Take a Hint, Dani Brown- A Novel by Talia Hibbert
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Snark and mental health.
Handsome men must never be allowed to know the full extent of their sexual appeal. They couldn’t be trusted with the knowledge. Danika Brown knows what she wants. But romance? Been there, done that, burned the T-shirt. So Dani asks the universe for the perfect friend-with-benefits—someone who knows the score and knows their way around the bedroom. When brooding security guard Zafir Ansari rescues Dani from a workplace fire drill gone wrong, it’s an obvious sign. But before she can explain they're meant to sleep together, a video of the heroic rescue goes viral. Now half the internet is shipping #DrRugbae—and Zaf is begging Dani to play along. Dani’s plan is simple: fake a relationship in public, seduce Zaf behind the scenes. The trouble is, grumpy Zaf’s secretly a hopeless romantic—and he’s determined to corrupt Dani’s stone-cold realism. "They’re hopeful." "Someone should cure them of that. It’s disrespectful on a Monday morning." This was the snarky commentary I wanted but not quite as light of a romance as I was looking for. Still, well worth the read and happy I finally got around to it! Zaf wouldn’t know what to do with a one-time thing if it showed up with a fifty-page instruction manual and slapped him on the dick. While I wasn't really looking for deeper issues (I mood read and I wanted light), I actually really did like the execution...that's something a lot of romance authors cannot handle well. And can I just say that it was absolutely REFRESHING for not only the anxiety issues to be on the male end (please normalize that ANYONE can fight with chronic anxiety!) but he created a program specifically HELPING MALE ATHLETES with it and other mental health issues? "I know you put a lot of stock in the fact that you’re ‘better’ now. That you handle things. That you cope. But coping takes a lot out of a person, too. And handling things doesn’t mean never struggling or slipping up." Also worth mentioning is that I absolutely LOVED that Dani was a super confident woman who learned that just because you're confident doesn't mean you're not insecure. Louder for those in the back!! "I don’t want you to change, Danika. I just want you to be mine." Recommended for romance lovers that like it with a side of tackling mental health issues (in a healthy way).
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Take a Hint, Dani Brown (thoughts)
4.5 stars - I was in the mood for a good romance when I picked this book up and had high expectations after loving the first book in this trilogy titled Get a Life, Chloe Brown. Happily enough, this book far exceeded those high expectations. I truly adored this book and both Zaf and Dani. There was just something about the two of them that had me instantly both invested in their relationship and rooting for them as a couple. Plus, this book was just funny - I found myself laughing out loud a couple of times at it. It was just one of those delightful reads that I picked up at the perfect time and fit my reading mood perfectly. There's nothing better than when this happens in my opinion! There is a reason this trilogy is so popular and I won't be waiting too much longer before I pick up the final book in this series. Overall, I enjoyed my time with this book immensely. It was just a fun read with a couple that I adored. I turned the pages as fast as I could because I needed to see them get their happy ever after. Talia Hibbert has become a go to romance author for me - I'll be working my way through her backlist and reading everything/anything that she writes. Pick this book up (and you don't have to read the books in order) if you enjoy a steamy romance, are looking for relatable characters that will make you laugh, or just want a book that you can't put down. Another book that I can highly recommend! Bottom Line: A romance that makes me smile just thinking about it! Disclosure: I received a copy of this book thanks to the publisher and NetGalley. I also ended up reading a print copy courtesy of my local library.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great read
I loved Get A Life, Chloe Brown, so reading this second book of the Brown Sisters series, I knew this book, Take A Hint Dani Brown, was a must read for me. Talia Hibbert’s writing style and humor really put me in the best mood! The writing was incredibly sexy and fun - I really enjoyed Danika and Zafir together. If you haven’t read this one yet, I recommend the series for an amazing read I know you will enjoy!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Can I be Dani Brown when I grow up??
