Ava Reid

Ava Reid (born 1996) is an American novelist, best known for her New York Times bestselling young adult debut A Study in Drowning.

Life Reid was born in Manhattan, New York, and grew up in Hoboken, New Jersey.

She attended Barnard College and has a degree in political science with a focus on religion and ethnonationalism. as well as near Columbia, Cambridge, and Stanford universities with her partner who is an academic. Her maternal family is Ukrainian Jewish. She is Jewish. Kirkus Reviews called it "compelling, complicated, and worthwhile," while also noting an overreliance on purple prose as well as muddled action scenes. Publishers Weekly called it a "notable debut."

Juniper and Thorn Set in the world of The Wolf and the Woodsman, Juniper and Thorn was inspired by the Grimms' fairy tale "The Juniper Tree".

A Study in Drowning Her third book, A Study in Drowning, was published by HarperTeen in 2023. It is a romantic dark academia young adult fantasy about two rivals who work together to uncover the mysterious legacy of an author. It is inspired by Welsh mythology.

It debuted at #1 on The New York Times Best Seller list on October 8, 2023. It received mixed reviews. Locus Magazine called it "intriguing, intelligent, and suspenseful" and it received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal.

It was criticized by The Michigan Daily for capitalizing on "the dark academia trend" while not adding anything new and having no clear message. Kirkus Reviews called the Welsh-inspired setting "impressively atmospheric" but wrote that the mythology felt "extraneous."

Lady MacBeth Lady MacBeth is described as a gothic feminist retelling of Shakespeare's play Macbeth centering the character of Lady Macbeth, first published by Del Rey Books on August 13, 2024.

A Theory of Dreaming A Theory of Dreaming is the direct sequel to A Study in Drowning, set in the aftermath of the first novel. It was published July 29, 2025. Reid described it as "more political" than the first book.

An Archive of Romance An Archive of Romance is a novella in the A Study in Drowning series. It was first published December 9, 2025.

Innamorata

Innamorata is the first book in The House of Teeth duology and was published on March 17, 2026. It received mixed reviews, with Publishers Weekly deeming it "disappointing" and "lack[ing] direction" while The Nerd Daily characterized it as "an incredibly thoughtful read" with a focus on the darker aspects of humanity.

Influences Reid has said that her style is inspired by Gothic fiction as well as works by Kelly Link, Carmen Maria Machado, and Helen Oyeyemi. Some of her favorite novels include Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle, the Gormenghast trilogy by Mervyn Peake, Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan, and The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal.