Book Review: Take a Hint Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert

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Title: Take a Hint Dani Brown

Author: Talia Hibbert

Sub-genre: Contemporary

Trope(s): Fake dating

Content Warning: Anxiety; death of family members (in the past, not on the page)

This has been the summer of books by authors who make me want to quit writing. Talia is just so damn funny I can barely even stand it. And then just when you think omg this book is so hilarious, she hits you right in the feels with the perfect dose of emotion. Ugh. So good.

So Dani (Chloe’s sister) is a badass professor. She works at a local college and is supremely obsessive about her work. She is preparing to be on a panel with her idol, which is leading her to basically work twenty hours a day to make sure she knows everything about any possible topic that might come up. Zaf is a security guard who works in Dani’s building. Zaf, a former pro rugby player, also runs a foundation for young male athletes, helping them learn how to express their emotions (and teaching them it’s okay for boys to you know, have emotions). During a routine drill, Dani gets stuck in an elevator and Zaf rescues her, carrying her from the building in his arms. The moment is caught on video and goes viral, the internet dubbing the “couple” #relationshipgoals. Dani and Zaf are just friends, but once their video sends a spike of traffic and donations to Zaf’s charity website, he asks her to fake date him, so he can take advantage of this fifteen minutes of fame and raise a bunch of money for a good cause. Of course, we all know where fake dating leads, but Dani and Zaf have some big mental blocks to overcome in order to live out their happily ever after.

So. If it wan’t already clear, this book is funny AF. I love a book that makes me actually laugh out loud and this one did on multiple occasions. Dani is the best and I want her to inject me with a serious dash of her confidence please. I love an unapologetic heroine and Dani knows how awesome she is and owns it. But all those amazing qualities aside, my favorite part of this book is Zaf. A hero who teaches young boys how to express emotions? A man who is also incredibly in touch with his emotions? Give me more of this please. And then you throw in fake dating on top of all that?!?!?! I mean, it’s almost not fair. In case you haven’t already figured it out, you need to read this book.

Overall Rating: 5 stars