I read Get A Life, Chloe Brown and enjoyed it so when I saw the next book focused on Dani Brown, I couldn’t wait to read it! Take A Hint, Dani Brown was even better for me than the first Brown Sister book. I read it in a day and loved the strong, quirky, unapologetic, confident, uber academic nerd that is Danika Brown! Zafir was also a perfect book hero for me! I loved the broody, secretly sweet, funny, “murder face”, ex-rugby player who was holding out for a happily ever after when he’d dealt with a crippling family tragedy. I LOVED Zaf’s charity that targets toxic masculinity and mental health in the book and I wish that all athletic institutions would jump on this bandwagon to Tackle It! *read the book and you’ll get what I did there* This book had two of my favorite tropes; fake relationship and friends to lovers! Aside from the stellar romance and relationship, I loved the theme in both of the existing Brown Sisters books that recovery and healing aren’t instant and there isn’t a magical point where everything is better and that mental health issues are as real and important as any other illness. In both books, Hibbert makes a point to have a character discuss that getting better doesn’t mean that you always have to be OK. Bravo! I also loved all the cultures represented in this book, I found this series because I was seeking out Own Voices books and diversity in main characters, so this series ticked all the boxes! I will probably reread Take A Hint, Dani Brown, and cannot wait to see what is in store for the last Brown sister!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Steamy and Serious
Ever since I read Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert earlier this year, I’ve wanted to pick up the sequel. Plus, I’ve been listening to a ton of Arctic Monkeys and have been in the mood for a romance. Thankfully, Take a Hint, Dani Brown came through from the library and I was able to read it before the mood for a romance passed. As much as I loved Chloe’s story, I think I loved Dani’s even more. Dani teaches college English (I can relate) and has sworn off romance after some bad experiences but when a video of her being carried out of a building by a gruff security guard goes viral, they decide to fake a relationship and reap the benefits. The banter and pining were so fantastic in this story and I also appreciated the discussions surrounding grief and anxiety. It isn’t just a romance; Hibbert tackles some more serious topics and that’s what keeps me coming back to her romances. I’ll definitely be checking out Eve Brown’s story when it comes out. TW from BookTriggerWarnings(dot)com Anxiety Car crash Death (parent and sibling, mentioned/discussed) Grief Panic attack
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
My favorite book of the year
Rating: a billion out of 5 stars I don't even know where to start with reviewing this book, honestly. It's just so indescribably good. I want to take both Dani and Zaf and hug them both forever, and also feed them and make sure they have a comfy sleeping pillow. It's a sort of fake relationship, friends to lovers contemporary romance but really it's so good it transcends tropes. Talia Hibbert is brilliant at writing these very REAL characters that are entire people with hopes and dreams and foibles and flaws, and it's easy to forget they aren't actually, y'know, real. She's also a master at breaking your heart into a thousand shattered pieces, then bending down and holding out a roll of tape to help you put it back together. Or, as Dani would say, framing the scar in gold. I want to be best friends with Dani and Sorcha (even though I'm no where near cool enough to hang out with them.) I love that Dani is a lush, curvy, plus-sized woman and nowhere at all is this book about her needing to change, lose weight, diet... She is a phenomenal woman - she knows it, we know it. She inspires me and I wish I had half of her confidence in my own skin. At the same time she is also so vulnerable and I want to wrap her in bubble warp and feed her marshmallows and give her a thousand soft kisses. (I TOLD YOU, this book broke me, okay?) And then there's Zaf, who's big and hot and sweet and reads romance novels (you know I stan a hero who reads romance!) because they give him hope. He's basically the ultimate cinnamon roll and I want to eat him up. There is a moment where Zaf is having a panic attack and is trying to explain, and Dani says "You can tell me later. Right now, do what you need to do.... If I can help, let me know. Otherwise, feel free to ignore me. I'll still be here." And if that isn't just the most RIGHT response to someone having a bad spell with their mental illness, I don't know what is. And a bit later: "No one can be fine all the time. So we'll sit here while you're busy being not-fine, and we won't move until you're done, and that's okay." Reader, I tell you I *sobbed*. I really don't know what else to say. Why are you even still reading this review? Go pick up a copy of Take a Hint, Dani Brown and read it for yourself. It's definitely my favorite read of the year, and is a contender to be my favorite book of all time. This is the second book in The Brown Sisters series, and can be read as a stand-alone. I loved the first book, Get a Life, Chloe Brown, and can not WAIT for Eve's book, Act Your Age, Eve Brown, which I assume will be the final one in the series. Anyway, in conclusion, Talia Hibbert writes amazing books with great disability and mental illness rep, and you should go read all of them RIGHT NOW.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
LOVED THIS.
These books have very firmly found a home on my favorite books list. I think I possibly loved this even more than Get a Life, Chloe Brown (if that's even possible because I loved that one so much?!)
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Laughter and Chemistry
I liked this book. It's a second in a a series and I love how the characters are diverse and so real. Danika Brown is a smart, funny, bisexual, plus-sized black woman. She feels very strongly anti-relationship but wouldn't mind some companionship and finds that with Zafir, an ex-pro Rugby player turned security guard at the campus Dani works at. Zafir has had some loss in his past as well as anxiety that he has dealt with and is a romantic at heart. A small incident leads Dani and Zafir to instigate a fake relationship and the story goes on from there. I laughed in this book. The banter was great and the steam was intense. These two definitely had chemistry. I really liked how well Hibbert wrote a male lead who is dealing and has dealt with anxiety. It was so very well done. These books are a breath of fresh air because they have real, modern day characters. While it can feel slightly over-the-top at times it is so nice to read a love story where those in it do not fit your traditional molds. I'm really looking forward to the next in the series.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com