This was a light and fast read, I can’t stand the influencer/famous main character arcs. This was more of a coming of age story than an actual romance.

This was a 5 ⭐️ for me! I really enjoy Melissa Ferguson books (if you want another rec - Check out Meet Me in the Margins)! With her books, I can anticipate something is coming but I usually can’t put my finger on what exactly it will be!

I also appreciated the way the book pushes you to find your balance with your connection to your phone / use of social media and living the life in front of you.

Thank you to @Melissaferguson @thomasnelson and @netgalley for the ARC!

I enjoyed reading this book by Melissa Ferguson! It made me think a lot, and there were sweet moments and good character growth, which I liked. I know the blurb says it’s a romcom, but it felt more like women’s fiction with comedic elements and romance to me. And I liked that about it!

This story made me think a lot about social media usage and how big a part of modern life it is at this point. I felt for Cat and the things she went through, and I appreciated how she grew and changed throughout the story.

The side characters were fun to read about, and I loved the scenes that took place in Kannery National Park! They were so much fun, and I thought the contrast between what Cat was used to and what was at the park was well written.

I’m glad I read this story!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Cat Cranwell is a social media darling with millions of followers and companies begging for her endorsements, but when she partners with the wrong man on an app deal and is under investigation for financial crimes, she becomes a pariah. When her Uncle Terry offers her a job at his park in Montana, she thinks it's out of pity, but he's desperate for her social media knowledge. Their beloved Kannery National Park is about to be absorbed by nearby Glacier National Park unless they can get more visitors and her uncle and his ragtag team of rangers will lose their jobs. As she adjusts to a drastically different world of freezing temperatures, polar plunges, and dangerous wild animals, she is saved more than once by ruggedly handsome senior ranger Zaiah Smith. He looks down on her city life and very public lifestyle, but he just can't stay away. Can two people so very different ever be together?
As I started this book I found myself rolling my eyes at Cat's obsessive need for likes and urge to document everything in her life for her audience. As the story went on I was cheering for her to put the phone down and actually experience life. Just by looking at the cover, you can expect the usual hilarity of a city girl dropped into the wild and this book doesn't disappoint. It's an entertaining and fun clean romance.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Famous For A Living 📸

This was a quick, cute read about an influencer finding herself after a public scandal. I really liked Cat and how she was willing to self-reflect and make changes to better her life and mental health. Her found family with the crew in Montana and Uncle Terry was sweet and I loved how supportive they were of each other. The romance took a bit of a backseat to Cat’s personal growth, but I think the interactions we got with Cat and Zaiah were great and I really loved their interactions. Her female friendships in this one were also really caring and loving.

I’m a fan of hiking and nature, so the scenic parts and the details of the area were really cool to me. I loved the descriptions of wildlife and the love everyone had for the park. Cat’s social media posts at the beginning of each chapter was a really cute touch and added an extra element to the book that made me feel more connected to the setting and characters.

This novel will have you wanting to throw on your hiking books and take a breath of fresh mountain air. It was an enjoyable read for me and was also a great reminder for me to not get so caught up on social media and to enjoy the life I have without feeling the need to post about it. Happy Pub Day @our_friendly_farmhouse and thank you @thomasnelson for the gifted arc copy of this novel!

This contemporary romance was more than just romance. It had witty humor, sass, romance and social realism. Social media can have it dark moments and really destroy a person but to be able to walk away from a life like that, it must be difficult. Cat accepts the offer to help her uncle at the national park. City girls meets park ranger.
This romance was more of a women's fiction of social realism.

This was a cute and fun read. I really had fun listening to this one. I thought the concept was very interesting and well done. It was a great story of self discovery sprinkled with a little bit of clean romance.

I really enjoyed the characters, they were all very likeable. Cat and Zaiah were really great together, had some good banter. It was a very slow burn romance, where I did feel like they could've had more flirty moments before getting into the relationship, but they were adorable. The side characters were all amazing, they were such a big family by the end.

This was a good wholesome read with a great life lesson.

If you're looking for a cute fun read sprinkled with a bit of romance pick this one up !

✨️Thank you @netgalley, @thomasnelson, @melissaferguson for my free ARC & ALC copy in exchange for an honest review.

