[3] After graduating from Barnard, Reid entered PitchWars, a pitch contest for unagented authors, eventually securing agent representation and selling her first novel, The Wolf and the Woodsman.
[1] Reid says her style is inspired by Gothic literature as well as works by Kelly Link, Carmen Maria Machado, and Helen Oyeyemi.
[8] Some of her favorite novels include Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle, which she collects copies of, and the Gormenghast trilogy by Mervyn Peake, as well as Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan and The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal.
[7] Her debut novel, published by HarperVoyager, tells the story of a woman surrendered as blood sacrifice for their king, but survives the attack.
[4] She was inspired to write the novel after reading an anecdote about Saint Stephen, the first Christian king of Hungary, who had his nephew and heir apparent’s eyes stabbed because he didn't want pagans to inherit the throne.
[9] Kirkus Reviews called it "Compelling, complicated, and worthwhile," while also noting an overreliance on purple prose as well as muddled action scenes.
Locus Magazine called it "intriguing, intelligent, and suspenseful"[15] and it received a starred review from Publishers Weekly[16] and School Library Journal.