In this book, we are presented with two oblivious characters who cannot see the emotional connection between them because of their own flaws. The book is written in a way that once I was halfway through, I could not put it down. This is not because the storyline was astounding, but because I wanted to see if they ever saw each other as compatible and started a real relationship. In my opinion, the live text and Reddit posts at the end of each chapter detracted from the story line because they were not always in line with the insecurities of the characters.

Thank You NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for the ARC of [book:When Grumpy Met Sunshine|60230834] This was my first ARC.
I love the cover, the idea of the book, the banter between the characters, the build up to the spice and the spice. I really loved the last 40% of the book. I enjoyed the banter even when I didn't fully understand what they were saying.
At first I imagined the main character, Alfie someone like a Roy from 'Ted Lasso'. Underneath the gruff exterior was a sweet, respectful guy.
Mabel was relatable in the sense that she was the bigger gal that didn't think someone like Alfie could love her and how she felt like she needed to keep so much to herself.
Overall I give this a 3.5 star.
I had a hard time at the start getting into the book, but it was just because some of the sentences didn't seem to flow or make sense to me. Or, some of the words didn't make sense to me the way there were placed in a sentence. Sometimes I couldn't tell if they were words being spoken out loud or internally in the characters head. Once I got past that it was funny. I chuckled and laughed out loud at some of the banter.
The last bit of the book was fun and spicy.

"This is the way the world ends, she thought. Not with a fight, but with a single word left unsaid"
[author:Charlotte Stein|3200938]

This was a fun summer read.

DNF @ 22%

Although this book had a fun premise, I found the premise extremely lacking. I love a good grumpy/sunshine and of course the title of this book very explicitly sets your expectations. However, I found this book just wayyyy too on the nose. I found the main characters to be like caricatures. Furthermore, this entire book has been an extreme example of telling and not showing. My largest gripe with this book was that the author's humor simply does not mesh with mine.

Simply but, I did not like either characters at all. By virtue of the name, the author declares the FMC as Sunshine and the MMC as Grumpy. Yet through what I read of the book, neither of the characters demonstrated such traits, although the author will constantly say 'he looked surly' or 'she is all rainbow and flowers'. Despite these broad statements, I really couldn't see this demonstrated in their actions. While yes, a sunshine/grumpy does not have to universally act happy/surly. besides surface-level appearance (e.g. the way they dress), i dont think either of the characters embodied the traits at well. Also each characters are the tropiest epitome of the Rom-Com Archetype: the FMC is klutsy and the MMC is a hulking, broody guy. Also, I'm not an expert so I deffo can't be trusted, but it seems to me that the MMC shows some clear signs of being on the autism spectrum....and through the first 22% of the book, It isn't addressed at all and doesn't seem like it will be.

My biggest issue with this is the humor of the book. It's clear the author wants to put the 'com' in 'rom com' but like excuse me telling me something is funny DOES NOT make it funny??? On multiple occasions something extremely inane and boring will occur and then one of the characters will burst out in laughter and be like haha so funny....but....it's not...... It's more situational humor and at best it's the humor of a ten year old child, the banter is simply missing for me.

Take this convo: "i have hairy hands" "you only have like three hairs" "are you kidding me i have three million hairs" "no if you had three million hairs it would be so heavy you would need a shovel to move that around" *laughing ensues*

Or...the FMC is creeped out by the fact that you can't actually look into the MMC's windows and see what happens, she thinks it's weird cuz "what if he's just smearing spaghetti all over himself....none of us would know' Excuse me no it would be WAYYYYY weirder if you could see completely into his house???

This book just did not vibe with me at all......

Maybe for someone else, just not for me... I found the main character's inner voice to be highly annoying. It was a struggle to read. That said, the premise is cute, so hopefully others enjoy it.

I wanted to love this book. I love the grumpy sunshine trope. I think the elements were there for a good book, but everything was out of proportion - the banter, the characters personalities, the pacing. It was just all off. And while I consider myself an Anglophile, I found it hard to understand some of the nuances of English culture when they were mentioned.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for providing me the ARC to review.

This just was not for me. I felt like hardly anything happened at all, this was just a long book filled with entirely way too much internal dialogue.

And the romance between the two characters felt more awkward then sexy. Which was such a bummer… a plus size heroine, fake dating, mutual m*sturbation… seriously all the things that sound like the making to one of my favorite reads. Unfortunately I struggled to even get through this one. But I committed to reading the arc, so I did not DNF. If I had just picked this up on KU, I probably would have stopped 20% in though.

