Famous for a Living

by Melissa Ferguson

Overview

You've Got Mail meets Confessions of a Shopaholic meets Parks and Rec--this romance might have to move mountains.

When her business partner is accused of serious financial crimes, superstar influencer Cat Cranwell—an engineered marvel of beauty, energy, and fun—falls from her penthouse perch. Des­perate to get away from the online trolls and paparazzi docu­menting her disgrace, Cat accepts her uncle’s offer to work with him in Kannery National Park, Montana. About as far as possible from life as she’s known it.

Cat’s world shifts from the swirling haze of likes and comments to lit­eral blizzards of frostbite temperatures and waist-deep snow. In place of negotiating brand deals, she finds herself negotiating at the ledge of a frozen lake with her die-hard Polar Bear Plunge coworkers. Instead of padding through the marble kitchen of her Manhattan loft, she’s sharing a tent-sized cabin with a roommate eager to bond like characters in sitcoms. But something curious is also happening in this overwhelming breath of fresh air as she reacquaints with the most honest parts of her­self and begins to ask the hard questions. Can Cat love herself with, and without, the world watching?

Then there’s that other tiny problem—she’s falling for Zaiah, the ruggedly handsome park ranger—and he hates anything remotely connected to social media, quite possibly her included.

Written with bestselling author Melissa Ferguson’s signature wit and charm, this laugh-out-loud romantic comedy of opposites attract is full of hilarious romp and a romance that will melt readers’ hearts.

• Sweet romantic comedy
• Stand-alone novel
• Book length: 80,000 words
• Includes discussion questions for book clubs

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780840702494
Publisher:	Nelson, Thomas, Inc.
Publication date:	05/16/2023
Sold by:	HarperCollins Publishing
Format:	eBook
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	164,796
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Melissa Ferguson is the bestselling author of titles including How to Plot a Payback, Meet Me in the Margins, and Famous for a Living. She lives in Tennessee with her husband and children in their growing farmhouse lifestyle and writes heartwarming romantic comedies that have been featured in such places as The Hollywood Reporter, Travel + Leisure, and The New York Post. Follow Melissa with over 800,000 other subscribers on Instagram and TikTok at @ourfriendlyfarmhouse or her newsletter: melissaferguson.com.

Editorial Reviews

04/10/2023

Ferguson (Meet Me in the Margins) illuminates the value of true friends and true love in this wholesome rom-com. Thirty-year-old social media influencer Cat Cranwell’s life looks perfect on paper: companies pay her exorbitant sums to promote their products, and she’s a partner in a new social media venture forecasted to become bigger than Facebook and Instagram. But when it’s revealed that her shady business partner has been illegally harvesting and selling data from the platform, both sponsors and so-called friends are quick to drop Cat. Cat flees Manhattan for a long-term stay with her uncle at the Kannery National Park in rural Montana. There she must put down her phone and learn to live in the moment. She also meets social media–hating park ranger Zaiah Smith. At first the ranger and the internet star seem to have nothing in common—but as they work together to preserve the park, they develop a deep bond. Ferguson makes a convincing and heartfelt case for how opposites attract, and a host of endearing supporting characters—especially Cat’s uncle Terry, her bestie Serena, and her quirky roommate, Mina—add charm. For readers who like their romance on the sweet side, this will hit the spot. Agent: Kimberly Whalen, Whalen Agency. (May)

Publishers Weekly

'Calling all fans of slow burn, opposites attract romance! Melissa Ferguson brings another fresh, delightful romcom in FAMOUS FOR A LIVING. Cat and Zaiah are an imperfectly perfect match with swoony chemistry and plenty of back-and-forth banter. The gorgeous national park setting provides a lush backdrop for this fish-out-of-water story as influencer Cat hopes to escape a media fallout and finds much, much more. Readers who loved THE CUL-DE-SAC WARS and MEET ME IN THE MARGINS won’t be disappointed in Ferguson's latest read!'

USA TODAY bestselling author Emma St. Clair

'FAMOUS FOR A LIVING is a heartwarming and funny read with quirky characters and the occasional moose. It takes the reader on a virtual escape to the mountains and hot springs of Montana and the lofts and busy streets of New York City. Melissa Ferguson has given us a sparkling, sweet rom-com with a lot of heart.'

author of MR. MALCOLM'S LIST Suzanne Allain

04/01/2023

Influencer Cat Cranwell did the unthinkable—she signed a contract without reading it first. Now her business partner has disappeared, she's being sued, and her lucrative brand partnerships are severing their connections with her. Retreating to a national park in Montana to work as the park's social media specialist, Cat slowly acclimatizes to living in a small town, in the winter, in a rustic cabin. It helps that everyone is so friendly. Everyone but park ranger Zaiah Hudson, whose stoic face shows only disapproval. But somewhere between a hike to Cades Peak, the polar-bear plunge, and the 10th Annual Skijoring National Race, Cat and Zaiah become friends and maybe something more. This small-town opposites-attract romantic comedy features likable, relatable protagonists and a plethora of delightful secondary characters. Cat and Zaiah are well drawn, with just enough backstory to show their motivations. The city-versus-country theme is well executed, and the storyline is paced well. VERDICT Ferguson's (Meet Me in the Margins) chaste, heartfelt, hilarious novel is perfect for fans of Sophie Cousens and Jen DeLuca.—Heather Miller Cover

Library Journal