Sunny Side Up is a funny, introspective, and well-written romance novel centered around body acceptance. I really appreciated Sunny’s vulnerability—you can genuinely empathize with her as she navigates the challenge of finding outfits that help her feel both confident and stylish. The author also did a great job showing growth in Sunny’s family, particularly in the evolving relationship between her and her mother. While I wasn’t the biggest fan of some of the romantic plotlines, which at times felt a bit cringy, the book’s overall message more than made up for it.

Sunny Greene is thirty-five, recently divorced, facing the looming prospect of going solo to her little brother’s wedding, and currently trying to find anything plus-sized in the Bergdorf Goodman swimsuit department that doesn’t make her want to cry. It’s not going well. But isn’t rock bottom the perfect place to start a climb?

She decides it’s now or never. Sunny has her PR empire, her gorgeous Chelsea apartment, her two dogs, and her loyal best friends. Maybe it's time to just love her body and accept herself for who she is. With a new commitment to confidence, her journey begins. Who says a plus-sized divorcee can’t put herself first, feel beautiful, and date up a storm?


This is such a fun summer read. It is empowering, funny, emotional, and triumphant.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really enjoyed getting to know Sunny—she’s such a vibrant and relatable character. Her personal growth throughout the story felt genuine, and I appreciated how she began to step into her own power and sense of self. Her voice is funny, warm, and full of heart, which made the book an easy one to root for. There was a bit more focus on body size than I expected, which occasionally pulled me out of the story. While I get that it’s part of Sunny’s journey, I would’ve loved to see even more attention given to her other strengths and the relationships she was building. Overall, this was a thoughtful and engaging read with a memorable main character and a lot of heart.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for advanced copy, and I give my review freely

This book was a bit difficult for me to get through. I'm a plus sized woman and made my peace with that decades ago. I have family, friends, and colleagues that accept me for me...not for the size my body shows to the world. I got teased, got the side eye, and it truly didn't bother me. I think that's why I just couldn't relate to Sunny in the beginning. SHE had the problem and projected her problem to other people.

Having said that....

Sunny was redeemed in my eyes when she just decided to embrace herself. If you don't like you...no one else will either. I guess once she was a success in societies eyes, she could see how likable and loveable she actually was. The ending sealed the deal for me when 'he' was in attendance at her sister's wedding. She had to be 'good enough' in her own eyes to see how someone could truly love her for her!

Four stars since the Sunny at the beginning wasn't likable to me at all. I'm glad I went ahead and finished the book.

While this book dealt with difficult issues for women navigating a world in which men seem to hold most of the power, I also felt the main character had everything business-wise work out for the best and in a very unbelievable way and time frame. Sunny was a caring person who loved others fiercely and she was working on loving herself--this aspect I identified with. Sunny also made some really poor decisions on social media that made me cringe as she never considered the people she was discussing on her public newsletter and what impact it would have on them. The ease in which Sunny was forgiven disappointed me because again, her problems/obstacles (including herself) were solved without much mess.

My favorite part of this novel was the deep friendships that Sunny had. Her assistant is someone I'd love to have in my own life and would enjoy reading about her story. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Cute girl power story to kick off summer reading! I loved the format, and the fast paced just fun story. I wish I could order one of those suits from her!

Gahhhh I wanted to love this. Wisconsin girl makes a name for herself in NYC - yes please! However I’m not a huge fan of someone’s body type/weight being basically the main character in the story. Also a size 12?! Is that different than a size 12 I know? I mean I don’t work in high fashion and I’ve shopped that size before and I’m not saying it’s always easy when you don’t feel confident but it wasn’t as foreign as it made it out to seem.

I think this was just a case of not for me but it may work for some others! It’s a good comeback feel good story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I liked Sunny's unique character and the rom com aspect of the story, but a few things rubbed me wrong to fully enjoy. The plot acted like she was so big but she said she's a size 12, which isn't that an average american size? I understand there are many may still experience discrimination but certain parts made me feel like she was much bigger. I also felt there was a lot of elitism that wasn't recognized. For example, Sunny says she has her clothes personally tailored to fit her better, which I'm sure many cannot afford. I understand that I am thinking too much into this for a fun fiction story, which it was, but I just couldn't get it out of my head.

This was an interesting story. Sunny was recently divorced from Zach and had her own PR firm. After trying on bathing suits at a highline department store in NY, she had a friend who was a taylor, make some adjustments so it fit well. She was a bigger size woman and regular size bathing suits just didn't work. She met through one of her friends, she met Ted, who she had a brief relationship with, but he was a little too controlling for her. She met several men through dating sites and they were usually a bust. Sunny character was strong and she had 2 good friends that had her back all the time. The story flowed well and was interesting and engaging

I got this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

I love this town! Sunny moving to Florida and having to manage her Aunt Rita’s cafe without so much as an advanced notice threw Sunny for a loop. She jumped in and met Didi which is one of the servers, Nick who is the chef and lives next door to her Aunt’s cottage. The cat Bodget who is a crazy cat. Just set up for some great adventures in trying to solve the murders as they happened in each of the books. This was a great ride!

