witchbuns

Charlotte Stein, 2026. 3 Stars.

This starts tough, with Caleb as the most irascible male love interest I’ve seen. He is a world-renowned romance author known to be a bitter pill and recluse, and Daisy of course has a history with him in school where they both angered one another and of course, did not realize they were meant to be. 

This is a real strong lean into the cinnamon role trope, because once he’s unwound, he is of course obsessed and caring and a prolific lover, absolute top notch notches on the bedroom posts. But getting there – you need to be bought in, and I questioned what makes us read romance when at first look, this is a toxic and unlovable character who needs ample therapy to resolve his problems, which aren’t Daisy’s to fix.

But of course – they somewhat are, because she’s in PR and she is a fixer, making this problematic nature smoothed over for a press tour. Then the tropes build, and I sensed Charlotte Stein was having a ball with her readers, throwing out fun, impossible situations and playing within genre. 

The second half of the book, read with a tart little bit of tongue, can be very fun. Daisy is a character who is bodacious and yet thinks she’s too much, leading to deeper feelings that Stein unpacked well. 

Three stars because I needed to care for Caleb and believe in him at the onset. If Daisy were my friend, I would have pulled the fire alarm during the press tour and dragged her by the boob away from him. But I’m glad I stayed in the story, because I love when he lets her just eat food and be free. 

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.