This book unfortunately was not for me. I almost DNFed multiple times but I powered through and made it to the end. The characters were one bit awkward millennial stereotype, and not in a quirky, fun, relatable way. Just in an uncomfortable way. The short choppy sentences did not flow well and made it hard to read. Every conversation was also pages and pages and pages of endless dialogue. Every time I thought a conversation had reached a natural end point it just.. kept.. going…

It seems like a lot of people liked the book because of a likeness to a Ted Lasso character, but I haven’t watched the show (yet) so I didn’t even have that to make me like the characters. I picked up this book several times hoping that I’d change my mind and end up liking it, but that time just never came. However, I did appreciate the size inclusivity and thought that was refreshing. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

This one was so overloaded by dialogue that I just couldn't get into this one. The characters were fine but not amazing and the story wasn't enough to save it.

First, thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.
Second, I had high hopes for this book. Grumpy sunshine is my jam, as well as sports romances and the witty banter. However, the story itself was confusing to follow, and the mixed media throughout the book confused me more. Oftentimes the whereabouts of the characters did not line up, and the entire book was a miscommunication trope with spicy scenes added in. I wish it was dual POV, the FMC fell flat for me, and the running extra commentary threw off the flow of the story.
It had SUCH potential, but poor execution. I would still give this author another change in a different book, I just think this particular book may not have been for me, despite loving everything about the premise and plot prior to reading.

I had to read this one twice. It’s so cute and honestly the twist was unexpected. It’s so frustrating when you’re witnessing characters miscommunicate but honestly that’s how I know it’s a good book. I was so invested. Parts of it felt sudden, but it all came back around and I kind of am crossing my fingers for a sequel?? I mean, a girl can dream right?!

I love a good banter filed rom com! And this delivered with a Roy Kent meets our ghostwriter Mabel.

Felt like it could have had some refreshing in the banter, but overall a solid read.

Do you want a romance that's toe-curling, funny, spicy, and unputdownable? Then you've got to read When Grumpy Met Sunshine.

First things first, Alfie, our MC is supposed to be grumpy, but he's the cutest guy ever. I love how innocent, real, and adorable he is. And Mabel? Oh, I love her, too. She is the perfect sunshine to our adorable grumpy.

I enjoyed their banter and relationship development. It hits you in all the right ways. Their chemistry is palpable and sizzling. I did not expect it to be so steamy, and I loved it. Some moments were so hilarious, and I love how "real" it all felt.

Here are my reasons why you should read this:
♡ You like strangers to friends to lovers.
♡ You like fake dating.
♡ You like he falls first and hard.
♡ You like one bed.
♡ You like a steamy opposites attract.
♡ You like sizzling chemistry.
♡ You like your MCs in their 30s.

Thank you for this ARC. 🫶🏽

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

First I want to say thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press & Charlotte Stein for the ARC of When Grumpy Met Sunshine.

Alfie Harding is an ex-footballer who has been tasked with finding someone to write about his memoirs. Mabel Willicker is the exact opposite of Alfie. She’s sass and sunshine while he’s a grumpy old arse who never smiles. Mabel knew just what to do to get Alfie to open up about his life, something he hadn’t ever done before. When Mabel is seen leaving Alfie’s rumors start that they’re in a relationship. Instead of setting everyone straight, they decide to play into it and fake a relationship. Are they really faking it though? When Alfie gets into a physical altercation over someone calling Mabel names, you can see how much he truly cares for her. They obviously have feelings for each other, the problem is they don’t see it. They see each other for the first time a year after they ended their fake relationship. Mabel reads the book of memoirs for the first time and she’s shocked to say the least.

This was a good romance novel with a little bit of spice. I enjoyed reading about Mabel & Alfie’s love story.

Contemporary romance has really been missing the mark for me lately. These character fell really flat, and I think in a world with no Ted Lasso the male character would have made no sense. This was a DNF for me, and I will probably stay away from the sports romance genre for a bit.

This book is a slow-burn, spicy romance! The first few chapters grabbed me immediately. I was giggling with legit little leg kicks during a good portion of the book. Definitely a must read!

