Despite being a massive reader as a teenager, I never really considered myself much of a YA romance connoisseur, especially compared to my friends. Of course, I read the classics, like The Fault in Our Stars and multiple AO3 fanfictions I will never publicly name, but there was always some disconnect. They were fun to read, but I just couldn’t invest myself in these fantastical stories wholeheartedly.
Then I stumbled across Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon, as well as other novels with protagonists who looked like me. On the surface, they are your standard quirky high school romance novels, but it was different for me. It was the first time I read books of this genre with characters whose experiences I related to.
After this, I never really had any desire to read a romance novel without a Black protagonist. The cognitive dissonance became too much. I never wanted to read the phrase “put her hair up in a messy bun” ever again. I simply thought Black romance novels were few and far between. It turns out I just wasn’t looking in the right places.
If you spend even a modicum of your time in online reading spaces you’ve definitely heard of “The Brown Sisters” trilogy by Talia Hibbert. It seems as if she’s single-handedly breathed life back into the adult romance genre, sharing her unique and heartfelt stories of love and self-discovery. The trilogy includes three novels, each telling the story of a particular Brown sister: Chloe is the eldest and has her life completely together, all except for the social aspect. The middle sister is Dani, a headstrong academic running away from a long-term connection. Eve is the youngest through and through, still trying to figure things out and discover what she truly wants, including her love life.
Each book has something for everyone, playing on different themes and tropes. I loved how detailed Hibbert is in how she crafts her stories, delving into the richness of her characters and their messy lives. The romance is not the sole plot of any novel as we follow each sister and their love interest navigating their lives and reckoning with their pasts. It is also very much an adult series if you catch my drift. Hibbert perfectly balances the lighthearted with darker topics, never losing sight of writing fun books to swoon over.
Get a Life, Chloe Brown – 4/5
This is the first novel of the series and excellently introduces us to the world of these characters, particularly the eldest Brown sister. After surviving a near-death experience, Chloe vows to make up for the time she spent in social isolation, largely due to her chronic illnesses. She makes a list of daunting tasks such as riding a motorcycle and having meaningless sex, all in an attempt to finally get a life. First on the list is moving out into her own apartment, where she meets Red, the mysterious superintendent who fixes old ladies’ toilets by day and is a painter by night. The pair are reluctantly drawn together as Red regrettably gets involved with Chloe’s rebellious plans.
This ended up being my personal favourite of the series! I related heavily to both Chloe and Red, finding solace in their personal journeys of having lost themselves and coming back to their true desires with each other’s help. It’s chock full of witty banter, overt adoration and the charming pretentiousness of an artsy love interest. What’s not to love?! I was slightly annoyed by unnecessary-but-necessary third-act conflict, but can definitely see myself returning to this one time and time again.
Take a Hint, Dani Brown – 5/5
Now, this would be the novel I’d recommend to literally anybody and everybody. From the first page, we instantly transcend into the vibrant world of Dani Brown, somewhat literally as it opens with her praying for the perfect f-buddy that would solve all of her sexual frustration. Crushing it in her career and social life, seemingly fearless Dani runs away from commitment, having been wronged in her past relationships. She just doesn’t see them working out for her, until she meets Zafir, a former rugby player-turned security guard at the university she works at. After a clip of them goes viral online, the pair start to fake a relationship to help Zaf’s mental health charity gain more traction.
This one is definitely for those “fake dating” trope lovers out there. Even though it is not my favourite trope, this is by far the most well-written of the series. We become extremely acquainted with the backstories of both our main characters and how their past influences their present behaviour. It’s a joy to see them work through these issues together and come to believe in love and vulnerability again. The tension, the dramatics, the yearning! This one truly has everything you could ever ask for in a romance novel!!!
Act Your Age, Eve Brown – 4/5
The most naïve and amusingly chaotic sister, Eve Brown, is given an ultimatum by her parents at the beginning of her novel: get her life together or miss out on her trust-fund payments. In an emotion-filled panic she runs away from home and stumbles upon a quaint bed-and-breakfast, where they are conveniently looking for a new chef. There she meets Jacob, the uptight and brooding, yet charismatic owner who hires her out of desperation. They don’t hit it off at first, him being serious and orderly and her being spontaneous and lively. They are both determined to find each other’s flaws as they are increasingly drawn to each other and end up forming a strong friendship turned budding romance.
Hibbert hits you over the head with the “enemies-to-lovers” trope early on, making it seem impossible for these two to fall in love eventually. I was eventually won over by the charm of both of these characters and loved seeing them bounce off of each other and try to fight off their attraction before it becomes too strong to ignore. If you have a soft spot for opposites-attract stories absolutely pick up this novel, also if the more smutty stuff is up your alley.
I cannot recommend “The Brown Sisters” trilogy enough, especially for those hopeless romantics who are often left out of mainstream love stories. Hibbert treats her characters with care and makes them feel like real people going through real things, making this series starkly different from any romance novels I have read in the past. She portrays Black women in all of our beauty and complexity, paving the way for more diverse stories to be told.