I really enjoyed these.

I want to thank NetGalley and Celadon Books for this advanced reader copy. This is my honest review of this work.

A Bold, Body-Positive Rom-Com with Heart and Humor

Katie Sturino’s debut novel is a refreshing, feel-good story that shines with self-love, laughter, and the awkward beauty of figuring life out—especially when you least expect it. Sunny Greene is the kind of heroine we don’t see enough of: smart, successful, imperfect, and deeply relatable. At 35, post-divorce and navigating the complicated world of swimsuits, self-worth, and second chances, Sunny is a delight to follow.

Sturino writes with the same irreverent charm and candor that have made her a social media favorite. The book nails the highs and lows of dating, body image, and friendship without ever losing its sense of fun. The love triangle (or maybe square?) adds enough tension to keep you turning the pages, and the dialogue sparkles with wit.

While some plot beats feel a bit predictable, the emotional honesty and empowering message more than make up for it. This is a rom-com with real weight (pun fully intended), reminding us all that confidence is sexy and self-acceptance is a journey worth taking.

If you're looking for a breezy, empowering read with a heroine you’ll root for and a cast of lovable side characters, Sunny Greene deserves a spot on your nightstand.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher! I enjoyed this and it was a quick read. Taking away one star because it had a little too much body image stuff.

This was a cute, fast read - perfect for your beach bag this summer. I love a character who is confident and body positive. Lots of witty banter with charismatic side characters. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy!

I've followed Katie Sturino on Instagram for years and love her (and loved her book Body Talk)! This was a cute romcom with a plus size heroine. I loved Dennis!

The only part I thought was really dumb was when she's about to get it on with a guy and lets him cut off her $90 shapewear. Weird and unrealistic.

As far as some reviews saying that the heroine Sunny is not relatable - we don't always want relatable characters! We want to envision ourselves as fashionable NYC girlies. OK maybe it takes more than a few months to get a swimsuit line into stores, but who cares! This is clearly based off the author's life anyway, so I don't think she was stretching the limits of fiction.

This was a delightful book to read! Sunny is struggling with a lot of things many women can relate to: a recent divorce, her weight, the expectations of her family, finding love again. Sunny is a successful PR executive, and despite the outward appearances of having it all, her internal monologue is so painfully relatable as she tries to stop listening to the voices of people putting her down.

The book opens with her in a high end NY store in January trying to buy a bathing suit for an upcoming trip to the Bahamas with her besties. Every woman alive knows January is the worst time to try to buy a bathing suit, but especially when you are larger than single digits. Sunny's experience leads her to create a new company designing fashionable swimsuits for inclusive sizes. She also restarts a newsletter she had let go dormant after discovering that what she has to say as a plus size woman navigating life resonates with so many others.

And along the way, she's trying to exorcise the voices of her ex and find her true love again.

In some ways, I felt Sunny had things come to her a little too easily, and the ending is a little neat (albeit a HEA) but that really didn't bother me all that much. This is a fun read that many women like Sunny will relate to.

I loved everything this book stood for!!

The body positivity and the discussion of what women deal with every day in their own minds was so on point it was almost sad to read at points.

As someone who deals with body image issues I really connected with and loved our FMC.

My only problem with the book was some of the pacing and the heavy emphasis on men being the turning point for self love.

I was also gifted an ALC from Libro.fm, it was a great immersive read and I thought the narrator did a wonderful job!

I think this book is definitely a must for women everywhere.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC! I adore this main character and how relatable she is! The theme of body neutrality is exactly what our diet culture needs! The romances were swoony and I’m so happy with who she finally fell in love with! Absolutely recommend!!

For any woman who has ever shed tears in a dressing room or felt like her body was a problem, this new contemporary romance debut is for you! Sunny, newly divorced, is determined to find her confidence by launching a size-inclusive swim line, entering the dating scene, and revamping her hilarious newsletter. I laughed, cried, and rooted for Sunny throughout her journey!

Narrator Yael Rizowy had me cracking up, and deliciously depicted all of Sunny's new love interests with distinguishable accents and personalities. With some mixed media inserts (blog posts, social media interactions) this is a joyful and sexy book you do not want to miss!

SO MANY STARS!

This was a clever, original novel that I very much enjoyed. Sunny takes the reader through all kinds of hilarious situations full of honesty and self-reflection. She name drops the best of NYC, which almost makes it feel like a character itself. The dating stories are outlandish but also downright believable. The body positivity skirts the edge of too much but doesn't detract from my affection for this book. A great summer ready full of inspiration. Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book!

I loved this book. Sunny Greene is funny, real, and totally relatable—from trying to survive the swimsuit section to navigating messy love, friendship, and self-worth after divorce. Her journey to self-acceptance and joy had me rooting for her every step of the way.

What makes this book stand out is its big heart and even bigger message: that confidence, love, and success aren’t reserved for a size 2. It’s empowering, romantic, and refreshing to see a plus-sized heroine thriving, floundering, and finding her way without ever being reduced to a punchline.

If you're into smart, body-positive romcoms with sass, heart, and a healthy dose of real-life chaos, [Title] is your next feel-good read.