Although I have yet to meet lovely Freya North in real life, she feels like a true friend as I’ve been reading her books for almost 30 years. When I was working in Jersey back in 2011, I distinctly remember reading Chances and leaving my copy for a fellow hotel resident at breakfast as we’d been chatting at dinner the evening before about how much we loved Freya’s writing.
I first began blogging in 2015 and Freya’s The Way Back Home was one of the earliest reviews I posted too with The Turning Point one of my books of the year that first year. Add in the fact that her The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne was one of my books of the year last year, and you’ll see why I asked Freya to stay in with me to chat about her latest book today.
Let’s see what Freya has in store for us next:
Staying in with Freya North
Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Freya and thank you for agreeing to stay in with me. Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?
Well, I’ve chosen a short novel, Christmas at Flora’s House for a number of reasons. First and foremost, when I finish writing a book I genuinely miss the characters with whom I have hung out for all that time whilst writing their stories – so I really want to see them again.
I want to meet them for the first time! I understand that Christmas at Flora’s House is out tomorrow, 6th November 2025, so happy publication day for tomorrow!
Secondly, without sounding boasty-big-boots, I’m just really proud of this book. It is the first in a series of four novellas which I am independently publishing – and it hasn’t been so much a learning curve as a sheer rockface to grapple up!
Goodness – that’s a bit of a departure. I think new authors will be intrigued that such an established one like you had such a steep learning experience in self-publishing. How exciting! And it’s not boasty at all – after almost three decades of reading and loving your books I can vouch for them being wonderful.
Thanks Linda. But mostly, I just loved the setting of Harris in the Outer Hebrides. For me setting is never a backdrop, it is always a leading character in my stories.
If that is Harris Freya, I need to get there as soon as I can! What can we expect from an evening in with Christmas at Flora’s House?
This book will take you on a gentle adventure to one of the most remote parts of the UK so you can experience the beauty and wildness of deep winter there.
It will also take you on an emotional journey with Maggie and Roger from Cheshire – a long married couple who are spending their very first Christmas away from home. Maggie, in her mid 60s, strikes up an unlikely friendship with Shona who is in her early twenties and works in the shop. I love writing cross-generational stories. I had a little cry when I wrote parts of this story.
Now that’s my kind of read. I love a cathartic cry when I’m reading. I have a feeling I’m going to adore Christmas at Flora’s House.
What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?
Well, goodness me, you cannot read Christmas at Flora’s House without a Tunnocks teacake! Now, I don’t know about you, but I like to try and prise off the chocolate shell and then delight in the gooey fluff inside. I’ll probably have two or three but make a single ball out of the wrappers so that it looks like I’ve had just the one…!
Er, is there any other way to eat them?
I will also indulge in a wee snifter of a really peaty single malt – my Dad and I love sharing a whisky… my Dad always calls it his ‘medicine’ so imagine my delight to find that Roger, in Christmas at Flora’s House also calls it his medicine too!
I’ll join you in a medicine – but I’ll make mine a Bailey’s.
I’ll be wearing my favourite cosies: a hooded fleece, trackie bottoms and snuggly socks. If you expected me to be in high heels and festive sparkles, I’m sorry to disappoint! But just wait to see what the character Maggie wears on Christmas Day…
I can’t wait! I’m so looking forward to meeting Maggie as I have a feeling I’m going to love her.
Thank you so much for staying in with me to chat about Christmas at Flora’s House Freya. Grab the Tunnocks, pour out our ‘medicine’ and I’ll give readers a few more details about the book:
Christmas at Flora’s House
On the windswept dunes of the Isle of Harris in the wild and beautiful Outer Hebrides of Scotland, is a small white house with a big history. These days, Flora’s House is a holiday home – the perfect base for visitors from far and wide to explore the stunning and often dramatic landscape.
Arriving with one suitcase for clothes and another for their own decorations, retired couple Maggie and Roger have booked Flora’s House for the festive season. It’s their first trip to the island and their first Christmas away from home – but where does Roger disappear to on his long walks? And why is Maggie so taken with one particular member of staff at the local shop?
Christmas is coming: a time for family and togetherness, for joy and forgiveness. Out there, high on the hills and deep in the heather, across the shimmering lochs and hidden in the waves, this Christmas will soon become unlike any Maggie and Roger have had before.
Christmas at Flora’s House is available for purchase in the usual places, but LIMITED EDITION COPIES – each personally signed at Freya’s kitchen table – are available directly from Freya here.
The Book Lover’s Journal
In addition, Freya also created and edits The Book Lover’s Journal – a luxury, hardback desk diary and journal for bookworms, brimming with original content from over twenty bestselling authors with a donation made to BookTrust for every copy sold. I love my copies and you can get your 2026 copy here.
About Freya North
Freya North’s novels explore the emotions and complexities of everyday relationships and families. First published in 1996 with her ground-breaking debut Sally, Freya has written 15 further bestsellers including the highly acclaimed Little Wing and The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne. Translated into many languages, Freya won the Romantic Novel of the Year award for Pillow Talk and has been short-listed for others. A sense of place is central to Freya’s writing. Never a backdrop, always a leading character, locations featured in her novels include New England, France, British Columbia, North Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Norfolk, Freya’s own county of Hertfordshire and of course the Outer Hebrides.
Freya holds degrees in History of Art from the University of Manchester and the Courtauld Institute, London. She lives on a small farm in Hertfordshire with her dogs, horses and sheep. She enjoys ceramic classes and road cycling and loves to connect with her readers.
For further information, visit Freya’s website, follow her on X @freya_north or find Freya on Instagram and Facebook.
English (US) · 