In Her Defense

A celebrity trial drives Philippa Malicka's debut psychological thriller. Anna Finbow, a wealthy television star much loved by the public, claims that her daughter Mary has been brainwashed by the therapist Jean Guest. Jean answers that Mary's trauma stems from her upbringing and from a turbulent spell at an art school in Rome, and that the memories surfacing in therapy are real. On the edge of the case stands Augusta Bird, known as Gus, who once worked for Anna and holds evidence that could make or break it, though telling what she knows could ruin her own life. The novel sets courtroom drama against questions of memory and whom to believe.

Reese Witherspoon picked it for Reese's Book Club in February 2026.