Title: Take a Hint, Dani Brown
Author: Talia Hibbert
Genre: Romance
Take a Hint, Dani Brown is the second novel in the Brown Sisters trilogy. The story follows Danika Brown, a smart and flirty PhD student who asks the universe to send her the perfect friend-with-benefits. When all signs point to the gorgeous university security guard (and former rugby player), Zaf, Dani is prepared to seduce him into a no-strings- attached relationship. However, it turns out that her friend Zaf is a hopeless romantic who has already had a crush on Dani for months. When a video of Zaf saving Dani from a botched fire drill goes viral (along with their hashtag #DrRugbae), they decide to capitalize on their insta-fame by “faking” a relationship. Because a real relationship is completely out of the question. Or, is it?
I don’t think I could not enjoy a novel by Talia Hibbert. She has great one liners and humor weaved into every chapter and does an excellent job with character development. However, I did find the first Brown Sisters novel (Get a Life, Chloe Brown) to be slightly better than Dani’s book…possibly because I had a hard time relating to Dani’s thought process. Dani’s constant denial of feelings and romance led me to roll my eyes at several points. Like, c’mon girl—there is an incredibly attractive, funny, and kind man who is easy to talk to and clearly adores you, but you cannot see that there is more than just sex to this relationship? Even though you feel like you have butterflies in your stomach whenever you see him? As a hopeless romantic myself, I connected more with the sections told from Zaf’s point of view. I would find myself reading through Dani’s sections at a faster rate to get to the good bits where Zaf pines over her. Zaf is a complete dreamboat.
The only other criticism I have is that this novel was a little sex-heavy for me. Dani truly wanted a f*ck buddy and made that very clear from the very beginning. There was a lot of sexual talk, jokes, innuendos, scenes, etc. Chloe’s book was a bit risqué for me, and this second novel came on stronger. I adore love stories, but prefer a little more subtlety. That is a completely personal preference. If you like yourself a steamy book, you have struck gold with this series.
One thing I absolutely love about Talia’s characters is their diversity. Representation matters, and I think it is phenomenal that the Brown sisters are highly educated black boss chicks who are plus-sized and each have their own unique styles and issues. Chloe suffers from chronic pain, Dani is a nerd and a witch, Zaf is a Muslim athlete with an anxiety disorder…the characters are all so unique but feel very real. It’s great. I also really enjoyed that Talia brought in characters from the first novel in the trilogy. This is expected, as the heroines are sisters, but I still think she did a great job of connecting the stories.
Overall, it was a pleasure to read, and I am excited to dig in to the third novel in the trilogy: Act Your Age, Eve Brown. It is already sitting on my shelf. Take a Hint, Dani Brown is a great read for the summer. Fun, flirty, and a perfect sexy book for all those waxed, vaxed singles who are going to be out looking for bae this summer. Go get yours like Dani got hers!
Rating: 4.75/5
cristal victoria 