauma and poverty, anxiety disorder, intimacy struggles, toxic masculinity (the Bergman brothers are precious and should be cherished and protected at all costs), and several other topics. Such insight was provided for each of those topics. I seriously had to cool it on the highlighting as there were excessive amounts because it was all that good.

I have only read a few marriage-in-crises/second chance books before, but this was by far my favorite so far and makes me want to read more. I will read absolutely anything Chloe writes and I cannot wait to read the next Bergman book and also get to spend more time with all of these wonderful characters!


In fewer words, Chloe Liese is an incredible #OwnVoices author and everyone should go read all three books in the Bergman Brothers series ASAP, you won't regret it!

I fully expected to enjoy Ever After Always because I loved the prior two books in the Bergman Brothers series, and marriage-in-trouble is one of my favorite tropes; however, I grossly underestimated just HOW great Freya and Aiden's story would be.

One of my favorite things about this series is how Liese writes characters (and relationships) that aren't perfect. Her characters are well developed with layers and faults and strengths, just like real people. I also love the marriage in crisis trope for how real it feels. We all love the insta-love, happily ever romance stories, but that's not necessarily the most realistic. This book looks at what happens when two people deeply love each other (that was never really in doubt here), but still face a crisis in their relationship. Aiden and Freya's journey was honest and real and heart breaking. It wrecked me in a way no book has in a while, but the end was well worth the journey.

Oh my word ! What a book! Hold the traffic ,shut the front door and ring up Chloe Liese and tell her that she signed ,sealed and delivered a remarkable ,never gonna stop talking about Romance . Ever after always tells the story of Aiden and Freya a couple struggling to find their way to each other. The book touches on family,fertility ,relationships and sibling love. If you are looking for a read that will keep you hooked then get this. The plot is so awesome ,the characters are lovable and the covers is so gorgeous. Huge thanks to the publisher for my ARC

Another good one by Chloe Liese. Enjoyed the first two in the series a bit more but this was another solid one. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC.

An absolutely phenomenal read. Chloe Liese is the master of combining laughter with raw emotional honesty and pain.
Ever After Always looks at a marriage in trouble, and, from page one, you can't help but have your heartbreak as the conflict between Freya and Aiden unravels. I cried after chapter one (and then like five more times through the book, both happy and sad). More often than not, we see relationships blossom and grow and struggle to survive from their infancy, but it takes a true master writer to give us a relationship a decade into its start, and have us care about them making it. This book is a perfect reminder that relationships are WORK. It takes so much to share a life with another person, and Chloe analyzes the beauty, struggle, and reward in giving another person your everything.

I love love love the Bergman Brothers books! You don't necessarily have to read them in order but you should read them all.
Chloe Liese's characters all feel so inhabited and modern. Even when you don't agree with how they are behaving, their actions feel justified within the story and it never feels cheap.
This is a beautiful story about a solid, long-term marriage in trouble. How much should you settle to stay married to the person you love? This is set against the backdrop of the boisterous, loving Bergman family's big vacation so the contrast throws the marriage's problems into stark relief. Of course they work it out for the HEA, but they work hard at it. It's a beautiful story

SERIES: no.3 in Bergman Brothers series ( can be read as standalone)
RELEASE DATE: January 12th, 2021
GENRE: contemporary romance
TROPES: marriage in crisis
CLIFFHANGER: no
TRIGGER WARNINGS: anxiety
HOTTIE METER: 2


If you still haven't discovered a new unique voice in the contemporary romance that is Chloe Liese, well what are you waiting for?! In the new installment, we get a story of the eldest Bergman, Freya, and her marriage in trouble with her college sweetheart Aiden.
Filled with all-consuming troubles all long term relationships have, this book is equally refreshing and realistic. Freya and Aiden fall apart while trying to get pregnant. Each of them is dealing with some issues and the reader is together with them on their journey of reconciliation.
I loved anxiety representation and the way it was handled. Contemporary authors need to be intentional in their choices and Liese executes that splendidly.
On a side note, the plethora of side characters that are Bergman family is delightful.

Why not a perfect score?
Well, this one like the previous book needs more polish with pacing and length. But that can be just my issue. So, it is subjective and other readers might not notice it.

I would recommend this book to very contemporary romance readers, especially anyone looking for an already married couple. It is a realistic story of what happens after happily ever after.

* I received a copy of the book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy of the book!

