One of my favourite books of the year, for sure. Maybe ever. Talia Hibbert is one of the best romance writers out there right not, and this book just proves it. This was the perfect romcom, with perfect characters and the perfect ending.

I loved grumpy romance reader Zaf and sassy, take no prisoners Dani. I loved their banter. I loved their vulnerabilities, which were painted so beautifully and carefully. I loved that Zaf was trying to break down toxic masculinity in sport. I loved that Dani was a badass academic in Gender and Race. I loved how they supported each other. I loved the chemistry between them. I loved the hashtag #DrRugbae. I just loved it all.

Absolutely blummin’ marvellous. I adored this book so much. A sizzling romance but full of heart and laughter. I loved seeing both Dani and Zaf deal with insecurities and issues and coming together over the course of the book. Dani learning to express herself and how she feels and falling for romance and love. I adored how well the author deals with Zaf’s anxiety, it is treated with respect and compassion and as a sufferer myself it was so lovely to see this treated seriously and so well. I loved this so much, I mean I adored Get a life Chloe Brown, but I think this is another level completely. I will be buying all Talia’s books in future as they are just pure gold and happiness, a real mood lifter and great balm for my anxiety and stress at the moment. The perfect pick me up and you definitely should.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

"Take a Hint, Dani Brown" is a steamy but also sweet romance about Zaf and Danika, who pretend to be a couple in order to help Zaf's business to grow. The business is Tackle It, a sports charity, and thanks to a video of Zaf carrying Dani in his arms, it finally has a chance to get off the ground. Dani is looking for some casual sex, Zaf is a romantic to the core - what could go wrong?

New Talia Hibbert's romance is a second in the Brown Sisters Series, and once again, the author does it sooo well. There're definitely some sparkles between the characters, there are some funny scenes, and contrary to some old-fashioned ideas, it is Dani who needs to learn how to express her feelings and deal with the emotional turmoil. Both main characters have a lot of internal stuff to unpack and it is a pleasure to watch how their relationship develops. Zaf's struggle with anxiety is mentioned gently, with compassion and understanding, as is the incident in his past that led him to a severe depression. There are some hot sex scenes, but consent and pleasure are always important to both characters. After two great and entertaining novels from Talia Hibbert, I am excited to read the third instalment in the series!

What do you get when a bisexual commitment-phobe who's passionate about feminist literary theory hits it off with a romance audiobook-listening security guard who wants to shed light on the importance of men's mental health?

Well, you get this novel. And it's a delight.

Danika "Dani" Brown is the younger sister of Chloe, star of the previous novel in this romance series, who's a 27-year-old PhD student and practising witch who loves sex but, rather ironically, isn't in love with romance. She's friends with the gruff yet sweet security guard, Zafir "Zaf" Ansari, who works at her university, and both of them have been checking each other out for a while.

Zaf winds up 'rescuing' Dani after she gets stuck in a lift and a video of the rescue goes viral. Suddenly, the two of them are #couplegoals and, when Dani discovers the publicity could really help Zaf's mental health charity get on its feet, she agrees to fake a relationship with him, with the hope she might be able to tempt him into becoming her perfect friend-with-benefits in the process.

I have to be honest that I wasn't sure what I was going to think of this novel when I first opened it. I expected to like it - I love having a contemporary romance series that's set in the UK as opposed to the US - but I'm always a little hesitant when I see a man in a romance novel described as 'brooding'. It makes me think of the dark YA years of the early 2010s, when it was perfectly acceptable for love interests to be arseholes. Luckily, Zaf is lovely and not someone I'd describe as brooding.

Zaf is simply private, and someone who seems to suffer from resting bitch face, and an experience with the media that ended his rugby career after a bereavement has made him wary of sharing everything about himself with the people who don't deserve to know. He also reads romance novels, and listens to the audiobooks at work, because he loves happily ever afters and he's honestly one of the sweetest, healthiest love interests I've encountered in contemporary romance.

His passion for discussing mental health and pushing past toxic masculinity is so wonderful to see in a man who has the figure of a 'manly' man who's tall and well-muscled. He's adorable. Plus it was nice to see another mixed race romance in this series, but this time a mixed race romance that doesn't involve a white person. I feel like we don't celebrate mixed race romances that don't involve white people as much as we should.

