Review of The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes

I received a copy of this via NetGalley. All opinions are my own. 

Armed with only hazy memories, a woman who long ago witnessed her friend's sudden, mysterious death, and has since spent her life trying to forget, sets out to track down answers. What she uncovers, deep in the woods, is hardly to be believed....

Maya was a high school senior when her best friend, Aubrey, mysteriously dropped dead in front of the enigmatic man named Frank whom they'd been spending time with all summer.

Seven years later, Maya lives in Boston with a loving boyfriend and is kicking the secret addiction that has allowed her to cope with what happened years ago, the gaps in her memories, and the lost time that she can't account for. But her past comes rushing back when she comes across a recent YouTube video in which a young woman suddenly keels over and dies in a diner while sitting across from none other than Frank. Plunged into the trauma that has defined her life, Maya heads to her Berkshires hometown to relive that fateful summer--the influence Frank once had on her and the obsessive jealousy that nearly destroyed her friendship with Aubrey.

At her mother's house, she excavates fragments of her past and notices hidden messages in her deceased Guatemalan father's book that didn't stand out to her earlier. To save herself, she must understand a story written before she was born, but time keeps running out, and soon, all roads are leading back to Frank's cabin....

Utterly unique and captivating, The House in the Pines keeps you guessing about whether we can ever fully confront the past and return home.

My Review:

4 Stars

This book was trippy. It took me quite awhile to figure out exactly what was going on in the story. I like these kinds of books. Makes you think outside the box and is definitely not like others. 

Maya is a complex woman. She's in a loving relationship, but is hiding a secret addition. An addiction that she's used since the day that changed her life, but is fervently trying to kick in order to join the world fully. All of that is made a lot harder when her past is suddenly back in her present. 

She makes the journey home to try and piece together her fragmented past. Memories that seem lost, time that seems to have vanished and a man that Maya is determined to make accountable for his actions, whatever they may be. 

A truly unique story.