The perfect book to get you into the holiday spirit or at least into realizing that Christmas time is a lot of work!!! Reading this short story about Claire and her 3 grown children had me laughing out loud and entirely identifying with trying to create the best memories when all gathered together. The reality is that it is a stressful time and there is always so much to do and sometimes things…and people get overlooked.

Oh. What. Fun. is a quick and quirky short story by Chandler Baker (author of Imposter Syndrome and The Husbands). I enjoy Baker's writing and thought this was a super fun way to get in the holiday spirit! It's a super short and fun read.

Some of us can’t wait for the holidays!

And some of us can’t wait for the holidays to be over! 🙄

Although the magic of Christmas may be bestowed upon children around the World by Santa Claus-in the CLAUSter household it is supplied by Mrs. CLAUSter-mom Claire!

Her family takes it for granted that she will make sure all of their annual traditions go off without a hitch, so what happens when Claire disappears in “Where’d You Go, Bernadette” style?

Although I didn’t find this “laugh out loud” funny, it was a charming Christmas novella, perfect to read to start the holiday season, now that Thanksgiving is over!

Available November 30, 2021!

This was a cute, quick read that I think most middle-aged Moms will relate to. I'll probably read anything Chandler Baker writes and her wit and charm shine through in the members of the Clauster family (I'm trying to figure out if that name is a play on "Claus" and "Claustrophobia", or is that just me? Am I the only one who automatically finishes the claus.... with ...trophobic during the holidays? Surely not.) If you need a fun escape from the family this holiday season, this one will do it! A short story, I read it in under 2 hours. I do think there's enough meat in there and underlying drama that this could have been a much longer book. That's really my only complaint - Baker crammed a full-length humorous family drama into a short story. I wanted ALL OF THE DIRT.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free eBook in exchange for an honest review.

This short story was an entertaining Christmas read, fully encapsulating the chaos that comes with the holidays - especially when you’re the mom! The Clauster family’s traditions and Chandler Baker’s insight into the different family members was relatable and funny! I recommend if you’re looking for a quick story to get you in the mood for the holidays.

Thank you NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for the ARC!

Oh What Fun is a delightfully fun short story that will resonate with many women who suffer from burn out during the holidays. Written with a wry, sharp humor, this quick tale should be read by all BEFORE the holidays begin so that hopefully many mothers will be spared some of the stress of the holidays. ;)

This is a cute novella that encapsulates the true chaos of Christmas and how we sometimes don’t realize the time and love a mom puts in to make it special for her family until it’s too late. It was a super quick read to get me in to the Christmas spirit.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

The chaos of the holidays mixed in with the craziness of family really shone in this short novel, turning it into an unbelievably nuts story. You have to really take a step back and look at this as a whole to appreciate what the author was trying to accomplish here - this is no Hallmark movie channel holiday Christmas movie. While not my cup of tea especially with how it was told (took me a while to understand why it being told this way), there were a couple of “Oh sh**” moments that had me laughing out loud.

This story was very delightful. I really enjoyed getting to know the Clauster family and being a voyeur into their holiday week. Chandler did a nice job of solidifying all the characters and caricatures of the family. I appreciated the inclusion of the son Tyler being gay, also. I found myself laughing through most of it but, also sympathizing with the matriarch who works so hard to prepare the holidays and is a bit taken advantage of. I think this was the perfect story to get me into the holiday spirit.

If moms make the magic at Christmas, who makes the magic for Mom??

Claire has snapped. As the matriarch of her family the magic of Christmas falls on her shoulders and all she wants is to be thanked for it.

This was a fun short story that as a mother of small children I enjoyed breezing through. I know I have many thankless years of stressful holidays ahead but only if I make it that way. Let’s hope I don’t go missing like Claire one day!

This little diddy will make you want to go hug your mom and thank her for all she does for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This short story by Chandler Baker was such a great, quick read! I chose it because it is set during Christmas time and is based on a mother who is constantly rushing around, desperately trying to make sure the holidays are special for her children, grandchildren and husband. Once again, I felt like Chandler wrote this book directed to me! The holidays can be so exhausting for moms and they often can get left behind. Definitely a cute, intriguing novella!

What a fun holiday read! It took me about halfway through to really be engaged and enjoy those laugh out loud moments, but overall it was a quick fun read. It felt genuine and perfectly described the chaos of family at Christmas time. A perfect way to kick start your holiday reading list.

