Staying Away at Christmas (Short Story): The most romantic and festive short story you will read this Christmas!

by Katie Fforde

Add an extra sparkle to your Christmas with this exclusive, straight to digital short story from the Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller.

Miranda and her daughters have rented a cosy cottage for Christmas. The only trouble is, Anthony and his children are booked into the same place. In a moment of Christmas spirit, Miranda suggests they all spend yuletide together. Will the mistletoe help ease the tension and bring some cheer? Will romance blossom under the stars? Or will it be a Christmas they'd all rather forget?

Sunday Times bestselling author Katie Fforde is known for her wonderfully romantic stories, delectable heroes, and heroines we can all relate to. In Staying Away at Christmas her warmth and wit shine through in this enchanting short story. Turn on the Christmas lights, curl up on the sofa and immerse yourself in the deliciously readable world of Katie Fforde.

It also gives readers the first chance to read the opening chapter of her wonderful new novel, A French Affair, out in February.

Genres: Christmas, Romance, Chick Lit, Ebooks, Contemporary, Holiday, Short Stories

50 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 6, 2012

About the author

Catherine Rose Gordon-Cumming was born 27 September 1952 in England, UK, the daughter of Shirley Barbara Laub and Michael Willoughby Gordon-Cumming. Her grandfather was Sir William Gordon-Cumming. Her sister is fellow writer Jane Gordon-Cumming. Katie married Desmond Fforde, cousin of the also writer Jasper Fforde. She has three children: Guy, Francis and Briony and didn't start writing until after the birth of her third child. She has previously worked both as a cleaning lady and in a health food cafe.

Published since 1995, her romance novels are set in modern-day England. She is the founder of the "Katie Fforde Bursary" for writers who have yet to secure a publishing contract. Katie was elected the twenty-fifteenth Chairman (2009-2011) of the Romantic Novelists' Association. She is delighted to have been chosen as Chair of the Romantic Novelists' Association and says, "Catherine Jones was a wonderful chair and she's a very tough act to follow. However, I've been a member of the RNA for more years than I can actually remember and will have its very best interests at the core of everything I do."

Katie lives in Stroud, Gloucestershire, England with her husband, some of her three children and many pets. Recently her old hobbies of ironing and housework have given way to singing, Flamenco dancing and husky racing. She claims this keeps her fit. The writers she likes herself is also in the romantic genre, like Kate Saunders.

Reviews

[Emily Pankhurst · Rating 5 out of 5]

The writing was light and engaging. I was sucked into the characters' world and enjoyed their Christmas adventure. There were a couple of different elements in it to keep it interesting. It was easy to sit and read in one sitting (although I personally read it in two settings due to being busy!).

There weren't any chapters, so there was a good flow to the book. There was also just the right balance of detail and adventure to give the story a good pace.

The characters were good. Despite the length of the story, we got to learn quite a lot about the characters. I enjoyed following the families as they navigated their way through this new type of Christmas.

I enjoyed reading about the love and support shown by each of the characters throughout their time being together.

Lastly the settings. They were good. They were only lightly described as it was a character based story, but what there was grounded the story well and gave you a festive feeling.

Overall an enjoyable festive read that you could easily squeeze into a busy day.

[Zoé-Lee O'Farrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anytime I see Katie Fforde on a book I know I want to read it, I have read some awesome books by her. (Wedding Season and Living Dangerously are two of my favourites.) So I just had to include her book in my challenge!

Like every novella, it was too short!! I wanted more and I knew what I would get with one of Ms Fforde’s book but nevertheless, I loved it.

A mix up with a cosy cottage booking at Christmas sees Miranda and her two daughters staying with Anthony and his son and daughter in a four-bed cottage. Anthony frosty to begin with, a daughter going missing and some mistletoe all will leave you with a smile on your face and a happy ending! Plus it is still kind of Christmas so I had to include it really!

It makes your heart melt briefly (I mean that because it is so short!) and leaves you with a smile on your face. Perfect for the festive period!

[Lucy C · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short and sweet read just to pass away half hour of your day

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pleasant Christmas novella. Two single parents and their children have booked the same cottage for Christmas. Rather than argue they decide to share the cottage (because why not) and celebrate Christmas together.

Perfect enjoyable romance for that in-between period at Christmas where you can't concentrate on a full novel but want something light and feel-good to read.

[Mariam · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a cute story but dreadfully short. Perfect fodder for a Hallmark holiday special!

[Emmahlovesbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short festive read.

[Louise Marley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun, festive short story about two families who inadvertantly end up spending Christmas together.

[linda lipinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun Christmas story. Miranda and her family are staying in a cottage in Devon so is Anthony snd his family

3*

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two single parents manage to double book a holiday home for Christmas. This is a sweet easy read. 4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely adore Katie Fforde. She writes novels that just make me fall in love with falling in love. She’s incomparable. So when I saw she’d written a Christmas novella, I was thrilled. And for £0.84 I couldn’t go wrong, really. I love cheap e-book short stories, especially in the run up to Christmas, when I’m ridiculously busy at work and don’t have much time to read, so short stories are perfect.