I also loved getting to know Dani, though. She's so unashamedly herself and she's funny and witty and so passionate about her area of research. Yet again, just like Get a Life, Chloe Brown, I loved Hibbert's emphasis on the idea that a romance works because the people involved in it want it to work, not because they give up something else they love for it. Love is about compromise, of course, but Zaf himself points out that living happily ever after is living with someone who's worth compromising for, because it won't feel like a compromise.

Dani loves her work and Zaf loves his, but they also love each other and, while they'd still continue their work without each other they don't want to do it without each other.

I did sometimes feel like Dani's fears of commitment were a little overplayed for the sake of having some kind of obstacle for her and Zaf to overcome, but I did really appreciate that neither Dani nor Zaf were entirely in the wrong. Sometimes, in romance, one person makes a mistake and the power balance in the relationship can feel a little off as a result, but that's not the case here at all. Dani and Zaf are friends and equals, and I so wanted the two of them to be happy together.

If you need a quick, fun read that's going to lift your mood, then I suggest you get your hands on a copy of this book!

If you like racy books then this is one for you! For me there was probably actually a bit too much of a sexual focus on this and not enough actual storyline. The first chapter really confused me and I did debate carrying on with the book as it couldn’t get what was happening.

The story did get better and I was eager to see how the relationship between Danika and Zafir would pan out. As always with romance books you’re waiting for that big romantic moment but I thought this didn’t quite deliver. I think I’d have liked to find out more about the other characters in the book and the relationships outside of Zafir and Danika. I wanted to know more about Zafir and Jamal or Danika and Sorcha as I think seeing a characters friendships is such a powerful message. I wanted to see more communication of feelings to others rather than just individual thoughts.

Ultimately, if you’re after a boy meets girl book with a lot of sexual content then this is a book for you. It did have me laughing a loud at points but this was due to the shock of the text - be warned there’s not much left to the imagination!

I have been looking forward to this since Chloe Brown, and I was not disappointed!!! I just LOVE the Brown sisters and think that Talia Hibberg writes the most fantastic women (and men) and those friendships and just brilliant! Zaf is such a gorgeous character. I think he is so warm and loveable and I love that he’s the romantic out of the 2 of them.
The way that Talia writes strong, confident women is just fantastic! I love Dani Brown just like I loved Chloe Brown and I so desperately want to be friends with them.
Hibbert writes characters you can relate to and like. They’re 3 dimensional and not cliched. I just loved this book and I am so so looking forward to Eve’s book!!

Talia Hibbert is one of my favourite romance writers and this book is one of her best. Following Dani and Zafir as they fake a relationship for social media buzz to accelerate Zaf’s charity start up for publicity and donations, the inevitable romcom ending is satisfying and heart-warming. This is real page-turner, as I finished it in a day, falling in love with Zaf and Dani by the end. Talia Hibbert always writes complex interesting characters with depth, and these characters, plus all the background characters, are no exception. I really appreciated that although it was racially diverse, the book made more of the neurodiversity and mental health than ethnicity, as it felt very human and fresh compared to other biracial romances. Really recommend this book – you don’t have to have read Get A Life Chloe Brown to read this but you will want to by the time you finish this one!

Thank you to Net Galley and Hacette Press for the free advance e-book copy of this title.

Last year, I read and adored Get a Life, Chloe Brown, and since then I have been eagerly and impatiently waiting for Take a Hint, Dani Brown. And it really, really does not disappoint. (Although, now I’m in the situation of really desperately wanting to read Eve’s book right away. March 2021 cannot come soon enough.)

The book follows Dani and Zafir, who start fake dating following a viral video showing him carrying her out of a building, which prompts interest in his youth sports charity. Dani is a focused and driven worker, studying for her PhD, while Zafir is an ex-rugby player who works security. They are, nominally, friendly with one another, although Zafir has a massive crush on Dani.

First things first: Zafir Ansari is the only man with rights, ever. He is such a lovely character and the type of male love interest that actually makes me enjoy reading m/f adult romances (I mean, given my options for anything not m/f in that bracket currently…). He is still, unfortunately, somewhat of an anomaly though, but that just makes me love him all the more.

