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A Christmas Wish
A special Christmas short story from Amanda a wonderful, warm festive treat from a bestselling author.
Poppy is trying to make sure her children have the perfect Christmas. The fields are sparkling with snow, the turkey is roasting, and the tree is groaning with presents. But Poppy's beloved husband is fighting in Afghanistan, and the kids are missing their Dad.
Can all their wishes come true without him? Or will they have the perfect Christmas after all?
150 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2013
About the author
Amanda Prowse
86 books2,014 followersWelcome to my Goodrerads page. If you love relatable, emotionally driven, character lead fiction that shines a light on family life and the trials and tribulations that affect us all, then you’re in the right place!
My name is Amanda Prowse, now nearly sixty, I started writing in my mid-forties. I divide my time between London where I live by the river and our farm in the West Country.
I’m passionate about the representation of women. My characters range in age from six to ninety-six and come from all walks of life.
The women in my stories face adversity head on, they grab opportunity by the handful and run towards the horizon, often doing so with a large dollop of humour.
My stories sometimes punch you in the gut with their realism but also leave you with a glimmer of hope – and the feeling that you are not alone. Tales that will make you ugly cry and laugh out loud – sometimes on the same page!
I’ve sold millions of books, translated into dozens of languages all around the world. Described by the Daily Mail as ‘The queen of family drama’ my novels have won awards, including the coveted Sainsbury's eBook of the year Award and I’ve had two books selected as World Book Night titles; 'Perfect Daughter' in 2016 and 'The Boy Between' (co-written with my son Josiah Hartley) in 2022.
I’m a huge supporter of libraries and am a proud ambassador for The Reading Agency. My ambition is to create stories that keep people from turning the bedside lamp off at night, great characters that ensure you take every step with them and tales that fill your head so you can't possibly read another book until the memory fades...
I’m a passionate advocate of ageing naturally and gratefully, and see every wrinkle, every line, every blemish on my face as a badge of honour – remembering always what a gift ageing is. This part of my wider belief that when women support women, magical things can happen.
When the time comes – this is what I’d like written on my headstone:
‘Wrote great stories, made a cracking roast potato…’ – what more could I ask for?
Praise for Amanda Prowse:
‘Amanda Prowse is “The Queen of Family Drama”’ – Daily Mail
'You'll fall in love with this...' – Cosmopolitan
'Powerful and emotional drama that packs a real punch' – Heat
‘Heartbreaking and heartwarming in equal measure’ – The Lady
'Deeply moving and emotional’ – Red
‘Amanda Prowse handles her explosive subjects with delicate skill’ – Daily Mail
‘Captivating, heartbreaking and superbly written’ – Closer
‘Amanda Prowse is the new Amanda Prowse’ – Mr Prowse
‘Uplifting and positive but you will still need a box of tissues’ – Hello!
List of Amanda Prowse works in order (oldest at top, newest at the bottom)
NOVELS
Poppy Day
What Have I Done
Clover’s Child
A Little Love
Will You Remember Me?
Christmas for One
A Mother’s Story
Perfect Daughter
The Second Chance Café (was 'The Christmas Café')
Three and a Half Heartbeats
Another Love
My Husband’s Wife
I Won’t be Home for Christmas
The Food of Love
The Idea of You
The Art of Hiding
Anna
Theo
Kitty (was ‘How to Fall in Love Again; Kitty’s Story’)
The Coordinates of Loss
The Girl in the Corner
The Things I Know
The Light in the Hallway
The Day She Came Back.
An Ordinary Life
Waiting to Begin
To Love and Be Loved
Picking Up the Pieces
All Good Things
Swimming to Lundy
This One Life
Ever After
Life as Planned
The Way Home (publishing August 2026)
Holding On Tight (publishing January 2027)
MEMOIRS
The Boy Between
Women Like Us
NOVELLAS
The Game
Something Quite Beautiful
A Christmas Wish
The Ten Pound Ticket
Imogen's Baby
Miss Potterton's Birthday Tea
Mr Portobello's Morning Paper
I Wish…
A Whole Heap of Wishes
A Wish for Forgiveness
Fifteen Minutes
COMPILATION OF FIRST SEVEN NOVELLAS
Something Quite Beautiful
Notes on Books.
All books are standalone stories, but some do share characters who pop up for cameo appeara
My name is Amanda Prowse, now nearly sixty, I started writing in my mid-forties. I divide my time between London where I live by the river and our farm in the West Country.
I’m passionate about the representation of women. My characters range in age from six to ninety-six and come from all walks of life.
The women in my stories face adversity head on, they grab opportunity by the handful and run towards the horizon, often doing so with a large dollop of humour.
My stories sometimes punch you in the gut with their realism but also leave you with a glimmer of hope – and the feeling that you are not alone. Tales that will make you ugly cry and laugh out loud – sometimes on the same page!
I’ve sold millions of books, translated into dozens of languages all around the world. Described by the Daily Mail as ‘The queen of family drama’ my novels have won awards, including the coveted Sainsbury's eBook of the year Award and I’ve had two books selected as World Book Night titles; 'Perfect Daughter' in 2016 and 'The Boy Between' (co-written with my son Josiah Hartley) in 2022.
I’m a huge supporter of libraries and am a proud ambassador for The Reading Agency. My ambition is to create stories that keep people from turning the bedside lamp off at night, great characters that ensure you take every step with them and tales that fill your head so you can't possibly read another book until the memory fades...
I’m a passionate advocate of ageing naturally and gratefully, and see every wrinkle, every line, every blemish on my face as a badge of honour – remembering always what a gift ageing is. This part of my wider belief that when women support women, magical things can happen.
When the time comes – this is what I’d like written on my headstone:
‘Wrote great stories, made a cracking roast potato…’ – what more could I ask for?
Praise for Amanda Prowse:
‘Amanda Prowse is “The Queen of Family Drama”’ – Daily Mail
'You'll fall in love with this...' – Cosmopolitan
'Powerful and emotional drama that packs a real punch' – Heat
‘Heartbreaking and heartwarming in equal measure’ – The Lady
'Deeply moving and emotional’ – Red
‘Amanda Prowse handles her explosive subjects with delicate skill’ – Daily Mail
‘Captivating, heartbreaking and superbly written’ – Closer
‘Amanda Prowse is the new Amanda Prowse’ – Mr Prowse
‘Uplifting and positive but you will still need a box of tissues’ – Hello!
List of Amanda Prowse works in order (oldest at top, newest at the bottom)
NOVELS
Poppy Day
What Have I Done
Clover’s Child
A Little Love
Will You Remember Me?
Christmas for One
A Mother’s Story
Perfect Daughter
The Second Chance Café (was 'The Christmas Café')
Three and a Half Heartbeats
Another Love
My Husband’s Wife
I Won’t be Home for Christmas
The Food of Love
The Idea of You
The Art of Hiding
Anna
Theo
Kitty (was ‘How to Fall in Love Again; Kitty’s Story’)
The Coordinates of Loss
The Girl in the Corner
The Things I Know
The Light in the Hallway
The Day She Came Back.
An Ordinary Life
Waiting to Begin
To Love and Be Loved
Picking Up the Pieces
All Good Things
Swimming to Lundy
This One Life
Ever After
Life as Planned
The Way Home (publishing August 2026)
Holding On Tight (publishing January 2027)
MEMOIRS
The Boy Between
Women Like Us
NOVELLAS
The Game
Something Quite Beautiful
A Christmas Wish
The Ten Pound Ticket
Imogen's Baby
Miss Potterton's Birthday Tea
Mr Portobello's Morning Paper
I Wish…
A Whole Heap of Wishes
A Wish for Forgiveness
Fifteen Minutes
COMPILATION OF FIRST SEVEN NOVELLAS
Something Quite Beautiful
Notes on Books.
All books are standalone stories, but some do share characters who pop up for cameo appeara
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 14, 2021
A nice little Christmas short story to beat the rainy gloom. It has everything you would expect from a Christmas story: sweetness, moments of laughter and tears, happy endings, predictability. Don't expect much, and you'll not be disappointed.
January 1, 2022
I just wanted a short Christmas book because I didn't feel like I'd read anything REALLY Christmassy. So choosing a free book from the online library with the word Christmas in it seemed like the best bet.
It was oke.. Very short (I know it said that it's a short story). But Goodreads said 177 pages so let's go.
It ended up only being 62 pages and the rest turned out to be previews for FOUR other books the author wrote...
The ebook said that I had read 37% (!!!) of the whole book but that was the whole story. That's it.
Oke the first preview was about the protagonist but I'm not interested enough in her life (from the 62 pages I read about it) to actually start reading the book (or first chapter preview).
Good start to the 2022 reading year... Can only get beter, right? :)
It was oke.. Very short (I know it said that it's a short story). But Goodreads said 177 pages so let's go.
It ended up only being 62 pages and the rest turned out to be previews for FOUR other books the author wrote...
The ebook said that I had read 37% (!!!) of the whole book but that was the whole story. That's it.
Oke the first preview was about the protagonist but I'm not interested enough in her life (from the 62 pages I read about it) to actually start reading the book (or first chapter preview).
