gay always gets me i love it sm sorry ugh love girl kissers

-fellow girl kisser

After years of putting aside her dreams of travel and adventure, Bailey George is ready to leave Lanford Falls and her responsibilities behind on a long-awaited vacation to New York City. But when the volunteer who took over her leadership position for the town's Winter Wonderfest has a medical emergency, Bailey finds herself stuck in Lanford Falls. She gets roped into reassuming her old role, not wanting to let the town or her friends and family down.

Staying home seems slightly less terrible when Bailey runs into her high school crush, Maria Hatcher. A kiss they shared years ago in the town's mistletoe grove was a life-defining moment for them both. Maria quickly offers to pitch in and help with Winter Wonderfest. Her sunny disposition and holiday cheer perk up Bailey's grinchy feelings about everything.

However, one disaster after another snowball on the day of the festival. Bailey’s frustration boils over, and she ends up on the town's old wooden bridge. There, she meets fabulous drag queen Clara Angel. Bailey declares that she wishes she hadn’t been born in this Christmas-obsessed, suffocating small town. With a little of the magic Clara possesses, she shows Bailey how wrong she is about Lanford Falls and her place in it. And that with a little hope and some true holiday spirit, there is a way to attain all her dreams.

I thought that this was a cute Christmas read. It was very generic, but still cute. I liked the take on it’s a wonderful life. If you are looking for a cute lighthearted Christmas book I would suggest this.

Thank you Kelly Farmer, Alcove Press, and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review!

I really wanted to love this book, but I had such a hard time getting into it. I’m not sure if it was the pacing or the fact that I was slightly confused in the beginning about the angles and their role in the story. I think that a lot of people will really enjoy this book, but I just don’t know if it was the right book for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of It's a Fabulous Life!

I loved this book so much!! It gave me all the hallmark vibes but make it sapphic!! Are you kidding?? I’m so excited to read more from the author in the future. The queer representation was done so well. Please check it out. I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a great holiday romance. 😍

I adored this book! To base a book on such a classic movie (It's A Wonderful Life) is risky because there is so much to live up to, but Kelly Farmer really went above and beyond. This may be my new favorite holiday book. Do yourself a favor and check it out!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of It's a Fabulous Life!

Love, love, LOVED this book!! It was such a cute holiday romance. All the different representations was why I fell in love with it so much. Definitely need more books like this. Another thing I loved is that it had drag queens for the angels.

The tension between Bailey and Maria🔥. There was so much history, love and angst. Having the dogs as well was super adorable. There is so much I can say about this book but I don’t want to give too much away!

Thank you Alcove Press and Netgalley for the EARC! As always, my review is my opinion and thoughts.

its really unfortunate that I didn't like this one. I wanted to like this i really did but it was just way to corny for me. Don't get me wrong I love me a corny romcom but this one just pushed that way to far. Maybe its because I'm not a huge fan of Its a Wonderful Life or because I'm not a Christmas gay but I just couldn't do this one.
Now I say all of that but I definitely think there are plenty of people out there who would adore this. If you love cheesey Christmas movies or Hallmark movies you'll love this. Thus just sadly wasn't for me.

I really tried getting into this book, I could not get past the 10% mark. I just really didn’t know where it was going.

It's A Fabulous Life by Kelly Farmer is such a great twist on a classic. A retelling of It's a Wonderful Life with Drag Queen Angels, a queer couple, LGBTQIA2S+ friendly town, and a winter wonderfest. It was a lot of fun reading a Christmas story in August right before back to school!

I received an advance review copy for free from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

It's a Wonderful Life but make it Sapphic and instead of Clarance, the angel is a drag queen named Clara. The classic movie is a long-time favorite of mine, and this book was such an incredible homage to it in all the best ways!

Bailey George feels stuck in her town. She's tired of being the go-to for everyone and just wants to escape her hometown. Even a second chance with Maria might not be enough to change Bailey's mind about her misery. Enter the magical drag queen Clara Angel to show Bailey otherwise.

I loved Bailey's journey and her and Maria's dedication to their dogs! This story hit all the right marks for a cute Sapphic holiday romance.

A really cute queer holiday romance, perfect for fans of Ashley Herring Blake and Alexandria Bellefleur.
Very Hallmark holiday movie, filled with banter and chemistry and everything you could want in a queer romcom!

