Grumpy x sunshine is one of my favorite tropes but unfortunately this just wasn’t for me. I was interested enough in their dynamic that made me read to the end but I didn’t exactly enjoy my time doing so.

I have to say, I was really disappointed with this book, especially because the main character is a bigger girl. Despite the adorable cover and some relatable characters and side messages, I just couldn’t connect with the story the way I’d hoped. The relationship between Mabel and Alfie had potential—it’s heartwarming—but it felt like the author was trying too hard to make it work. Alfie Harding, an ex-footballer, is funny, charming, and clever, with a touch of dirty talk that adds to his appeal. He’s clearly dealing with the pain of past relationships and life experiences, which gives him depth, but somehow it all felt superficial.

Mabel’s narration didn’t help. She touched on serious topics like her father's abuse and her sister’s disapproval of her writing career, but it all came across as too surface-level. Instead of diving deep into those emotions, the story kept getting lost in dialogue and left important details behind, making it feel unfinished and, frankly, unappealing. I really think the narration could have been stronger if the focus had been on the characters’ emotions and traumas, rather than constantly circling back to their past relationships.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this advanced copy.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

The author skillfully builds tension, using witty dialogue and charming interactions to highlight the chemistry between the protagonists. As they navigate their personal struggles—be it career aspirations, family expectations, or past heartbreaks—their journey feels authentic and relatable.

I am literally living the grumpy met sunshine trope, so when I saw this book, I had to give it a chance! Looooooooved this book!!! Can’t wait to read more Charlotte Stein books!!!!

I am a lover of romance novels. I started reading them one cold and dark December night many, many moons ago (it was a Christmas romance!), and it opened up my eyes to this genre I didn’t know anything about! Since that fateful night, I have read all kinds of romance. I’ve read closed door sweet love stories, spicy reads with not a lot of plot (they do wonders for a tired soul), and sexy love stories with a lot of heart. I’ve also read all across the board and inclusive stories (gay, sapphic, bisexual, polyamory, etc.). So, when I say that I know what I like, oh reader, I KNOW what I like.

That was a long introduction to this review, but I could not help myself 😂 This was all to let you know that I truly LOVED Charlotte Stein’s When Grumpy Met Sunshine. It had almost everything that I love (we will get to the almost part a little later).

Mabel is a ghostwriter, and she is the latest in line to “try out” for being Alfie’s, a famous and famously grumpy footballer, ghostwriter for his memoir. After much miscommunication at the beginning, Mabel is able to determine what works to work best with Alfie. This leads to a lovely and warm friendship between Mabel and Alfie.

What I appreciated from When Grumpy Met Sunshine was that Mabel and Alfie’s story had a lot of laughs, classic miscommunication, plenty of sweet moments, yes, but it had something so much deeper than what I’m used to reading in romance. Mabel and Alfie have different reactions to life, but they have many similar experiences from their formative years since both lived with alcoholic fathers. The experiences they each had with their fathers very much helped develop the way they feel and engage in their friendly and romantic relationships. This is something that plays out during their story and is a very important aspect. Knowing something this heavy from their backgrounds made me feel for Mable and Alfie. It had me scolding them that throughout (for different reasons that I won’t include here because that would lean more in spoiler territory) and wanting to hug them as well.

Another aspect I enjoyed about Mable and Alfie is that Mable is described (and her illustration on the cover portrays her to be) as “full figured” or “plus sized” or “fat”. Choose the label you feel most comfortable with, but know that Mabel’s size is not really focused on too much which is exactly what I liked about it. As a plus-sized woman myself, I enjoy representation, but do not feel the need to have the characters constantly reminded that they’re not, in fact, skinny. Likewise, Alfie is a grumpy man, but he is not portrayed as this lovable grumpy man who changes his ways. No, Alfie is unapologetically a grumpy man, but he is not cruel as I feel like most grumpy men are portrayed in books. As a lover of a particular grumpy man, I truly appreciated being shown a male character that is allowed to be grumpy.

