Book Title: NEWBOURNE PARK
Character Name: Lady Olivia Lambert
How would you describe your family or your childhood?
It was a jolly, carefree childhood punctuated by the usual rude awakenings: the abrupt knowledge that my brother would inherit everything, that my father was as philandering as the rest of his generation, that my mother drank rather a lot as a result. I had a stream of ponies and boarding schools and got on with it without much fuss.
What was your greatest talent?
Do you mean party tricks or life skills? I’ll choose the former. I had a little Annie Oakley routine whilst out on the hunt before I was married, shooting targets on horseback. It was a good laugh. Goodness, I haven’t done that for ages.
Significant other?
None since my late husband. I’m too busy for all that bother. I do miss Edward quite terribly at times, but I get on with it.
Biggest challenge in relationships?
I suppose I lack a certain patience. I’m the sort who draws a straight line between where I am now and what needs fixing, and it seems the current generation is increasingly incapable of seeing the world the same way. All this dithering self-examination whilst determinedly hiding from one’s self. It’s terribly boring to me.
Where do you live?
Newbourne Park, Kemp Newton, Gloucestershire, England.
Do you have any enemies?
Oh, probably. I don’t concern myself with that. When issues arise, I deal with them swiftly and unequivocally.
How do you feel about the place where you are now? Is there something you are particularly attached to, or particularly repelled by, in this place?
Newbourne is more than my home; it’s my purpose. Everything I do is in service to this house and land. I am rather attached to my rose garden, which I’ll admit I tend to dote on to the detriment of other more pressing areas. I neglect the Tudor hunting lodge. Horrible place, but Grade I protected, so what can you do?
Do you have children, pets, both, or neither?
I have a son, three dogs, seven horses and ponies and various other animals. By far the most intelligent among them is my Friesian mare, Poppy.
What do you do for a living?
I’m not sure I understand the question.
Greatest disappointment?
I rather expected to have a daughter in addition to a son, but life rarely accommodates one’s expectations to the letter.
Greatest source of joy?
Joy? Don’t be ridiculous.
What do you do to entertain yourself or have fun?
I rather like hunting. I have a little gathering once a month, in addition to the occasional shoot. I also dabble in art curation.
What is your greatest personal failing, in your view?
Oh, we’re dipping into self-flagellation with this line of questioning. Let’s see…I never took to the piano and gave up my lessons earlier than my mother would have liked. Will that suffice?
What keeps you awake at night?
I do worry about my son, Freddie. How he’ll cope in the future. I’d hate for everything I’ve held together to fall apart the instant I exit the stage.
What is the most pressing problem you have at the moment?
Recently, certain aspects of my life that I had hoped would remain contained and private have spilled out past the gates of Newbourne. In the interest of keeping said aspects further contained, I will refrain from elaborating.
Is there something that you need or want that you don’t have? For yourself or for someone important to you?
It would be nice to find a cure for my various conditions, I suppose, but there’s no sense moaning about things we cannot control. Far better to effectively manage those we can.
Why don’t you have it? What is in the way?
Perhaps because I’ve frittered away too many hours granting interviews like this one? And with that, I won’t keep you. Have a lovely day. Spectacular weather, isn’t it?
From the USA Today bestselling author of Diavola comes a darkly funny, blood‑soaked horror novel about the terrifying seduction of unlimited power.
After years of caring for her dying mother, Martha Shaw feels empty, exhausted, and far older than her twenty‑six years. So when her brother invites her to a weekend getaway at the opulent, two‑hundred‑acre country estate where his friend works, Martha reluctantly agrees. After all, what's the harm? The owners and all their staff will be gone. Security cameras will be off. The house will be theirs. For the first time in years, Martha might actually have fun.
And it is fun, taking advantage of the historic mega‑mansion and its vast grounds. Martha begins to feel human again. But when night falls, the rightful master of Newbourne Park returns—and she’s not alone. Suddenly, being caught trespassing is the least of their worries, because what steps out into the moonlight is something vicious. And hungry.
What began as a lark becomes a bloody battle for survival, where greed and morality collide—and a woman must choose to bow, break, or bite back.
Horror | Fantasy Dark [ G.P. Putnam's Sons, On Sale: September 29, 2026, Hardcover / e-Book / audiobook, ISBN: 9798217177769 / eISBN: 9798217177776 ]
Jennifer Thorne is an American author of books for adults and young readers who writes from a nineteenth-century Cotswold cottage in the medieval market town of Minchinhampton alongside her husband, two sons, and various other animals.
Born in a small town in Tennessee, Jenn grew up bouncing between her parents’ homes in various other states and countries, with books as her constant companions, before returning to New York as a teen to study drama at NYU. Though acting had been her lifelong dream, she found that she was more fulfilled by writing performance vehicles for her friends than acting in them herself. After a move to Los Angeles, she detoured into writing and never looked back.
Published as Jenn Marie Thorne, Jenn debuted in 2015 with The Wrong Side of Right, an acclaimed YA contemporary novel set in the world of presidential politics. Two YA novels followed, advocacy comedy The Inside of Out, and classical musician romance Night Music, as well as picture book Construction Zoo, inspired by playtimes with her two imaginative young sons.
In England, finding her footing as an expatriate among the rolling hills and roving cows of Minchinhampton while a pandemic closed borders around her, Jenn wrote Lute, her first horror novel and first work for adult readers.
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