Valentine Nook

A Grumpy Sunshine Age Gap Romance (The Valentine Nook Chronicles, Book 1)

De: Lulu Moore

Narrado por: James Joseph, Andi Arndt

Lando Burlington, the eleventh duke of Oxfordshire, is back on the market as England’s most eligible bachelor. It’s a title he’d sooner burn to the ground, especially following the fallout of his ‘almost’ wedding. It doesn’t help that his mother is trying to set him up with every single woman in the country, none of whom he’s interested in. The final straw is when she rents out his former pre-marital home to Holiday Simpson. . . America’s sweetheart and box-office favorite.

Holiday needs a break from the chaos of Hollywood—replacing red carpets for green fields—and Valentine Nook, Oxfordshire, seems just the place to do that.

But she didn’t count on her new landlord. With his piercing blue eyes and hard set jaw, he’s as handsome as he is grumpy. And that’s nothing to say of his bronze, sculpted muscles she wishes she hadn’t noticed when she took a wrong turn down a country lane.

For Lando, avoiding Holiday is impossible in a village as small as Valentine Nook, but he starts to wonder if maybe she’s not as terrible as he originally thought. Especially when she smiles at him.

It doesn’t matter though, Holiday’s visit is temporary. This isn’t the movies. She’s not looking for her one true love, and doesn’t need to be swept off her feet. Except as summer turns to autumn it’s clear they’re going off script, and Lando must find a new ending to their story before it’s too late.

©2025 Lulu Moore (P)2025 Lulu Moore

Delightful, Fun, and Spicy Romance!

This is a delightful, fun, and spicy romance featuring Lando, an English Duke, and Holiday, an American actress. Holiday takes to the English countryside to escape the rigors of living her life as a famous, award-winning actress, only to come across the Burlingtons, the family whose land she is staying on. Lando, the oldest of 5 siblings, takes his job and life a bit too seriously, especially after a dramatic breakup. The Burlingtons are such a fun family, and I’m excited to read the rest of the series as each sibling gets their turn at love.

Lando and Holiday’s connection is flirty and spicy as they bond over working too hard and needing to find fun in their lives. The audiobook is especially well done with the talents of Andi Ardnt and James Joseph. I loved their performances as well as the story!

In this book:
Small town/village
English Duke/Hollywood actress
Billionaire/Millionaire
Age gap
Farm living
Siblings dynamic

Super cute!

Holiday and Lando are beyond adorable in this cutesie small town romance. James Joseph blew me away with his accents, and Andi Ardnt was also stunning in this dual audio. I adored watching these two pretend they weren’t into each other and then fall hard and fast. I love their support of the other, and I thought the whole family was hilarious. I am BEYOND ready for Alex and Haven!

Stunning, fun quintessential romance!

After a very public scandal with his fiancé cheating on him on the night before their wedding, Orlando, The Duke of Oxfordshire, is not interested to meet another person or entertain the idea of love in the slightest. When a Hollywood Starlet, Holiday, moves into the cottage on their property he is not pleased - but the moment he lays eyes on her and realizes who she is, he is instantly enamored by her beauty and tenacity.
Holiday is at the height of her career after winning an Oscar and at the lowest in her personal life. Burnt out and exhausted, she books a cottage in the countryside of England to recenter herself and recuperate. Their first meet is one for the books with her running away from him, but once they discover their identities, there is a level of tension that neither of them anticipated. Their attraction for one another is palpable and as much as they try to fight it, they end up falling deep into it instead.
Watching them both soften and show vulnerability with each other made their love story a beautiful one. They compliment one another in the best ways and inspire each other to be the best versions of themselves. With demanding careers where one requires constant travel and the other requires constant presence in one place, navigating how they can make their budding romance last for the long haul becomes their biggest challenge - prompting the age old question - can love conquer all? I read the novella last year and was looking forward to this story. It did not disappoint and I am excited for the rest of the series!
James Joseph and Andi Arndt were phenomenal on this title. Andi is a staple in the audiobook community and can do no wrong in my eyes - or my ears! Her work is impeccable every time and as many dozens of times I've listened to her I never tire of it. I haven't listened to a title with James on it in a long time and I am so glad I came across this one! He is incredibly talented and I hope I get to hear him on another title soon.

Duke meet-cute

I adored this couple. She is an actress trying to have quality me time where she's left alone. He gets his cottage rented without his authorization to said actress. And the foundations for a great story are set in motion. I loved the story, the different characters and of course the story. This was a rather entertaining book. It is my first by Lulu but I know I'll be reading more.
I read to it with my ears, and the narration was spot on. Both actors where fantastic in their characterizations. As a long time Andi fan, everytime I know she's narrating a book, I know it will be good.

LOVED THIS

Lulu did such a wonderful job setting the scene for this book. I felt like I was in the English countryside and in fact I want to go! Holiday is an actress who escapes to Valentine Nook for a much needed break. She has a hilarious meet cute with grumpy Lando and I was kicking my feet while listening. I felt for Lando and everything he went through and I love that both Holiday and Lando found some healing in each other. The Burlington family dynamic is hilarious and there were so many funny moments. I am giddy excited for the rest of this series!

Read if you love:
- small town romance
- billionaire
- grumpy x sunshine
- duke mmc & celebrity fmc
- found family
- age gap