Book review of When Grumpy Met Sunshine 🌞 by Charlotte Stein
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you so much, @netgalley, for this early release and @stmartinspress
I really liked this book and talk about steamy! Wowza!
@alisondavis71, you need this one when it comes out February 6, 2024!

This is a romance and laugh out loud funny book about opposites attraction. There were times I was laughing so hard, my hubby just shook his head!

Mabel Willicker has been tasked to ghost write a memoir for Alfie Harding. He's a tough, grumpy, larger than life, retired footballer (soccer for us crazy Americans). He dates super models, gets in fights at the local pub, and really just hates talking about himself. Mabel is a ray of sunshine 🌞. He finds himself bickering back and forth with her as they get to know each other. Cue the sexual tension. When I say it turns steamy, I mean steamy! I liked it, though, and you are rooting for Mabel the whole time. She is your curvy everyday woman, and you can't help but love her!
#crazybooknerd
#bookstagram
#netgalley
#stmartinpress
#whengrumpymetsunshine

Cute story. Great cover. I enjoy writing and football so it was a good mix of those things with a romance thrown in! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Four stars.

When Grumpy Met Sunshine is perfection. No notes. Would not change a thing. This book had me laughing out loud, crying, squeeing in delight, and everything in between. From the fake dating to the smallest micro-tropes, it felt like this book was written just for me.

Mabel is a human cupcake, she’s cute and warm and sweet. She puts people at ease and gets them to open up, which makes her great at her ghostwriting job. So when she’s contracted to tell ex-footballer Alfie Harding, the angriest man in football known to walk out of interviews after being asked the most innocuous questions, she’s shocked to learn the two of them have quite a bit in common. Not the least of all, that they’re both giant weirdos.

The narration style is a bit quirky but that’s part of the appeal to the book. It helps propel the book forward and prevents it from ever feel like things are moving too slow. Would I want every book to read like this one? No, but it worked here. Honestly, this is one of those books I’m going to be yelling at people to read for the foreseeable future. It brought me so much joy.

This was SUCH a fun time of a book. Its my first Stein book and I'll definitely be coming back for more. The main characters just filled me with JOY, and I love books that I just find myself giggling at or being overall happy with, their love story kept me coming back for more.

The grumpyxsunshine trope is TOP TIER and was done so well here and the spice was *chefs KISS*.

Honestly an amazing fluffy read - highly recommend <3

Thank you SO much NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC copy! I cant wait to own this as a physical.

This one was a miss for me. The banter was over the top and I didn’t find it enjoyable. This somehow felt juvenile? Wasn’t a fan of the writing style either.

This book is so tropey and I wanted to absolutely love it but it ended up being a solid 3/5 stars for me. The banter in this book was so fun and there were genuinely moments when I was laughing out loud but I personally felt like there wasn't enough going on and the book was primarily conversations, leading the plot to fall short for me. That being said the tropes of grumpy x sunshine, fake dating, and celebrity romance made the book super fun. I struggled through the first half and was tempted to dnf but the second half was a lot more engaging and I think you were able to connect to the characters way more. Definitely a slow burn but the spice makes it worth it! Thank you to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for a e-arc in return for an honest review.

I fell in love with the synopsis and the cover for this novel but it ultimately fell flat for me.

Mabel Willicker is a ghost writer who has been tapped to write the memoir for football legend Alfie Harding. This book could be career making. There’s just one problem. Alfie is a grumpy ass jerk. And while Mabel may be the human personification of a cupcake, she doesn’t feel like being sweet to him. Despite their initial difficulties, they fall into a fake dating arrangement and which eventually becomes something more.

Like I said, I just wasn’t feeling this book. The plot sounded cute but I wasn’t a fan of the execution. I also found the writing style to be a bit off-putting? Like it wasn’t as polished as I was expecting. I also just plain wasn’t a fan of the banter between Mabel and Alfie. It felt like it was just too much. That could come down to them being basically the only characters holding up the book. There wasn’t much in the way of side characters, or at least, none that made an impression on me.

Now I will say that I loved how the author included snippets from various media at the end of each chapter. I thought that was very clever! I enjoyed seeing the fake movie synopsis or the emails from Mabel’s editor. It was a neat way to end every chapter and I enjoyed reading them! I also got a giggle out of the chapter titles. I love when books have chapter titles! They just make me happy!

