Reviews tagging 'Antisemitism'

Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert

3 reviews

emily_mh's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This was an enjoyable romance with lots of sweetness and domestic moments. Admittedly, fake dating isn’t my favourite trope but it was done so well here, I think because the MCs were friends beforehand and all their loved ones were clued in. 

Dani and Zaf had palpable romantic chemistry - I was never left in doubt of that for a second. Their romance (and the book in general) was paced so well so that every stage of their connection made sense. I think what helped with this was again the fact that they were friends before the book even started. 

But what I love about this series is that both MCs have more going on than the romance and they undergo so much development. Zaf is figuring out how to stop being afraid of his grief so that he can remember his father and brother without feeling scared. He’s also working at making his charity Tackle It the best it can be, and on managing his Generalised Anxiety Disorder. Dani was such a dynamic MC. Her development is centred on her self-worth, but at the same time the narrative shows how much she loves herself and how confident she is. I loved that Hibbert showed how both situations can co-exist. The story also explores Dani finding a healthier relationship with her work, and I loved that this was Dani’s decision, not something she felt pressured into. 

The female relationships are so strong within this book. Dani’s one with her sisters is so natural and loving, and I appreciated that she doesn’t sacrifice time with them for time with Zaf. Both Gigi and Inez Holly take on kind of mentor roles with Dani, so I loved that she had support from older women. Sorcha was such a great best friend to Dani because she pushed her and called her out, but never in an unloving or inconsiderate way, and they got to practice religion together. I also love how Dani handled the situation with her ex-friend. The women in Zaf’s life were stellar too. I loved how Zaf treated Kiran as if she were his blood sister, and how they supported one another. Zaf’s mother was funny and I loved that Fatima was so close to her uncle, and like Sorcha with Dani, pushed him to be his best. 

Finally, I appreciated that the third-act breakup comprised of both of them messing up. It worked much better because I think just one character grovelling can change the dynamics of the relationship. 

I’ll end this review with my favourite quote from the book: “The trouble was, building a conclusion based on irrelevant or unreliable sources never worked. And when it came to Dani’s worthiness, the only source she should really value was herself.” 

Rep: Black bisexual MC who is also a witch, Muslim British-Pakistani MC with GAD, lesbian (word not used, gay used instead) minor character of the global majority (ethnicity not stated), Muslim British-Pakistani SCs 
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cemeterygay's review against another edition

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emotional funny
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

I really like the way Talia Hibbert writes romance. I love the handling of the fake dating trope and watch each of the main protagonists grow both as individuals and in their relationship. I really loved the way grief and mental illness were handled and this was just generally a fun read with some more emotional moments.

I would add on as a note that the weird JKR references didn't land well, you could just not mention her especially when combined with the weird antisemitic conspiracy theory jokes in the book. Also the muslim rep is ... questionable to put it lightly.
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armontheroad's review

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emotional funny reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Let me preface this by saying I love Talia Hibbert and the relationship she created in this book. However, I think people are recommending this book without properly giving warnings about it and that is absurd. 
  • For starters, Talia Hibbert uses car accidents throughout this entire trilogy as a motivation for the characters' storylines without giving a content warning. I have not seen any reviews talking about this. As someone with car trauma, it took me by surprise and was very difficult to get through at points. 
  • Let’s move on to the paragraph with the two antisemitic lines. “...He might be some lizard overlord wearing human skin. ….Dani didn’t have a problem with lizard overlords as long as they left her books alone.” This is the second time I’ve had to call out authors putting this antisemitic conspiracy theory into their books. It doesn’t matter that Hibbert called out another author’s antisemitism at the start of the book if she’s going to use an antisemitic conspiracy theory as the butt of the joke later on in the story. 
  • Thirdly, Talia Hibbert has a very short scene in one of the early chapters where she calls out JKR’s antisemitism and racism. Which is fine! However, you cannot ‘call out’ an author and then spend the rest of the book dropping references to their most popular book series. Once again, there were no content warnings from any of the creators I follow discussing the JKR/HP references in this book. 
DANI BROWN was set up to be my favorite in this trilogy. An interracial relationship (where neither of them is white!!), friends to lovers, fake dating. This had everything I could have wanted. I truly believe I loved Dani and Zaf’s dynamic and story better than Chloe and Red from book one! However, I cannot let all of the little problems pile up without mentioning them. I won’t have other readers blindsided by the content in this novel. I would still highly recommend this book and the entire trilogy! I would just like people to be aware that even the most talented writers make mistakes and they should always be reading and reviewing critically ESPECIALLY when it comes to media they love! You never know what harm you can cause by not acknowledging the issues in the media you consume. 

CWs/Tws: Racism (minor), antisemitism, fatphobia (minor), car accident and death (past), Harry Potter/JKR references.

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