And Dani! I love Talia Hibbert’s heroines a whole lot, they are always sympathetic and complex, and you know that meme with the woman carrying Kevin Hart? Well that’s how you’ll feel about Dani. I don’t really know how to put into words just how much I loved her, but she was by far and away the best part of the book (even if I did get frustrated with her “love no one, never get hurt” schtick. But there was a reason behind it, and that’s just a trope I personally dislike).

If there was a teeny-tiny thing I didn’t like as much, it was that I don’t always feel like the angst in Talia Hibbert’s books makes total sense when it comes to the character arcs (certainly, I felt that about Get a Life, Chloe Brown). Here, it did mostly make sense for me at least for how the characters had been established, however, regardless of how much I would have preferred them to talk things out. But at least it wasn’t based on a stupid misunderstanding.

All of which to say, this is a series you definitely want to get on to.

Before reading this book, I had never read the previous instalment of "Get A Life, Chloe Brown" by Talia Hibbert. I knew that this book took place around the sister of the first book's protagonist, and it just sounded exactly like something I'd love to read. We follow Danika, a bisexual workaholic with no room in her life for love, and Zafir, a moody security guard with a love of romance novels and a secret crush on Dani. After a video surfaces of Zaf saving Dani from a building, they quickly become viral sensations for a relationship they don't have. They stick with the idea of a fake relationship to boost Zaf's projects, with Dani wanting to start a friends with benefits situation, because her number 1 rule is: no relationships.
I really did fall in love with this book so quickly. The characters are fun and easy to read about, and you very quickly find yourself just wishing they would get together. I thought the book explored Zaf's struggles with grief and generalised anxiety disorder really well, and it didn't feel unnecessary or romanticised. The romance was absolutely adorable, and also very steamy in a few parts, it was the perfect mix of the two for a good romance plotline. I loved the family dynamics we saw in both characters' families, and the side characters were perfection.
I'm 100% going to check out the first book as soon as I can, because this was so much fun! Definitely recommend for all my romance readers! Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group for sending me this ARC for review 💛

I loved this book so much.
Dani and Zafir were both amazing characters and I wanted them to get together so badly!! Fake dating is one of my favourite romance tropes so I really enjoyed this. I rooted for them both so so much.

Talia Hibbert dealt with so many issues in such an inclusive and understanding way, especially her focus on anxiety - I thought this was so well done.

The romance in this one was so cute and I was hooked immediately! It’s such a fun read and so heartwarming, with some steamy scenes which were very well written (so if this isn’t your thing, you might not be too keen). I loved how sex positive this book is and how Dani was so open about her wants and needs. So important for a modern audience to read!

I can’t wait for the final instalment in this series and am so sad that it’s not out until next year! I’d highly recommend both this and ‘Get a Life, Chloe Brown’.

Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group for this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a fast and fun novel about romance and friendship between two opposites that I could not stop reading. It’s funny, sexy, and Hibbert gets the emotional stuff spot on - just the right amount of romance without it being cheesy. I also always love it when a romance novel doesn’t rely on tired gender and hetero tropes, and so the love interests being a PhD student of race and gender in post-slavery literature and a campaigner for men’s emotional health respectively made this is a very refreshing read!

Oh. My. Goodness.
Talia Hibbert knocks it out of the park AGAIN.

I read Get A Life, Chloe Brown with my book club earlier on this year and absolutely loved it. And I was over the moon to hear it was going to be a series. So when I was granted the eARC of Take A Hint, Dani Brown, I was on cloud nine.

I adored Danika Brown from the offset in this book, I thought she was fantastic. And I had no idea that she was Bisexual going into this so that was a pleasant surprise.
Zafir Ansari is my new book boyfriend (Sorry Rhysand!) I absolutely adored everything about him.
Together, they are the ultimate power couple and I just couldn't get enough of them. Also, the fake dating trope is my all time favourite trope, and its brilliantly done in this book, so bonus points for this as well.

My heart broke for Danika time and time again with regards to her reluctance to be in a relationship. At first, I couldn't understand it but as we got to know Dani more, I was devastated for her.