Freya and Aiden have been married for almost ten years and their love is admired and envied by the rest of the Bergman clan. However, behind closed doors, Freya and Aiden’s marriage has been failing for several months. Between the stress of trying for a baby and Aiden being consumed by work to provide for his family, they are drifting apart more than ever. Feeling abandoned by her husband, Freya decides to kick him out. Their marriage is in crisis and they don't know if they will ever recover. Will marriage counseling, meddling brothers and a Hawaii gateway be able to save and strengthen their relationship?

Ever After Always is the third book in the Bergman Brothers series and follows the eldest Bergman sibling Freya and her husband Aiden. This is the third Chloe Liese book I’ve read and the third time I’ve fallen in love with her writing and characters. CAN THE BERGMAN FAMILY ADOPT ME PLEASE? This installment was such a beautiful and emotional ride, there were so many cute and funny moments between the characters and then sadder ones that made me go from smiles to tears in a few seconds. I haven’t read many marriage in crisis romance, but this one might be my favorite so far and I loved following Freya and Aiden’s journey to make their marriage work. From the very first page, you could tell their love was endless and they were made for each other. Their struggles as a couple and as individuals felt authentic, they were very well described and written and I enjoyed it a lot. If you haven’t started this series yet, pick it up because you’re missing out BIG TIME.

Freya is a fierce and kindhearted woman who never hesitate to help her loved ones when needed. She is not afraid to show her emotions and is yearning to try for a baby with her husband. Aiden is a hard-working professor and would do everything and anything to make his wife the happiest. He wants to take this next step with Freya and build a family, but it’s also financially stressing him out a lot. He grew up in poverty with his mother and has always had to worry about money, so he doesn’t want that for Freya and their future children. Consumed by work and his secret project to support his family, Aiden’s anxiety is getting higher and Freya feels more and more abandoned. Their marriage has been threatened for a few months and they both will realize it when Freya kicks Aiden out.

You don’t need flashback scenes to understand how much Freya and Aiden care and love each other, but their marriage is at an impasse, they aren’t able to communicate anymore and intimacy is none existent. Aiden is hiding how severe his anxiety has become as he is determined to carry out his project to support his family. He doesn’t want to worry Freya because he doesn’t want to bury her with his problems. And he isn’t talking about it to the rest of the Bergman either because they didn’t grow up like him, he feels like they won’t be able to understand him. On the other hand, Freya feels abandoned and is becoming more closed off around Aiden. What I appreciated a lot in this book is that you can’t take a side in this conflict because neither of them is wrong. You feel and understand both of their opinions because their situation and issues are authentic. I also loved the fact that they were willing to make things work and that they weren’t stubborn over marriage counseling. As the story unfolded and with the help of marriage therapy and the Bergman meddling, they were unconsciously making efforts to communicate more about their struggles and feelings. I loved how they never hated each other and never stopped caring and loving each other during this difficult time. They also had many cute, angsty and steamy moments that I enjoyed a lot and it was wonderful to see them reconnect at the end.

What I also liked

- AXEL AND ROONEY OMG: their little moment in <i>Always Only You</i> caught my attention and I haven’t stopped thinking about them since I’ve read it. Their crumbs in this book are even better and got me SO EXCITED for their story, they are already serving SO BAD and I can’t wait to know more. And that scene where Axel is talking about Rooney <3 AHHHHH I just know they are going to own me!!!

- The Bergman family: As always, their moments together are perfect and I love them so much. Seeing them all coming together to help Freya and Aiden was amazing and I loved how all the brothers made Aiden grovel to help him rekindle his marriage with Freya. In each book you also learn a little bit more about them, their personality, their bond and it’s literally impossible not to fall in love with each one of them. Thanks to Chloe Liese for writing about this amazing family <3

Overall, Ever After Always is another fantastic book by Chloe Liese, I love her characters and her writing so much and with the Bergman Brothers series she has become one of my favorite authors. Freya and Aiden’s story was raw, emotional, very realistic and FULL OF ANGST. I’m SO EXCITED to see what’s next for the Bergmans, especially Ziggy I liked her friendship with Frankie in the previous book and I loved that she is mentioned more in this book too! The next book is Rooney and Axel’s and I’m SO READY for it <3

