Member Reviews
I absolute LOVED this book from Talia Hibbert and can’t wait to read the other books in the Brown Sisters series.
When I read a romance, I’m looking for a few key things and this book had them all. First I need to genuinely feel for my characters. Both Chloe and Red were interesting, likable characters and I could easily see and feel a chemistry. As a reader, you felt for them and their inner struggles. I personally loved reading alternate points of view and felt that it only enhanced my love and understanding of both of them. Next I look for heart and humor. The characters’ dialogue was so well written and felt real that I found myself both laughing and crying at parts. And lastly, I look for hot and sexy love scenes and this book had that for sure!! Woah! And I loved that the female character is not your usual leading lady. In this book, Chloe has chronic pain and is a gorgeous woman of color! Hallelujah! Please continue giving us a variety of women from all walks of life. Totally recommend!
Some people live by them, others write them down and never do anything about them. Long ago they were simply called your life goals, now it's called your bucket list or as Chloe Brown creates a "Get a Life" list. Some of her goals seem unnecessary to write down such as "enjoy a drunken night out" or "ride a motorcycle". Who needs a list for things that can be done so easily.
But things like that aren't easy or simple for the chronically ill computer geek, Chloe. Chloe has decided that she needs to experience life. Some of Chloe's list requires the help of someone else so Chloe enlists the help of Red-ford, the good-looking building superintendent, who has suffered from some bad decisions and failed dreams.
Talia Hibbert's, Get a Life, Chloe Brown, is a tale of two people who have suffered physical and emotional trauma along with heavy baggage from their pasts.
Part romance, part feel-good literary happiness, Talia Hibbert has written a book with a strong, feisty, independent woman who is also vulnerable. The romance between Chloe and Red is what will keep you turning the pages but the emotional and physical battles that these two go through to find happiness is what will make you remember this book.
I received an advance copy of this book from #NetGalley #GetALifeChloeBrown
Great great story! A hilarious rom com about a girl who’s tired of her life and gets her neighbor to help her L I V E!!
I had high expectations diving into GET A LIFE, CHLOE BROWN, and I happy to report, I absolutely LOVED the book! I grinned, laughed, and felt all the feels while reading. Chloe and Red felt fresh and new and achingly familiar at the same time. Both characters were so wholly unique and well rounded; I felt like I was best friends with both of them.
The book follows Chloe Brown, a woman living with fibromyalgia who is looking to turn her life around. When she moves out of her parents’ house, she collides with the sexy, and friendly landlord Redford… who she is wary of on sight.
Chloe! What a grump. I freaking loved it. Chloe’s gruff sense of humor and unapologetic attitude was one of my favorite parts of the whole book. A startling contrast to Chloe was one of the sweetest and most sensitive heroes I’ve read in a while. Red is the cutest. Who doesn’t love a giant, artistic ginger? I adore the sunshine and the grump trope.
So many interesting and deep topics were explored: chronic illness, abuse, class, race, and so many others. Talia Hibbert deftly wrapped these all in a delightful and light rom com package. I am in awe of the masterful writing in this expertly paced novel.
Overall, I totally get the hype surrounding this book. In fact, consider me a new GET A LIFE, CHLOE BROWN pusher. I know I am one of the last people to read this book, but if you haven’t, it’s a must read!
**I received an ARC of this book in order to provide an honest review**
You might have been seeing Get a Life, Chloe Brown everywhere late last year. It was a romcom that a lot of people were loving because Chloe Brown wasn't your typical romcom heroine and everyone, myself included, was here for it. Talia Hibbert created a character who was so much fun to read about and who you couldn't help rooting for.
Here's the synopsis:
Chloe Brown is a chronically ill computer geek with a goal, a plan, and a list. After almost—but not quite—dying, she’s come up with seven directives to help her “Get a Life”, and she’s already completed the first: finally moving out of her glamorous family’s mansion. The next items?
• Enjoy a drunken night out.
• Ride a motorcycle.
• Go camping.
• Have meaningless but thoroughly enjoyable sex.