Good start to the 2022 reading year... Can only get beter, right? :)
August 25, 2019
A Christmas Wish by Amanda Prowse
I really enjoyed reading this Christmas story in the middle of the summer, but then I love Amanda Prowse’s writing. Yes, it was a little predictable, but I don’t think this took anything away from it’s charm and lovely characterisations.
Poppy’s husband Martin is away fighting in Afghanistan, and Poppy is finding things very hard. It doesn’t help that her daughter, Peg’s, teacher is so vile at parent’s evening. As Poppy and the 2 children prepare to make their way to their friend Claudia’s house for Christmas, Peg makes a special wish.
I really enjoyed reading this Christmas story in the middle of the summer, but then I love Amanda Prowse’s writing. Yes, it was a little predictable, but I don’t think this took anything away from it’s charm and lovely characterisations.
Poppy’s husband Martin is away fighting in Afghanistan, and Poppy is finding things very hard. It doesn’t help that her daughter, Peg’s, teacher is so vile at parent’s evening. As Poppy and the 2 children prepare to make their way to their friend Claudia’s house for Christmas, Peg makes a special wish.
December 22, 2024
A cute story but nothing much here to read it was shorter then short
December 17, 2019
A great short Christmas story from the Queen of emotional family drama, Amanda Prowse. Perfect length to read in one sitting with a cup of tea, a piece of cake and a nice fleecy blanket.
Poppy Day is trying to make her children's wishes come true and give them the best Christmas ever, even though their Dad is far away fighting in Afghanistan. However, on Christmas Eve, maybe there is magic in the air and her daughter's wish of "Daddy coming home" may come true if you truly believe?
I really enjoyed it and have now downloaded the rest of Amanda's short stories to see me through until Christmas Day.
Poppy Day is trying to make her children's wishes come true and give them the best Christmas ever, even though their Dad is far away fighting in Afghanistan. However, on Christmas Eve, maybe there is magic in the air and her daughter's wish of "Daddy coming home" may come true if you truly believe?
I really enjoyed it and have now downloaded the rest of Amanda's short stories to see me through until Christmas Day.
January 26, 2019
I didn't realise this little gem existed until tonight, although it was only a mini e-book I love the Poppy Day books & it was nice reading this, realising that although Miles died in the car explosion his mother was now the surrogate grandmother Poppys children had never had & were the grandchildren Claudia would never have.
January 9, 2024
Poppy missed her husband, Peg and Max missed their Dad and their world seemed to be falling down around them. Scholl was not going well and one of Peg's School chums told her there was no Santa. What else could go wrong? Peg was not even sure she believed in God. Would that all change on Christmas morn. Read this book and she how their beliefs change.
November 17, 2020
Christmas Homecoming
A lovely short story of a family Christmas. Family doesn't always have to be blood. Sometimes the family we choose means most and Christmas is a time for being with the people you love.
A lovely short story of a family Christmas. Family doesn't always have to be blood. Sometimes the family we choose means most and Christmas is a time for being with the people you love.
December 9, 2018
A Christmas short story. Loved it.
April 20, 2020
Love your books
January 7, 2021
Very enjoyable read.
Short and sweet, but definitely worthwhile. I was left feeling that I wanted more, which is always a good thing!
Short and sweet, but definitely worthwhile. I was left feeling that I wanted more, which is always a good thing!
November 5, 2022
A lovely short story full of the magic of Christmas 🥰 I just wish it had been longer. A great little read.
November 21, 2022
A short story, but filled with family, love, hope and grief. If only Pegs dad could come back from Afghanistan for Christmas. That’s what she wanted most except for maybe a Guinea Pig.
May 31, 2020
Read it before will you remember me?, and after Poppy Day. It is a perfect intro to Will you remember me? It is a sweet heart warming Christmas story.
January 1, 2014
This really was a wonderful little book. Another short story that I've really enjoyed, I love how the author managed to give me, as the reader, characters that you cared and felt for - emotionally, laughing with them, crying with them. Setting scenes, describing history/memories and still enabling the story line to flow seamlessly, without feeling too rushed, or not enough boring. So I thought it was lovely :) I have recommended it to family and friends, I know Christmas is over but I don't think it matters that much, I think it could be enjoyed all year round, but that's my opinion :)
This book is a sequel to Poppy Day, but I hadn't read that or any others in the No Greater Love series, and with this book I didn't feel like I needed to read it, I think this is set about 10 years later? I guess if you've read the book maybe certain things that were spoken about may have been different if I'd read it and obviously you would have a much better understanding of the characters. Poppy and Mart are their parents, but Mart is away in the army and he won't be home for Christmas this year. This is the main thing the book is set around, a sad reality that many families are going through, not just missing Christmas or Birthdays, but missing milestones in their children's lives - first words, learning to walk, losing their first tooth, learning how to ride a bike, first day at school for example.