𝐀𝐑𝐂 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰: ⁣
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𝘈𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳: 𝐂𝐡𝐥𝐨𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐞𝐬𝐞 ⁣
𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘛𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦: 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐀𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬⁣
𝘔𝘺 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨: 𝟒.𝟓 ⭐️ ⁣
⁣
𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘴. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘪𝘱 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘴𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘥, 𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦. ⁣
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𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝: ⁣
~I love how relatable and perfectly imperfect Chloe makes her characters. This book is incredibly real, raw, emotional, and incredibly relatable to anyone in a long term relationship, whether it be 1 year or 10+ years. ⁣
~The representation of anxiety was so accurate and I really connected to that aspect on a personal level. Lots of tears were shed over these parts because I vividly felt Aiden’s pain and anxiety. ⁣
~I always love how much the rest of the Bergman family appears in these books! It’s just so heartwarming. I absolutely love how they welcome the siblings’ significant others without a second thought. ⁣
~No matter how much these books make me cry, you can always guarantee I will be legitimately laughing out loud at times too. ⁣
~I’m not normally a fan of the marriage-in-crisis trope but this was done so well that you didn’t want to pick a side which I really appreciated.⁣
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𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: ⁣
I absolutely loved this book and I will recommend it to anyone and everyone! Chloe Liese is one of my auto buy/auto read authors and I will always support her mission to be an inclusive romance author by writing about underrepresented characters. ⁣
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𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰! 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧. ⁣
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In this third installment of the Bergman Brothers series, the focus is on their sister, Freya, and her husband of almost 10 years, Aiden. They’ve had a bad patch of at least six months, and so Freya throws her husband out. Second-chance romances are hard, because the author has to sell the couple, the schism, and the reconciliation. This book does a good job of digging into the nitty gritty of rebuilding a marriage. It’s not about a single grand gesture and fade to black (although grand groveling gestures are important). It’s about each person being able to see where the other person is coming from and about getting vulnerable.

The Bergman brothers are again entertaining, and it’s nice to get glimpses of how the couples from the previous books are doing.

I was provided with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ever After Always is the third book in Chloe Liese’s Bergman Brothers series. You don’t need to have read the first two books, but they are quite good, so you should read them. I received this as an advance reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Aiden and Freya have been married for almost 10 years and are still very much in love. Their marriage is still falling apart. When the book opens, Freya has asked Aiden to leave their home to give her some space. After a few days, he comes back home because they won’t let him sleep in his office. He knows that he is at fault, he even knows why, but he doesn’t know how to stop or how to talk about it. Freya feels like a failure because her parents marriage was perfect and she thought she had her life handled.

Aiden has generalized anxiety disorder and has lived with it successfully for years with therapy and medications. Unfortunately, when they decided it was time to start a family, his anxiety ramped up. I also have generalized anxiety disorder, so Aiden made perfect sense to me. Out of control anxiety can be like holding a gun and repeatedly shooting yourself in the foot. You didn’t mean to and you know you shouldn’t do it again, but the more you try not to do it again the more you shoot yourself in the foot. Aiden knows that he is pushing Freya away, but he keeps doing it and then feeling awful about it and trying to fix it in a way that makes everything worse. Aiden catastrophizes, and appropriately, he doesn’t feel able to change his behavior until his situation is compared to a Greek tragedy. As a catastrophizer, this spoke to me.

“Tom, those are Aristotle’s thoughts on tragedy.”

“Exactly. At some point, every love is a tragedy. It just doesn’t have to stay that way. We choose our endings. That’s Aristotle’s point. Tragedy is built—it has a structure. And if that’s not the ending you want, then you get out of that trajectory. You change the narrative.”

Frey has her own issues to work through and they are addressed beautifully imperfectly. I loved that there were no bad guys, just two people doing their best and finding out that doing their best wasn’t going to work. They go to therapy. They start letting friends and family in to help. Accepting help from others immediately makes things start to get better. It was a lovely and healing read. I loved that in the end no one is “fixed” and nothing is perfect, but they have gathered the tools to do the work.

Growth and forgiveness are big themes in this story. More than one person has to grow, and more than one person has to be forgiven. There is one subplot that I have mixed feelings about, but it wasn’t a deal breaker by any means. I enjoyed Chloe Liese’s voice. I think she’s writing interesting characters and exploring the complexities of love – romantic and familial – in interesting ways.

