Clara’s Verdict
There is a particular kind of festive romance that asks nothing of you except to enjoy it, and Christmas at Tillingford Hall – Flora Dunn’s second instalment in the Tillingford Hall series – delivers that experience with considerable charm. Nathalie Buscombe’s narration is note-perfect, the Hampshire setting is warmly evoked, and the central question – can you ever really work alongside a lying, thieving, cheating ex? – is posed with enough comic energy to sustain nine hours and forty-one minutes without a dull moment. I listened to the last third in one sitting, which tells you everything you need to know.
About the audiobook
Charlotte “Charlie” Patcham’s career as head of the Bath Physick Garden has curdled: vandals, underfunding, and a social life going to seed. When the chance arises to become Head Gardener at the prestigious Tillingford Hall in Hampshire, it should be an easy yes – except that Sebastian Seaton-Smyth, her lying, thieving, cheating ex, has also returned to work there after leaving in disgrace. Charlie and Seb must somehow prepare the estate for its Christmas opening concert while navigating years of hurt feelings and unresolved history.
Dunn complicates the central romance with the introduction of Steve Silver, the foxy tree surgeon who offers Charlie the kind of steady, uncomplicated affection that Seb cannot. The love triangle is handled with more intelligence than the genre usually manages: Charlie’s confusion between what she wants and what would be sensible for her feels genuinely dramatic rather than contrived. The novel is the second in the Tillingford Hall series but functions perfectly as a standalone; readers who enjoyed Summer at Tillingford Hall will simply have the added pleasure of returning to familiar characters.
Dunn’s prose is generous with both comedy and warmth, and the seasonal setting is used to full effect – the garden, the frost, the preparations for the Christmas concert all contribute to an atmosphere that is cosy without being saccharine.
The narration
Nathalie Buscombe is an excellent choice for this material. She handles the comic moments with deft timing and the more emotionally loaded scenes with real sensitivity, and her rendering of the ensemble cast – there are several well-drawn secondary characters – keeps the listening experience lively throughout. At just under ten hours, this is a substantial production, and Buscombe earns her end.
What readers say
The audiobook carries a rating of 4.5 from 24 listeners, and the written reviews are uniformly enthusiastic. Lynne S, reviewing in November 2025, praised it as “ideal reading for those dark autumn and winter evenings.” Michelle Ryles called it “heartwarming, uplifting and entertaining” and noted that it works perfectly as a standalone. The reviewer known as THE FRIENDLY BOOK NOOK observed that the characters are portrayed as genuinely flawed – “none of them perfect” – which makes them “believable and relatable.” Anonymous123 praised it for keeping you “chomping through to find out what happens next.”
Who should listen?
This is the natural choice for anyone who enjoys contemporary British romance with a seasonal setting, believable characters, and a real sense of place. Fans of Milly Johnson, Lucy Diamond, and Cressida McLaughlin will feel immediately at home. Having read the first Tillingford Hall book will add texture but is absolutely not required – Dunn ensures her readers are always oriented. An ideal audiobook for November and December evenings.
