I had an absolute blast with this fun sapphic retelling of "it's a wonderful life."

It's a fabulous life, is a sapphic romcom with Hallmark channel vibes in the best way possible. When you read it, it feels like curling up and watching your favourite Christmas movie.

I loved the blossoming romance between Bailey and Maria (as well as the history between the two), the entire town, and the hilarity of the angels.

I received a copy of this from Netgalley as an audiobook, and I loved the choice of female narrator. The male narrator wasn't my favourite choice, but that's a personal preference. Everyone should definitely add this to their Christmas book list as it was just so fun and comforting.

I wish I'd seen "It's A Wonderful Life," but I haven't yet. After reading this gem, it's going to be on my list of Christmas movies to watch this year. I loved this book because it seemed to mash up several classic Christmas movies into one rom-com novel. And it's queer!

What a charming adaptation of It's a Wonderful Life! A modern, LGBTQIA+ twist, Kelly Farmer manages to hit all the best notes of the original in their It's a Fabulous Life. Complete with fab drag queens, an adorable puppy, and a heartwarming romance.

Lovely.

The audio version is beautifully performed by Mia Hutchinson-Shaw and Pete Cross.

This was okay. I am a huge fan of It's A Wonderful Life and I thought this was a fun spin on the original story, drag queen angels and all.

There was just something missing. I simply can't put my finger on what, but I didn't love any of the characters and I didn't really care what happened.

The audiobook narrator was okay, but also not my favorite.

I found this audiobook to be heartwarming and as cozy as sitting in front of a warm fire with a chilled glass of eggnog. I have never seen It’s a Wonderful Life, so beyond a general idea of the story I was able to go into it with few expectations. I will admit I am a little curious why this book wasn’t published a little closer to the holiday season, as it evokes such a winter/holiday ambiance. Regardless, I still found it thoroughly enjoyable and it made me look forward to the holidays even more.

I found both of the main characters to be well written and charming. The good-hearted Bailey who gave up her dreams so she could support her family after the death of her father, and the sweet “Christmas Elf” Maria were both very easy to root for and I found myself falling for them as they fell for each other. I also very much enjoyed Farmer’s well-used humor in this book and the phrase “Thinky face” has now been added to my personal vocabulary! The slow-burn, no-spice romance was perfectly paced and gave me all the feels.

The narration itself was a bit of a mixed bag. Overall I enjoyed the main narrator, especially when she voiced Maria, but at times it felt a bit rushed and would have benefited from more pauses. I definitely enjoyed the narration of the angels and thought it was fun having a different voice just for them!

Overall, It’s a Fabulous Life is a heartfelt sapphic retelling of a timeless classic, best enjoyed while decorating or out shopping this holiday season.

I received an ARC copy of this ebook from Netgalley and all opinions are my own.

I know. It’s waaaay too early for Christmas/Winter holiday stuff, but I got an ALC of this book, and it was so cute I needed to share it.

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) is my favorite Christmas movie, and I could probably quote it start to finish if I HAD to. Finally, someone (Kelly Farner) read my wishlist and wrote a queer, modern reimahibing with plenty of nods and winks to the original.

Bailey George of Lanford Falls has wanted to get out of her small town for ages, and finally, this year, someone else is handling the Winter Wonderfest. Bailey is headed to New York for a break, and maybe even a job interview.

When the organizer of Winter Wonderfest falls ill, the town, once again, needs Bailey to step in and help. It’s terrible, but Bailey runs into her childhood crush, Maria Hatcher, and things get a little better. As the conedy of errors progresses, Bailey is reminded why she wants to leave, but in Maria (and with help from a couple of guardian angel Drag queens), Bailey is reminded why she stays year after year. She’ll have a difficult decision to make about where she’d ultimately like to spend her life.