My only real qualm about this story is a personal preference of mine - I truly wished this story had a dual POV. I loved Alfie so much that I wanted to hear his thoughts - about his experiences, about Mabel, and about life! I should have known that this story wouldn’t have a dual POV since I’ve read a previous book by Stein entitled Never Sweeter which also didn’t have a POV (and I so desperately wanted one). However, this did not take away from the story - I just really wanted it 😅

I liked this until the end and it was a year later. That seemed like a long time to be separated and that if they couldn't get back together before then were they really supposed to be together?

Ultimate grumpy x sunshine. Alfie Harding might just be the grumpiest grump I’ve ever read. Their witty banter is through the roof and Mabel’s gentle teasing (pushing but never crossing the line into meanie territory) is just sublime. The way in which she was able to get him to open up just by understanding his gruff nature. He’s constantly blurting out embarrassing things about himself. I smiled and giggled the whole time I read this!

Honestly, I finished reading it and that's the only reason it's getting two stars instead of one. This is exactly why you can't just write a story using tropes, you need an actual story to keep readers engaged! And for absolutely nothing happening during it, SO much was just constantly said and so many annoying things happened, but none of it actually mattered. Everything felt forced and over the top, and I wanted to enjoy this so much but just couldn't.

In this delightful opposites-attract romance, the dynamic between grumpy ex-footballer Alfie Harding and sunny ghostwriter Mabel Willicker creates an engaging contrast that fuels both humor and tension. Alfie's reluctance to open up about his past adds depth to his character, while Mabel's cheerful persistence brings a refreshing energy to their interactions. The banter is witty, and the slow-burn aspect of their relationship is executed well, making the eventual sparks between them feel organic and satisfying.

The premise of their fake relationship transitioning into something more is a classic trope, but it's handled with enough charm to keep readers hooked. While some plot developments may follow familiar patterns, the chemistry and character growth shine through, making this a fun and steamy read.

DNF

I picked up When Grumpy Met Sunshine because of the adorable cover and my favorite trope - grumpy/sunshine. I think this book could be enjoyable for someone who loves very silly, quick writing. If you like slapstick comedy like people poorly reading from cue cards while on a phone call, or hiding behind potted plants, or accidentally referring to a plus sized woman as a "cupcake", then this might be the book for you! It might have been for me if the writing style was a little different. The first four chapters felt like I was stuck in the main character's head, swimming in her thoughts and reactions, as opposed to living in the scene or watching it play out like a movie. I would have liked it to be slowed down a bit, with less inner thinking and more action and dialogue.

Unfortunately i made the decision to DNF this book after multiple failed attempts to consume. I hope to pick it up again at a later time.

I absolutely LOVED this novel. Just the right amount of intrigue, romance, and storyline I cannot recommend this book enough. I am looking forward to more titles by this author.

When grumpy Alfie met sunshine Mabel spark literally flew. Neither of them knew for sure what kind of sparks, but they were there. This miscommunication/ Grumpy Sunshine trope novel explores their relationship as it develops from fake dating, to “fake dating?”.

I found this to be a really sweet, and pretty spicy at times, book that made you want to shake our MC’s into just talking about what was happening. There was a lot of circling each other, a lot of assumptions, and a lot of “she’s so plump, but she’s so sweet”.

Overall a sweet read, but I didn’t fully mesh with it.

This was a cute rom-com! Grumpy x Sunshine with quite a bit of spice! Love the representation for curvy girls!

It was kind of boring and too wordy. The author was incredibly descriptive to a point that was insanely unnecessary. I struggled to stay engaged with the story.

