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A Non-Spoiler Synopsis
Ex-footballer Alfie Harding is known for his grumpy taciturn ways. He hates revealing anything about himself but he allowed himself to be badgered into selling his life story-in a memoir. Alfie can’t imagine himself telling his story let alone writing it down for thousands to read. That’s when Mabel Willicker enters his life.
Mabel is the complete opposite of Alfie. She is curvy and cheery and is the only ghostwriter able to sass Alfie into admitting his lifes secrets. It seems the more she bickers with him the more he unintentionally reveals about himself.
When an unfortunate incident with the paparazzi leads the public to think they’re in a deep romance Alfie and Mabel have to pretend they’re dating in order to complete Alfie’s memoir. The public paints them as a Cinderella story and the more they pretend the more the romance feels real. But does it feel real to both of them?
My thots on the Smut and Vibes of “When Grumpy Met Sunshine”
This was such a fun read! This is the second Charlotte Stein novel I’ve read, and it did not disappoint. Surprisingly I think I like it better than her novel “How to Help a Hungry Werewolf”. Charlotte Stein does witty banter very well and this book is filled with funny dialogue.
There are quite a few tropes in this novel. As the name suggests there is a grump/sunshine trope with Alfie being the grumpy and Mable being the sunshine. What I appreciate is her spin on the trope. Both characters project one thing to the world, but they are complex and have more depth to them than just being “sunshine” or “grumpy”. This book also executes the fake dating trope extremely well and the fake dates lead to a wonderful slow burn romance.
The spicy scenes are very well done but do not occur until later in the book. If you’re into dirty talk there is plenty of that and the sexual chemistry during the slow burn is *chefs kiss*. I am also so here for the curvy girl representation and how Alfie is openly offended whenever there are negative comments about Mabels appearance.
If you’re looking for a fun slow burn, I highly recommend this book!