title: When Grumpy Met Sunshine

author: Charlotte Stein

publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

publication date: February 26, 2024

pages: 336

peppers: 3 (on this scale)

warnings: fatphobia, dead parents, some meanness

summary: When Mabel gets the job of ghostwriting former soccer star's memoir, she ends up having to fake-date him to explain why they're always together. It felts like Roy Kent was dating Bridget Jones.

tropes:

grumpy-sunshine
one bed
fake dating
famous person with regular person
he's more into her than she knows


what I liked seeing the Roy Kent and Bridget Jones characters in this scenario. Both are good people whom others misunderstand for various reasons. The author did a good job with his attraction to her and with the spicy scenes. The book got better as it went.

what I didn’t like: the book got off to a slow start; the author tries too hard to be funny at the beginning and keeps the main characters in their misunderstanding too long. 

overall rating: 3 (of 5 stars)

When Grumpy Met Sunshine by Charlotte Stein is absolutely a swoon worthy romantic comedy. Stein had me at the first page with a female character I could immediately relate to and like. Mabel, the protagonist, is employed to be the ghostwriter for a grumpy soccer star. However, when we meet Alfie, the player, it is impossible not to like him too. Although this may sound like a familiar trope, the author makes it unique and fresh.

There is loads of sexy banter and, with the intelligent writing, the reader can see why the two characters are attracted to each other even if he is a babe magnet and Mabel is a self-described overweight nobody. There are layers to each of the main characters that get peeled away as they get to know each other. Oh, and the comedy part of the romantic comedy description is dead on. I found myself laughing out loud more times than I can count.

This novel was an absolute delight!

As you can tell from the title, this book is a grumpy/sunshine romance between a former footballer and his memoir ghost writer. The heroine has been hired to help the hero write a memoir which he does not want to write, at least not truthfully. It starts off with him being unpleasant, all the time and her, pushing back with a spunky sunshiny attitude.
There is a ton of chemistry between the main characters, although they seem to want to fight it. And also so much humorous banter, almost too much. My only negative comment about the book is that sometimes it just seemed that all they did was banter and the story didn’t move along with some action.
All in all I enjoyed the book and the banter was a delight. I would recommend this book if you love this trope as much as I do.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/St. Martin's Griffin for providing me with a digital review copy and allowing me to give my honest review of the book

I wanted to like this one. I had read another book with a similar synopsis. But this one just wasn't as good. I liked that our characters weren't typical characters and I found some parts to be really funny, just didn't click with them.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

So I immediately jumped into this book because I needed a good rom-com after binge-watching thrillers on Netflix. But I just could not get into it at all.

The POV is all in the heroine. Stein makes out the hero Alfie to be some sort of monster, who everyone is afraid of, stumbles around, and doesn't know how to use a phone. Basically, Stein portrays him to be from the 1950's. And it's not even the hero, although he was the main problem since he was like...the hero. The secondary characters were not fleshed out, Stein had them frazzled and never explained why etc...

The worst part? I can see how the story could have been good, really good. But the POV was just wrong, Alfie Harding needed a voice and he never got one...not within my attention span anyway.

Maybe I'll go back and try and see if I can read it through. But there are so many other good books out there waiting for me to read!

good read and really enjoyed this one as well. I will read more and can't wait for more. Lets get more Charlotte Steinbooks.

First, thank you NetGalley and St. Martin Press for the opportunity to read When Grumpy Met Sunshine. I loved the book's cover and graphics. I loved that the main female heroine, Mabel, is a plus-size woman like me. Grumpy-sunshine is one of my favorite tropes ever; however, even though I like the banter between characters, this was too much, and I could not continue reading WGMS. I felt it was too much banter than actual chemistry, it didn't allow me to connect with either Alfie or Mabel, therefore, I had to DNF it. I won't post it on Goodreads because I know I'd give it a low rating.

Thank you for an advanced copy, however the writing and plot was not for me. The characters were hard to connect with.

With the cute cover, description of the book, and the tropes involved, I really wanted to like this book but it just wasn’t for me. Some parts made me laugh but I just had a hard time with the banter and the way the dialogue was written.

I think When Grumpy Met Sunshine is a great romance novel. It was like The Dead Romantics without the paranormal element. The whole premise was cute and tackled the issues plus size women face. I would rate it mid-tier in the list of plus size romances I've read and recommend. It wasn't the best I've ever read. Although this could completely be a me thing. I don't like spice all that much. Part of the reason I rate it 4 stars and not 5 is that I felt like the plot kind of fell apart in the middle. When the spice entered the scene, the plot fell away. I feel like the third act breakup could have had something more. While as a plus size woman I fundamentally understand the reasons Mabel had, I think it could have been better explained to the reader in her thoughts. I don't think it will translate to thin women as well as other plus size novels do. As a fat activist I think everyone needs to be able to understand the amount of second guessing and over analyzing that goes into every relationship. When Grumpy Met Sunshine just missed the mark for me there. It will still get a place on my list of plus size main character recommendation list though. It was still a great example for plus size daters. There is so much judgement that when you meet kindness, you wonder what the motive behind it is. So reading happily ever after's involving people who look like me is a validating experience. Plus if you're into spice, I can imagine that would also be validating. That plus size women can get it just as much as straight size women :D and y'all this was spicy with a bit of kink thrown in. I would say that it was about 2/3 plot and 1/3 spice, so a pretty good mix. Overall, this is a great cozy read to snuggle in with some tea and a good doc on the tv.

DNF

I do not take DNF lightly but When Grumpy Met Sunshine is just not for me. Flat and uninteresting banter that had me on the verge of eye-rolls, all I could do was think about is the next book I wanted to read rather than wanting to read this book. I took that as a sign to DNF and move on. Better luck to the next reader!