Chloe Liese’s latest book Ever After Always is a wonderful combination of heartbreak and hilarity that will have readers devouring this book in one sitting. The Bergman Brothers Series follows the life of the seven children in the Bergman family as they navigate life, loss, and love. Ever After Always is a second chance romance for Aiden and Freya, who have been married for (almost) a decade. Readers were introduced to Aiden in Only When It’s Us where he (slightly) abused his power as an economics professor to play matchmaker for Willa and Ryder. While Aiden is great at spotting sparks flying between others, he failed to notice the embers slowly cooling between him and his wife. Is their love for each other and support from their family enough? Or will all of the small fractures and lies topple their marriage for good?
As always, Liese tackles difficult topics with sensitivity and grace making for a beautiful love story. The reader gets unique insight into a failing marriage and gets to watch them fall in love again. This book will for sure take you on a rollercoaster of emotions; one minute I was laughing at the Bergman brothers crazy antics and the next I was tearing up as I learned more about Freya and Aiden’s pasts and insecurities. What to expect: pranks gone awry, strong female protagonists, and beautiful music. If you have not read any of Liese’s novels yet, I would recommend starting with Only When It’s Us (another 5 star read for me!), but you can read Ever After Always as a standalone if you want. This book is perfect for fans of the Bromance Book Club and You Deserve Each Other.

I was really intrigued by this one! The Bromance Book Club is a real favourite of mine so the comparison to that was one aspect that drew me in. Inclusivity was the second.
As someone who’s lived with generalised anxiety disorder for five years (probably more as it’s been five years since it was diagnosed) I’m always all ears to see how people portray it in literature. The same goes for autism, I have a younger brother who has ASD and my BA Hons dissertation was written on the depiction of ASD in contemporary fiction.
Now, I’m not a professional on GAD or ASD, everyone experiences GAD differently and since I’m not autistic myself, I can only see it from an outsiders perspective who’s done a lot of reading on ASD and who deals with their own GAD on a daily basis, but I think Chloe Liese handled both topics amazingly. This is the first book of Liese’s I’ve read and I’ll be reading more, especially after learning that she is autistic herself. A common stereotype surrounding ASD is that people who have ASD lack imagination, I myself know that’s not true, but I’m ecstatic to see an own voices autistic author writing fiction, using their imagination, figuratively kicking the butts of every person who’s ever said those with Autism or Aspergers don’t have an imagination.
While I hope to see a book about Ziggy in future, I love that her autism wasn’t a main focus in the book. No one tiptoed around her, she was forthright in explaining sensory issues and when she did, no one reacted, Freya even mentally thought about how proud she was that her sister owned her sensory issues. More than anything I just loved that Ziggy wasn’t an autistic character, she was a character with many attributes and autism just so happened to be one of them.
Again, I can’t speak for everyone with GAD, but I resonated with so many of Aiden’s feelings and thoughts. When I’m struggling with my anxiety I tend to keep it all in until it results in either a huge panic attack or numerous people close to me becoming frustrated and upset at my lack of communication. Not necessarily because they don’t understand my anxiety, but because I don’t communicate that it’s my anxiety making me distant.
I love that this wasn’t just a romance book. I mean, it’s a GREAT romance book. It tugged my heartstrings, made me laugh, made me cry, there were se exceptionally steamy moments, but it’s so so so much more than a romance book.
I read this as a stand-alone, but I’ll be going back and reading the first two Bergman brothers books for sure!

Chloe Liese just keeps getting better! This was by far my favorite book in the Bergman Brothers series, and quite possibly my favorite book of 2020.

This book was a joy to dive in to because I was already familiar with the characters and supporting characters so it felt like coming home. I came in to this book fully invested in the outcome, and spent every single page on the edge of my seat feeling SO deeply what Freya and Aiden were going through. I appreciated the authors portrayal of anxiety and it’s sometimes crippling effects.

I think a big factor in why this book struck me so wonderfully is because I have been married to my husband for 9 years, just like Freya, and my husband is my best friend, also like Freya. It’s painful and resonate to imagine how easily a marriage can get off track and that painful distance that can grow and fester, building resentments and misunderstandings. Being able to see both Freya and Aiden’s perspectives drove home the fact that even committed, loving, IN LOVE people can find themselves on the brink of divorce with a lack of communication. This was such a raw and honest peek in to their lives and I loved it SO MUCH. And getting to spend so much time around the entire Bergman clan and their delightful chaos was icing on the cake. Thank you, thank you, Chloe and NEVER stop writing. ❤️