Reese Witherspoon vows to ‘thrill’ fans in first book with author Harlan Coben

Oscar-winning actress Reese Witherspoon is teaming up with a best-selling author on her first work of adult fiction.

The Legally Blonde and Big Little Lies star is working with thriller writer and Netflix producer-creator Harlan Coben on a suspense novel, Grand Central Publishing said.

The book, currently untitled, is scheduled for autumn next year and is being developed out of an idea that Witherspoon came up with.

“To say I am a fan of Harlan’s body of work is a massive understatement,” Witherspoon said in a statement issued through Grand Central, an imprint of Hachette Book Group.

“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.”

Coben has sold tens of millions of books worldwide, his notable works including the Myron Bolitar series and standalone novels such as Hold Tight and Fool Me Once, which he helped produce for Netflix.

In a statement on Wednesday, he praised Witherspoon for her “unrivalled” storytelling instincts.

“Once we began discussing her idea, there was no turning back,” he said. “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.”

Witherspoon is not the first screen performer to collaborate with a prominent fiction writer.

Oscar winner Viola Davis is working with James Patterson on a novel about a black female judge in the rural South.

Witherspoon is directly involved in another notable pairing, as she and her media company, Hello Sunshine, are set to produce a film adaptation of the Patterson-Dolly Parton novel Run, Rose, Run.