Honestly, they had me at the title. Then again at queer. Then again at guardian angel drag queens. It’s so cute. I’m not much for a straight up.romcom, let alone a Hallmarkish Christmas one, but retelling my fav with queer ladies? Totally here for it. I loved the references to the movie and the way Farmer modernized it.

I always related to George Bailey in my younger years, and I also see myself in Bailey a bit. If you’re looking for a feel-good, cozy holiday read this year, this one’s packed with a lot of fun.

4 stars!

I thoroughly enjoyed "It's a Fabulous Life" by Kelly Farmer, narrated by Mia Hutchinson-Shaw. One of my favorite Christmas movies is "It's a Wonderful Life," so to read a modern day sapphic retelling of that story was, well, fabulous!! Being obsessed with the movie, you'd think I might be bored reading a book that hits all of the same plot point. Luckily, Kelly Farmer's writing and contemporary changes keep this book feeling funny, fresh, and fun. I adored Bailey and Maria as characters. I fell in love with them as they rediscovered their connection to one another in the small, quaint, Christmas-obsessed Lanford Falls. I connected to them in the present, but I also enjoyed reminiscing with them about the spark they had when they were 16 year old and had crushes on one another. Seeing them fall slowly back in love during Christmastime was such a lovely treat. I also adored the drag queens, Clara Angel and Giovanna! What a creative and spectacular twist on the Clarence character from "It's a Wonderful Life." And the dogs! Maria and Bailey both have dogs, and their dogs become besties, and that's the catalyst for them spending time with one another. And Lanford Falls... what I wouldn't give to live there! This is the perfect fuzzy-feeling holiday romance, brought to life by the stellar narration from Mia Hutchinson-Shaw. Please take a chance on this book!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kelly Farmer, and Dreamscape Media for the complimentary ALC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for my review.

okay, it was cute. just a feel good christmas sapphic tale. although, the names were too close to its a wonderful life, like i get its a retelling of sorts, but it took me out of it a little bit. but i would recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great Christmas themed romance. I really loved the characters because they were so sweet and wonderful. I loved the Drag Queen Angels and the role they played in the story. This was so sweet and a perfect holiday read.

"It's a Fabulous Life" by Kelly Farmer is a delightful story. Seriously, with all of bad things happening in the world right now, this book reminded me that there is still **a lot** of good that surrounds us everyday. Sometimes we lose sight of that, and while the events in the book are individual to those characters, the lessons throughout apply universally.

The book is a sapphic retelling of the classic "It's a Wonderful Life" - which, as a side note... I have never seen, but have heard great things about.

This modern take on the beloved holiday classic weaves a heartwarming story of self-discovery, romance, and the magic of the holiday season. It teaches us to never take anything for granted. Bailey and Maria are incredibly authentic characters, and it's a pleasure to see their relationship develop. Farmer's portrayal of Bailey's journey adds depth to the story, making it a punch in the gut for the reader, and calling all of us to analyze our own lives.

Much like Bailey, I feel that many of us think that dreams of travel and adventure are worth more than the love of those close to us. But throughout the book, we are reminded that travel and adventure mean nothing if you have no one to share it with. Bailey feels trapped by her responsibilities, but in the end, it's her friends that show up to save the day.

All in all, this charming and heartwarming sapphic Christmas romance will capture the magic of the season, and is an easy recommendation for anyone seeking a feel-good, low-angst Christmas romance, and wanting to feel a warm, festive glow.

***Note: This was supposed to be a Hallmark pick, so as you can imagine, the spice level of this book is 0. Which, I'll be honest, works VERY well for this particular story. It would have been weird if there was any spice at all.

Thank you NetGalley, Kelly Farmer and Dreamscape Media for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the author and dreamscape Media. Not sure what is going on with the netgalley app but thw audiobook isn't continusly playing just constantly pausing and not playing.

4*

This was everything I never knew I needed. It tied into my love for wlw romcom stories, fabulous drag queens and Christmas. A heavenly combination, I might say. I don’t remember ever seeing It’s a Wonderful Life, but having Drag Queen fairy god mothers interfering with someone’s life to give them back the spirit of Christmas in an idyllic, cute, snowy village felt very cozy.

