Maya is trying to come to terms with not only seeing her best friend drop to her unexplained death at 17, and present day,  seeing a video of a woman dying the same way as her best friend years ago. The only other similarity in these deaths is her ex-boyfriend Frank. Who will believe her? Maya is keeping her prescription drug usage a secret from her now boyfriend Dan who is clueless as to what she’s dealing with until she shows him the video. Is it real, or is it fake? Is she suffering from mental health like her aunt years ago and her mom and doctors thought? Will someone, anyone believe her story, finally, or is she delusional? These were my thoughts as I read…

While reading this book I felt I was being taken on a crazy whirlwind of events. Each chapter flip-flops from past to present. Is it a dream, all in her head? Is it a reality? I will say, the way the story is set up, it gave the feeling of how Maya must have felt within her head. I felt a bit dizzy trying to figure out what was going on in this story. Part of me felt it was a bit predictable, but then I questioned if my thoughts were right. I suppose this is what a psychological thriller is supposed to feel like, right? All twists and turns! If so, it did its job on that front… However, I did, at times, feel like the story was a bit disjointed and too choppy. With the flip-flopping of the chapters from past to present I had to figure out where in Maya’s time period I was. It wasn’t until about 75% I was able to get my bearings and figure out what was going on. That’s when the story started to take flight for me. The last 25% was where the story had my mouth dropped when it revealed what was happening now and in the past.

Looking for a psychological thriller/murder to take you on a spinning tale, be sure to add this one to your TBR! It is most certainly a ride!

I had a hard time getting into this book. At times the narrative was pretty slow. I never really warmed up to Maya. I never considered the angle the author used to describe how two people died while in the presence of Frank.
That part of the book was intriguing.

Creep-tastic! I really liked this book - all the way up until the end. I loved the revelation/twist in the plot. I can't say much more than that because it would be a spoiler ;). I was a little disappointed in the ending. I'm usually a fan of "cliff hanger" and "vague" endings, but this one ended so abruptly I had to go back and re-read it just to make sure I didn't miss something. Maybe the author is leaving the gap open for a sequel. I'm not sure. If that's the case, then I can definitely see why it ended the way it ended. If not, then I was left wanting more. Overall, solid thriller and I highly recommend.

A young women is being hunted by her past and struggling to overcome her addiction to prescription pills. I finished the book and was hoping there would be a plausible explanation to everything that happened but the conclusion just didn't work for me.

Maya is coming off a Kolonapin addiction by abusing alcohol and is suffering withdrawals. Her boyfriend Dan is oblivious. After Maya vomits publicly at Dan’s mother’s birthday party, Maya slips off in the early morning to return home to her mother’s house in the Berkshires of Massachusetts. Maya has seen a viral video of a woman who suspiciously dies in the presence of her ex-boyfriend, Frank. Coincidentally, Maya’s high school best friend also dropped dead in Frank’s presence. She’s determined to figure out how Frank killed these women.

Part of the book is told in flashbacks. There is a subplot that made no sense to me.
Maya goes to Guatemala for the first time to mourn the passing of her grandmother who she never met. Maya’s mother, Brenda, was in Guatemala for a month when she became pregnant with the son’s child. Then, he died a few weeks later in a political protest.

Fast forward to crime solving Maya: Apparently, the dad was writing a story and in some way it is helpful to her in solving the Frank mystery, but this was beyond confusing to me. I have no idea what this was all about.

Wow what a ride! I admit I didnt expect the twist. It was such a fun read. But, it felt bland at the middle of the book, as the plot went back and forth with the timeline, and it wasnt mentioned when the timeline is referring to. So it can get confusing to some readers. There are also a lot of fillers that I feel like didnt matter that much into the plot, but was fun to read regardless. And the most interesting and chilling part happened at 90% of the book, so it took me quite a while to finally immersed in the book. Overall, it was a good read 🙌