I could not get though this book at all, the first two chapters made me hate it right from the get-go. I had to DNF it. I will not be posting a review out of respect for the author.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the plus-size representation in this book. I felt like I was with the characters along with them along for the journey!! I would definitely recommend this book.

I enjoyed the characters in this book, and their interactions. I kept visualizing Alfie as a character from Ted Lasso. I liked that he wasn't so much grumpy as misunderstood. I do wish the plot moved along more but it was still a cute book with good characters.

I love grumpy-sunshine with my whole heart and LOVED the premise of this one (the memoir! the banter!) but I HATE the miscommunication trope, so unfortunately this one fell flat for me. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free advance copy.

This book started out great! I loved the premise of a former footballer (soccer player) and the woman who's been chosen to be his ghostwriter. There's lots of fun moments, and some he-falls-first-pining. But then it sort of goes off the rails a bit and I can't really describe why? It seemed to get bogged down in the fake dating storyline and stalled a bit plot-wise. The ending was lovely and sweet but the third-act breakup didn't really make sense.

Overall, it was cute and fun. (Even if the title isn't that original.)

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars
I enjoyed both the narration and the characters in this story. Mabel and Alfie are quirky and cute together! The premise of the famous grumpy footballer and the gregarious ghost-writer fake dating plot was spot-on. I wish that Mabel hadn’t been as negative about her prospects with sporty stud but I get that it was part of her growth arc. All in all, there was some witty banter and super swoony moments. Recommend!

This was hilarious and adorable!! I absolutely love a good grumpy/sunshine romance and this book hit every target. The back and forth banter was fantastic. It had me laughing out loud a few times! Also that tension, was everything!! This was a new to me author who I’ll definitely be reading more work from.

2.5 stars!

I think I was overall just disappointed with this book because I had great expectations and everything just fell short. I don't mind smut in a book, but I felt like there was so much that the plot suffered as a result. I also really wanted to like the FMC but I just couldn't and I was also really confused by the random additions of mixed media.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. Honestly, there were some really funny jokes and banter exchanged. It was refreshing in some ways, but the other aspects outweighed the more fun parts of this.
There was something so confusing about the book. I couldn't always figure out where the characters were physically or what the FMC was thinking. It was something about the way it was written that made it difficult for me place them. I can't quite figure out what made it so confusing, but it made the experience frustrating.

I want to start by saying this is not a romantic comedy. Luckily I didn’t go into this one thinking that way, but I’ve seen a lot of people calling it that. Sure, it has funny bits and is very witty, but it’s not a comedy and shouldn’t be judged as such.

Speaking of witty, boy does this book have banter. I know that’s not everyone’s thing, but I love it! Of course, sometimes it slowed me down because I’m from the U.S. and the characters are British so I would have to think about what was being said to follow it correctly. I didn’t mind, though. Mabel and Alfie are both brilliant, tender, and (surprisingly) have low self-esteem. As the reader, I could read so much more into their banter than they were reading into what was being said because of their self-worth issues. It was beautiful and gutting at the same time.

This story is the type of romance where she is THE ONE in his eyes. She calms him with a look and reassures him with a gentle touch. He makes her feel safe to be her true self, good and bad. Alfie and Mabel become friends; good, trusting, ride-or-die friends. This story has a slow build, but it’s delicious because their friendship is everything. And once that slow build catches fire, it is an inferno. Holy cow, these two are filthy in the best way.

At the beginning of this book, I thought I was going to miss having a dual POV. We only have Mabel’s POV and I desperately wanted to know what Alfie was thinking. At some before even getting a quarter of the way into the story, I realized it was important to not have his POV. I’m not someone who can explain this sort of thing, but it seemed to me to be very intentional and important to the reading experience for the reader to unravel Alfie at the same time as Mabel was unraveling him. But in the last few chapters…phew! It was hard. The final chapter makes it all worth it in the end. I promise. It’s sublime.

Sandwiched in between the initial meeting and the swoony ending is so much growth for both characters. Both have to find what makes them happy. Not just what they’re good at, but what they want to do. Their relationship ultimately forces them to do so.

This was a pretty cute story. Very much read like a Roy Kent and plus-size Keeley Jones fanfic. Which isn't meant to be bad. It was just really obvious if you're a Ted Lasso fan.