It seems like you can actually overdo the banter in a romcom. I was annoyed out of my mind very early on, because the way these people talked to each other didn't make one bit of sense for people who've just met (or anyone at all). It wasn't funny, because it was nonsensical and ridiculous (and not in a good way). I love banter-filled romcoms, but they need some amount of build-up and subtlety, and this was lacking both. I decided to DNF because I knew I wasn't going to enjoy this.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. Review previously withheld in solidarity with the St. Martin’s Press reviewer boycott. All opinions are my own. 

I’ve followed Charlotte Stein on Twitter/X for a while, but her books prior to When Grumpy Met Sunshine were very much not my thing. Even with WGMS’s more commercial appeal, Stein’s bibliography and the general meh-ness of many tradpub romcoms meant it could easily go either way. But something about the charm of the title, the Leni Kauffman cover art, and the premise sounding fun appealed to me. And while I did have some issues with it, I mostly enjoyed this book. 

I really liked both leads. “Grumpy” male leads are a major toss-up for me, as sometimes they’re giant pricks, but that’s not the case here. Alfie has his moments of arrogance and being a little out-of-touch, but he’s generally a solid guy with a lot of vulnerabilities. As for Mabel, I like that she’s the more “sunshiney” and quirky of the two, but she still feels real, and has her moments of vulnerability too. 

With Mabel being fat, I also appreciate how the story handled having her be insecure about it, especially in the face of public scrutiny, while also not being a major issue of her self-loathing, with Alfie also serving to build up her confidence. And I generally liked how their romantic dynamic had a mix of witty, flirty banter that transitioned well into more touchy-feely territory, and then into the steamy scenes. 

I did also appreciate how this book had the lens of fake dating with commentary on the impact public perception can have with one of the people in the relationship being a public figure. While this aspect, in both fake dating and genuine relationship scenarios, is not unique to this book, I appreciated Stein’s take on it, especially with the inclusion of mixed-media, like social media posts, gossip rags, and more. 

One aspect I went in excited about was the ghostwriting and him writing his memoir, but I felt like this was more dominant in the first part of the book, with notes and exchanges related to the book being among the mixed-media, while that aspect was abandoned in the second half. I’d like to know how the book did, at least, not to mention there’s an exchange where he confirms to her his desires to be a writer in his own right, which could have been an interesting subplot to run with. However, the media fixation element took over, and while I didn’t hate that, it would have been great if there had been a way to do both. 

In spite of this issue, I did mostly enjoy this book, and would recommend it to readers looking for a fun, steamy romcom with a plus-size lead, especially if you happen to be looking for a readalike for Olivia Dade’s books.

3.5 stars! If you are a Ted Lasso fan, you automatically thought of Roy Kent as MMC of this book. Grumpy soccer player with soft heart and gentle tendencies. I really enjoyed this book! It was a cute rom-com that I can definitely see being made into a movie. The only con I have is that it is a tad…slow. Not slow burn, just slow. I felt some scenes lasted forever before we moved past it, conversations went a little longer than necessary. But the banter was top notch and I ended up falling in love with both Mabel and Alfie. I would definitely read this again. Soo cute!

When Grumpy Met Sunshine is a banter-filled romcom that follows Mabel, a bubbly ghostwriter, and Alfie, a famous retired footballer in need of help writing his memoir. As they get closer while chronicling Alfie’s life, their chemistry intensifies, and when their relationship is exposed to the public, they're forced to pretend to be a couple.

As a Roy Kent fan, I’m conflicted! I loved every charming minute of this romcom, but the writing was both lengthy and choppy—I struggled to follow what was being said at times. Despite that, the banter and honesty in Mabel and Alfie’s relationship kept me invested from start to finish. However, I couldn’t ignore the need for more editing and proofreading. The one-year separation and time skip in the last 10% of the book felt rushed and out of character for the story.

Despite my issues with the writing and the ending, I still enjoyed the story and will definitely be on the lookout for more from Charlotte Stein!

Read this if you like:
→ Grumpy/sunshine trope
→ Close proximity
→ Fake dating
→ Slow burn
→ Witty banter