Week 6 - Romance Annotation

Author: Chloe Liese

Title: Only and Forever

Genre: Romance

Publication Date: April 2, 2024

Number of Pages: 368

Geographical Setting: LA, Washington State

Time Period: Contemporary, bulk of story takes place over two months

Series: The Bergman Brothers

Plot Summary: The final Bergman Brothers book follows Viggo and Tallulah as they reconnect, try to follow their dreams, grow as people, and learn to lean on each other. Viggo is the romantic of the Bergman brood, always there with a relevant historical romance to help his siblings through hard times and to help them connect with their significant others, but he has yet to find his own person even though he’s been looking. He’s also trying to stick with a passion that he’s chosen after many years of being the family’s jack-of-all-trades which comes with a lot of anxiety. Enter Tallulah, Viggo’s one time classmate and crush, with her own life falling apart. Due to some covert sibling intervention, they find themselves as roommates, co-workers (of a sort), unlikely friends, and maybe something more…though let's be real, we all know where this is headed.

Spice level: 🌶️🌶️ ½

Tropes: Roommates to lovers, forced proximity, grumpy/sunshine, no third act break up, ADHD/Type 1 Diabetes representation, one character is a romantic/one doesn’t believe in love

Subject Headings (Not listed on NoveList): Romance, Contemporary Romance, Neurodivergent Representation, Personal Growth, Childhood Trauma

Appeal:

• Characters
• Characters are central to the story and their struggles go beyond the romance plot. While the book is a romance, the characters are human first, love interests second. Viggo deals with ADHD and we see how that impacts his interactions with the characters and setting around him. We see real-life side effects of ADHD medication when he forgets to eat and the real-life reality of struggling with routines and being a bit all over the place. Tallulah has Type 1 Diabetes and we get to see how that affects her daily life and see not only her physical struggles but her emotional ones too.

• Relationships
• Being a romance, it makes sense that relationships are pretty important to the story. However, it’s not just the main couple’s relationship that we get to see. Viggo is one of seven siblings and the relationships he has with his siblings as a whole unit as well as on an individual level play a big part to the story and his character development. Tallulah’s relationship with her siblings and parents, while not as positive as Viggo’s, still inform how she relates to other characters.
• Writing Style
• The book includes dual POV meaning readers get both Viggo’s and Talullah’s perspectives throughout the book. The author also includes song recommendations at the beginning of each chapter to set the mood of the chapter and give a clue as to where the character is at mentally.

3 terms that best describe this book: Swoony, Hopeful, Loving

3 Relevant Non-Fiction Works and Authors:

• The Fight to Survive: a Young Girl, Diabetes, and the Discovery of Insulin - Caroline Cox
• Common aspects: Type 1 diabetes and the struggles that accompany the disease

• Unaccompanied Minor - Alexander Newley
• Common aspects: Child of celebrities, overcoming childhood emotional trauma, experiencing life with siblings, parental divorce

• The ADHD Guide to Career Success - Kathleen G Nadeau
• Common aspects: Designed to be read by people with ADHD; how to cultivate a work environment for thriving, setting routines, and making adjustments to have a balanced life

3 Relevant Fiction Works and Authors:

• Business Casual - BK Borison
• Common tropes: ADHD representation, characters having a hard time asking for help, jack-of-all-trades character, overcoming childhood trauma, dual POV

• When Grumpy met Sunshine - Charlotte Stein
• Common tropes: Grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, soccer

• Booked on a Feeling - Jaycee Lee
• Common tropes: Bookstore shenanigans, friends to lovers, FMC needing a change in life, MMC kind of along for the ride, he fell first