Famous for a Living was a light, charming read that didn’t blow me away but had its sweet moments. I appreciated the stunning cover, the witty tone, and the fresh setting in a Montana national park, which made me want to visit. While I found the romance slow and not super compelling, I enjoyed the deeper look at life beyond social media. That said, the pacing felt uneven, and I struggled to fully connect with the characters at times. It’s a cozy, feel-good read that’s perfect for a laid-back summer day.

This was a good book but it wasn't earth shattering. These books are perfect for beach and summer reads when you don't have to pay a lot of attention and its okay if you aren't super invested. The cover is amazing though! And I did like how it was more than a romance and dealt with a lot of other life issues.

A charming, heartwarming rom-com about an influencer whose life — and love life — gets a major reality check. Funny, sweet, and surprisingly thoughtful about fame, identity, and connection. Perfect for fans of feel-good romances with a bit of depth.

I thought this was a cute story and some moments were quite memorable.

What I loved:
- I love the chapter/title page Polaroid illustrations!
- I enjoyed the influencer and park ranger aspects of the story. He’s the rugged Park Ranger, and she’s the flashy, social media, city girl. Opposites attract for sure. 
- The Montana descriptions really made me want to go visit!
- The story certainly does put into perspective how much our phones and social media impact us.

What I didn’t:
- This is a slow burn, kissing only romance, which I have zero problem with, but I need to connect with the story in other ways if so, and it didn’t quite hit that mark for me.

If you’re looking for a cute, sweet romance — an opposites attract, slow burn — then I think you’ll like Cat and Zarah’s story. 

*Famous for a Living* is a super fun and charming read that dives into the world of influencers, fame, and finding what really matters. It follows Cat Cranwell, a social media star who ends up in a small Montana town and has to figure out life without all the glitz and filters. It’s light, witty, and has just the right amount of romance and heart. If you’re into feel-good stories with a modern twist and a swoony love interest, this one’s a great pick.

This was another fun romantic comedy by Melissa Ferguson. This story was good but just didn't resonate with me the way her other books have.
I think one reason is that I recently read another book with a similar theme of the protagonist being a social media influencer and enjoyed it more.

This book was okay! I soft dnf’d around the 30ish mark? I’m just going back through my ones I didn’t give feedback on to check them off the list, since I didn’t finish I didn’t want to leave feedback before but now I am.

"Famous for a Living by Melissa Ferguson is a delightful and charming read! With her sharp wit and engaging characters, Ferguson crafts a story that's both heartwarming and humorous. It's a fun exploration of love, fame, and the unexpected twists life can take. A must-read for anyone in the mood for a feel-good, lighthearted story!"

Let me start adressing the fact that this cover is GOALS.
Now onto the story. This is such a great read that as some romance on the side but mainly focus on the journey of the FMC. And honestly that is so refreshing.
It's the perfect cosy read for those who love a good opposits attract story.

I try not to hate Famous for a Living. But I just can't. The story is about the heroine who is social media influencer that lost everything. She was forced to leave big city to middle of nowhere. It could be very interesting. Miss Ferguson has the right concept about the story.
What I hate is the self center writing style. Maybe it is because the theme of the story is social media influencer or something that Miss Ferguson trying to connect with generation X or milenial to understand her story.

Cat Cranwell is an online influencer who is unceremoniously cancelled when the new social network she’s promoting is found to be selling data.

My first impression of Cat was shallow. My second impression was that she was clever enough to know she really should read a contract before signing it … but not clever enough to stand up for herself and insist that she (or her lawyer) actually read the contract. I almost stopped reading at this point. In fact, I did stop reading, only to return to the book several months later.

Anyway, Cat’s uncle invites her to his small town in Montana, where he has a job she can do while she waits for the hullabaloo to die down. He’s the head Park Ranger for Kannery National Park, and hires Cat to reenergise their social media profiles and marketing in general.