Kelly Farmer’s “It’s a Fabulous Life” is a sapphic retelling of the classic “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Initially I wasn’t sure if I’d like this story as some of the parallels between the movie and the book were a little distracting. Once I got past that though I very much enjoyed the narrative. The characters were rich and the romantic arc was just plain cute. The ending was satisfying, though like any interested reader I wouldn’t have minded an epilogue to see “where are they now?” Overall, this was a sweet and fun story. Would recommend for Christmas season or any season.

I received a copy via Netgalley and all opinions are my own.
Normally I'm all for a retelling, wish-fulfillment holiday book and they make up my favorite subgenre of holiday movies.
But I think the life lesson needed here is how to say NO and mean it.
This didn't draw me in as much as I hoped it would, unfortunately. But it was cute, Christmasy and sweet.

Swoon. Second chance, hometown, holiday Sapphic romance. Very cute, very enjoyable. I didn't want it to end.
I loved the drag queens. The acceptance of people in this small town - my wish for everywhere.
I could have used some more spice - the tension between Maria and Bailey was so sweet. And the dogs? YES!
Highly recommend.

This delightful small town holiday rom-com full of sapphic love and drag queens will make your heart grow three sizes. It’s a Fabulous Life is as sweet and heartwarming as a cup of hot cocoa on Christmas morning.

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.

I’ve never seen “It’s a Wonderful Life” so I figure I lacked a bit of prior knowledge that would’ve made this better. Probably a bit too sweet for me, but I can see why lots of people loved it.

What's so wonderful about the holidays? Bailey George has headed up the committee running Lanford Falls's annual Winter Wonderfest for the past 10 years, and it has taken a toll on her love for Christmas and for the town. Now that someone else is in charge, Bailey has plans to leave town during the festival and spend time in New York City -- maybe even check out new job possibilities. But when this year's organizer ends up in the hospital for emergency surgery, the mayor and everyone in town plead with Bailey to stay and keep everything moving. And when one of Bailey's helpers turns out to be Maria Hatcher -- her high school crush and the town's new librarian -- Bailey finds it difficult to say no.

After years of pitching in and helping out, though, Bailey feels like she'll never get to live her own life or do what she wants, and even a beautiful Christmas elf in the guise of a lovely librarian can't quite bring back Bailey's holiday spirit. It might take an angel -- or a drag queen Angel who wants to earn her wings -- to show Bailey just what Lanford Falls means to her, as well as what she means to Lanford Falls.

"It's a Wonderful Life" has never really been a movie that I truly enjoy, perhaps because it feels too sentimental and sweet to fit my own holiday mood. But this sapphic retelling/update of the classic movie, while still heartwarming and sweet, feels more relatable and humorous and satisfying. Bailey's burnout is so real in today's post-pandemic world, as is her desire to get away and find her own path, but she also continues to fight for what makes Lanford Falls so special (which regularly pits her against soulless real estate developer Felicity Potter). She's surrounded by a town full of characters, from her friend Kurt (cafe owner) to the mayor (Ellis), and while she regularly helps others, she somehow fails to see how much good she has done for the entire town. And all of that makes her happy ending so much more appealing.

Maria, her second-chance romantic interest, has a quiet strength of spirit: she willingly chooses to return to town for her dream job as librarian, she embraces a cheerful and kind attitude, and she makes the effort to communicate with Bailey about her interest and why things didn't work out in high school. She nudges Bailey to remember what is good about their town and about the holiday season, but she also doesn't set herself up as the reason Bailey should stay.

Most of all, I really enjoyed how the Angels, a trio of magical drag queens ("All drag queens are magical. Some are more magical than others."), were woven into the story, with not-quite-baby-queen Clara determined to help Bailey find her holiday spirit. I loved how they kept popping up, inserting a bit of humor into the story, and the final scene between Bailey and Clara had me cheering them both on.

It's a fabulous new holiday classic, one that I enjoyed so much more than the original (sorry, Jimmy Stewart). 4.5 stars rounded up.

Thank you, Alcove Press and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.

As a sucker for all things Christmas, I was super excited for a queer retelling of It’s A Wonderful Life and It’s A Fabulous Life was the perfect blend of a traditional Christmas story with a queer twist!

This story is perfect who needs to be reminded of the joy of the holiday season and I definitely recommend Farmer’s sapphic Christmas story.

Thank you NetGalley and the author for this ARC!

I was entertained with this book! It was a good read and I would absolutely recommend reading it to my friends. Quick easy read for me.