• Travel the world with nothing but hand luggage.
• And... do something bad.
But it’s not easy being bad, even when you’ve written step-by-step guidelines on how to do it correctly. What Chloe needs is a teacher, and she knows just the man for the job.
Redford ‘Red’ Morgan is a handyman with tattoos, a motorcycle, and more sex appeal than ten-thousand Hollywood heartthrobs. He’s also an artist who paints at night and hides his work in the light of day, which Chloe knows because she spies on him occasionally. Just the teeniest, tiniest bit.
But when she enlists Red in her mission to rebel, she learns things about him that no spy session could teach her. Like why he clearly resents Chloe’s wealthy background. And why he never shows his art to anyone. And what really lies beneath his rough exterior…
Chloe is an absolute delight. She's smart and sassy and so incredibly strong. She's also built up a lot of emotional walls because it's easier to do that than really let anyone, other than her family, into her life. Red really sees her and sees through her defense mechanisms and it was so wonderful to read as they start to trust each other and learn more about who the other really is, deep down.
While I called this book a romcom off the top, it deals with a lot of heavy issues that sometimes make it far more dramatic than comedic. Hibbert balances things beautifully and keeps the story from becoming too heavy without making light of some serious issues. The romance part though? Very much present and the steam factor is off the charts.
Good news for those who like the sounds of Hibbert's writing, she's turned this into a series where each book will focus on a different Brown sister. Next up will be Take a Hint, Dani Brown which is set to be published in June.
And this cover! I am a fan of the illustration covers that are really big right now and this one just makes me so happy.
Get a Life, Chloe Brown is one of those books that's really hard to describe why it's good or why I liked it so much. It just is and I did. It's uplifting but real. It's funny and sexy. It's sweet and dramatic. It ticks all the boxes so I definitely think you should pick up a copy of Talia Hibbert's novel. And then maybe preorder the next book in the series.
*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, HarperCollins Canada, in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*
Get a Life, Chloe Brown
The Brown Sisters, Book 1
I Picked Up This Book Because: I liked the cover
The Characters:
Chloe Brown: I loved Chloe so much! She is so delightfully weird
Redford “Red” Morgan: The way this man loves, understands and needs Chloe is everything. I will be single until I meet my Red.
Dani Brown, Eve Brown, Gigi, Annie, Vik (I would have liked to see more Vik)
The Story:
I’ve been crap at writing reviews lately and I love this book so much I want to give it the ode it deserves but I just don’t have the words or motivation (I blame motivation on Covid) I’ll just say that Chloe and Red have worked their way into my top 10 couples… maybe even top 5.
The Random Thoughts:
4.5 Stars
Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert was a cute read. I was happy to recommend it to my followers.
The perfect amount of fluffy romance to offset the frank portrait of chronic pain. Thoughtful, funny, sexy. Just what I wanted.
Super cute modern romance. Chloe and Red had great chemistry and I loved their relationship. I haven't read a romance before with a main character who has chronic pain and I thought overall Chloe and her experiences were covered fairly well. A fun and at times emotional read. Definitely will recommend and purchase for my library.
DNF @ 23%
I didn’t like some of the word choices in the... sexier scenes. I didn’t feel comfortable reading, which is sad because things started off very promising for me. I loved the representation of fibromyalgia in this book. I have fibromyalgia myself, although not nearly as bad as Chloe’s is. But the pain and the fevers and the brain fog are very familiar to me, and I didn’t realize that I was going to enjoy seeing myself in a book in this way. And the scene where Chloe climbs a tree to save a cat had me giggling so much. And her interactions with Red have been fun! But then when Red found himself alone in his room and took matters into his own hands (literally), I just got too grossed out by how that scene was written and worry it would happen again. I’m so disappointed!
