Authors Like Taylor Jenkins Reid: 6 Writers to Read Next

Taylor Jenkins Reid became a publishing phenomenon by writing irresistible novels about complicated, unforgettable women — a reclusive film legend, a self-destructing rock band, a tennis champion, a surfing dynasty. Her books pair vivid settings (old Hollywood, the 1970s music scene, Malibu) with deep emotional stakes and a documentary intimacy that makes them perfect for book clubs and impossible to put down. If you have read everything from The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo to Daisy Jones and the Six and need somewhere to go next, these six authors deliver different parts of her magic.

Below are the writers who each capture a key element of the Reid experience, with a starting point for each.

What Makes a Taylor Jenkins Reid Read-Alike

Reid’s appeal rests on a few pillars. There is the unforgettable woman at the centre of each book. There is the vivid setting — a specific era or world rendered in loving detail. There is the emotional gut-punch, the late turn that makes readers cry. And there is the book-club readability — propulsive, discussable, hard to stop. Most read-alikes lean into one or two of these, so the best pick depends on which kept you turning pages.

It also helps to know whether you read Reid more for the history or the heart. Some of her books are period pieces about ambition and fame; others are really love stories. The authors below split the same way — Kristin Hannah and Bonnie Garmus on the historical, character-study side, Colleen Hoover and Jojo Moyes on the emotional, romance side, with Delia Owens and Emily Henry bridging the two.

Bonnie Garmus — The Unforgettable Woman

For Reid’s gift of a singular, fierce heroine in a richly drawn era, Bonnie Garmus is the closest match. Lessons in Chemistry follows a brilliant 1960s chemist forced into a TV cooking show, who turns it into a quiet revolution. Witty, moving, and powered by an unforgettable woman fighting her moment, it is exactly the kind of book Evelyn Hugo fans adore.

Kristin Hannah — The Historical Heart

Kristin Hannah writes sweeping, emotional historical fiction about women tested by their times. The Women, about a nurse in the Vietnam War and the country that failed her on return, has Reid’s blend of vivid period detail and devastating emotional payoff. For readers who love the historical depth beneath Reid’s glamour, Hannah is essential.

Colleen Hoover — The Emotional Intensity

Colleen Hoover matches Reid’s ability to wreck a reader emotionally. It Ends With Us pairs a love story with difficult, important subject matter, building to the kind of gut-punch Reid specialises in. For Reid fans who read her mainly for the feelings, Hoover is the obvious next stop — see our authors like Colleen Hoover guide for more.

Jojo Moyes — The Tearjerker

Jojo Moyes is the gold standard for the emotional love story. Me Before You is one of the most-cried-over novels of the century, built on an impossible choice. If you read Reid for the romance and the heartbreak, Moyes delivers both with elegance and warmth.

Delia Owens — The Book-Club Phenomenon

Delia Owens wrote one of the defining book-club novels of recent years. Where the Crawdads Sing blends a coming-of-age story, a murder mystery, and lush nature writing into something readers devour and discuss. It shares Reid’s atmospheric pull and her knack for a heroine you cannot forget.

Emily Henry — The Contemporary Wit

For Reid’s lighter, contemporary side, Emily Henry is the perfect fit. Beach Read pairs two rival writers in a summer of slow-burn tension, with the warmth, wit, and emotional honesty Reid brings to her present-day stories. A great choice for readers who want the heart with a sunnier touch.

Where to Begin Your Stack

A word on building a to-be-read pile. Most of these authors, like Reid herself, write standalone novels rather than series, so you can dive in anywhere — but each has a defining book that makes the ideal entry point, and the titles above are chosen as exactly those gateways. If a particular Reid novel was your favourite, let it guide you. Readers who loved the old-Hollywood glamour and ambition of Evelyn Hugo tend to click with Garmus and Hannah; those who came for the music and the messy, contradictory relationships of Daisy Jones often prefer Moyes and Hoover; and anyone who simply loved how fast the pages turned will feel at home with Owens and Henry. The throughline across all six is a woman you cannot stop thinking about long after the last page — which is, in the end, the Reid signature, and the surest sign you have found the right next book.

How to Choose Your Next Read

If you read Taylor Jenkins Reid for the unforgettable woman, start with Bonnie Garmus. For the historical heart, read Kristin Hannah. For the emotional gut-punch, go to Colleen Hoover or Jojo Moyes. For the book-club magic, read Delia Owens. And for the contemporary wit, read Emily Henry.

What unites them is Reid’s central gift: making you fall completely for a woman and her world, then breaking your heart on the way out. For more, our Taylor Jenkins Reid books in order guide, our Evelyn Hugo vs Daisy Jones comparison, and our best books for book clubs roundup are the ideal next stops. Pick the writer who matches whatever you loved most, and your next unputdownable read is waiting.