Book Summary and Reviews of The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes

Book Summary

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, 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.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. Maya shies away from true intimacy by withholding important information from Dan. How does finally telling the truth about her alcohol dependence and Klonopin withdrawal, as well as Aubrey's death and her suspicions about Frank, change Maya's relationship with Dan?
2. Maya's experience with addiction ranges from always liking "a good buzz, ever since the first time [Aubrey] swiped a pint of her mom's vodka and they drank it stirred into Sunny D" to rationalizing "her dependence in so many ways, telling herself it wasn't a lie, just an omission; that she kept the pills in an aspirin bottle for convenience, not to hide them." How does Maya's dependence on various substances serve to keep her isolated in her adult life?
3. Dr. ...