This was just the romantic comedy I needed! I felt especially connected to Chloe and loved the depiction / inclusion of her chronic pain / chronic health issues. It is often a topic that is so rarely talked about (especially in books), but Hibbert did such a great job. I also appreciated that Hibbert was able to portray Chloe's health issues without falling into the stereotypical "oh poor me" trope. It was a breath of fresh air, and I loved it! I can't wait for (hopefully) more from Tibbert. Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
I would say this is a 3.5. Chloe Brown lives a life of lists and pain. As she struggles with fibromyalgia, her life needs to improve. By creating a “get a life” list, she challenges herself to experience new things including Red, the superintendent of the flat where she lives. I can relate to Chloe as I struggle with this condition and am a list maker to fault, but the story is lacking. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not lacking in hotness which is a 10 on the scale, but there isn’t more to the story than two people working through their issues to find one another. It is definitely a made for Hallmark book but an X-rating. Depending on what you interests are at the moment, I would recommend it and I plan on reading the next book in the series about Chloe's sister, Dani.
Thank you allowing me to read the advanced copy.
closer to 3.5. I enjoyed the building relationship between these characters as well as the relationship between Chloe and her sisters. I'll look for more books by Hibbert.
This book! I read a lot of romance, from all genres, and I'm so impressed by all the ways that that romance has diversified in the past decade. Get a Life, Chloe Brown was something special - funny, honest, beautifully-written, and with a protagonist who is not only a woman of color, but also plus size and living with fibromyalgia. All of it was handled perfectly. The romance itself was lovely as well!
This is a book I'd recommend to readers new to or skeptical of romance, as well as readers who enjoy a heartwarming story.
I started this book when I was in really desperate need of a pick-me-up, and it did not disappoint. In fact, I've read it again twice more because it was such a book that really hit the sweet spot between wonderful characters and a very satisfying story. I adore Red and Chloe so much, and they felt so real to me. I loved that Talia Hibbert didn't shy away from giving the good, the bad, and the ugly of a chronic condition without feeling hopeless. Chloe had challenges that affected her life, and how she functioned in the world, but it didn't change her into being nothing but her illness, or stop her from wanting to challenge herself or take risks. Even though Red doesn't have physical setbacks in the same way, he was dealing with emotional wounds. One of the most satisfying pieces of this story was the journey that Chloe and Red take from bad first impressions, to finding ways to help and support each other. This book is a warm cup of tea - you'll want to settle in with this characters, root for them, and return to visit them again and again.
*I voluntarily read and reviewed ARCs of these books. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*
I adore Talia Hibbert. Honestly, how does she keep coming up with these amazing characters? I swear I fall in love with all of them and Chloe and Red are no exception.
I took too long getting to writing this review though, so I'll be brief with what I remember and from what I've got in my notes.
The characters here are so well written, I found myself connecting and rooting for them almost immediately. Their banter was on point! I smiled pretty much every time they talked.
The way Talia Hibbert writes about emotions, how real she is with her dialogue... it hits the heart. The characters are perfect, they know this, they know they have problems, obstacles, and illness that they have to overcome and compromise with AND that this is something they have to learn as a couple as well. The reassurances between them, the acknowledgements and acceptance between them had me holding back tears for half the book.
What a fantastic book this is. Seriously, this is one I'll be recommend to everyone and I cannot wait to get my hands on the next one!!
If you think the phrase "bucket list" is played out, this novel revitalizes the idea. When Chloe Brown has a near death experience, she gets serious about living. The novel is about Chloe working through her "Get a Life List", has a saucy romance thrown in, and happens to feature Chloe's autoimmune illness without being *about* her chronic pain.
Absolutely loved this fast talking, cuteness overload, rom-com of a book with amazing characters and stellar dialogue.
I had high hopes for this book as it was hyped to the hills before publication, but unfortunately this one wasn't for me. My brain could not reconcile with the characters use of language and the actions were off to me as well. Now, with that being said, I am definitely in the minority with my feeling of this book and characters. Many readers identify and love the diversity in race and ability.
Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins Publishers for the opportunity to review this book.
This is a fun book, although a little too cute at times. I appreciated Chloe's quirkiness, as well as the fact that Hibbert represented a character with chronic pain as a romantic protagonist.