The narration was done perfectly, the different voices for the characters took a little time to get used to, but weren’t annoying me too much. If you’re looking for a queer, romantic, Christmas novel, this one’s for you!

Thanks NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for providing me an ALC before publishing in return for an honest review.

I truly enjoyed this LGBTQ retelling of It’s a Wonderful Life. That is my favorite holiday film and it is nice to now have an audiobook story that I will come back to on a regular basis. I liked the character development and found it enjoyable to see how certain scenes from the film were brought over.

The one thing I’m not sure worked very well was having dual narrators. Both narrators were good in their own ways. I am just not sure the back and forth worked, especially where chapters split in the middle of a scene. Those times took me out of the story for a few minutes until I could get used to the change.

For fans of the holiday film, I would recommend giving this story a listen.

This is a joyous, heartwarming sapphic romance to put you in the holiday mood. I love that it’s loosely based around one of my favorite Christmas films.

However this adaption feels like it’s missing something to make it unique and something I would want to come back to. The novel seems to fall into the retelling trope of being almost exactly the same with the exception of swapping genders and making it LGBTQIA+ friendly. Even the pace of the story was the same. It was still a fun story to read but again, that may be due to it being related to one of my favorite movies.

I did enjoy the dual narrators on the audiobook, it allowed the story to stay a bit more fresh than the physical copy.

I would recommend this one for someone who needs some holiday cheer!

I really wanted to fall in love with this book.... but the only characters I loved were the dogs! I thought it was a fun nod at Its A Wonderful Life but reading mid October just really ruined the vibe. I will be revisiting this in December and hopefully will love it more.

This review comes with the caveat that I'm not a "Christmas book" person--I only read it because I couldn't pass up an audiobook ARC wlw romance book. Also, this novel is inspired by the movie "It's a Wonderful Life" and I haven't actually seen the movie, so I can't say how it compares.

That being said,
The good:
There were cute moments and I liked some facets of the characters.
The meh:
The whole first half+ of the book, the drag queen angel thing really didn't work for me and I found it distracting.
The whole "wish" thing was so over the top--but maybe that works better for someone who loves the movie inspiration?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Going into this novel, I had never watched “It’s A Wonderful Life”, maybe that would have altered my feelings about the book. Overall it was a cute Christmas romance. The sections involving the angels were sometimes a distraction from the story - but again I think that has to deal with the premise of the trope. I did love the incorporation of drag queens because who does not love them. Bailey and Maria’s romance was cute and had slight angst and was a traditional holiday romance arc.
The narrator was really good. I have listened to upwards of 100 audiobooks and she very emotive in her voice and a great job.

3.75⭐️
I’ve never watched It’s a wonderful life but I loooooveeee christmas rom coms!!! so add that with sapphics is the best thing EVER!! this book was soo good, it made me smile and laugh which is exactly what a romcom should do.

i absolutely loved that the angels were drag queens, it was one of the best things about this book and just made it all the more fun.

This was so fun and different from most holiday romcoms I've read! Clara Angel's character was such a fun surprise. I love that this was a retelling of It's a Wonderful Life! This was a great concept and execution

𝚁𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐: 4⭐️
𝙶𝚎𝚗𝚛𝚎: Holiday Romance 📚

𝙼𝚢 𝚃𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚜:
A sweet and cozy holiday romance

𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
It’s a Wonderful Life vibes
Sapphic romance
Drag queen angles
Heartwarming and magic reads
Slow burn
Small town
Second chance

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝙸 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚍:
All the wintery vibes

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝙸 𝚍𝚒𝚍𝚗’𝚝 𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛:
Felt a little cheesy at times
I didn’t like that she was almost forced to stay in her hometown

I thought the audio was done really well and made the book more enjoyable