I absolutely devoured this book in ONE DAY and cannot thank you enough for allowing me access to read it! I really enjoyed the pairing of a gruff athlete and super smart academic. I also loved the realistic portrayal of someone who has convinced themselves of a particular narrative—Dani was relatable in thinking that SHE was the problem and wanting to protect herself. Her vulnerability masked by a tough exterior was very well written, as was her being a researcher/academic/educator, as those are spaces I don’t really see romance leads in. I also really liked Zaf, though he, like Red in Chloe Brown, was kind of annoyingly perfect in the way he just “got” Dani. Regardless, I loved their story and am only sad that it’s over and I don’t get to read it for the first time again.

LGBTQI Danika and Muslim former rugby player Zafir are friends faking a relationship to help get Zaf's charity off the ground. Sparks fly when the teasing gets real. A truly original plot with a diverse set of characters makes for a delightful read that sucks you in until you can't put the book down. I loved this book as much as I loved Get a Life Chloe Brown and Hibbert's style of writing, the fast paced plot, non-archetypal characters are something I am super down for!

"𝐙𝐚𝐟 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐤𝐚 𝐚𝐤𝐚 #𝐃𝐫𝐑𝐮𝐠𝐛𝐞𝐚, 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬."

4.5 stars

Take a Hint, Dani Brown it's the perfect blend of sweet and steamy!!!
I loved Dani. She was straight forward, blunt at times, fascinating, and adorable and the way she melted into Zaf was just the BEST.Now Zafir, he reads and defends romance books plus the way he treated Dani, he was just so swoony.
Amazing family dynamics and friendship dynamics with fake- dating, this book is a definite recommendation.

**𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘏𝘢𝘳𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘊𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 & 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.**

So I don’t usually get teary over romance books. I straight up sobbed over this one. Hibbert understands how to write grief and trauma incredibly well, and she hit every emotional beat for me. This book is an excellent companion to its predecessor but stands on its own beautifully. Don’t sleep on this one.

Talia Hibbert has officially converted me to a Romance fan. Before reading her first book in this series ("Get a Life, Chloe Brown") I had never read a Romance book that I genuinely enjoyed. The day I finished the first book in the Brown Sisters series though I immediately requested "Take a Hint, Dani Brown" and started reading it the same day. I devoured it just as quickly as the first one and I will be anxiously awaiting the next installment in the series. My singular complaint about this book is the fact that the main character, Dani, is bisexual and it would have been really nice to see a wlw relationship given how diverse Hibbert's writing has been so far. I still loved this book, though, especially how Hibbert never plays into some really dangerous and upsetting themes in some romance ( i.e. non-consensual encounters that are supposed to be sexy), and how she uses the settings of these super cute (and steamy) romances to also talk about things like living with chronic illness and mental health issues.

This book was an absolute gem; Talia Hibbert is definitely an author who goes from strength to strength. I adored the first book in this series, "Get a Life, Chloe Brown," and I was looking forward to seeing how the sequel would match up, and it was just as excellent as the first book. What I adore about Talia Hibbert is that she writes emotions so well, and that when she pairs people who seem completely unlikely at first glance, the emotional foundation really makes the relationship feel solid. I loved Dani so much, especially how the book delved into the script she'd been telling herself about relationships and compromises; I think many women will recognize themselves in Dani's feeling that she had to choose between being herself and being able to make a relationship work. Dani and Zaf on the page were luminous together; what really makes this book special is the big and small ways they look after each other. I read this on a real downer of a week, and this book made me feel so much better. I will definitely be recommending this one!

This was SO GOOD. I actually liked it a lot more than the previous title in this series about the sister, Chloe. I loved the unexpected twist on the male love interest coming from a Pakistani non-practicing muslim family. He was socially progressive and had no problems with her being a sexually free practicing pagan female. I loved that he was the big old softie and she was the academic professional focused on her career and not a relationship. The emotional journeys they both went on to get to each other felt real and genuine, and their dialogue was funny and sharp. The romance was super steamy too!. Just all around great. I will purchase for my library and recommend to all romance fans.

A great follow-up to Hibbert's first Brown Sisters book, this one follows the middle sister, Dani, as she navigates coming to terms with what it means to be in a relationship and what she should expect from a partner. Her leading man is a Pakistani-British ex-rugby player who reads romance novels. Great portrayal of opposites attracting and showing how it's ok to lean on others sometimes while you're working out your internal issues.

I was so excited to get this ARC since I enjoyed Chloe's story so much, and Dani definitely lived up to my expectations. I've been impressed with Talia Hibbert's writing and inclusivity since I discovered her last year, and it was great to see her continue to excel. I now have a massive book crush on Zaf, the wonderful hero who deals with anxiety realistically and encourages men to be open about their emotions. He also openly enjoys romance novels, loves his family, and is holding out for his happy ending. Dani was also fantastic and a great match for Zaf. It was delightful, and occasionally frustrating, to see her try to get a handle on her feelings for Zaf and leap outside her emotional comfort zone to be with him.

I highly recommend Take a Hint, Dani Brown for anyone who enjoys romance but wants to see characters that go being the traditional white hetero stereotype and for anyone who wants a solid story that connects emotionally without being angsty or overblown.

There are two things I absolutely love about Talia Hibbert's writing. First and foremost, she's an invincible queen when it comes to snappy dialogue; it gets me every time. Second, she weaves in topics like anxiety disorders and the academic study of misogynoir in such seamless ways that authors of any genre can only dream of doing, let alone in romance novels.

However, as much as I LOVED the dialogue and how Hibbert speaks to my soul, I...wasn't the biggest fan of the plot itself in Take a Hint, Dani Brown. It just seemed like there really wasn't much there after a certain point, and I started skimming a little bit towards the end. After a while, it felt like neither main character really had much at stake in the present day, as much as they had some stuff in their pasts. Plus, social media storylines aren't my favorite, especially because every romance author is doing them nowadays. I have to give 3.5 stars for those reasons.

That said, I love Talia Hibbert's dialogue, I will forever support authors who make it happen. (less)

I love Talia Hibbert. I first read, Get a Life Chloe Brown, after it appeared on a best romance list, loved it and then devoured as many Hibbert novels as I could find. So I was super excited to read about the next Brown sister Dani. I really enjoyed it. I love how the author deals with sensitive issues and portrays individuals with mental illness. Kudos Talia, you are a treasure! I did not love Dani as much as I loved Chloe, but her love interest is yummy and I would marry him tomorrow. Read if you want a sweet contemporary romance with flawed characters. I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley, thank you to them. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Oh my gosh this was so funny. I love Talia's writing style and found myself chuckling out loud quite often. It was a great story of a viral romance.

I liked this book even more than the first book in the series, Get a Life Chloe Brown. Talia Hibbert does a great job creating characters that feel real and putting them in situations we are invested in.
I especially liked her treatment of grief and anxiety.

Talia Hibbert is my new favorite writer! I love her unique characters, charming plots, and steam level. This is a great addition to her ouvre and I can’t wait to read more.

Take a Hint, Dani Brown is the follow up to Hibbert's Get a Life, Chloe Brown and follows the sister of Chloe, Dani, that we met in Get a Life. Dani is an ambitious college professor with serious career goals and zero time for long lasting romance commitments. But that doesn't stop her from having a soft spot for campus security officer (and former rugby player), Zafir. After a viral moment between the two brings attention to Zafir's organization that teaches young male athletes how to manage and understand their mental health, the two decide to invest in the attention by entering into a fake relationship. I think you know where this goes....

Take a Hint, Dani Brown is a sweet contemporary romance that follows a pretty typical template. I don't think there was anything incredibly original in this plot, but it was still a fun, quick read. If you enjoyed Get a Life, then Take a Hint will hit a lot of the same notes.

Ohh everyone is in for an AMAZING read coming up. If romance is your gig, then this book is for you.

I loved everything about this book. The smart, witty, witchy, Dani. The serious, romantic, protective Zaf who READS ROMANCE NOVELS. The fake relationship. The love. The whole story was just amazing. I am a sucker for romance so I was totally encapsulated in this story. I love how Talia always touches on really important topics - in Chloe Brown, she had a medical condition. In this book, Zaf has anxiety. She always makes her characters so relatable which is really important for me when it comes to rating books. I really liked how descriptive the story was, letting the reader know the feelings and emotions of the characters and how they deal with them.

This story was so cute, and lovable and.....SEXY. Oh yes, very much sexy and the sex scenes in this book were on POINT. I loved reading Chloe Brown, that was my favorite romance last year....but THIS next book is so much better. I cannot wait for the next book!

Fake relationship catnip. Dani is a driven PhD candidate with ever-changing hair colors and no time for a relationship. When her friend Zafir, the (hot) building security guard, rescues her from an elevator and the two of them go viral, he asks for her help. He’s trying to get his youth rugby charity off the ground, and the unexpected publicity of their “relationship” might be just the ticket. So the two friends agree to pretend to date for a month. As long as there are no feelings involved, it’s a perfect plan. Right.

This is the second book in a series, but could definitely be read as a standalone. I enjoyed the previous book featuring Dani’s older sister, but I liked this one even more. Dani and Zaf both have some emotional work to do, and watching them support each other and figure things out was a true pleasure. Plus he reads and vigorously defends romance novels. What’s not to like?

I don't often give 5 stars but this was a delightful, funny, and sweet story that for me represents the best of what Romance has to offer. The protagonists, as well as side characters, had depth and full lives and personalities. The sex scenes made sense and furthered the story. I loved the love displayed for the romance genre and the clear, empathetic attention to people who experience extreme anxiety and prolonged grief. A fantastic follow-up to Get A Life Chloe Brown.