Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben team up for "Gone Before Goodbye"

Reese Witherspoon is adding novelist to her résumé with "Gone Before Goodbye," a thriller co-written with bestselling author Harlan Coben that hits shelves Tuesday.

The collaboration pairs the Oscar-winning actress and book club founder with one of publishing's most successful thriller writers. It's Witherspoon's first novel and Coben's first time working with a co-author. 

Witherspoon said she contacted Coben, despite warnings from friends about his dark subject matter.

"In my mind, he is the greatest thriller writer there is right now," she said.

Coben, known for his twist endings, said he rarely collaborates but was intrigued when Witherspoon came to his New York apartment with her pitch.

"Immediately, I had a yellow legal pad out," Coben said. "We started going back and forth with ideas for three hours."

"Gone Before Goodbye" follows Army combat surgeon Maggie McCabe as she navigates an international conspiracy involving spies and deception while confronting serious personal problems.

"We really wanted this to be the book you take to bed at eleven o'clock and be like, 'Oh, I'll read for 10 minutes,' and the next thing you know, it's four in the morning," said Coben.

The protagonist represents Witherspoon's desire to create a female action hero comparable to James Bond or Jason Bourne.

"Why are there no female leads in any— always the girl in the bikini or the girl stirring her drink," she said. "But why shouldn't she be the Jason Bourne?"

Witherspoon drew on her parents' military medical backgrounds to develop McCabe's character. Her father served in the Air Force and her mother in the Air National Guard, both as medical professionals.

The authors hope to develop the book into a film or television series and envision multiple installments featuring McCabe.

"That's my biggest dream, that so many different women will play Maggie McCabe," Witherspoon said.

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• Reese Witherspoon