So Cat catches a flight to the middle of nowhere, taking more suitcases than she should reasonably have been allowed to check in. (Who needs six suitcases to go anywhere?) She meets her uncle’s quirky colleagues, including the elusive Zaiah Smith.

Cat’s story is told entirely in first person from her point of view. I found that a little hard going … and I say that as someone who usually loves first person. I think my problem was that I found Cat annoying and unlikeable for the first third of the book. She mellowed slightly in the middle third and was quite likeable by the end (although I still don’t see what Zaiah saw in her, or vice versa).

The cover gives off definite rom-com vibes, and there were some funny lines and even funny scenes. The writing was good and occasionally great, although there were a few times I had to backtrack because it felt like I’d missed something important (like Zaiah giving any indication he was romantically interested in Cat. Or vice versa). As such, the story was definitely more com than rom.

The story did make some solid points about social media use and addiction. However, I would have liked to have seen that spread more evenly throughout the story. I guess it could be argued that the whole story was a warning against social media addiction, but that wasn’t the impression I got.

Famous for a Living is categorised as Christian fiction, and I kept waiting for Cat–or Zaiah, or anyone–to show some kind of Christian message (like how we, as Christians, should look to God rather than social media for love). But it never came. Yes, I guess it was a clean and wholesome romance, but I would have liked to have seen more of a faith element, and much more of a romance.

If you enjoy rom-coms from authors like Bethany Turner, then you may enjoy Famous for a Living.

Thanks to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

3 stars. This is one I would't classify as a romance. Fiction, yes :) Pacing felt a bit off if this was going to be a romance. Regardless, a quick cozy read. Thanks netgalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

What happens when a social media influencer gets cancelled? She moves from New York to a national park in Montana, as you do.

I loved the description of the park as I am a fan of going to national parks. I did have to suspend belief with a few facts, like the mason jar popularity and visitors to national parks, but I did not find that detracted too much from the story.

This is a super, super, super slow burn. Like the book is nearly over before they go on a date. Again, that didn't bother me too much, but I would have preferred more interaction in the process of that slow burn. The story seemed like the romance aspect was more of an afterthought and that this was much more intended to be a women's fiction book.

But overall, I did enjoy the book.

I received a free copy of Famous for a Living and this review is completely my own.
I thought this sounded like a fun, lighthearted comedy and it was, just not for me.
It is about social media and it's lighthearted for sure.

I just realized I forgot to write my review for this from 2022. I love Melissa Ferguson's books, but this one fell a little short for me. I just couldn't get into the complete opposites of the characters and their lifestyles working together. There was a lot of humor I loved though as always with Melissa's books.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts are my own.

I really wanted to love this book but it was such a miss for me. I was so looking forward to a book revolving around social media and how it affects are lives in today's society. However, Kat was an incredibly unlikeable and unrelateable character for me. She was so self absorbed in herself that it took away from the overall story. I loved the side characters and their passion for the National Forest. Those characters were very well developed and I wanted to know more about them outside of being associated with Kat. Ferguson's writing style flowed well and gave readers a great picture of the story she created.

Famous for a Living by Melissa Ferguson was a refreshing take on the celebrity trope. I really like the topics it touched and it was very charming too.

I enjoyed this one! The premise was cool and I liked the National Park setting! The side characters were amazing and I loved the found family element. The overall message about social media was great as well. Overall, I really liked it!

This was such a great read by Melissa Ferguson! I loved following Cat's story and rooting for her success and watching her grow. And the author's writing style was so cozy and enjoyable!

This book was just meh for me. I've read some social media influencer based rom coms before and they were cute and fun and the main character usually had some redeeming qualities despite the fact that they were out of touch with reality. However, the execution of this story fell flat for me. Cat felt one-dimensional and lacked depth, making it hard to connect with her struggles. What kept me intriqued were the supporting characters - I would love to work at a state park with them! The plot was kind of predictable and didn’t offer any surprising twists or turns. While there were some humorous moments, the story felt shallow and left me wanting more substance and character development.