When Grumpy Met Sunshine starts out really cute. Love the banter. Genuinely funny. As the characters begin focusing more on getting together, the banter started to lose some appeal. Alfie and Mabel both have a lot of issues stemming from trauma, and I wanted to see them talk about these very real issues. Instead, the book focuses on the miscommunications and the attraction, which begins to feel immature and underdeveloped. I love a grumpy meets sunshine trope, but I wanted a more out of this fluff piece.

i was really excited for this book because i love grumpy sunshine and it also has a plus size main character. it was everything i wanted but sadly it was a letdown, it was so hard to get myself to pick up this book everytime that i just couldn’t end up finishing it. i didn’t like the writing or the dialogue

Who doesn't love a grumpy x sunshine novel? I really enjoyed this one, and I loved the fact that it was a quick read! I would definitely recommend it to anyone that loves the trope.

I DNF'd after the first chapter, forgive me Netgalley CEOs. I promise I give books real chances, this just wasn't the book for me.

What a fun read!! It started a bit slow but quickly picked up with funny banter, strong chemistry, and steamy romance. I found myself kicking my feet up and down in happiness as i read this book and i cannot recommend this more. If you want a light, fun and cute romance read, this book is for you!

I really enjoyed this romance. It included a lot of fav tropes: obviously grumpy/sunshine, fake dating, only one bed, and more. The banter is top notch and I laughed out loud so many times. I loved the humor and good will between the characters that felt like a base for the steamy stuff which I think a lot of romance forgets the building a friendship bits. Also the descriptions Charlotte Stein is brilliant at. I love making out and make out scenes and these were some of the most well written scenes of this sort.
However what made this book disappointing was the fat representation of the FMC. I love seeing more fat/curvy women in romance (also would love this of men and non-binary folks), however when that character continually rehearses shame of her size and disbelief that a good looking successful man could love them and uses words like:unbelievable, disgusting, etc over and over again it becomes less empowering and more reinforcement of the narrative about those body types. We only get the last chapter where she believes he loves her and Al that isn’t related to her overcoming her own body issues and only that he straightforward says it. This was overall very disappointing. Do women feel this way sure, but let’s go beyond this narrative or show how she healthily overcomes those issues and doesn’t just rely on a man professing love to automatically solve those. I’m bummed because so much about this novel I loved but I can’t recommend or condone anti-fatness even anti-fatness the character has internalized without finding ways to use and grow that. It shows that the author hasn’t dealt with her own or thinks all fat/curvy women think this and wouldn’t bat an eye. Ugh.

I had a hard time with this one. It felt like it was trying too hard and, although I really liked the premise, I had a hard time connecting with the characters and the story. This was missing a spark for me, but it might be perfect for someone else.

I found this book to be a cute enjoyable read, I absolutely enjoyed the banter that's my favorite. I did think the story could use a bit more juice. I love a grumpy sunshine opposite attracts, but this one seem to fail to hit the way I wanted it to. it is a cute read but the story took forever to progress when it did and I just wanted more.

I started out really enjoying this because I'm here for banter and thats basically 90% of what this story consists of. And it's mostly actually funny not the "banter" that falls flat. At least at first.

However, as the story progressed... or didn't progress... I felt like we really needed some substance to go with the banter. And I don't mean the rest of it should be sex, as it is here.

I just cared less and less about the characters the more focused on sex it became. And the banter stopped being funny and began to feel stale because it wasn't really evolving. Also there was way too much miscommunication and I kept getting more and more annoyed at it because it kept getting more and more ridiculous.

Alfie and Mabel both have a lot of issues holding them back that clearly stem from trauma but I wanted to see that trauma brought to light and actually talked about and dealt with not just alluded to between lusting after each other.

The audiobook narrator did a good job bringing Alfie and Mabel to life and giving them distinct voices, although it was occasionally a little difficult for me to catch what she was saying. I would recommend reading it via audio if you choose to read it because the voices she uses for them and the way she speaks the lines make them funnier.

*Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for providing an early copy for review.

I tried to love this one. Opposites attract is such a fun trope. But the dialogue did not grab my attention. The plot didn’t have much action either or anything exciting going on. Not my favorite.

