Reese Witherspoon to Write Debut Novel, Will Team With Harlan Coben for a Collaborative Suspense (original) (raw)
In addition to writing and publishing the novel, a screen adaptation is also in development.
Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images; hane Anthony Sinclair/Getty Images
Reese Witherspoon is adding “published author” to her résumé.
Ben Sevier, president & publisher of Grand Central Publishing, announced Wednesday the acquisition of a new suspense novel by Witherspoon and best-selling author and TV creator Harlan Coben.
The novel is Witherspoon’s debut and is based on her original idea. In addition to writing and publishing the novel, a screen adaptation is also in development.
Witherspoon said in a statement, “To say I am a fan of Harlan’s body of work is a massive understatement … the fact that he found my idea for this thriller intriguing enough to want to partner with me on it as co-author is a dream becoming a reality. Scheming with Harlan on how to thrill audiences with mysterious characters and complex narrative twists and turns has already been more fun than I can describe. I can’t wait for everyone to read what we have been imagining.”
“I’ve been a huge Reese Witherspoon fan for years,” Coben said. “Be it acting, producing, creating and even book-club selecting, Reese’s instincts about storytelling across all media are unrivaled. Once we began discussing her idea, there was no turning back. Collaborating with Reese has been a pure joy and so creatively rewarding. I could not be more excited about putting this novel out into the world.”
Despite this being her novel debut, Witherspoon is no stranger to the literary world. The actress and producer established the media brand Hello Sunshine, which promises to put women at the center of every story across all platforms, in 2016 and launched the successful Reese’s Book Club. Some of the books selected for the club have gone on to become best-sellers and/or adapted for the screen, including Daisy Jones & The Six, Little Fires Everywhere and From Scratch.
Witherspoon also took to Instagram to share the news, joking, “As a massive fan of Harlan’s work, I can’t believe he agreed to co-author a novel with me. I’m either the most persuasive person alive or the idea of this book is just TOO GOOD! Maybe both ??”
Sevier brokered the North American rights deal with Cait Hoyt at CAA for Witherspoon and Lisa Erbach Vance at the Aaron M. Priest Literary Agency for Coben. Century, a division of Penguin Random House UK, will publish simultaneously in the U.K. and Commonwealth (excluding Canada).
Harlan Coben and Reese Witherspoon Grand Central Publishing
Sevier said in a statement, “Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben working together is a powerhouse collaboration that I wouldn’t have dared to dream up. These two masters each possess a virtuoso command of character and an unrivaled reputation for suspense storytelling — across screen and page — and jaws hit the floor as they described their incredible idea to the publishing team at Grand Central. It is clear that their book will be supercharged by the combination of their enormous storytelling gifts. I am incredibly proud that these two authors chose GCP to shepherd their book into the world.”
In addition to being a best-selling author, Coben is the creator and executive producer of myriad television shows, including adaptations of Netflix’s Fool Me Once, Stay Close, The Stranger, The Innocent, Gone for Good, Hold Tight and The Woods, as well as the Prime Video series adaptation of Shelter. He is also set to have forthcoming TV series on Netflix (Missing You and Run Away) and Lazarus on Prime Video.
Witherspoon and Coben’s book will be published in fall 2025.
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