Everything for You

July 1, 2022

The fifth book--and first m/m romance--in Liese's "Bergman Brothers" series (following With You Forever) focuses on Oliver Bergman, a young professional soccer player who has been named co-captain alongside veteran athlete Gavin Hayes. Gavin was Oliver's adolescent crush, but playing together has soured Oliver's attitude toward Gavin, whose gruff attitude was loosely inspired by Ted Lasso's Roy Kent. Gavin's levelheadedness during Oliver's anxiety attacks, as well as a series of neighborly run-ins and pranks, start to bring them closer together, but a road game with an "only one bed" situation kickstarts some more serious exploration. The exposition and narration are sometimes clunky and romance-reading brother Viggo's interventions get a little meta, but Gavin and Oliver have consistent, compelling voices in their dialogue. Bergman siblings from previous books make background appearances, but readers interested in the soccer or m/m aspects could easily start here. VERDICT Carefully deployed tropes abound in this warm-hearted grumpy/sunshine age-gap romance between a cynical, orphaned soccer player at the end of his career and a fit young upstart with a big happy family.--Katelyn Browne

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