This book will put you under its spell. With its hypnotic and mesmerizing descriptions and details. The main character is well formed and has a past that keeps haunting her. Never leaving her subconscious, always scratching away at the back of her mind. Maya has grown up in a small town in Massachusetts, her best friend Aubrey always by her side. Her father has always been someone she wants to know more about. A writer from Guatemala, who started a book and was unable to finish. Has left Maya scrambling to learn more about him through the weaving of his magical tale. She is spending hours translating it at the local library, where Frank works. Even though she only has two weeks before she leaves for her first year of college, she cannot get enough of this enticing man. She loses time when she looks into the depths of his eyes. When Aubrey finally meets Frank, she suddenly dies. There is no apparent reason, she is just gone. The way in which she passed has left a gaping hole within Maya. She knows that it is somehow connected to Frank, but how? When a video is released of another woman dying in the same way as Aubrey, Maya knows she needs to uncover the truth. It is not just some random woman, the woman is sitting across from you guessed it, Frank!

The House in the Pines is a fast-paced book that will have you sitting on the edge of your seat. I did uncover what happened early on, but the story is unique enough to keep you riveted. You will want to know the key to this story and what exactly is going on. Thank you to Ana Reyes and Dutton for my gifted copy.

This month I have read so many wonderful psychological thrillers and The House In The Pines by @anareyeswriter is on that list! Ana took her MFA thesis and turned it into this debut novel. The main character, Maya, watched her best friend drop dead at the age of 17 and Maya is convinced that she was murdered. However, no one at the time believes her and labels her “crazy.” Seven years later, another girl drops dead in the presence of the man her best friend was talking to when her death occurred and Maya becomes determined to prove both were murdered.

This was a solid debut novel that weaved magical realism, Guatemalan folklore, and a suspenseful story together.

Thank you @netgalley and @duttonbooks for allowing me to read this book ahead of publication in exchange for my honest review.

I actually really liked The House in the Pines and I normally hate when any thriller main character takes any sort of pills or drinks too much. It’s a huge trope in the genre and it bugs me, but in Maya’s case, I felt like she wasn’t being an unreliable narrator. Instead, she knew her history was going to be a problem and knew that’s why no one believed her. I wasn’t sure if I believed her, either, but at least she was honest about not really knowing what was real. I appreciated that in a genre over saturated with FMCs who are so certain, yet mix their pills with wine and don’t seem to be self aware that maybe they are hallucinating.
I liked Maya and her story, the flashbacks to the past, and her broken relationships with people. I felt like, even though I could relate, I was eager to hear her story and find out how on earth this person was somehow responsible for something so bizarre as what happened in the video.
I loved the way it ended and admit I didn’t see it coming, although I knew something was going on and I was sure Frank was involved in some way. I like the way that the book continued and talked about Frank’s father and didn’t just end with a twist like “gotcha! Bye!”
My only criticism is that it should have been called The Cabin in the Pines.
I definitely recommend this one if you’re in the mood for a thriller involving past trauma and a sort of reliable unreliable narrator.

This book was not for me. The narrator was so unreliable that the big reveal was entirely unbelievable and dissatisfying. I *did* enjoy the folklore and connection to Guatemalan heritage, it added a lot to the book and kept me reading. Overall though this is 3 stars- not for me, maybe for you.

Maya has been mourning the death of her best friend, Aubrey for several years, when she finally decides to return to her hometown to find answers on Aubrey’s death. Maya is suffering from drug withdrawal, and her memories are faded. She is convinced that there is more to Aubrey’s death than meets the eye, and she sets out on her own investigation. She starts to believe that a guy named Frank is responsible for Aubrey’s death, the same Frank that Maya once dated. In fact, a video surfaces that shows a woman drop dead while with Frank, and this sets off a whirlwind of events, but Maya wills stop at nothing to get to the bottom of these deaths that seem to center around Frank.

The premise for this sounded promising, and it was a fun read, but the twists were pretty predictable and the main character was highly unlikeable. I found that there was so much information thrown in within the first half of the book, and the flow seemed to be a bit all over the place, so I had a hard time focusing on this one.

Overall, this was a solid debut & worth the read, although I was hoping for more.


Thanks to the publisher for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!

Thanks to Netgalley and Dutton for providing a copy for an unbiased review. The book begins with Maya, in a relationship, newly living together with Dan, and she is going through withdraw from Klonopin, unbeknownst to her boyfriend. She has kept a lot of her upsetting backstory bottled up and taken medication to help keep it at bay. As things start to unravel in her mind she heads home to try to figure out how she can put her best friends death behind her and investigate a new death that happened in almost the exact same way. Is she taking on too much? Possibly, but she believes she needs to go back in order to move forward. This book goes back and forth between Maya's younger years and the current time. Things really pick up about halfway through and it becomes really hard to put this book down. Really good solid first book for Ana Reyes!

I was able to read "The House in the Pines" by Ana Reyes on NetGalley. This book kept me on the edge of my seat. It is the story of Maya, who is having some issues withdrawing from a medicine she was taking to help her sleep. She started taking it years earlier when her best friend died and she was sure it was something her boyfriend at the time did. Maya sees a video online and it brings everything rushing back to her and she decides to visit her mom to try and solve what is happening to these women. And try to keep her current relationship intact.

ARC BOOK REVIEW

The House in the Pines
By Ana Reyes

Publishing date: 1/3/2022

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Maya was a senior in highschool when her best friend mysteriously dropped dead in front of her summer fling, Frank. Now 7 years later, while trying to kick her klonipin addiction, Maya finds a YouTube video of another women who also died when talking to Frank. Even though both of their deaths were not rulled suspicious, Maya feels that Frank is common link between both women...but she is unsure how. Maya decides to head home and decides that making her way to Franks remote cabin in the woods will help her find the answers she is looking for.

REVIEW
I'll actually enjoyed this more than I originally anticipated!

I did have a hard time getting into the first 30-40% but I read the last 60 % in one sitting because I got SUCKED in! 

I am a hard judge on thrillers because I usually think they are kind of obvious but I thought this was a good twist!! Realistic? Ehhhhhhh. But it was a fun adventure and I even said "what the heck is happening?!?!" On a few occasions!

There was a few aspects that I didn't feel were necessary for the story but overall I enjoyed.

If you are looking for an upcoming psychological thriller, add this one to your #tbr!

Thanks to @netgalley and @duttonbooks for the chance to review thus title early!
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Maya is obsessed with finding out what really happened in a video she saw. It reminds her of how someone else died.
Maya bothered me, her drinking and drugs drove me crazy. The story flips back and forth which I found a bit annoying.. This just wasn’t my favorite book

I gave this book a solid 3 stars. Beautifully written, and twists I never saw. I absolutely loved the characters and plot. I wasn’t expecting the book to be, I guess what it was? If that makes sense. There is a bit of magical realism woven in, making things so much more fun to figure out.

This book kept me guessing until the very end! The plot twist was so good and the characters were so well developed. Loved it!

This was a middle of the road read for me so I’m just gonna tell you what I liked and what didn’t work for me and leave it there. I liked the setting, the culture, the folklore and the overall premise. There was definitely enough interesting elements that kept me reading, I never considered DNFing so I have to say I still liked parts. What I didn’t like was another woman with a pill problem can we just be done with that already? I feel like we can have an unreliable narrator without substance abuse. Things seemed to meander around about halfway through and I kept thinking, can we get to the point already? The ending/big reveal was also just ok for me. I wouldn’t even classify this as a thriller, I think calling it womens fiction with a side of suspense would be more accurate actually but not once did I feel like I was reading a thriller. All of that said I would try the author again knowing her style of suspense would be helpful and I think could make me like things more.

"The House in the Pines," was just OK for me. It wasn't really what I was expecting given the description and the hype surrounding the book.

Thank you NetGallery and Ms. Reyes for the opportunity to review "The House in the pines." I really enjoy a book that keeps me guessing and this book certainly does that. Right from the beginning you want to know more about what is happening. I think fans of Lisa Jewel will enjoy this book. The only thing that stopped me from giving it 5 stars was that I didn't feel like the ending gave closure. Even so this will definitely be a book that I will be recommending.