If you like a book that has a lot of banter and is almost completely focused on the main pairing then this might be for you!

Thanks very much to NetGalley and St Martins Press for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was such a delightful book. I am a long time fan of this author so when I had the chance to read this book, I couldn't download it fast enough.

Alfie (awful name 🤷🏻‍♀️), a retired football (UK) star and well known grump meets Mabel (an even worse name🤷🏻‍♀️) a ghostwriter full of bubbly sunshine, who is interviewing to ghostwrite his memoirs. They don't hit it off immediately - at least she doesn't think it did. She later finds out he wants her to do the book and no one else.

Their relationship is sweet and real. I loved their witty banter and humor that transpires between these two seemingly opposite people. As they navigate a friendship, we soon discover they are far more compatible than was expected. They share so much in common but it's complicated by his experience with relationships and her low self worth built from years of ridicule and cruel classmates. Together they grow and learn enough about each other to be friends and eventually more. Naturally, they are their own worst enemy's. Throw in the paparazzi and social media and they seemed doomed.

There are a handful of side characters but no standouts as it's not necessary to the plot. I laughed throughout most of this book. Her antics, his antics, the bickering, the mess they end up in is fun in true Charlotte Stein style. It is well written with just a few minor typos. The plot is entertaining. And the hilarious British humor is fabulous. This book was nearly perfect or maybe imperfectly perfect. I do recommend this book to anyone who likes spicy, sweet, real, and laugh out loud fun.

I love a good grumpy x sunshine trope and sadly this one was a miss for me.

Mabel is hired as a ghostwriter to write a memoir for retired football player, Alfie. They don't meet on the best of terms, Mabel is quirky and Alfie is grumpy but they decide to work together. After paps catch Mabel leaving Alfie's apartment they fake date and then fall in love.

This had all the tropes I like to see in a story and the slow burn was perfect but the humor and chaotic characters made it hard to get into. My biggest issue was with the dialogue and the banter between the MC's. There was just so much banter that it came across as juvenile. I'm sure the author was going for fun, witty, and comical but it was over the top. I almost forgot these characters were supposed to be in their thirties.

Thank you Netgalley, St Martin's Press and Charlotte Stein for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I love Charlotte Stein's other work but When Grumpy Met Sunshine was not for me.
1. This is very obviously Roy Kent fanfic.
2. The banter hit you like a battering ram but not in a good way.

What did work is the chemistry between the two characters. That scene in the limo after the Beyonce concert will stay with me.

I'm so bummed that I didn't enjoy this. This book had two things going for it: the characters and the premise. This had a fun premise--something I would 100% enjoy--but I did not like the writing style.

Alfie was so funny without trying because he was just a weird individual. He is clueless about technology and is overall like an old man in a young body. He was grumpy, but it was more that he just didn't know how to interact with people, so it made for some funny situations. He was the main reason I kept reading, thinking maybe I can change my mind. But the characters can't themselves prop up a book. The writing was severely lacking. It felt, I don't know, unfinished? Like there's something missing to connect the scenes to make the story flow. Charlotte Stein was telling, rather than showing.

This could've been such a fun romcom--I found potential in the pairing as well as the situation that threw them together, but it lacked the drive to make the reader immerse themselves in the story seamlessly.

i've been debating what i wanted to say about this book since i finished it yesterday.

i really enjoyed this book, took me a bit to get used to the writing style but once i did i could not stop turning pages. i laughed and i cried and really what else could you want from a book?!

i loved mabel and alfie so much. love love loved the pride and prejudice and pretty woman references.

i had a bit of trouble following some of the dialogue but it didn't really take away from the story for me.

so so good

thank you to netgalley for the opportunity to love this book

Unfortunately, this book was just not for me. The writing style was very chaotic and hard to follow. I often found myself skipping around to the dialogue just to keep myself going.

I didn’t really find anything relatable about the characters. Alfie was so randomly chaotic, but not in a way that made sense to me, and Mabel just wasn’t really that interesting.

I couldn’t get myself invested in their story. I’m sure this is a great book for someone, but the writing style just didn’t work for me.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the copy of this book. Yikes. Unfortunately this book just wasn't for me. All I kept thinking was who knew banter could be so annoying and over the top. I was not a fan though I had high hopes because of the cover and plot.