Every Taylor Jenkins Reid Book, Ranked—From 'Daisy Jones & the Six' to 'The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo'
There's a reason five of her books have hit 'The New York Times' Best Sellers list in the past six years.
These days, Taylor Jenkins Reid, better known to her fans as TJR, is a household name, landing on The New York Times Best Sellers list left and right.
However, her success didn't happen overnight. As Jenkins Reid told The Retaility, a former agent once suggested that a No. 1 hit might be beyond her reach, encouraging her to focus on “other goals.” Jenkins Reid focused on finding a new agent instead, and, in the past six years, five of her books have hit the Best Sellers list.
Her rise to the top was largely thanks to Booktok, which put Evelyn Hugo on the map four years after its 2017 release and helped it stay there for 75-plus weeks. “It took us probably two weeks to figure out how it had happened. Everyone kept going, ‘What led to this bump?’” Jenkins Reid later told the Associated Press.
She has since continued to delight fans with her women-centric works, often interweaving real-life muses (ahem, Stevie Nicks in Daisy Jones & the Six) into her art. “I write books for people who want to read books about women,” she told The Times.
With her latest novel, Atmosphere, out now, we’re taking a look back at TJR’s finest, from her very first novel about a tragic love lost (“If I don’t cry when I finish the end of a book, I know I’ve made a wrong turn,” Jenkins Reid told The Cut) to the one she swore would be her last nod to female celebrities.
Rather than reading them all in order, starting with Forever, Interrupted (2013) and making your through After I Do (2014), then Maybe in Another Life (2015), One True Loves (2016), The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo ( 2017), Evidence of the Affair (2018), Daisy Jones & The Six (2019), Malibu Rising (2021) and Carrie Soto Is Back (2022), we suggest you tackle Reid’s novels in ranked order. Below, find the best Taylor Jenkins Reid books.
Forever, Interrupted was Jenkins Reid’s very first novel after she got her start writing short stories for her friends. (A meeting with Jennifer Aniston at her casting job at the time inspired her to do so—she told us so herself!) As is the case with many authors, fans of her more recent works may find themselves feeling lackluster about her initial offering: Some didn’t vibe with the couple at the heart of the book, Elsie and Ben, who marry before six months had passed, while others found their love–at-first-sight storyline a bit far-fetched. Most, however, simply find that Jenkins Reid has grown as a writer since, making her more recent works more palatable. Regardless of where this one falls on the greatness spectrum, however, most can agree that in true TJR fashion, it’s bound to provoke a tear or two. –Nicole Briese
If you’ve never read Jenkins Reid before, this is as good a place to start as any—it’s currently free for Prime members. It’s a short story, so you might not feel the full effect of her literary magic, but the plot centered on the correspondence between a man and a woman whose spouses are having an affair with each other, has a way of drawing you in and leaving you wanting more. It’s simpler than most TJR reads, but the emotions she's known for evoking through her work still come through loud and clear. –NB
At its core, One True Loves is a book about, well, love, but on the most complex level imaginable. Its heroine Emma has loved and lost, becoming a widower when her husband’s helicopter disappears over open water. After much heartbreak, she moves on with her life and falls in love anew—only to find out her husband’s still alive. If you’re having flashbacks to Cast Away, Jenkins Reid’s husband, Alex, did too, to which she retorted, “Yes, but none of the boring island life and everything happening at home with Helen Hunt.” In a real full circle moment, Jenkins Reid co-wrote the script for the 2023 film version of the book with her husband. –NB
If you're looking for a unique take on relationships, this certainly fits the bill: It explores what happens when a longtime married couple decides to separate for a year to see if they can find their way back to each other. Both engaging and heartfelt, it’s not a bad read, but some readers have criticized the parts that aren’t there—namely, the deep inner character work that such an agreement would require of husband and wife duo Ryan and Lauren. That said, it’s probably a lot more lighthearted and entertaining than it would have been had Jenkins Reid chosen to go deep on the therapeutic front. –NB
Of all her older novels, Maybe in Another Life, released in 2015, holds a special place in readers’ hearts. Maybe it’s the not-so-subtle references to the ‘90s classic Sliding Doors or the sweet love story between Hannah and her high school boyfriend Ethan, which plays out in two alternate realities, but either way, Jenkins Reid struck a serious chord with this one. “I've always been very fascinated with the concepts of fate/chance and the butterfly effect,” she said of its premise on Goodreads. “I was obsessed with the movie Sliding Doors as a teenager and I'd always had in my mind that I wanted to explore a similar idea.” We're so glad she did! –NB
Jenkins Reid's latest sucked me in with its setting—NASA in the '80s, the protagonist an ordinary astrophysicist turned space pioneer—but stole my heart with its love stories. Not just the love story at the center of this book (no spoilers!), but the love story between Joan and her young niece, for whom she serves as a de facto parent. Though slightly heavy on the mechanics of space, especially in the first half, I was almost in tears by the end. Deeply and unexpectedly moving. –Jenny Hollander
Some of Jenkins Reid's biggest hits are those inspired by real-life people, and Carrie Soto Is Back is no exception. Carrie Soto is a tennis champ who comes out of retirement to settle a score with the newcomer who broke her record. In real life, Jenkins Reid drew upon the lives of pros such as Serena Williams, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal, and their interactions with each other to craft her heroine and her relationship with her on-court nemesis. "[They are] these rivals who treat each other with respect, but arguably are equally good,” Jenkins Reid explained to Vanity Fair. According to the author's Instagram, an adaptation of the film is in the works, but casting details are still slim. –NB
Malibu Rising will soon be getting its made-for-TV makeover, this time on Hulu, with Jenkins Reid on board as executive producer. It focuses on the Rivas family, led by patriarch rock star Mick Rivas (who curiously appears in several of Jenkins Reids’ novels), and the secrets they hold. All their private matters come to the surface over one eye-opening evening in which their family mansion curiously went up in flames. Fans of mysteries won't be able to put this one down, and long-time TJR fans will revel in the cameos of characters from her other works. –NB
Anyone who’s ever seen footage of the legendary 1997 Fleetwood Mac “Silver Springs” performance has had a front-row seat into Jenkins Reid’s headspace while writing Daisy Jones & the Six. Written as an oral history, the novel tells the story of a former chart-topping band through the eyes of its members and those in their orbit. More than simply chronicling their meteoric rise to fame, it examines the budding relationship between singers Daisy Jones (played by Riley Keough in the Prime Video series adaptation produced by Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine) and Billy Dunne (played by Sam Claflin) and the struggles they face as they try to balance between their lives on the road with the ones they live back at home. Need more convincing that it's one of Jenkin Reid's very best? Ask Stevie Nicks, who loved the show so much that she watched it twice. The rock icon wrote via Instagram, “It brought back memories that made me feel like a ghost watching my own story. It was very emotional.” –NB
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is arguably Jenkins Reid's most popular novel, taking its inspiration from Old Hollywood icon Ava Gardner’s biography. Like Gardner, who was married three times, including once to Frank Sinatra, protagonist Evelyn is a top-billed actress in the Golden Age of Hollywood whose love life makes the headlines just as often as her mesmerizing onscreen performances. Her husbands mark the chapters of her life, coming and going with the seasons. But while Evelyn’s romances play out in the papers for all the world to see, she guards deeper secrets behind closed doors—until now, as she’s spilling them all for her autobiography.
Already read this one? Get ready for a new spin on it; it’s been picked up for a film adaptation by Netflix. There’s no word on casting, but Russian Doll’s Leslye Headland is set to helm the project with Jenkins Reid on tap as an exec producer. –NB