Cat Cranwell is the most famous social media influencer around when she is suddenly canceled after an app partnership gone wrong. She takes a break by working for her uncle Terry in a small National park in Montana. She finds herself doing their social media to attract people to come to the park but also to save the park from being absorbed by another local park. She meets a handsome, rugged ranger named Zaiah Hudson. He unfortunately thinks social media and phones are the root of all things evil.

This was a cute, fun, easy read that was light on romance. I adored the characters and Zaiah was such a gentleman. The relationship was slow to start but they were such a cute, opposites attract, couple. I always like a small town, rustic setting and this would be a great summer read.

Thanks to @netgalley and @thomasnelson for the arc for review.

I love Melissa Ferguson and her writing. This book, however, just didn't do it for me. It was all over the place and I couldn't figure out where the story was going. I will try it again in print form as I had already pre-ordered it and my physical copy arrived today. I will always recommend her books to everyone I know.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5

Famous for a Living is a look into the life of influencers, especially those that are super popular. It examines the positives and the negatives without being preachy about either. While I know this is a work of fiction, several good points are made in the book about how people use social media.

When readers first meet Cat, she seems to be a bit of a snob and only cares about what image she gives out. Meanwhile, Zaiah seems to hate being in the city and around other people. The more you learn about them, the more you understand their actions. Uncle Terry is a proud uncle, and Peggy is my idol! I want to be like her when I grow up!

While set in the winter, the descriptions of the settings are enough to make you want to visit the National Parks in Montana. Just be prepared to feel the chill and maybe need to snuggle under a couple of blankets to warm up.

Overall, the Famous for a Living is a fun read. As a clean romance, I feel this is a read that people of any age could enjoy reading. This is the second novel written by Melissa Ferguson that I’ve read, and it won’t be the last. If you enjoy exploring new places, I say you should give Famous for a Living a read!

I listened to the audiobook of this novel. While in the beginning I wasn't sure whether I would like this at all, I quickly became involved in the story. I started to like the characters, the romance, and the plot. The setting was just perfect, and it sounded very idyllic. I really enjoyed this book, and I can definitely recommend it!

Cat Cranwell uses her 30th birthday bash to announce the launch of new social media app Climb with business partner Bobby Bradwell. But instead of leaving Instagram in its highly fashionable dust, everthing falls apart within months. Turns out Cat blindly signed one too many contracts, and is facing security and fraud charges, sponsors gone and in the news more than ever but - no matter what They Say - not all publicity is good.

In attempt to rehab her reputation and status, and distance herself while her lawyers work, she leaves her city penthouse heading to Montana to work for her park ranger uncle. Her new job doing social media for the Kannery National Park is meant to make her appear more humble and relatable. The cabin she’s moving into might be rundown, but with potential for cozy. Close quarters with enthusiastic roommate Mina will either make the settling in easier or so much worse.

She soon realizes that her job there is more vital than her uncle let on - they’re all hoping her promo work will translate into enough visitors to save the park from being absorbed into the neighboring one (eliminating their jobs, and losing the appeal of hidden gem status)

I didn’t have any real expectations going in. I was looking for a nice fluff read, and got that for *most* of the book.
Zaiah and Cat were a classic opposites attract couple in the making. The relationship takes a back seat to the plot, and it is closed door, but it’s there. It was interesting to learn more about their upbringings/past lives and how they effected where they each ended up.

I really liked all the illustrated graphics of Cat’s Instagram posts. Their roller coaster stats are great for showing changes in her current social status after a very public fall from public grace and how she’s climbed back up.

Unfortunately at about 3/4 through the vibe took a turn.
Instead of the expected message that lives need balance, and everything shouldn’t be about technology etc etc the anti social media angle gets pretty heavy handed. The MMC goes off on a monologue about his ex with a storyline seemed implausible. IMO it seemed too conveniently preachy and that frankly turned me off the story.

Thank you to netgalley and Thomas Nelson for the ARC

A very timely read filled with important messages on social media usage and how we connect nowadays. A fun slow burn romance with important character growth.

When i started reading this i was expecting a light, breezy read that i could just fly through and enjoy. While the storyline was cute and I did like the story i was confused by the flow of the book. To me the book felt choppy and like it was missing some key moments. I was confused many times when i set the book down and went to pick it back up because i thought i had missed a chunk of the storyline. Other than the flow of the book i thought it was a nice story.