I loved this fun opposites attract rom-com. I love that the MMC was so grumpy and the FMC was happy and "sunshiney" Banter is a huge plus for me and this book had a lot of it. I found it hilarious and laughed out loud multiple times. I love the tropes this book executed. Read if you love banter, slow burn, fake dating, and grumpy sunshine. I loved how the FMC was portrayed as curvy and I thought it was executed well. Fake dating is one of my favorites. I loved Alfie and Mabel so much.

This is a cute rom com read. If you need a pallet cleanser this is the perfect book for you. Thank you netgalley, the author and publisher for allowing me to read this book.

Unfortunately this book didn't hit for me. I wanted to love this one. The idea of the plot spoke to me and the cover art is adorable. However there was too much banter (Is there such a thing? This book proves there is.) and not enough story building. Once the main characters got together there wasn't much in terms of story and too much focus on spice.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.

DNF'd about 20% through. The bater was like cats fighting in heat. I love a good grumpy sunshine, but this was not done well.

I never thought there could be a thing as too much banter, but this book proved me wrong. I love banter, but this one was too much. And the grumpy part of grumpy/sunshine wasn't very grumpy...

"When Grumpy Met Sunshine" by Charlotte Stein is a delightful and steamy romance that delivers on both charm and chemistry. Grumpy ex-footballer Alfie Harding finds himself reluctantly agreeing to sell his memoirs, but with a disdain for revealing anything personal about himself. Enter Mabel Willicker, a bubbly and vibrant ghostwriter who is determined to coax out Alfie's story, much to his chagrin. What ensues is a delightful dance of banter and sparks as these polar opposites clash and then unexpectedly find themselves drawn to each other. As their fake relationship for the public starts to feel all too real, the heat between them becomes undeniable. Stein weaves a captivating tale filled with humor, sass, and plenty of steam, making "When Grumpy Met Sunshine" a thoroughly enjoyable read from start to finish.

ADHD for Smart Ass Women is a no nonsense way to define ADHD for women who may or may not been diagnosed yet. Although there are statistics and numbers supporting the facts, but at no time did I feel overwhelmed with the scientific information and jargon. Tracy Otsuka explains what ADHD for women as well as the misconceptions behind why it is not diagnosed sooner.

I did listen to the audiobook, but believe having the eBook as a resource would also be helpful. The author states strategies that I need to review and would be easier to visualize rather than listen.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5 Stars

Happy Publication to Charlotte Stein and When Grumpy Met Sunshine. Thank you to Charlotte Stein, @stmartinspress, and @netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of When Grumpy Met Sunshine for an honest review!

📆This book was published on Tuesday, February 6, 2025 and can be purchased at your local bookstore or on Amazon!📆

Former ex-footballer, Alfie, is faced with choosing a ghostwriter for his memoir. Although the decision ended up being easy, the outcome was never what he would have expected (in a million years).

Ghostwriter, Mabel, is somewhat star struck but determined to write Alfie’s memoir well. She works hard at getting him to open up…which no one has been able to do in quite some time.

Tropes
💕 Grumpy x Sunshine
💕 Opposites Attract
💕 Fake Dating
💕 Miscommunication Trope

What I liked about the book:
📖 The tropes especially the fake dating.
📖 Alfie’s dream of being a writer.
📖 Alfie’s sensitive side.
📖 Mabel’s ability to pull Alfie out of his comfort zone when working on his memoir.

What didn’t quite make the mark 🎯 for me:
📖 Mabel was too indecisive and insecure at times.
📖 Alfie’s inability to divulge his true feelings right away.
📖 Storyline dragged in a few places.
📖 Narration and banter were hard to follow at times.
📖 Miscommunication trope was used too often.

I’m just one person and one reviewer. So, I definitely recommend reading the book to see what you think!

I had such high hopes... and was left so disappointed. I normally enjoy banter between couples but this just seemed so over the top that I couldn't help but skim the majority of the interaction between our two main characters. Overall, this was just not a book that I enjoyed. However, I did love appreciate the body inclusivity that this book offered- especially as a plus size reader. But if someone asked me if I would recommend this, my answer would be no. There are a lot better Charlotte Stein books out there.

This book was so lovely and so charming. The main characters were beautiful people who fell in a beautiful love. I cannot express how much I enjoyed reading about two emotionally scarred and slightly insecure people being vulnerable and real with each other. We need more books like this! Extra bonus points for the curvy heroine <3