Oh. What. Fun. by Chandler Baker is a quick, sharply observed read that rings true on every page. This Christmas tale is a whirlwind of all of the stresses that arise behind the scenes while creating the perfect family holiday. What appeals to me here is the relatability of Claire Clauster as she attempts to cater to the whims of the various personalities that have descended on her home in the days leading up to Christmas, each expecting to have their vision of the perfect holiday fulfilled by Claire herself. After all, that is the way it has always been.

If you are looking for a quick read to put you in a holiday frame of mind, for better or worse, then look no further.

Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for an ARC.

Thank you NetGalley and Amazon Reads for access to this new holiday short story from a favorite thriller writer, Chandler Baker. I have enjoyed Ms. Baker's two novels and appreciated that she could show off different writing themes and talents within a clever, well developed holiday story. I loved how she developed each of the Clauster family members, let the narrative unfold in an effective way as we move from the mother's planning for the holidays to her disappearance. This story is a great complement to Ms. Baker's timely focus in her thrillers on women's work and their emotional labor and mental load; we often have fun and joyful times due to the labor of a woman or women around the holidays... oh what fun indeed.
I appreciate Ms. Baker's care for writing stories that are for and about women in ways that resonate with me, that create a space for a laugh, even a self-deprecating one, and that create a way for women to be seen in writing in this way and ideally to help women life me give voice to the loads we carry. A humorous but insightful short story, I definitely recommend this as a welcome holiday read.

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A short story, I read this very quickly. Exactly what I was looking for in a Christmas read - fun, fast paced and festive. There were parts of the book that were confusing, however, overall it was an enjoyable novella.

This is only a mini review because it’s a short, quick novella. The story follows the Clausters during the holidays with all of their chaos and traditions, when their mother, the heart and soul of the family, goes missing.

This story is funny and heartwarming and has a few little twists that are fun to follow. It was the perfect read as I sat in the airport awaiting to board my flight back home after a visit with my own mother.

I haven't read anything by Chandler Baker before, but oh what fun this short holiday story was! We follow the Clauster family through the days before Christmas and I think it is always wonderful to see what traditions other families have. Most of the Clauster family traditions - well, actually, all of them - have always been planned by the mother, from wrapping the presents for the children and grandchildren to planning the meals and buying the ingredients. So the whole family is in for quite a shock when a couple of days before Christmas their mother disappears.

Even though this a short and quick read I thought that the characters were very well created and every little detail about the family was really well thought out. Thank you netgalley for my free copy, I really enjoyed it! 🎄

what a fun short story for the holidays! Really enjoyed the tale of the Clauster family holidays & their very long-suffering mother Claire! Women, especially, will find it resonating with them... My thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for the DRC

We all want the holiday season to be a special time for our loved ones. For a season that is supposed to be filled with comfort and joy, it often ends up being more of a stressed-out occasion for the ones who do all of the preparations.

Claire Clauster has always made the holidays sparkle for her family. She loves to follow traditions, feed her family their favorite meals, wrap, entertain, and keep everyone merry, doesn’t she? But this year, Claire is struggling a bit, feeling a little underappreciated, overwhelmed, and a whole lot tired, and she has every reason to be. When Claire finally reaches her limit, this holiday proves to be nothing like the Clauster family thought it would be.

Oh. What. Fun. was just what the title promised: it was fun. This story was packed full of family drama, humor, and plenty of mayhem. Many people understand the pressures to make the holidays a memorable time for their families, but I promise you this, the Clausters will definitely remember this holiday season, probably more than all of the others.

So, when I’m in the throes of baking, decorating, wrapping, and cleaning, and trying to get everything just right, I will try to sit back, take a deep breath, and not let the fa-la-la-ing stress get to me.

*4 Stars

3.5 Stars

If you are looking for a quick read to get you in the holiday spirit, Oh. What. Fun. by Chandler Baker will do just that! Not necessarily in that hallmark, cheesy, warm-and-fuzzy way, but a more real and relatable view of what it takes to make a holiday gathering special.

Claire Clauster works so hard to have her family together for the holidays and make it special. But do you think they appreciate it? Nope! Her grown children, and grandchildren, are so busy with their lives that they hardly notice or appreciate the effort their mother puts into the holidays. Well, they certainly will notice it when she's missing, won't they??

Being a short story, it was hard to sometimes follow the stories/all the characters introduced in the beginning, but it quickly gets into a flow and develops a cute story line that will get you into that holiday mood, and prepare you for the holiday crazy we all know and love!