Reese Witherspoon’s latest book club pick is Ana Reyes’ The House in the Pines.
Reyes’ thriller, published Tuesday by Dutton, tells the story of a woman who believes that a friend’s death years before was the result of murder—and discovers that the friend’s boyfriend at the time has been linked to other mysterious deaths.
Witherspoon announced the novel’s selection on Instagram, calling it “an absolute, can’t-put-it-down thriller” and “a wild ride that had me flying through chapter after chapter.”
“It had me guessing,” Witherspoon said in a video accompanying the post. “And like all amazing thrillers, it has a crazy twist that I can’t tell you, because it will give the whole thing away.”
In an interview with The Mystery of Writing, Reyes said her novel was inspired by a cabin that she’s been thinking about for a long time.
“The house in the book is one I’ve been writing about since I was 11,” she said. “It appeared in the first story I ever wrote and has been haunting my pages ever since. The book is my exploration of that house, both as a place and a symbol.”
Reyes reacted to her book’s selection on Instagram, writing, “I don’t have the words right now for how thrilled and honored I am to make this announcement.…I’ll be thanking a lot of people in the coming days but for now I just want to send out a giant hug to everyone who’s supported this book over the years it took me to write. I couldn’t have done it without you.”
Michael Schaub, a journalist and regular contributor to NPR, lives near Austin, Texas.