That's why I think Pegs character helped to balance the sad situation the family was in, with her humour and wit.
In my little update (halfway through) I mentioned Peg, the cute little seemingly 'innocent and naive' but she is a little mischievous and her character was so real I literally was highlighting notes, some of the things she said or did and I was sending them to my Mum, because I kept seeing a lot of me in her (at that age.) The son Maxy (he was only 2/3 years old) but he was lead by his older sister! If you've already read this book - One part in particular captures it perfectly... Which is when Peg tells Max about the 'wrapped up Orange' or 'a bell' Again, it was so funny and I think it is because it is true! I know I've had that pulled on me when I was younger by my parents. When you can relate to characters, in this case taking me back to my childhood, it really helps.
Anyway, this is very deserving of 5 stars, I think I went though every emotion possible from tears of joy, to tears of sadness, tears from laughing and ultimately tears, and smiles, of happiness (I think I might be a bit of an emotional wreck!!)
Read it! :D x
(At the end of this story, there was the first chapter of each book from the No Greater Love series. Very smart because now I want to buy them!!)
This book is a sequel to Poppy Day, but I hadn't read that or any others in the No Greater Love series, and with this book I didn't feel like I needed to read it, I think this is set about 10 years later? I guess if you've read the book maybe certain things that were spoken about may have been different if I'd read it and obviously you would have a much better understanding of the characters. Poppy and Mart are their parents, but Mart is away in the army and he won't be home for Christmas this year. This is the main thing the book is set around, a sad reality that many families are going through, not just missing Christmas or Birthdays, but missing milestones in their children's lives - first words, learning to walk, losing their first tooth, learning how to ride a bike, first day at school for example.
That's why I think Pegs character helped to balance the sad situation the family was in, with her humour and wit.
In my little update (halfway through) I mentioned Peg, the cute little seemingly 'innocent and naive' but she is a little mischievous and her character was so real I literally was highlighting notes, some of the things she said or did and I was sending them to my Mum, because I kept seeing a lot of me in her (at that age.) The son Maxy (he was only 2/3 years old) but he was lead by his older sister! If you've already read this book - One part in particular captures it perfectly... Which is when Peg tells Max about the 'wrapped up Orange' or 'a bell' Again, it was so funny and I think it is because it is true! I know I've had that pulled on me when I was younger by my parents. When you can relate to characters, in this case taking me back to my childhood, it really helps.
Anyway, this is very deserving of 5 stars, I think I went though every emotion possible from tears of joy, to tears of sadness, tears from laughing and ultimately tears, and smiles, of happiness (I think I might be a bit of an emotional wreck!!)
Read it! :D x
(At the end of this story, there was the first chapter of each book from the No Greater Love series. Very smart because now I want to buy them!!)
November 4, 2019
This is a short novella, and I’m afraid a little predictable. Poppy’s husband is away with the army, and her daughter makes a wish … the book is called the Christmas Wish. It doesn’t take a genius to work out what happens.
It is filled with lots of Christmas joy, though, which is what I was after to try and get me in the Christmas spirit and apart from the predictability it was well-written and heartfelt.
I wish I’d known there were two other books about these characters as I may not have chosen to read this just yet and would have grouped it with its follow-ons maybe next year or next month if I have time, but never mind.
It served its purpose as a small Christmas filler book and was a pleasant enough read.
Thanks for reading! If you want to see more of my reviews visit www.pinkanddizzy.com
It is filled with lots of Christmas joy, though, which is what I was after to try and get me in the Christmas spirit and apart from the predictability it was well-written and heartfelt.
I wish I’d known there were two other books about these characters as I may not have chosen to read this just yet and would have grouped it with its follow-ons maybe next year or next month if I have time, but never mind.
It served its purpose as a small Christmas filler book and was a pleasant enough read.
Thanks for reading! If you want to see more of my reviews visit www.pinkanddizzy.com
January 3, 2014
A Christmas heartstring puller! Wonderful to revisit the character of Poppy in all her army wife/ mommy/ "girl done good" glory. Lots of subtle references to Poppy Day and Clover's Child, other titles in the No Greater Love series. I defy anyone not to shed a little tear at this one.
November 24, 2014
A very Christmassy feel good story!! Loved the characters and of course the very happy ending!!!
December 4, 2018
Short but sweet, as always beautifully written and just what one needs to read in December :)
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews