Member Reviews

Both the synopsis and the cover of this novel had me eager to dive in. Maya is in high school when her best friend suddenly drops dead for no apparent reason. Haunted by the memories of the untimely death, Maya spirals into addiction in order to cope. Years later, a YouTube video shatters her semblance of normalcy and plunges her headfirst back into her trauma.

Sounds great, right? There is so much potential here, but for me, it fell flat. The storyline of the mysterious death, coping through addiction, and the spiraling from trauma ALL peaked my interest. My issue is with Frank and the house in the pines. Separately, I like both storylines. However, combined together, they just don't fit right for me. It just seems to be disjointed. Is it a mental health crisis ....is it supernatural? It it both? To be honest, I'm not completely sure.

I do think there will be plenty of people who love this book. I WANTED to be one of them. I may re read this one because I truly believe there is potential here. I feel like maybe the connection is deeper, and at the time, I only gave heed to what was on the surface

As always. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

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DNFing at 34%

I kept putting this off due to low reviews but decided to give it a chance. Unfortunately I will not be finishing this title.

First of all, the twist is painfully obvious. Second of all, the book is focusing on the past way too much and it’s adding nothing to the story. My current chapter just had a flashback within a flashback.

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I have began and stopped reading The House in the Pines couple times now. I am not sure I am the right fit for the book. After reading a review of a trusted reviewer, I think I will DNF based on the author using the trope of another woman with a pill problem.

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A mesmerizing story that draws you in and keeps you trapped in its world. Maya is haunted by the mysterious death of her best friend that was witnessed by her ex. Except she's positive he is the one who caused it, she can't prove how. Seven years later, she is dealing with a prescription addiction, a new death her ex was present for, and trying to understand herself. It is a beautiful, haunting debut with rich characters, back story, and an excellent suspense novel.

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This book was kind of a struggle to get through, to be honest. I wanted to like it, but it was rough. I was really confused with the back and forth between timelines and I felt that it wasn’t smooth and was constantly unclear as to what timeline was what. The reader didn’t give a shit about Frank because the author didn’t give him any redeeming qualities so I wasn’t sure why we were even supposed to like him. The whole fathers book thing and Guatemala seemed forced and totally not related to the rest of the story. And the actual “thriller” part wasn’t that thrilling or surprising. Pretty disappointed.

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This is a wild ride. There were a lot of "wait, WHAT?" kinds of plot twists, but these types of books are extremely popular these days. I would recommend this one to any fans of Megan Miranda or Riley Sager.

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The House in the Pines is everything you want in a thriller: fast-paced storyline, likable but somewhat unreliable protagonist, and a mystery that paces itself to be revealed. It is a hard book to put down. I love Reyes’s take on the “cabin in the woods” trope. It feels wholly original and surprising. There are some lovely magical realism touches through out that add to the mystery. The reader gets to question whether the mystery lies in the supernatural, or if there is a rational explanation for what is happening to these women who seemingly drop dead in the presence of Frank. While it will keep you guessing until the end, the story is not left open-ended. The House in the Pines is a quick read perfect for unwinding at the end of a long week.

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I thought this was a good debut book. It seemed to be trying to do too much at one time though - the timelines were a little disjointed, and I found myself a little confused while reading. I also found myself much preferring one timeline over another. However, with all that said, I thought the premise was interesting. I would definitely be excited to see where this author goes next!

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Loved this book! I recommend it to anyone who likes hometown thrillers. The twist at the end really stuck the landing for me.

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🌲 Book Review: The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes


When Maya was in high school, her friend Aubrey died in front of her and her boyfriend. Frank said he didn't do anything and didn't know what happened, but Maya knew something was off. A few years later, when Maya is an adult, she sees a video of a woman who dies suddenly in front of a man in a diner, and that man is Frank. Maya needs to find out what happened. How could two women just die in front of Frank like this?

The story continues, switching back and forth between the current day and the history of Maya and Frank: how they met, their relationship, and how it ends. I could not for the life of me figure out what the twist was in this book. I found myself feverishly reading so I could finally know what was going on. This book was different from a lot of thrillers I have read, which was a refreshing change considering I could not figure out the ending! It's definitely an interesting one and a book you should pick up if you're a thriller fan looking for a different type of story line.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you Penguin Group Dutton and @NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

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This book was certainly different than books I have read before! I was definitely expecting some sort of mystery but I didn't see the end coming until much later on which I did like about this book.

Maya's friend Aubrey dropped dead in front of her in high school right in front of this mystery man named Frank they had met that summer. Maya and Frank had formed a connection until Maya started to feel quite uneasy around him. The past comes rushing back to her as an adult when she sees a video of another girl dropping dead in front of someone that looks a lot like Frank. Maya spends her time back in her hometown trying to figure out this mystery before it happens to someone else.

This was definitely a unique read and I did reach a point in the book where I could not put it down. The writing was well done and I could visualize a lot of the places mentioned in the book as well. One of the things that was not my favourite was that the characters were not the most relatable. I didn't really feel a connection to any of them and I found that they didn't have the character qualities that I look for. The other thing missing for me was the ending. It felt a little bit rushed by the time it got to the end and I was hoping for more interaction between the main characters especially because of the suspense as we start to find out the mystery of Frank.

I would still recommend this read because of the uniqueness of it and the way I couldn't put it down because the story had a really good hook on me!

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Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Here it goes…

Short and sweet.

No.

The premise of this book is so intriguing, but the way it was told was incredibly painful. I cannot tell you the number of times I fell asleep trying to read this book. I absolutely hate that I didn’t enjoy this as I loved the cover, synopsis, and I know this is the authors debut. However, It was so difficult to get through for me and I NEVER wanted to pick it up. The way it was told was confusing at times, jumping around in timelines, I couldn’t stand any of the characters, and the “twist”, just wasn’t it. I truly hope this author is able to learn from all the reviews on this one and write a killer sophomore novel. I would definitely read it because I think she has something.

I have been so disappointed by thrillers released this year 😔.

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Ok, WOW!!! This is a debut novel for this author, and holy smokes does she knock it out of the park!! Definitely a psychological thriller. Maya witnessed her best friend die in front of her. She always felt something was off about her death, which happened in front of an older man both girls knew as Frank. Now older, as Maya struggles to heal from this traumatic experience, she sees a news clip of a young girl who also died suddenly while in the company of the same man. Maya feels she must investigate this death, but she has holes and lapses in her memory, unsure of what is real and not. I felt like the book was a little slow to pick up, but once it does, you are in for one heck of a ride! Alternates in present and past. Highly recommend this one; the ending will almost certainly leave you shocked .

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This book is a great read. A phycological thriller that leaves you astonished. Reyes does a wonderful job at keeping you feeling like you need to watch your every step. Definitely going to read again!

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Maya had been addicted to alcohol and Klonopin for the several years, in fact, ever since her best friend suddenly dropped dead in front of her ex-boyfriend, Frank..

Now she's in serious withdrawal, and experiencing hallucinations, insomnia, and paranoia; so when she sees a YouTube video one night with another woman suddenly dropping dead in front of, who she believes, is Frank AGAIN, she's determined to figure out why. So Maya returns home determined to figure out what Frank is doing to these women, and we're led into a bumpy ride between the past and the present.

I really like the fact that our narrator was pretty unreliable and fuzzy; I think it makes for a better 'what am I to believe' factor, but there were indeed a few plots holes that could have been filled it for me. The ending seemed a little rushed, but a lot of them do. Overall, I definitely enjoyed this book and will read her again!

Thank you to NetGalley, Ana Reyes, and Penguin Group Dutton for this enjoyable debut!

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There’s an excellent plot twist in addition to an unreliable narrator. The characters could have used a little more developing, but it’s a great and entertaining read.

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A strange, twisty dark interesting story. Thank you net galley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for a honest review.

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Reese Witherspoon books are always popular, but this one fell flat. It was predictable and wouldn't lead to a great discussion at a book club.

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This book was difficult to get into and not much of a thriller . It found it boring and difficult to follow with not a lot of character development

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This one was okay - I'm a little tired of the unreliable thriller heroine that's substance-dependent, and the ending wasn't worth it for me to look past that.

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