Take a Hint, Dani Brown definitely deals with some hard hitting topics: Death of family members, cheating, gaslighting.

Overall, I cannot fault this book at all. I love Talia's writing, I love Dani and Zaf, I also love the side characters, Socha, Jamal, Fatima, Kiran and it was nice to see Chloe, Red and Eve make appearances as well.

I am so so hyped for Eve's book. It'll be my most anticipated book of 2021 I think (I'm assuming that's when it'll come out)

Couldn't love this book enough!

As someone who is very new to romance novels, I must say this was very funny, sarcastic and smutty. And I loved it! I really felt for both Dani and Zaf's characters and really wanted to bash their heads together and make them realise. Which to me is mission accomplished for the author! I have read this as an Arc copy from Netgalley and will definatly be buying the book when it comes out and book 1 in the series. Funny, witty and loving! Perfect.

I feel I gotta put up a full disclaimer that romance is not usually my thing AT ALL. I read Chloe Brown and enjoyed it - although I am big fat prude and could have done without the graphic sex scenes.

The same is true for this! The main characters are well-rounded and believable, side-characters developed well (I could fully picture Zaf and his fam!), and all with excellent dialogue throughout.

Sex-posi, workaholic, emotionally-closed-off Dani and giant-teddy-bear-with-emotional-intelligence Zaf, cute but cringe interactions, outspoken about mental health and self-care - am here for all of it. The sex scenes were not for me but are very easily skipped through - and if you love a bit of filth then you're in for a treat. I think if you loved Chloe Brown then this is a must-read.

I adored this book. I adored Danika. I adored Zafir so much that if it were possible to go and find him in reality just to give him a big hug, I would 100% do that right now.

This is such a funny sexy romance with a tonne of chemistry and characters who grow so much throughout the book, both together and individually. It addresses grief, loss, anxiety, self-esteem, all while being funny, sweet and relatable AF.

Take A Hint, Dani Brown is the romance novel that reminded me why I love romance novels so much. Both because its easily the best one I've read this year so far, and also because the way Zafir explains why he reads romance novels is just spot on for me. Happily ever afters aren't predictable spoilers, they're safety nets full of comfort and joy. And don't get me started on how joyful and refreshing it is to have a romantic male lead who suffers from anxiety and reads romance novels and has a passion for helping other young men shed the stigma of mental health issues and toxic masculinity via the medium of rugby. I love him.

Dani herself has built a wall around herself emotionally after being hurt in the past and is now focusing 100% on her career. The way her barriers slowly crumble for Zaf is just a beautiful delight. I love the way that she's so confident and badass at work, and that romance in the end is an addition to her life but doesn't take away from the fact that she was already killing it in an academic sense, and will naturally continue to do so.

Overall in case it wasn't clear, I absolutely loved this and can't wait for the next Brown sister story next year.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. Full disclosure: I will probably buy a paperback anyway because I loved it so much!

This is the second in Talia Hibbert's Brown sisters trilogy set in Nottingham in the Midlands, the highlights of which are the great diverse characters, supporting and central protagonists, and the way Hibbert tackles issues such as the depression and anxiety suffered by 31 year old former rugby player, now security guard at the university, the brooding and grumpy Zafir Ansari, regularly having to endure sleepless nights as a result. 27 year old Danika 'Dani' Brown is an ambitious academic, determined and focused on succeeding in her chosen career, at the expense of any meaningful personal relationship. For the bisexual Dani, no emotional entanglements is the name of the game, her last sex based relationship broke when the other woman developed feelings for Dani and wanted more.

The only trouble is the situation has now become dire, and Dani is desperate for sex, a no strings affair, a friend with benefits is her deepest desire, so with best friend, Sorcha, engages in a little witchcraft, asking the universe for just such a friend. Dani has a humorous and bantering relationship with the good looking Zaf, he provides her with a protein bar, and she gives him his daily morning coffee. Zaf already harbours a crush on Dani, she is sassy, charming, just perfect, except he knows she doesn't do real relationships, and for the romance reading Zaf, this is a deal breaker. However, everything shifts dramatically when video of Zaf rescuing Dani goes viral, and when it brings positive attention to his charity, Tackle It, for boys and young men to understand their emotions and express them beyond the boundaries of toxic masculinity, Zaf asks Dani to engage in a publicity led fake relationship. How can Dani refuse? In the meantime she gets her friend with benefits, but what happens when their relationship begins to encroach into her no go areas?