I thought the premise sounded interesting, but I just couldn't get into the book. I generally like the fake relationship trope, but it didn't work for me with this one. I was never able to connect with the characters. There was little plot/action, and the dialogue was a bit stilted. The writing style, overall, missed the mark for me.

I loved the opposites attract and romance in the workplace vibes of this book. At times, it was a little wordy, but I really enjoyed the story line.

I liked the premise of this book. Unfortunately this book did not work for me as I couldn't get past all the banter between the two characters it just went on and on and nothing else was happening and I just found myself bored and didn't want to read on. I did not finish this book.

It's no secret that I adore Charlotte Stein. I love the depth she gives to her characters, the really hot chemistry and the unique writing style has always had me in severely strong strong hold. And that slow burn was so good too!

Such a great read! Thank you to Netgalley as well as St. Martins Press for letting me read an ARC of it. This book would be perfect for people who like grump x sunshine (obviously), fake dating and the one bed trope. I loved the chemistry between Mabel and Alfie. I could literally feel the sparks flying out of the pages. I feel like the ending really tied everything together nicely and it was just in general a great way to end this story. I thought the miscommunication at the end was very well written. It didn't get me annoyed thinking that it could've been resolved earlier because usually with that specific element that's how I feel while reading it. Overall a good fluffy romance to pick up.

When Grumpy Met Sunshine" by Charlotte Stein is an absolute delight from start to finish. This enchanting tale effortlessly weaves together the unlikely pairing of grumpy ex-footballer Alfie Harding and the cheerful ghostwriter Mabel Willicker. The dynamic between these two characters is pure magic, as their banter and bickering give way to a captivating slow burn romance that will warm your heart.

Stein's writing shines with humor, wit, and an astute understanding of human emotions. The characters are wonderfully developed, making you feel like you're part of their journey as they navigate their way through personal growth and unexpected love. Alfie's reluctance to open up and Mabel's determination to draw out his story create a beautiful narrative that will leave you rooting for their happily ever after.

The fake relationship trope is skillfully employed, leading to hilarious and heartwarming moments that keep you hooked until the very end. The chemistry between Alfie and Mabel is electric, and as their feelings deepen, you can't help but get swept away in their romance. The book's message about the transformative power of connection and vulnerability is both powerful and heartening.

"When Grumpy Met Sunshine" is a charming and feel-good read that will leave you with a smile on your face and a renewed belief in the possibility of love. Charlotte Stein has crafted a modern fairy tale that reminds us that even the most unexpected matches can create the most beautiful stories.

I'd actually go 2.5 but rounded up.

This was sort of okay for me.

I really struggled with the stream-of-consciousness style, and part of that might be that this was an ARC and it still needs a good edit, but I was confused as often as not at what was happening most of the time. There were times I wasn't sure if there was actual dialogue that took place, or if the characters were reading it on each others' faces. Also, I had a really hard time believing a famous ex-footballer (soccer player) was THAT inept at technology and THAT socially awkward. If we had found out that he was actually 85, I would have believed it more. Lastly, for a slow burn romance, I felt like the scenes leading up to the main event were spicier than the main event itself, which was a letdown.

There were several things I liked though, like the body positivity and plus-size rep. I also really liked the similar childhoods that the characters bonded over and witnessing how that effected their actions in the book. I even found some of the witty rejoinders or off-handed comments LOL funny, which was a nice surprise. However, I really kind of wanted to DNF this one but felt compelled to keep reading so I could give feedback for the ARC. I really feel like that was down to the writing style and the characters themselves.

I was so excited to get this book. Grumpy/Sunshine is one of my favorite tropes and this one seemed like it had all the makings of a great one.
Unfortunately, I just wasn’t invested. There were some good moments but at times I just felt it dragged on too much for me.
I’m sure many will enjoy it just wasn’t all that I hoped for.

When you overdo it with back to back wild thrillers you need to detox and nurture your book hangover with a RomCom.

I love RomComs . Clearly humor is what drives me. I’m also very new to RomComs so I look for suggestions from others to influence my decision.

Leave it to bookstagram!

Bookstagram LOVES Charlotte Stein and rightfully so!! This woman is a literary genius!

Before requesting When Grumpy Met Sunshine, I did some author research and was intrigued to see that this might be Stein’s first RomCom as most of her previous publications have an abundance of steam (count me in!)

I fell in love with Mabel and all her quirks! I also loved the incorporation of football, I am a huge football fan over here, Go Jets 🫣

This book was everything I never knew I needed and all I could ever want within a book . I laughed so hard but also had a few other emotions triggered at times .

Reading When Grumpy Met Sunshine, had me questioning myself as to why I don’t read more of this genre ?

I have now also joined the Charlotte Stein fan club ♥️

Teaser:

A steamy, opposites-attract romance with undeniable chemistry between a grumpy retired footballer and his fabulous and very sunshine-y ghostwriter.

When grumpy ex-footballer Alfie Harding gets badgered into selling his memoirs, he knows he’s never going to be able to write them. He hates revealing a single thing about himself, is allergic to most emotions, and can’t imagine doing a good job of putting pen to paper.

And so in walks curvy, cheery, cute as heck ghostwriter Mabel Willicker, who knows just how to sunshine and sass her way into getting every little detail out of Alfie. They banter and bicker their way to writing his life story, both of them sure they’ll never be anything other than at odds.

But after their business arrangement is mistaken for a budding romance, the pair have to pretend to be an item for a public who’s ravenous for more of this Cinderella story. Or at least, it feels like it’s pretend—until each slow burn step in their fake relationship sparks a heat neither can control. Now they just have to decide: is this sizzling chemistry just for show? Or something so real it might just give them their fairytale ending?