I'm very glad I had the chance to read this book; it was a lot of fun. In it, we meet Cat, an insta-famous person whose life has been flipped upside down and who has been advised to return to her hometown to escape everything that's happening. Her life is SO different when she moves to Montana to live with her uncle, yet I can't stop laughing while reading about her adventure and the other characters in this novel. The romance was somewhat lacking, but aside from that, I enjoyed the read. I enjoy reading about "redeeming myself," but I also appreciated the message about social media's risks.

actual rating: 3.25 stars

thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

this book does suffer from mismarketing, which is too bad, because it isn't all that bad! I would characterise it more as women's fiction than a romantic comedy. this book delves much more into Cat's job in and obsession of social media. she is consumed by it. when we start, her life is very much lived for her, she comes across as deeply insecure and unattached to her surroundings and supposed friends. after her scandal (which, for once, is an actual scandal. I appreciated that the author didn't let her off with an easy mistake) she moves to Montana to live near her uncle and help him with his job of managing a national park. from there it's her coming out of her shell and realising that there is more in life than her phone.

as for the characters I liked them all. mina, especially, that was my girl. I hope Melissa Ferguson someday revisits mina, I will read that in a heartbeat.

as for the romance, it was a nice slow burn, but I wish the author had stretched the end a bit more. I needed more. more information about the aftermath of cat's return to New York, her months alone and readjusting to her old life. I wanted more, which is why I was sad that it was cut short. the book actually felt weakened by the romance at the end. also, you simply cannot call it a romance book but have the romance start up around 75 percent in. that's just not right.

so, in the end, the book didn't give me enough of either romantic fiction or women's fiction. which is a shame, because the potential was there.

I know I can count on Melissa Ferguson to give me a story filled with both clean comedy and romance. Famous for a Living did not disappoint! I LOVE Ferguson's prose, sarcasm, and ability to create endearing, quirky, and relatable characters. This story drew me in from the start, and I quickly devoured the entire book. Ferguson is one author I never miss, and I am confident this book will become a favorite of many.

I received this book from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Rating: 3 /5⭐️

Publication Date: May 16th 2023

Author: Melissa Ferguson

Review: This book was kind of a whirlwind for me. I felt like it was going in a (snobby) direction with the richy richy girl then all of a sudden it switched which I should have figured by the book cover. It did take me some time to really get into it and enjoy it, which did take about half way through the book.
Very slow burn too with major opposite attract vibes.

It’s a fun read and I look forward to reading other books by @our_friendly_farmhouse

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Famous for a Living by Melissa Ferguson
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Cat Cranwell is an influencer for a living. She lives in New York in a spacious apartment. One mistake causes her reputation to implode and she is off to Montana to pick up the pieces.
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What I liked:
-I loved the themes in this book. Social media can consume me sometimes and I wonder if I should just quit. I thought this story handled this subject so well and I loved where Cat was at at the end and the rules she made up for herself.
-The romance in this is not front and center, and I thought that was perfect and complimented the discussion on Cat’s influencer status.
-I have always been curious about visiting Montana and am even more excited to go there one day after reading this book. I want to see the views that were talked about in this book, also wouldn’t mind visiting the hot springs!
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4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was really sweet and yet also thought provoking. It’s a good one to add to your TBR 👏🏼👏🏼

What to expect:
Opposites attract
Small Town Romance
Social Media Influencer
Forced Proximity
Cast of Characters

I loved this sweet and funny romance novel. It had a good cast of characters. I enjoyed the slow burn romance with the love interest and I kept waiting for the kissing scene so good! The tension and pining kept growing.

The story follows Cat a social media influencer who looses her credibility. She then has to leave her fabulous New York City life and move across the country to a small town with her uncle who hasn’t been completely upfront with what she’s getting into. She is uncertain about what the future holds and goes through her own personal journey about the life she lives online and the real one.

She has a great friend Serena who helps her navigate the social media mess she’s in. It was refreshing to see someone taking a topic like social media with the distractions and repercussions that having a smartphone and an online presence can bring to a person’s day to day and yet give us a romance story between two people who are complete opposites.

Even though I already know a romance novel is going to have a happy ending it was nerve wrecking thinking about how the story was going to unfold. No SPOILERS but I’m so happy with the ending it was the perfect ending for me.

Definitely recommend this book and can’t wait to add a physical copy to my shelf!