Once again Hibbert creates an irresistible set of characters that readers will adore in Zaf and Dani, I particularly loved Zaf, not to mention a fabulous cast of supporting characters in their friends and family, we become acquainted with Zaf's best friend Jamal, his interfering niece, Fatima aka Fluffy, Kiran, and his mother, all so truly endearing. Zaf is not the only one with issues, Dani has been emotionally damaged by a early relationship which trashed her self esteem, something she failed to recognise or address, but which ensured that her decisions and outlook on relationships created an arid emotional desert that must be tackled before she can move on. This is a lovely, well written, passionate and fun read, although I should point out to readers that there are plenty of sexually explicit scenes. Many thanks to Little, Brown for an ARC.

Thank you Netgalley for this Advance Reader Copy. I enjoyed the sequel as much as the first in the series. This story deals with a fake romance turned real. Representation is also varied within this novel. Very open door sex scenes. Trigger warning for anxiety, panic attacks and grief. Can’t wait for the next instalment in this series

I loved this book and the two gorgeous but oh so silly leads of Dani and Zaf. These two wonderfully crafted idiots thought they could do a fake relationship and not catch feelings? Lol, fools!!! The story was funny, heartbreaking in parts and entertaining from start to finish. Dani and Zaf had adorable banter and sizzling, smoking chemistry throughout.

I loved Dani, a badass, bisexual , academic nerdy goddess. Loved all her confidence with everything in her life except when it came to love. I hated, but understood, that a crappy relationship had such a knock on effect on her outlook. I also really loved her dedication and passion for her career, which is always a joy to see. As with all of Talia’s male leads Zaf was just a delight. I love a “moody” character who just melts into goo because of the person they love. Depression and anxiety are not things that I’ve come across in many romance books especially when it comes to the Hero of the story. Zaf’s loss and the impact it had on him and how he dealt with it and channeled it into something that could help others with their own mental health was handled so well by the author and felt so incredibly real.

Excellent supporting characters as well in Sorcha, Fatima, Kiran, Jamal and the other two Brown sisters. I laughed and I cried a little and I cannot wait for Eve’s story. 5 star read.

I love a good fake-dating trope if it’s done correctly and this book hit the nail on the head. Take a Hint, Dani Brown was so funny, charming and sexy that I honestly struggled to put it down. Talia Hibbert is such an amazing writing who creates such realistic characters, each with their own set of problems. She tackles hard-hitting topics in such a relatable way that she already has me excited for her next book!

Dani is such a strong-willed character who knows what she wants out of life. She doesn’t like to get romantically attached and is focused on working on her career. Zaf on the other hand looks incredibly intimidating but is a hopeless romantic and such a kind soul. I honestly loved their chemistry and how understand Zaf was of Dani’s busy career, taking the time to look after her when she didn’t even realised, she needed it. The development for these characters was perfect and I honestly loved everything about them.

What I love most about these Talia Hibbert’s books representation of Chronic illness and Mental health. In Get a Life, Chloe Brown we saw a big focus on Chronic illness and with this book we saw Zaf suffering from anxiety. It’s so important to enlighten people about illness that we cannot visibly see and Hibbert does a perfect job at this.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Take a Hint, Dani Brown was such a super easy, sassy and steamy read that fans of fake-dating tropes need to pick up!

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored this book! It was cute, sexy and dealt with some real topics.

One of my favourite things about this book was the characters. Both Dani and Zaf were fully developed, loveable characters. I was rooting for them both throughout the book. (especially Zaf, i fell in love with him straight away<3).

I also really enjoyed how this book dealt with mental health. Zaf has anxiety and the representation of it was raw and realistic. I also loved how the other characters dealt with Zaf's anxiety.

Overall, I'd recommend this one to anyone who loves the fake dating trope and wants to read a fun, sexy romance with amazing characters.