Staying Away At Christmas is a fun, cute story about two families who don’t know each other, who end up having to spend Christmas at the same cottage after a booking mix-up. There’s Miranda, with her two daughters Isa and Lulu, and Anthony with his son, Dan, and his daughter, Amy. Neither want to cede that they’re in the wrong, and they eventually decide that spending Christmas together is the way forward.

I thought Staying Away At Christmas (a weird title, I will admit) was a brilliant read. It was a fabulous way to spend 20 or so minutes, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I actually haven’t read Katie’s latest novel, although it is on my Kindle, and it just reminded me of how good a writer Katie is, and made me desperate to read it. I very much enjoyed Staying Away At Christmas, and I hope Katie continues to provide us with short stories as they are excellent little reads.

[Kirsty & Erin Muir · Rating 4 out of 5]

This eBook short is about two families, Miranda’s and Anthony’s. Both single parent families with their parents trying to give their kids the perfect Christmas. But when both families turn out to have rented the same cottage for the holiday season the perfect Christmas they had both envisaged seems further from perfect than what they would have had, had they stayed at home.

This is an endearing short story where the tale of two families will warm your heart as they all embrace the new way to celebrate Christmas. Miranda, single mum and her two daughters are off to the cottage with a car stuffed with food and gifts. Anthony and his son and daughter, are off to the cottage to get out from the scrutiny and overbearing kindness of Anthony’s sister.

I instantly liked Miranda, but wasn’t so sure about Anthony. I kind of felt like he looked down on Miranda and was a bit of an arrogant, I’m Mr Right-All-The-Time sod at the start. Once his heart softened a little as his children gets to know Miranda’s he seems to lose some of his hard exterior.

This is a lovely little Christmas story that will fill you with the Christmassy warn ,fuzzy familial feeling just in time for the festivities!

[mrsljgibbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a little short novella of only 50 pages and was a perfect little ‘filler’ read. I read it really quickly and really enjoyed it.
I love a Christmas read, especially a novella and this one left me wanting more and I definitely wanted to find out what happened to both families after the story ended!
Miranda and her daughters have rented a cottage for Christmas. One problem - Anthony and his children are due to be there too....... So they decide to spend their Christmas together and get to know each other and their families a little bit better.
This book was a perfect festive read and left me with a smile on my face and a warm glow in my heart!

[Fabulous Book Fiend · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I'm a big fan on Katie Fforde's other writing so when I was recommended this novella, I had my doubts as to whether she could get across her magic in a much shorter number of words...however, I was pleasantly surprised. I am beginning to find that when I read novellas I want to continue the story, find out what would happen next, and this novella proved to be no exception. The story is about two families having rented the same cottage, and the single mother and single father, at first appear to hate each other, but things change and the two families have a unexpectedly wonderful Christmas! Whilst the storyline is predictable, it is just what is required for a quick read at this time of year, and Fforde describes the setting so beautifully, I just want to be there! I highly recommend this short yet sweet festive read whether you are a fan of this author or not!

[Debby Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a relatively short story but it had all the ingredients that I enjoy in a Katie Fforde novel, although I suppose I would have liked to know what happened next in the relationship between the principal characters. All the same it was a nice tale and I'll satisfy myself by assuming that they all lived happily ever after.

[Heleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I love Katie Fforde and her books, once again her short stories are just to short for my liking. What don't I like? Because they are so short, I feel the conclusion happens too fast to be realistic.
How I would've liked to read the longer version of this story!

[Samantha Tonge · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this Christmas short-story - the adult and children characters were appealing, as was the setting. However the ending was a bit abrupt for me and i would have liked the story to have played out further, especially the romance! Highly recommended, nevertheless.

[Emma Dargue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute little short story about two families coming together over the Christmas period and finding common ground to allow them to bond and possibly find a future. Katie Fforde as always crafts her characters so well that you believe that you could meet them on the street.

[Elizabeth (Miss Eliza) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Basically a VERY short meet cute for the divorced/widowed with children. All a little too perfect and pat, but like The Holiday you kind of just want to go to the cozy cottage and settle in and are OK with the rest of the faults.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Christmassy short story from one of my favourite authors - enjoyed it.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really enjoyable short story! I'm a Katie Fforde fan and this didn't dissapoint!

Can we have a follow up please?

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a sweet short Christmassy adventure with one of my favourite authors. It made me want to pack up the car and escape to the coast for Christmas.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Katie Fforde's novels, and this short story set at Christmas didn't disappoint. Just right for Christmas.

[Karrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good wish it was longer. First time I have a Book from this author will be looking forward to reading some more.

[Adele · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely little book with great characters which again left me wanting to know more about them. Would be good to do a sequel to a novella.

[Sandie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Would of enjoyed the book a lot more if it had been longer with more of a story line. It was all too nice and predictable.

[Kerrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it.

[Leonie Hinch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't often enjoy novellas but as usual Ms Fforde didn't disappoint my only complaint being I want to know more after that ending!

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a short story e-book which I really enjoyed.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short but sweet!

[Lynnette · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good Christmas short story.